Teacher Observations

pencil1Are you queued up for a teacher observation this spring? I’ll be honest. I never looked forward to being observed and was always relieved when it was over. I don’t, however, recall any major mishaps taking place during these times. You know what I mean—no youngster let one rip in the middle of my lesson or lost his lunch. I think the fact that my principal was a frequent classroom visitor helped me out as well. The kiddos were simply used to him being in the classroom.

How many times a year are you formally evaluated by your administrator(s)? Is each observation unannounced or preplanned? Do you have any tips in regards to being observed that you’d like to share with your teaching colleagues?

Eager to hear from you!

Diane

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3 thoughts on “Teacher Observations

  1. I am rarely observed anymore but it used to be yearly. I hated it but the day a child threw up on me I was thankful that adminstration was there. Calm as could be she sent me to clean up and my assistant to help the child and took over my class. When we returned we all had a good laugh. And my the way I aced the observation.

    • Oh my, Darlene! I imagine that experience is etched in your brain forever! Glad to hear you aced the observation!

  2. We have one official observation per year. It is scheduled – we get to pick the day and time. The principals do walk-throughs during the school year, but supposedly they are not used for evaluation purposes.
    The best tip I can give is to stick to what you normally do. Many teachers I work with try to “put on a show” (those are their exact words) for the principal. If you have to “put on a show,” then you most likely aren’t teaching how & what you should be to begin with. Plus, if you suddenly change what you normally do, it confuses the students — and may lead to behavior issues during the evaluation. Each year, without fail, at least one teacher asks me what I’m planning to do for my evaluation. When I respond with, “I’m going to do the same thing I do every day,” I get a jaw-drop as a response.

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