Fostering professional development through peer observation of teaching – from reflective approach to effective teachingx

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM TP HỒ CHÍ MINH 
TẠP CHÍ KHOA HỌC 
HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION
JOURNAL OF SCIENCE
ISSN: 
1859-3100 
KHOA HỌC GIÁO DỤC 
Tập 16, Số 8 (2019): 253-263 
EDUCATION SCIENCE
Vol. 16, No. 8 (2019): 253-263
 Email: tapchikhoahoc@hcmue.edu.vn; Website:  
253 
Research Article 
FOSTERING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THROUGH PEER 
OBSERVATION OF TEACHING 
– FROM REFLECTIVE APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE TEACHINGx 
Cao Hong Phat 
Ho Chi Minh City University of Education 
Corresponding author: Cao Hong Phat – Email: phatch@hcmue.edu.vn 
Received: March 21, 2019; Revised: May 13, 2019; Accepted: July 08, 2019 
ABSTRACT 
The study outlined the supportive values of reflective practice within peer observation of 
teaching using multiple data sources over a 15-week course-Teaching Practice. Teacher trainees 
reported that the experience of observing and being observed provided them with better reflections 
on their teaching and even theories of teaching. Additionally, the experience of observing and 
being observed enabled teacher trainees to improve and enhance their pedagogical competences 
and knowledge in continuing development. 
Keywords: professional dvelopment, peer observation, reflective approach, effective 
teaching. 
1. Introduction & Theoretical Framework 
Classroom observation is traditionally regarded as a means of evaluating teachers’ 
classroom performances rather than supporting teachers in their career paths and therefore 
as something beyond the practical aim of pedagogical practices. Mercer (2006, p. 266) 
pointed out that classroom observation is perceived to be subjective, judgmental and 
threatening and thus become a primary source of discomfort and anxiety for teachers. Due 
to this evaluative nature of classroom observation, many teachers shared their strong 
reservations or even oppositions towards classroom observation in most educational 
settings. 
However, “teaching, by definition, is an activity that is observed” (McMahot, Barrett 
& O’Neill, 2007, p. 499). It is pointed out that classroom is a location in which many 
different learning and teaching activities are carried out (Farrell, 2011, p. 265) and hence 
classroom observation is believed to provide teachers with insightful information in order 
Cite this article as: Cao Hong Phat (2019). Fostering professional development through peer observation of 
teaching – From reflective approach to effective teaching. Ho Chi Minh City University of Education Journal 
of Science, 16(8), 253-263. 
Tạp chí Khoa học Trường ĐHSP TPHCM Tập 16, Số 8 (2019): 253-263 
254 
to enhance and strengthen their teaching abilities (Hinchey, 2010, p. 6). In this sense, 
classroom observation is generally moving towards a developmental nature of supporting 
teachers in their professional development journey and this supportive dimension of 
observation, to certain extent, alleviates teachers’ unwillingness towards the use of 
observation in their teaching practices. 
Having recognized that non-judgmental element is critically significant to developing 
professionalism in observational teaching and learning, Gosling (2002) proposed a peer 
observation of teaching (POT) model in which teachers can mutually observe and learn 
from each other’s teaching. Regarding POT, it is indicated that POT promotes professional 
development (Bell & Mladenovic, 2008, p. 735), enhances the collegial relationships 
between teaching staff (Chester, 2012, p. 94) and, more importantly, provides a space for 
reflective teaching (Farrell, 2011, p. 265). Indeed, reflective teaching through POT has 
been long advocated and confirmed as an essential component to reinforce teaching and 
learning and foster dissemination of best teaching practices (Carroll & O’ Loughlin, 2014, 
p. 446). On that basis, this paper aims at exploring the supportive values of reflective 
practice within peer observation in transforming teaching through the experience of both 
observing and being observed. 
1.1. Peer observation of teaching 
Peer observation is growingly becoming a common practice in educational settings. 
Bell & Mladenovic (2015) defined peer observation as a collaborative activity between two 
or more teachers who engage in mutual observation of teaching, provide constructive 
feedback and ultimately reflect on teaching practices based on both the observation 
experience and the given feedback (p. 25). 
From such developmental nature of the definition of POT, many studies have 
justified peer observation as a tool for improving teaching abilities. More specifically, 
novice teachers are offered the opportunity to acknowledge how experienced teachers 
approach their lessons (Richards & Farrell, 2005, p. 86). To confirm, Hendry and Oliver 
(2012) mentioned that learning from observation of colleagues’ class is considered to be as 
beneficial as feedback on teaching (p. 1). More specifically, teachers can realize how their 
colleagues use the teaching methods, how they interact with students, how they deal with 
problems arising from their lesson on a daily basis and, to certain extent, can discover 
effective teaching strategies that the observer has never used in class before. This is 
conformity with Richards & Farrell’s (2011) comment that “what we see when we observe 
teachers and learners in action is not a mechanical application of methods and techniques, 
but rather a reflection of how teachers have interpreted these things” (p. 92). 
Furthermore, peer observation encompasses a social benefit (Zwart et al., 2007); in 
other words, teachers have the opportunity to network with each other by sharing their 
Tạp chí Khoa học Trường ĐHSP TPHCM Cao Hong Phat 
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perspectives and concerns towards teaching. Chester’s (2012, p. 94) study pointed out peer 
partnership programmes strengthen collegial relationships between teachers within 
institutions. Likewise, Bell & Cooper (2013) mentioned the impact of peer observation on 
the development of collegial atmosphere within a school (p. 60). 
Finally, Hendry and Oliver (2012) noted that a fundamental feature of peer 
observation as a learning tool is that it stimulates and guides reflective teaching (p. 1). 
Additionally, reflective teaching is perceived as a central point to teacher development 
(Hall & Sutherland, 2013, p. 82). Thus, the centrality of reflective teaching in POT should 
receive more emphasis. To facilitate the peer observation process, the suggested cycle for 
observing is put forward (Figure 1). 
Figure 1. Peer observation cycle 
1.2. Reflective teaching within peer observation 
According to Farrell & Ives (2015), reflective teaching, generally, refers to 
“teachers’ thinking about their underlying values and beliefs about teaching and learning 
and comparing these to classroom practices” (p. 595). Based on this definition, observing a 
teacher’s class, from a reflective teaching’s perspectives, might trigger teachers’ thinking 
about their own teaching practices. In this regard, teachers are offered a chance to 
challenge and improve their own classroom instructions by pondering the classroom 
procedures carried out by their colleagues. Indeed, Bell & Mladenovic (2015, p. 26) 
claimed that by observing and being observed teachers in real classroom context, teachers 
can possibly reflect on their teaching and transfer their learning to their real teaching 
situations. 
Moreover, Danielson (2007, p. 164) argued that reflective practice enables teachers 
to become more conscious of their classroom instructions since they have the opportunity 
Lesson/
Materials
Pre-
meeting
Observation 
Review 
Post-
meeting
Suggestions
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to place their teaching under scrutiny. In fact, developing such consciousness is significant 
to teaching since it allows teachers to minimize the discrepancies between teachers’ beliefs 
on their teaching and their actual performances in the classroom (Knezedivc, 2001, p. 10). 
With the view to employing reflective practice in POT to improve teaching practices, 
the following framework (Figure 2). is proposed. 
Figure 2. Reflective approach through peer observation 
Based on the framework for practicing reflective practice within peer observation, 
the experience of observing and being observed will be implemented in the Teaching 
Practice module for teacher trainees. 
2. The Study 
2.1. Research questions 
The study seeks answers to the following research questions. 
1. To what extent do pre-service teachers perceive the overall effectiveness of 
participating in a peer observation process (POT)? 
2. How can POT and reflective practice (RP) support teacher development process? 
2.2. The Participants 
The participants of the study are 38 pre-service teacher trainees attending the 
Teaching Practice Module at Ho Chi Minh City University of Education. They were all 
trained in Teaching Methodology module 1 and 2 before registering the course in semester 
II 2018. The profiles of all participants are presented in Table 1. 
Table 1. Description of the subjects in terms of number and gender 
Class Male Female Total 
Number % Number % 
Teaching Practice 6 15.78 32 84.22 38 
2.3. Data Collection Methods 
Two weeks after the Teaching Practice course, an introductory announcement was 
posted in “Google Classroom©” to announce the general purpose of the study (i.e. teacher-
peer observation
•observing
•being observed
reflective teaching
•reflection on 
observing/ being 
observed
•gaining 
knowledge and 
skills
teaching 
development
•areas need 
improving
•considerations 
for future 
teaching
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257 
trainees’ feedbacks on the process of observing and being observed and their approaches to 
reflective teaching). The teacher trainees were informed about the primary method of 
collecting data, which includes survey questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Of 
52 teacher trainees, 38 agreed to undertake the survey questionnaires and five students 
were asked to participate in in-depth interviews for further discussions on the quantitative 
results from questionnaires. In particular, the participants were asked to provide answers 
regarding three main themes: methods of approaching POT, reflective practice for their 
teaching and professional development strategies. 
3. Findings 
3.1. Approaching Peer Observation of Teaching (POT) 
The data from question 1 to 12 has indicated the positive results towards POT. In 
particular, the majority of teacher trainees (98.42%) had full understanding of the reasons 
behind their process of peer observation before actually embarking on scheduling the time 
for observing and being observed. Moreover, it was shown that teacher trainees 
approached peer observation in logical and scientific manners; for example, allocating 
sufficient time-frame for pre- and post-meetings in the POT process (83.92%), developing 
good relationships with each other (71.22%), interacting with each other effectively and 
collaboratively (73.44%). Since they had established good connections with each other, 
positive data for the question regarding the design, development and evaluation of teaching 
materials (79.67%) by cooperating with each other in the module was clearly illustrated. 
To complement the results from survey questionnaires, data obtained from semi-
structured interviews has indicated positive results for students’ approaches to POT. All 
five interviewees admitted that “the POT approach is by nature very beneficial and it is 
constructive approach rather an evaluative one”. However, it is also revealed that the first 
interviewee was “still uncomfortable despite benefits of POT” as it is quite “awkward” for 
him to walk in and observe the whole lesson from start to end. One noticeable aspect 
mentioned by the fourth interviewee is that the POT process was not “intimidating” and 
POT process did not involve any “types of control” and it is quite “informal” through a lot 
of conversations and discussions. Interestingly, the fifth interviewee also reported 
positively towards the process of POT but he emphasized that he only selected the so-
called “close” student fellows for conducting observation process. The first and the third 
interviewees also raised questions on the issue of how to maintain effective POT and 
doubted the sustainability of POT in their actual teaching career after graduation. 
3.2. Reflective Practice (RP) 
It is noted that 76.9% of teacher-trainees reflected on teaching even before taking 
part in their POT process. More interestingly, teacher-trainees also agreed that they were 
involved in a critical reflection of their own teaching process (88.4%) and were able to 
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implement and make some changes to their teaching in subsequent teaching periods or 
lessons both inside and outside the classroom based on conversations and discussions with 
each other after the POT process. As regards, reflective approach plays a vital role in POT 
and should be carried out in tandem with POT. 
Regarding the interview data, the first and the fourth interviewees claimed that POT 
offered a chance for self-reflection and such experience was good for them. Specifically, 
they had chances to “look at the forms that their fellow teachers wrote for them” and was 
“more critical on their own teaching experience”; in other words, “be mindful of their 
students’ feelings and learning experience”. The third interviewee considered POT to be 
useful for her professional practice as she became more “conscious” of her teaching steps 
and can “determine the level of effectiveness of some teaching methodologies that she had 
learned 2 years ago”. The fifth interviewee emphasized how interesting it was to find out 
that some methods do not “work effectively” as indicated in the “teaching methodology” 
text-book and he needed to ponder how to “overcome certain drawbacks” in his teaching. 
He also said that the teaching skills and competences have significantly sharpened by 
engaging in POT procedures as the means of reflecting on teaching and learning. 
3.3. Professional Development (PD) 
The practice of POT has been implemented with the intention of developing PD 
strategies for teacher-trainees. 87.54 % teacher-trainees agreed that POT is a great 
opportunity for them to develop their professional activities later in their lives. However, it 
is interesting to find out that only 62.3% pre-service teacher trainees agreed to continue 
using POT after graduation. It is quite evident that POT can be of great significance to 
enhance teacher’s proficiency after their graduation and foster the habit of life-long 
learning in pre-service teachers. 
Data from the first interviewee showed that he mentioned that “feedbacks” from 
other teacher fellows can be a great source of enhancing professional trajectory in the long-
term. The second interviewee pointed out that a good collegial relationship can be a good 
starting point for career advancement since she believed that personal development should 
be developed and strengthened without the support of colleagues within the same working 
environment. The third and the fourth interviewees admitted that POT are sometimes 
“tedious and boring” and reported that although it was mentioned right at the beginning of 
the course that POT process is “constructive rather than evaluative”, the elements of 
“anxiety and pretentiousness” still existed. As far as the fifth interviewee is concerned, it is 
highly recognized that enhancement in professionalism was indicated via confident 
teaching, excellent interactions with students and better awareness of limiting the use of 
mother tongue in the classroom. However, it is necessary to set a limited number of times 
for POT within a month or a semester rather than develop POT as a teaching routine. 
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4. Discussion 
The procedure of reflecting on the experience of peer observation yields insights into 
how teachers can enhance their teaching abilities. Hence, it is implied that the model of 
using reflective teaching within peer observation (figure 2) can be integrated into the 
professional development programmes for teachers. However, a number of potential issues 
need discussing. 
Firstly, it is indicated that one-off peer observation is not sufficient to support 
improvement in teaching (Byrne, et al., 2010, p. 216) and this poses a question regarding 
the frequency level of POT for teachers. Since Hiver (2014, p. 214) maintained that 
“teaching is an occupation fraught with uncertainties and potential stress”, my 
recommendation is that POT should justify itself as an effective means for teaching 
development so that teachers will become more willing to welcome it in their classroom 
rather than setting a standard amount of POT for teachers. To enable this, POT should be 
reciprocal so that teachers not only have the opportunities to gain mutual support from 
each other’s teaching ideas but also to promote mutual trust between teachers (Hendry & 
Oliver, 2012, p. 8). Furthermore, the principles for “observation etiquette” (Richards & 
Farrell, 2011, pp. 98-99) in Table 2. should be established between the involved teachers. 
Table 2. Principles for “observation etiquette” (Richards & Farrell, 2011, p. 98-99) 
1. Deciding when to visit. 
2. Choosing the best vantage point. 
3. Adopting the best “bedside” manner. 
4. Taking notes. 
5. Giving oral and written feedback 
Secondly, as previously mentioned, feedback belongs to one of the “observation 
etiquette” principles. In fact, feedback, by definition, is highly sensitive (Le & Vasquez, 
2011, p. 453); yet, essential for learning and improvement (Thurlings, et al., 2012, p. 193). 
Thurlings, et al. (2012) also emphasized that “the effectiveness of feedback depends on 
patterns or chains of interaction between providers and receivers” (p. 206). Thus, it is 
highly recommended that training on providing feedback should be provided for teachers 
involve in the observational learning process. Moreover, feedback should be constructive, 
developmental and non-judgmental (Bell and Mladenovic, 2008, p. 735) and should focus 
on specified areas (Rees, Davies & Eastwood, 2015, p. 269). 
What’s more, Richards & Farrell (2011, p. 92) indicated that the observation should 
have a focus entailing one or two aspects of the lesson. Hence, the focus of peer 
observation should be clearly drawn out right from the start and should center on one 
particular aspect of the selected or observed lesson. 
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Ultimately, it is highly recommended that feedback provision in the post-observation 
discussion should be carried out in a way that guides teachers towards the process of 
reflection on teaching as McCormack and Kennelly (2011) pointed out that ‘reflective 
conversations seem to have disappeared from the everyday practice of our colleagues” (p. 
515). In such discussion, the responsibility of evaluating in the teaching process will be 
passed to the observed and the feedback session will be turned into a causal dialogue 
between teachers rather than an evaluative discussion. This, to a certain degree, can 
achieve dual objectives of fostering both reflective teaching and collegial relationships 
between teachers. Consequently, POT will be welcomed by teachers. 
5. Conclusion 
Overall, I believe that even when we use the term “student-centered” to characterize 
any teaching methods we support, the he