Peer Observation: Supporting Professional Learning in Six High-Performing, High-Poverty, Urban Schools

This qualitative analysis of peer observation practices is part of a larger, comparative case study, “Developing Human Capital Within Schools,” conducted by the Project on the Next Generation of Teachers. Within one city, we interviewed 142 teachers and administrators in six high-poverty schools (traditional, charter, and turnaround), all of which had achieved the highest rating in the state’s accountability system. Here, we analyze how teachers and administrators experienced and assessed peer observation practices. At the time of this study, all six schools (three charter and three district) had achieved the highest level in the state accountability rating system, having demonstrated significant growth or high levels of achievement on the rigorous state standardized test. All schools were implementing a range of peer observation processes. Although traditional norms of privacy (Little, 1990) among teachers in American schools often discourage them from visiting colleagues’ classes, many teachers in these schools welcomed opportunities to observe others’ teaching, and in some cases to be observed. However, the extent to which the schools had developed their systems for peer observation varied, which was evident in their different programs’ purpose, procedures, support for teachers in implementing the processes, and the degree to which peer observation was integrated with other professional learning. Notably, across all six schools, teachers and administrators viewed peer observation as having great potential and hoped to continue this practice or in some cases reinstate it in the future. Across schools, the strategic use of video technology helped several schools address implementation challenges.