The vast majority of teachers are professionals dedicated to help their student do well. Unfortunately, so many teachers have to work under very difficult circumstances and under high pressure. They do not only teach. They also have to perform many admin duties, attend numerous meetings, write reports and become involved in other school activities. They have very little time to attend courses or seminars. Thankfully, by leading instructional rounds experienced educators can help their colleagues to improve professionally.
It is truly easy to implement this system. En experienced teacher act as leader and gather a small group of less experienced teachers to visit the classroom of an esteemed colleague to see how he teaches. The purpose of the observation session is solely to learn from that teacher. The observers do not participate in the class in any way and nobody is forced to be part of the system.
Before every observation session, the group leader convenes a meeting where objectives for the forthcoming session is set. The idea is to learn and the objectives therefore focus on the strong points of the teacher that will be under observation. A teacher may be well know, for example, to get his students to enthusiastically participate in class. The observers will then try to learn how he does that.
It is very important to note that these observation sessions do not contain even the smallest element of evaluation. The observers are not there to criticize, to judge or to comment, but rather to learn from an esteemed colleague. The students in the class are informed about the purpose of the visit. After the session, the observers never give feedback to the teacher that they observed either.
The leader of the observers will chair another meeting soon after the observation session. This time the purpose of the meeting is to compare notes. No criticism is allowed. Instead, observers share with each other the lessons that they have learnt and their ideas on how to implement them in their own classrooms. This meeting is deemed to be confidential and no report is ever submitted.
Ever since its inception observer sessions have been very popular. Those participating say that they benefit enormously. They not only learn from their colleagues but they also get the rare chance to interact with fellow teachers. They learn from the sessions, but they also learn from the feedback of their fellow observers during the meeting after the session. The system has been implemented in numerous schools and many colleges are following suit.
There are always cynics and critics. They say that these observation sessions are useless because they are too short, far too informal and the fact that no feedback is given means that there is no measurable outcome. They also say that those teachers under observation never teach the way they always do because they want to impress their colleagues. This, they say, nullifies the entire purpose of the system.
Observation sessions are easy to implement and they do not cost anything. If they help teachers to remain motivated and to learn from each other, they should be encouraged. Every effort to improve the quality of education is worth it. Everybody benefits from even the smallest improvements in the overall system.
It is truly easy to implement this system. En experienced teacher act as leader and gather a small group of less experienced teachers to visit the classroom of an esteemed colleague to see how he teaches. The purpose of the observation session is solely to learn from that teacher. The observers do not participate in the class in any way and nobody is forced to be part of the system.
Before every observation session, the group leader convenes a meeting where objectives for the forthcoming session is set. The idea is to learn and the objectives therefore focus on the strong points of the teacher that will be under observation. A teacher may be well know, for example, to get his students to enthusiastically participate in class. The observers will then try to learn how he does that.
It is very important to note that these observation sessions do not contain even the smallest element of evaluation. The observers are not there to criticize, to judge or to comment, but rather to learn from an esteemed colleague. The students in the class are informed about the purpose of the visit. After the session, the observers never give feedback to the teacher that they observed either.
The leader of the observers will chair another meeting soon after the observation session. This time the purpose of the meeting is to compare notes. No criticism is allowed. Instead, observers share with each other the lessons that they have learnt and their ideas on how to implement them in their own classrooms. This meeting is deemed to be confidential and no report is ever submitted.
Ever since its inception observer sessions have been very popular. Those participating say that they benefit enormously. They not only learn from their colleagues but they also get the rare chance to interact with fellow teachers. They learn from the sessions, but they also learn from the feedback of their fellow observers during the meeting after the session. The system has been implemented in numerous schools and many colleges are following suit.
There are always cynics and critics. They say that these observation sessions are useless because they are too short, far too informal and the fact that no feedback is given means that there is no measurable outcome. They also say that those teachers under observation never teach the way they always do because they want to impress their colleagues. This, they say, nullifies the entire purpose of the system.
Observation sessions are easy to implement and they do not cost anything. If they help teachers to remain motivated and to learn from each other, they should be encouraged. Every effort to improve the quality of education is worth it. Everybody benefits from even the smallest improvements in the overall system.
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