Using Peer Observation and Collaboration to Improve Teaching Practices

Abstract

The study examined whether and how teacher practice can be influenced when the existing research bases on best pedagogical practice and personal motivation were operationalized and then supported with opportunities for self-reflection. Administrators created a professional development experience, called Instruction Cadres, focused on peer observation and structured discussion around an essential question. Data from those discussions and observations suggested that creating environments supportive of analytic reflection and collaboration positively influenced teachers' attitudes toward their practice. Results highlighted the notion that analytic reflection can support teachers as they work toward intentionally improving their pedagogical practices. Structured conversations resulted in reflections on practice, suggestions for specific teaching strategies, revisions of the ways students were conceptualized.