Why participate in a Peer Evaluation of teaching?

There are many potential benefits to participating in a peer evaluation of teaching. Some of those benefits are:

• Evidence of peer observation. Many departments require course observations as a evidence for tenure and promotion. Peer observations can also be useful documents to include in job applications.
• A stronger community of teaching and learning. Inviting peers into your classroom opens an opportunity for collaboration and conversation about teaching and learning. By sharing resources and experiences, we acknowledge the importance of teaching as an integral part of our university culture. 
• Added perspectives for evaluation. Most instructors receive feedback from student evaluations of teaching. While this feedback can be useful, peer evaluation of teaching give instructors feedback from a different vantage point. Between student evaluations, self-reflection, and peer evaluations, instructors can triangulate data on their teaching to make informed decisions about how to improve their pedagogy.

Peer Evaluation process

This is how peer evaluations of teaching are carried out at ETE:

1. Request a peer evaluation of teaching. In this request, you will be asked to indicate the class you'd like to have observed, the class times, and delivery method (F2F, hybrid F2F, web broadcast, or online).
2. Have a pre-observation meeting with your Evaluator. In this meeting, you and your evaluator will discuss the purposes of your peer evaluation, any specific goals or feedback you'd like your evaluation to focus on, learning outcomes for the class, and any other relevant information about the course. If you course is online, you should arrange any necessary sign-in information for your evaluator including links to Zoom, passwords, access to Canvas, etc. 
3. Teach your class. During the peer evaluation, you will teach your class as usual. The peer evaluator will observe without interrupting or participating.
4. Have a post-observation meeting with your Evaluator. In this meeting, you and your evaluator will discuss what your evaluator observed in your class. This is any opportunity for you and your evaluator to ask questions, get clarification, and generally assess the class that was observed. We encourage participants to tailor this meeting to meet any department-specific expectations for peer observations.
5. Receive a final report. Within 30 days of the post-observation meeting, the peer evaluator will give a final report to the evaluated for their records. 

Request a Peer Evaluation of Teaching

Serving as a peer evaluator

For the peer evaluation process to be effective, we need instructors who are willing to serve as peer evaluator. Aside from the benefits of creating connections with colleagues and learning from the observations you make, peer evaluators can also earn a contribute-level badge in the ETE10 program. If you are interested in serving as a peer evaluator, please click on the button below.

Serve as a Peer Evaluator