It’s observation time.

• Go to original post Ange Molony
• Posted at 11:09 am on Mon, Mar 12, 2012

It’s peer observation month at our school. (Queue the music of dread?)
Where do you sit on this? Does peer observation induce fear or excitement? Is it something that you run to or run away from? Does it eat up your valuable time or is it quick and efficient?
Over the last few years at our school we have really tried to develop a peer observation month that is all things positive. It aims to be exciting, time efficient and rewarding for all teachers involved (the observer and the observed). I think that this year @DanMagie has put together a great system that will reach all staff that are willing to give it a go and it will even bring some of the unwilling over to the bright side.
First we were asked to think about one area, from the list below, that we (as individual teachers) wanted to focus on.




Domain 1:  Planning and preparation
Domain 2: The classroom environment
Domain 3: Instruction
Domain 4: Professional responsibilities
You can read in more detail about each of these domains here
(Danielson, Charlotte. Enhancing Professional Practice: A Framework for Teaching. 2nd ed. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1996. Print.)
After we each chose our own personal focus area we were grouped into each of the four domains. So we instantly found ourselves working with a small group of teachers that have similar goals. One step closer to what will be a valuable experience, right? But the next step is what I think is going to make this all work.
Self directed approach that is followed by one expectation.

1. Self directed approach - Your group can discuss options and come to agreement regarding your own ideas.
2. Submit at least one personal reflection to the Professional Growth blog.

It is so simple that it will work and it so open-ended that it will allow for some teachers to really dig deep and explore the domains. I’m kinda hoping that this might not stop at the end of the month (you could continue to be self-reflective and use the domains as a focus).
(Oh, and the bonus is that if nothing else you will learn about posterous.com!)
My group is looking at Domain 2: The classroom environment. I personally want to focus on classroom procedures and the management of classroom transitions.
I’ll let you all know how it goes in due time!
Thanks to @danmagie for taking the time to find new ways to engage us all in our ongoing professional learning.
I would like to hear if your school has a structure for peer observations?



Ange Molony
Twitter: @MissAngeDP