OBSERVATIONS

                                                                       DUE: NOVEMBER 10, 2009             

You can learn a great deal about effective teaching from talking with others about teaching and from watching others teach . . . not to imitate what others do but to heighten your awareness of what can be done. This assignment offers you the opportunity to observe three class sessions taught by three different teachers.  Guidelines for the lessons-learned paper are at the end of this page.

Do not make the mistake of thinking this assignment will be easy.  It's not complicated, but observing to learn requires considerable concentration.  And as a teacher, you have to observe to learn about your students and your teaching ... while you teach!

Your objective for the observation experience is to focus on what is happening in a "live" instructional situation and to think about why things might have happened as they did. You are not being asked to rate the instructor's teaching.  Hopefully, this assignment will help you to further develop your ability to analyze classroom instruction -- a process essential to improving your own teaching effectiveness.

You should intend to learn from these experiences, so approach these three observations with a clear purpose.  You should observe the skills of the instructor regardless of the teaching strategy being used.  You should pay attention to student reactions and interactions in the class. You want to discern the teacher's goals and observe how plans are implemented to achieve those goals. 

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The first observation in September will be of your own choosing.  You identify the instructor, and you make arrangements with the instructor to visit a class session.  If you need help identifying an instructor, please ask me.  For at least this first observation, I expect you to make arrangements to talk with the instructor either before or after you observe the class session.  The point of that conversation is to learn whatever might help you to better interpret and understand what happens in the classroom. We will not meet as a class on Thursday, September 10, so you could schedule the first observation for that class period.  But you also have the flexibility to observe someone who teaches at another time. Observe before September 15, since that's the day scheduled to discuss your first observation. 

The second observation will be conducted in pairs or triads in early October.  I'll give you as much flexibility as possible to make your own decisions, but I'll also be available to help structure groups if that seems necessary.  We will not meet as a class on Thursday, October 1, so you could schedule the second observation then.  However, as before, you may observe someone who teaches at another time.  We'll spend some class time on October 6, to compare observations and conclusions.  The discussion will center on what all of you have learned from your observations and sharing your conclusions with each other.  This gives you an opportunity to learn how others approach the observing process and to ask questions about ways to concentrate, focus and discern when observing. 

The third observation is at your discretion but should be completed before October 29.  If you prefer to observe on your own, you can make arrangements by yourself.  If you prefer to observe as part of a group, you can make those arrangements as well. 

Your written paper is due on November 10.   A word to the wise -- document your observations, analyses, and interpretations as you experience the observations.  Do not assume you will remember what you observed and what you thought about what you observed! 

Following the first two observations, I will ask you to complete a very brief "one-minute paper" about your observation experience.  This is nothing you can really prepare for ... other than having paid close attention while you were observing in the classroom settings.

The lessons-learned paper should be based upon what you learned from your three observations and from conversation with co-observers as well as with the instructor(s) you observed.  I'm especially interested in knowing how you might use what you have learned to help you as a teacher.

There is no set length for this paper.  Some will have much more to say than will others.  However, I expect you to put time and thought into these observations and your interpretations of what you have seen ... and your paper should reflect that time and thought.  Talk with me if you have concerns about this rather "open-ended" paper.