"Question: How are
observations working at your school? In what ways are they helpful or not
helpful?"
At
our school, each teacher was formally evaluated every three years. Part of this
formal evaluation was at least two unscheduled observations.
I
hated these with a passion! When an administrator walked in my room for an
observation, I would stammer and shake. I felt like I was going to pass out!!
I
knew that I was a good teacher and usually passed these with flying colors but
I couldn’t help but get nervous!
I
would warn my students about the observations and even asked them to help me
get through it. They were usually surprised I felt this way and were quick to
come to my aid. Of course it helps that I had a great rapport with my students.
Since
I knew what was expected for the evaluation because we had forms that were used
to evaluate us, I modeled all of my lessons so that I covered each item on the
list. If I made a habit of doing what was expected for every lesson, it would
become natural and not forced. Once my students saw what I had to do, they
would make sure I didn’t leave any parts out of the process. I even wrote a lot
of the process on the board so that they helped me cover everything. Eventually,
I didn’t have to write the process out and the students let me know if I forgot
something.
My
problem with these type of evaluations is that I feel like I’m putting on a
performance rather than real teaching. I’m so nervous and anxious that you
wouldn’t think that I knew what I was doing.
Luckily
I had a few administrators at my last school who knew I was a good teacher and
was able to evaluate me without it seeming like a formal observation. I invited
administrators to eat lunch in my room even if I was teaching because my room
used to be an old home economics room. My room was equipped with 3 kitchens and
1 full refrigerator. Since my special ed class was so small, the administrators
could eat in one kitchen and never disturb my class. It was during these times
that they were able to see me teach and I was so used to them being there that
I wasn’t nervous around them.
I
wonder how many teachers get “dinged” for not doing things during these
observations because they were so nervous they missed things. I don’t think it
is a fair way to determine if a teacher is a good teacher or not.
I
know many people are not in favor of cameras in the classroom but I think it
would be a wonderful idea. I would not teach in a different style if an
administrator was in the room or not but I would be more comfortable no knowing
if I was being watched. I also think many students would be better behaved if
they didn’t know if they were being watched.
So,
I guess I don’t think observations are very helpful but I’m not sure there is a
better way to evaluate a teacher. There aren’t enough administrators to go
around and observe teachers as much as they should. Once a semester seems like
a waste of time to me other than for the district to have some kind of
documentation if they need to fire you.
How
do you feel about teacher observations? Do you think they are helpful or not
and why? Please share.
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