Teaching as a career has seen many changes over the past few decades. Modern teachers are under tremendous pressure. They have to plan their lessons, teach and be involved in sport, culture and other extra curricular activities. On top of all these responsibilities they are expected to manage many administrative responsibilities too. Teachers simply do not have the time to enrol for courses in order to improve on a professional level. With instructional school rounds teachers at least get the chance to learn from respected colleagues.
The system has been designed to afford teachers the opportunity to learn from colleagues that are more experienced and who have proven themselves. It is a simple system that can be implemented at any school. A few teachers gather and then attend a class presented by a well respected colleague. The purpose of the exercise is to learn from that teacher under observation. At present participation is voluntary.
Observers always meet before any observation session. The goal is to decide upon the focus of the session. On most cases the teacher under observation has achieved excellent results and may be know for successfully employing certain teaching methods or techniques. This will become the focus of the observers. They see how a colleague use those techniques and they devise ways to incorporate new methods in their own classes.
It is important to note that these sessions never include any form of evaluation whatsoever. This is even made clear to the students attending the class. The sole purpose of any observation session is to learn from the teacher giving the lesson. It is for this reason that no feedback is given after the session, unless the teacher under observation specifically requests such feedback.
The observer teachers have a second meeting after the session. This time they discuss the lessons that they have learnt. They also discuss ideas on how to implement those new ideas in their own classrooms. During this meeting no observer is allowed to utter any form of criticism. They do not submit a report and the entire proceedings is deemed to be confidential.
Observation sessions have quickly gain popularity in many schools, colleges and universities. It is a practical and economical way in which to give educators the chance to develop on a professional level. Teachers are overwhelmingly positive about the system and say that they learn a lot from their colleagues. Being chosen to volunteer to be observed is considered an honour. All parties therefore benefit from such sessions.
Critics of colleague observation sessions say that it is a waste of time. The sessions are far too short and teachers under observation do not act or teach as they normally do. Instead, they go to ridiculous lengths to make an impression upon their observer colleagues and in the process they make it impossible for observers to copy his techniques in their own classrooms.
Nobody will deny the fact that the entire education system is facing many unique challenges. Efforts to improve the quality of teaching should therefore be lauded. Observation sessions have been proven to help and should therefore be supported. It does not require much funding and if it improves the quality of education, then it should be promoted on a wide front.
The system has been designed to afford teachers the opportunity to learn from colleagues that are more experienced and who have proven themselves. It is a simple system that can be implemented at any school. A few teachers gather and then attend a class presented by a well respected colleague. The purpose of the exercise is to learn from that teacher under observation. At present participation is voluntary.
Observers always meet before any observation session. The goal is to decide upon the focus of the session. On most cases the teacher under observation has achieved excellent results and may be know for successfully employing certain teaching methods or techniques. This will become the focus of the observers. They see how a colleague use those techniques and they devise ways to incorporate new methods in their own classes.
It is important to note that these sessions never include any form of evaluation whatsoever. This is even made clear to the students attending the class. The sole purpose of any observation session is to learn from the teacher giving the lesson. It is for this reason that no feedback is given after the session, unless the teacher under observation specifically requests such feedback.
The observer teachers have a second meeting after the session. This time they discuss the lessons that they have learnt. They also discuss ideas on how to implement those new ideas in their own classrooms. During this meeting no observer is allowed to utter any form of criticism. They do not submit a report and the entire proceedings is deemed to be confidential.
Observation sessions have quickly gain popularity in many schools, colleges and universities. It is a practical and economical way in which to give educators the chance to develop on a professional level. Teachers are overwhelmingly positive about the system and say that they learn a lot from their colleagues. Being chosen to volunteer to be observed is considered an honour. All parties therefore benefit from such sessions.
Critics of colleague observation sessions say that it is a waste of time. The sessions are far too short and teachers under observation do not act or teach as they normally do. Instead, they go to ridiculous lengths to make an impression upon their observer colleagues and in the process they make it impossible for observers to copy his techniques in their own classrooms.
Nobody will deny the fact that the entire education system is facing many unique challenges. Efforts to improve the quality of teaching should therefore be lauded. Observation sessions have been proven to help and should therefore be supported. It does not require much funding and if it improves the quality of education, then it should be promoted on a wide front.
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