Power, Policy and Performance: learning lessons about lesson observation from England's further education colleges

O'Leary, Matt (2014) Power, Policy and Performance: learning lessons about lesson observation from England's further education colleges. FORUM, 56 (2). pp. 209-222. ISSN 0963-8253

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Abstract

Lesson observation has been widely debated in education circles in recent times. From politicians to practitioners, everyone seems to have a view on it. Surprisingly, however, very little empirical research has been done on this important area of practice. With this in mind, this article explores some of the findings from a national research project investigating the use and impact of lesson observation on the professional lives of thousands of staff working in the Further Education (FE) sector. The project, sponsored by the University and College Union (UCU), adopted a mixed-methods approach and was carried out over a year (2012-13). This article argues that lesson observation has become a central crucible in which power is exercised over individuals and institutions alike under the guise of measuring and improving teacher performance. It considers what lessons can be learnt about its current use and concludes with recommendations as to what needs to change to enable the education sector to make better use of observation in the future.

Item Type: Article
Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.2304/forum.2014.56.2.209
Dates:
DateEvent
9 September 2014Published
20 July 2014Accepted
Subjects: CAH22 - education and teaching > CAH22-01 - education and teaching > CAH22-01-02 - teacher training
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)
Depositing User: Matthew O'leary
Date Deposited: 06 Aug 2019 06:58
Last Modified: 03 Mar 2022 17:02
URI: https://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/id/eprint/7708

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