As indicated in the St. Olaf Faculty Manual, peer reviews of teaching are to incorporate evidence from a variety of sources, including a discussion with the candidate about his or her teaching perspectives, practices, and professional development; a review of sample instructional materials; and at least two observations of the candidate’s instruction. Below are additional suggestions for preparing effective reviews.
- Consider the audience. Peer reviews of teaching may have different audiences, depending on the type of faculty review being conducted. For comprehensive reappointment reviews, the primary audience for a peer review of teaching includes the initiator and the candidate’s Associate Dean (Faculty Manual 4.III.K.4.c,h,i), and the administrators who review the dossier.
- Consider the broad purpose and scope of a peer review. Peer reviews should take account of both theoretical and practical issues. They should provide both a framework for understanding teaching and learning in the candidate’s discipline, and a specific description of the principles or techniques used by the candidate to promote student learning. It is vital to remember that classroom observation is only one component of a complete peer review; evidence from first-hand observation is complemented by evidence from the candidate’s instructional materials and from direct conversation with the candidate.
- Specify the courses you visited and the days on which you visited. While peer reviewers are welcome to refer to class visits made at earlier times, the class visits conducted as part of the review should occur no earlier than one semester before the review semester (e.g. for a tenure and promotion review, a peer reviewer’s class visit should take place in the fall semester of review or the previous spring semester).
- Prepare before observing instruction. Whether as part of the discussion with the candidate or in a separate session, reviewers should seek information concerning the objectives of the session(s) to be observed and the role of the session in the course as a whole.
- Contextualize the candidate’s instruction. Provide information that will help orient non-specialists to teaching and learning in the field and in the department. If there are trends in practice, or formal statements about teaching and learning in the field, it may be helpful to identify these. If the candidate’s course assignments or pedagogy serve a distinctive purpose in the department, it is helpful to explain that as well.
- Contextualize the evidence drawn from classroom observation. Describe the preparations prior to classroom observation (e.g., conversations with the candidate prior to and following observation of teaching, the specific courses visited, other materials reviewed, etc.). Indicate whether the review includes several observations of the same course or one or more observations of different courses. If the choice of course(s) to observe has a programmatic or philosophical explanation, include that information. It may also be helpful to indicate whether this is the first time you have observed this particular colleague, whether there were previous observations and whether other observers joined you in the class visits.
- Integrate and organize the evidence in relation to the Faculty Manual criteria for contributions to student learning and development. Resist the temptation simply to prepare a chronological account of the class sessions you observed. Instead, select examples of the candidate’s practices and link them to the other evidence you gathered from interviews and analysis of the candidate’s instructional materials, and use the integrated evidence to support an assessment of the candidate’s performance in relation to each of the Faculty Manual criteria for effective contributions to student learning and development (Section 4.VI.B.1.a-g).
- Keep in mind that the chair is likely to draw on your report in writing the letter of guidance. Faculty members completing a successful comprehensive review receive a letter of guidance from the department chair. The kind of detail that you provide and the remarks that you make about strengths and weaknesses will inform the writing of the letter.