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2. For more information ...
Bond University
Quality, Teaching, and Learning
Foundations of Learning and Teaching (FULT)
61 7 5595 5691
othompso@bond.edu.au
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3. Peer Observation Partnerships –
How do they work?
 Plan
 Meet and Discuss
 Teach
 Individual Reflection
 Meet and Discuss
 Written Feedback
 Change Roles
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4. What kind of
Partnership?
 Two people
 Group
 Coordinator
 Experienced
colleague
 Film
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5. Who to
choose…
Identify colleagues
who are willing to
be involved and
whom you trust to
be a ‘critical friend’
(Handal, 1992)
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6. What do you want to achieve?
 General feedback
 Investigate a ‘problem’
 Share ideas
 Discover what others are doing
 Evaluate effectiveness
 Articulate philosophy
 Develop a teaching portfolio
 Create an open, collegial
approach in your department
 Test a teaching resource or
method
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7. The Observation
•Observee
•Observer
•Students
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8. Post-Observation Discussions
•Be prepared
•Reflect first
•Listen and ask
•Give feedback
•Be specific
•Examples
•Avoid judging
•Positive Conclusion
•Follow up
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9. Critical Reflection
•What kind of person
are you?
•Revisit your
teaching
philosophy
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10. Critical
Reflection
The Kolb Process
•Concrete observation
•Problem definition
•Means-end analysis
•Implications
•Active
experimentation
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11. How will you know the Peer Observation
Partnership was effective …
 Positive outcomes relate to personal skills and
attributes, and the ability to give and receive
critical feedback ~ critique.
 Means for ongoing
Professional Development.
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12. Stocking your library
Bell, M. (2005). Peer observation partnerships in higher education. Higher
Education Research and Development Society of Australasia
(HERDSA).
Bernstein, D., Burnett, A. N., Goodburn, A. & Savory, P. (2006). Making
teaching and learning visible: Course portfolios and the peer review of
teaching. Massachusetts: Anker Publishing Company, Inc.
Blackwell, R. (1996). Peer observation of teaching & staff development.
Higher education quarterly, 50, 156-171.
Donnelly, R. (2007). Perceived impact of peer observation of teaching in
higher education. International journal of higher education, 19, 117-129.
Handal, G. (1999). Consulting using critical friends. New directions for
teaching and learning, 79, Fall, 59-70.
McMahon, T., Barrett, T. & O’Neill, G. (2007). Using observation of
teaching to improve quality: Finding your way through the muddle of
competing conceptions, confusion of practice and mutually exclusive
intentions. Teaching in higher education, 12, 499-511.
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