Classroom observations in school are an important tool for gaining an overview of patterns and trends, capturing the difference between what is said and what is actually done. It can form a good basis for continued development and improvement work. Research shows that there is a clear connection between the development and further training of teachers’ professions and students’ learning.
I intend to describe how we work with classroom observation in my school. There are a few different variants and scope of this, but one often starts from four main activities. I will try to describe the four steps in detail so you get a good picture of this area.
1. Pre-observation conference
2. Classroom observation
3. Analysis and strategy session
4. The final report
What are classroom observations?
A classroom observation provides teachers with constructive critical feedback in order to improve their instructional techniques. It is also defined as a method of evaluating and recording specific information about what is going on within a classroom.
Many believe that continuous classroom observations, in order to develop the teaching, provide in-depth pedagogical discussions between teachers/educators. In the end, it probably also leads to a safer work climate where you as a teacher feel the support of colleagues in the various situations that arise in the meeting with the students. You should never see observations as a test of your teaching ability.
As a teacher, you may at first feel a little uneasy and a feeling that a person is critically examining everything you do in the classroom. There is always a risk that it affects your teaching, and it is easy to get a little locked in the teaching because everything is documented. Therefore, you may be thinking a little extra about how to communicate with your students. But after a while, you will most likely feel that “your natural self” will emerge.
Many teachers who have acted as observers believe that during their auscultations they thought more about their own
teaching and what they really want with it. Through the role of observer, one could reflect more, one saw how the students did, what they missed, and the interaction between them. It was realized that there is a lot you do not see as a teacher of what is going on in the classroom and between the students.
The pre-observation conference
The main purpose of the session is for the observer to get a clear picture of your goals for the class and the lessons. The observer will simply interview you as a teacher and the idea is to get answers to the following main questions.
- What is your goal for the lesson (s)? What do you hope students will gain from this lesson?
- What do you expect students to do to achieve the stated goals?
- What can I expect you to do in class? What role will you take? What teaching methods will you use?
- Is this class “standard” and generally typical of your teaching? If not, what do you think will be different?
There are, of course, dialects on these issues (depending on the type of class, age of students, your experience as a teacher, etc.). You as a teacher must be critically examining the observer’s questions before this pre-session. You should receive the purpose of the meeting and the questions sent before the meeting so you have the opportunity to give feedback on whether you consider the questions relevant.
You should before the meeting use the questions to think through your role as a teacher. You may also wish to supplement the questions with additional points that the observer has missed and is relevant to your teaching. For example, if you experience that two groups of students differ much even though you have equivalent lesson planning. During the pre-observation meeting, you could ask the observer to take an extra look at this and that the observation applies to conducting the same lesson in the two classes. Normally the observer should focus on only two or three aspects of a lesson since it is hard to focus on too many things at the same time.
An important purpose of the premise is also to make the context so understandable as possible for the observer. This may have another disciplinary domicile and may not itself carry out the current type of learning activity. The pre-observation conference usually takes place in the teacher’s study, nearby staff room, conference room, or in the upcoming classroom.
During the classroom observation
At the beginning of the learning activity and often in advance, you inform the students that there is a visitor and why he is there. Thus, the will is that the students act as they usually do and so it also seems to work.
Don’t try to over-perform – when we know we’re going to be observed, a normal reaction is to want to impress our observer, but please don’t! Plan and carry out your lesson just as you usually do.
The observer follows the lesson and collects the agreed tasks. It is desirable that the observer focuses on the limited goals agreed upon during the meeting and collects data that you as a teacher find useful for you to develop. Under such conditions, the opportunities to improve your teaching greatly improve.
Most observers need to take small notes, be prepared for that. But a good observer does not continuously write. Note-taking should be kept to a minimum and the observer can improve and expand the texts at a later stage, once the lesson has been completed.
Analysis and strategy session
The analysis session should take place within a few days of the classroom observation (the information must be fresh in mind). Feedback should occur after every observation. You might have this de-briefing in the same classroom as the observation. The advantage of this is that it’s much easier to relate to and illustrate different occurred events. The review should be a dialogue between the observer and the teacher, and try to aim for a constructive and positive tone (although there would be some negative criticism of the teacher). Remember you are both on the same side sharing the same goal: to improve your teaching skills and student learning.
You shall give your account of the student’s lesson. Focus on what worked well, and what didn’t work so well. If you in the pre-meeting have asked the observer to focus on specific aspects of your teaching, it is a good time to discuss these points now. Then the observer responds to your account of the lesson and adds his or her own observations. Also, discuss problem areas (if any) and strategies for addressing them. All these input/discussions are very important and a great base for the final report.
The final report
The final report should always be written by the observator and include:
- An overview of the questions discussed in the pre-observation conference
- The observations from the actual learning session. The observations should have their ground in the pre-observation discussions, but can also include parts the observer have written down during the lecture
- Suggestions to the teacher on how to develop his/her teaching
- A conclusion part that summarizes what has been covered in the report