“Because more trust now”: The Role of Peer Observation of Teaching in Building a Faculty Community of Practice

Abstract

As the main facilitators of teaching and learning, faculty developers’ views as individuals and as members of their academic communities are essential to higher education research. Yet, developers’ perceptions of their own growth and learning as practitioners are underrepresented in the extant literature. This qualitative study explored perceptions of a peer observation of teaching (PoT) program and its role in building a community of practice (CoP) amongst a nine-member team of faculty developers in a large university in Saudi Arabia. Participant data were collected through semi-structured interviews after two years of the program. A thematic content analysis of interview responses revealed four themes: 1) authentic collegiality and mutual communication improved through the shared experiences, which provided a foundation for the CoP; 2) participants’ perceptions of PoT shifted from an evaluative experience to a developmental one with noticeable challenges; 3) teaching and learning strategies and practices were enhanced from the observation experiences; and, 4) PoT contributed to building community through shared practice and/or sense of belonging. Implications of this study support explicit discussions about the foundation and underlying values of proposed PoT and related programs; a balanced, outcome-oriented yet still developmental program with follow-up opportunities; and, learner-centered and sustainable development that empowers a bilateral role and identity as both academician and faculty developer.

Peer Observation of Teaching in EFL Classrooms in Saudi Universities: Challenges and Applications

“…Recently, peer observation has gained significant attention in the higher education sector of Saudi Arabia, especially in contexts similar to our study (see Deraney & AlGhamdi, 2020;Alkhatnai, 2021;Deraney, 2022). This has been evidenced by the growing literature on the topic, including works by Ali (2012), Shousha (2015), andTawalbeh (2020).…”

A river runs through it : landscapes of learning, development and change of nontraditional workers.

“…A brief overview of a global and a local example, below, are illustrative of such studies. In a Saudi Arabian university, peer observation of teaching was helpful in developing a COP which fostered professional development of the members (Deraney, 2022). In a South African context, COPs were found to be helpful in the motivation, development and learning of natural science teachers in rural areas (Philander & Botha, 2021).…”