Development of a formative peer observation protocol for STEM faculty reflection

Abstract

Faculty peer observation has seen increasing uptake in recent years, in some cases as an alternative or supplement to student teaching evaluations. While many universities encourage faculty peer observation, it is not widely used in a formal way for formative assessment. This article outlines the development of a new faculty peer observation protocol designed for formative assessment of evidence-based educational practices. The goal of the protocol is to foster reflective teaching practices. The peer observation protocol has been designed to mitigate common faculty fears of classroom observation, with detailed assessment methods for specific topic areas. Preliminary testing of the protocol at one university indicated positive faculty outcomes with regard to personal reflection: all the faculty who tested the protocol reported that the observation process had been helpful for them to reflect on their teaching.

Keywords:

• Peer observation
• STEM education
• evidence-based instructional practices
• instructional change
• formative observation
• assessment

Acknowledgement

Special thanks to all the faculty cohort participants who made this project possible.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Funding for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation Grant #1710735.

Notes on contributors

Heather Dillon

Dr. Heather Dillon is an Associate Professor of mechanical engineering. Her main areas of research are engineering education, renewable energy, and heat transfer.

Carolyn James

Dr. Carolyn James is Calculus Coordinator and an Instructor of Mathematics at University of Portland. She leads professional development for undergraduate math tutors and STEM faculty that focuses on the adoption of student-centered pedagogical practices. Her primary research interest lies at the intersection of beliefs and practice: particularly in how beliefs can catalyze or inhibit instructional change.

Tara Prestholdt

Dr. Tara Prestholdt is an Associate Professor in the department of biology. Her main areas of research are STEM education and marine biology.

Valerie Peterson

Dr. Valerie Peterson is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at the University of Portland. Her work with STEM faculty focuses on fostering student-centered, inquiry-based classroom environments.

Stephanie Salomone

Dr. Stephanie Salomone is the Chair of the Mathematics Department and Director of the STEM Education and Outreach Center at the University of Portland. Her interests lie in STEM educator professional development at the K-12 and post-secondary levels. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Saturday Academy and is Chair of the Executive Leadership Team of the Portland Metro STEM Partnership.

Eric Anctil

Dr. Eric Anctil is an Associate Professor of media and technology in the School of Education at the University of Portland. His work broadly centers on K-20 education and the nexus of media, technology, and the curriculum.