Breathing new life into the observation of teaching and learning in higher education: moving from the performative to the informative

O'Leary, Matt and Savage, Suzanne (2019) Breathing new life into the observation of teaching and learning in higher education: moving from the performative to the informative. Professional Development in Education. ISSN 1941-5257

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Abstract

Excellence in higher education teaching has become a policy priority of governments worldwide in recent years. In the United Kingdom, for example, the introduction of the Teaching Excellence Framework in 2016 heralded an unprecedented focus on the quality of teaching. Set against the backdrop of such policy developments and wider global interest in teaching in the higher education sector, this paper discusses the conceptualisation and implementation of an innovative approach to observing teaching and learning as part of a faculty professional development project in an English university. It examines the attitudes, perceptions and experiences of academic
staff involved. In reconceptualising and reconfiguring the application of observation as a method by removing it from an assessment domain, the paper argues that this approach has uncovered new opportunities for using
observation as a tool of educational inquiry for professional development purposes. This has led to the transformation of observation into a catalyst for developing collegial understanding of what constitutes effective teaching
and learning in higher education, as well as providing a collaborative forum for staff to reflect on and share ideas for improving their practice.

Item Type: Article
Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2019.1633386
Dates:
DateEvent
17 June 2019Published Online
14 June 2019Accepted
Subjects: CAH22 - education and teaching > CAH22-01 - education and teaching > CAH22-01-01 - education
Divisions: Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences > Centre for Study of Practice and Culture in Education (C-SPACE)
Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences > School of Education and Social Work
Depositing User: Matthew O'leary
Date Deposited: 25 Jun 2019 10:43
Last Modified: 03 Mar 2022 17:02
URI: https://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/id/eprint/7603

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