Classroom observation is a crucial aspect of any system of teacher evaluation. No matter how skilled a teacher is in other aspects of teaching--such as careful planning, working well with colleagues, and communicating with parents--if classroom practice is deficient, that individual cannot be considered a good teacher. Classroom observations can…

Michelle is a first-year English teacher at Vailsburg Middle School, a public school in Newark, New Jersey. Michelle is dedicated, caring, energetic, and insightful. This year, the author had the chance to watch Michelle and her principal, Serena Savarirayan, meet for their weekly debriefing of Michelle's teaching. Serena began by praising…

Traditional systems of teacher evaluation are often ineffective because they rely on outmoded evaluative criteria, usually in the form of checklists; simplistic assessments, such as "needs improvement"; procedures that fail to differentiate between new and veteran teachers' experience and expertise; lack of consistency among evaluators;…

Describes a high school English department's successful efforts to define and shape their own peer assistance program. The program succeeded because it is voluntary, has received administrative support, and has evolved slowly and naturally. The program has communication, rehearsal, and awareness benefits and calls for a new kind of professional…

A University of Georgia research project identified and verified 12 dimensions of supervisory practice. Although the 1,075 respondents surveyed verified all 12 dimensions as important, communications, staff development, and instructional programs were rated somewhat more important than community relations or research and program evaluation. Human…

The Collaborative Instructional Improvement process is a communication facilitating process that enables a supervisor and a colleague to identify problems, delineate action strategies and responsibilities, specify time constraints, and establish an evaluation design. (Author)

Principals in a Pennsylvania district are voluntarily observing one another in order to improve their supervisory skills. Two principals jointly observe a teacher, compare their notes, label the data, conduct the teacher postconference, and then hold the principal postconference. (MLF)