OBSERVATIONS 1 - A STANDARD APPROACH

This page gives a standard approach to recording the observation.

Introduction
Following on from the principles of appraisal, we have agreed that:
1. There should be at least one observation every year.
2. The observer should know the class to be observed - even if that is only through a brief five-minute chat.
3. Every observation must have a pre-observation discussion to set the focus and format of the observation.
4. The observer should record what is happening in the lesson while observing.
5. Every observation must have a feedback hour, which the teacher should lead.
6. The observer should provide a write up if the teacher wishes.

This page offers a standard approach that I have developed over the last fifteen years of observing teachers.
This approach acts as a foundation for all techniques and observation varieties that are introduced later on in the course.
It is based upon principles four and five above - the observer should record what is happening during the lesson and ensure that the teacher leads the feedback discussion.
REMEMBER that our aim is to provide teachers with insights into their classrooms that will allow them to develop their teaching further.

The Approach
Many teachers are unsure of an exact focus for the observer during the lesson or simply want to see what comes up.
This standard approach is based upon that scenario although, as you will see later, it can be adapted to any focus required.

The approach can be best explained as the notes the observer's page is divided into - four clear sections as indicated below:

DETAILS
This section is completed during the pre-observation meeting.
The details to note are:
Teacher's name.
Section / class to be taught - number of students.
Day, date and time.
Room.
Stages of the lesson - as described by the teacher.
Focus for the observer - if the teacher determines one.

The result should look something like this:

ACTION
The left-hand column is used to note down what is happening in the lesson.
The aim is to have enough detail so that the teacher can place whereabouts in the lesson the comments relate to.
The action is subdivided under section headings and can be:
A simple description of what is happening.
What the teacher says.
What the students say.
Movement around the class.
So, the action colun for the warmer stage above would look something like this:

COMMENTS & THOUGHTS
The right-hand column is used to note down any thoughts and comments that the observer has during the lesson.
The comments are written alongside the action to which they refer.
The aim is to phrase the comments and thoughts as questions so that the teacher will lead the feedback by answering these questions.
This ensures that the teacher will reflect on the lesson in some depth.
Try to avoid simple Yes / No questions.
Remember that 'Why' questions will generate more reflection as they ask the teacher to go into the theories behind their teaching approaches.
Teachers must understand that 'Why' and 'Why not' questions do not imply any form of criticism - they are what I call true 'Why' questions.
In other words, the observer wants to truly know why the teacher is doing something at a given time.
They accept that the teacher knows the class better than anyone and just want to understand the thinking behind the teacher's choices without judgement.
The comments and thoughts against the action in the above warmer stage would look something like this:

SUMMARY
The summary is the observer's subjective view of the lesson and details the strengths they have observed as well as the areas they would like to see the teacher work on. These areas should not be written as a you MUST do this, but should be framed as a 'What do you think?'
So, the summary could look something like this:

You can see that the aim is to get teachers to reflect on the lesson and extend and develop the materials used.
In order to ensure that the teacher has time to reflect on the observer notes, the feedback session should take place later in the day or the next day.
The observer copies the notes and gives them to the teacher so that they have time to review them.
The teacher then reviews the notes and answers the questions - in note form or even in their head - before the feedback session.
This approach ensures that the teacher leads the feedback session as they go through the notes taken by the observer and answer the questions.

YOUR TASK
Having read this page, email Phil with any thoughts and comments you have about this standard approach.
How does it compare to observations you have previously run?
What are this approach's major strengths in your opinion?
Do you foresee any difficulties?
Is there anything missing from this standard approach?

Now, do your first observation and Task 1 and discuss its effectiveness in the observed lesson.