Peer observation: a faculty initiative

Impact and Attitudes about Peer Review of Teaching in a Canadian Pharmacy School

“…While student evaluations are the most common form of teaching assessment in pharmacy schools, peer review of teaching has become widespread and offers many benefits such as the promotion of more reflective teaching practices. 1,4,9 Our peer review of teaching program involved single classroom observations performed by one of a three-member peer review team, similar in scope to the program described by Sullivan et al, followed by feedback provided through a standardized tool that included rating scales and written comments, similar to the template described by Davis and domains described by Wellein et al 6,7,11 Our evaluation of the impact of our peer review program on teaching practices and perception identified three key findings.…”

“…5,6 Furthermore, a comprehensive assessment of teaching that is used as part of merit review or for tenure and promotion process must include multiple evaluations from several sources, including students, administrators, peers, and self. 7,8,9 Thus, while peer review of teaching is intended to be used for formative purposes, it can A J P E A c c e p t e d D r a f t also form a component of faculty evaluations and its inclusion been reported by many American pharmacy schools. 9 Many models have emerged for peer review of teaching.…”

“…9 Many models have emerged for peer review of teaching. 2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20 The following variations are all described in the literature: classroom observation alone (may be a single visit or multiple visits), or a more comprehensive review of materials including student work, assessment, and syllabi; feedback tools may include simple checklists, rating scales, written feedback, and/or verbal feedback; reviewers may or may not receive specialized training; reviewers may consist of a small group of individuals chosen for the task or pairs that agree or are selected to conduct reciprocal reviews; and pre-and/or post-observation meetings may be included. Given this variation, it is not clear that benefits attributed to peer review are generalizable in all contexts.…”

Peer Observation of Clinical Teaching: A Guide

“…Peer observers of clinical teaching need to keep this in mind and set aside their own judgement of the clinical context and instead focus on the teaching skills being observed (Cairns, Bissell, & Bovill, 2013). As a result, whilst some studies have suggested that the peer observers should be from the same clinical discipline as the teacher being observed (Davis, 2011), this is generally not seen to be an essential requirement.…”

“…Potential negative views can be addressed by ensuring that feedback is constructive and offered as advice rather than a mandate to change (Davis, 2011). The process of facilitated self-reflection allows identification of a tutor's teaching strengths and weaknesses.…”