Collaborative Classroom Observations

The door clicks open, and I hear the jangle of a large set of keys and maybe the muted beep of a walkie-talkie before an administrator with a clipboard takes a seat in the back of my classroom; it’s an observation.

As a teacher, my job is to give feedback all day, so I recognize the irony that it’s sometimes tough—for myself and other teachers—to be on the receiving end of a critique. Here’s what I hope for that assures me that my appraiser and I are on the same team.

You will recognize my experience and expertise

A teacher doesn’t need to have decades of experience for their understanding of their students to have value; the challenges our students face are different from those of previous generations, and what worked when an appraiser was teaching five or more years ago might not today.

Content knowledge matters too, and few appraisers are themselves experts in English, math, and science (or biology, chemistry, and physics); a strong teacher is going to choose an instructional approach rooted in the substance of the lesson.

None of that is to say that a teacher’s own opinion of their performance is paramount and that an observer cannot offer valuable feedback, but I believe that approaching the work of developing teachers is more successful with a mindset of mutual respect.

• Ask clarifying questions. If something seems amiss, especially with a teacher who otherwise has a record of strong performance, approach the issue with curiosity instead of judgment.
• Build a plan as partners to achieve goals. Draw on a teacher’s insights into specific student needs and curriculum to determine together what you might hope to see in your next observation.
• Say thank you. A teacher can feel vulnerable when welcoming observers into the classroom community while also juggling the diverse needs of dozens of students. Acknowledging that hospitality frames your visit in a positive way.

Your feedback will be rooted in collaborative conversations

The most effective method I have in my own toolbox for helping my students to improve is conferencing. Likewise, when an appraiser takes the time to talk with me, I feel like they’re investing in my success rather than just ticking an item off of their to-do list. I appreciate the opportunity to check my understanding of the feedback and ask for additional support or suggestions.

• Even a short conversation as you are exiting the classroom can be meaningful and helpful. Rather than leaving a teacher wondering what you thought about the lesson you just observed, that quick point of contact can deflate the stress and offer an opportunity for the teacher to immediately try out your advice.
• Ask for a teacher’s own reflection on a lesson’s success and then build on their response. Inviting them to articulate what is working—and what isn’t—gives you an opportunity to tailor your feedback to their needs.

You will see me—and my students—as more than just performance data

Very early in my career, my assistant principal came to watch a lesson in my room, and while I was helping one group, a student in another stuffed his backpack and soccer ball into his sweatshirt and arranged it on his desk to look like he was sleeping. He crouched on the floor out of sight, and when I went over to wake him up, he popped up and shouted, “Surprise!” giggling gleefully.

I prepared myself for some tough comments on my classroom management. Instead, my assistant principal said it was clear that I had warm relationships with my students and that my classroom was a place where they felt comfortable and happy, which were necessary ingredients for a positive learning environment.

School is serious business, but we aren’t running an assembly line factory, and if success is our bottom line, we get there by treating students as human beings. Trusting teachers’ professional discretion to sometimes address social and emotional needs at moments during a lesson will go a long way in building a successful relationship.

• Consider your observer effect. Acknowledge how your visit might change the dynamics of the classroom community, and see if you can put both the students and the teacher at ease.
• Celebrate evidence of positive connection in addition to strong instructional techniques.
• Understand that successful learning might look different for different students. The student who isn’t speaking up might have an individualized education program document to participate in a different way, and the one who appears checked out might have overcome a lot just to be present in the classroom that day. We need to hold all students to a high standard of achievement, and a skilled teacher will adjust that to individual kids; talk to the teacher you’re observing about their rationale for differentiation.

You will demonstrate an openness to feedback and continuous improvement

Most teachers want to be good at what they do, and if they see your coaching as helping them to get there, they’ll value the feedback process. But if administrators are teachers of teachers, they need to embrace a growth mindset as well. When an observer checks in with me to see if their advice is helpful and allows me to respond with honesty, we both get better at what we do.

• Consider allowing teachers to take the lead in asking for the feedback that will be most meaningful to them. When I trust an administrator, I ask them to come see my lesson and explain where I need new ideas and perspective, and I have confidence that they’ll respond to the opportunities for growth that they see with genuine support.
• Acknowledge what’s hard about the work. If everything about quality instruction were easy, teachers would already be doing it. Hearing that you see and appreciate the challenges can be affirming to a teacher because it helps them to see that you know they’re trying.
• Share your own challenges and struggles. Sometimes teachers feel resistant to the process of coaching because the dynamic implies that one person has all the problems and the other all the solutions. Establishing the norm that everyone in the school community is working to get better can defuse that tension.

Ultimately, we teachers know that observers themselves are beholden to protocol and rubrics set by people in the organizational hierarchy above them and that we’re all doing our best to work within a system. But considering the needs and perspectives of the educators in the classrooms you observe will help to make it clear that teachers and observers are on the same team.