Giving lesson observation feedback

Abstract

The paper highlights the context bound nature of giving observation feedback and indicates some of the complexities around fostering a dialogic approach. It focuses on the teacher education feedback dialogue as it occurs on a full time one year PGCE (Postgraduate Certificate) in Post Compulsory Education course at a University. The research is autoethnographic and includes autobiographical and creative writing as well as analysis of empirical data. The research centres on myself as PGCE tutor working with groups of students. It considers the complexity of that role (module tutor, personal tutor, assessor). Selected findings from my tutor observation feedback dialogues and from peer student observation feedback dialogues are shared. This is with a view to comparing and contrasting the roles, structure and conventions. Theoretical discussions draw on particular concepts from Foucault’s work, and Copland’s research on English Language Teacher Education triadic observation feedback. Research on lesson observation and feedback practices includes O’Leary’s critique of graded lessons and current shifts to ungraded and peer observation models. The paper therefore broadly reflects on the political context of which observations are a part, and makes reference to Lifelong Learning and to schools.