When 2 + 2 = 3: Why lesson observation and feedback for student teachers is not the sum of its parts
Written by: Chris Powell and Dominic Shibli
8 min read
Chris Powell and Dom Shibli, Senior Lecturers, Secondary PGCE, School of Education, University of Hertfordshire, UK
Why do we observe teachers in the classroom? From the 1980s onwards, there has been an increased demand from successive governments to ensure that schools provide value for money and are accountable for their performance. As a result, managerial strategies have been brought in from the private sector and lesson observations have become a key tool within the appraisal process used to assess a teachers’ capability (O’Leary, 2020). As well as a tool for assessing performance, it is argued that lesson observations can also exist to help improve the quality of teaching through providing feedback. In his book An Introduction to Lesson Observation, Wragg suggests that ‘Skilfully done, classroom observation can be a valuable tool for improving the quality of teaching; badly handled, it can be a menace.’ (2010, p. viii) If this is the case, then the quality of the feedbac
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Excellent thought provoking article that sets out a common sense, effective approach.