Professionalising Teaching: An Investigation of Peer Review on Improving Teaching Quality and Student Learning Outcomes

Peer review is a hotly contested topic in higher education. Some institutions use this as a mechanism for continuous professional development, while others as an indicator of teaching quality. Regardless of how it is applied, the extant literature does little to shed light on the association between peer review, teaching quality enhancement and student learning outcomes. Furthermore, with the recent announcement  of  new  performance‐based  funding  allocations  for  Universities,  mechanisms  to  enhance teaching quality have become even more important for Higher Education institutions. This project sought to evaluate how two institutions (The University of Melbourne & RMIT University) have applied peer review and understand how the data have been used. In particular, we sought to understand academic teaching attitudes after engaging in the peer review process and determine if any change takes place in these attitudes as a result. We also sought to gauge whether changes to teaching practice had an impact on student learning outcomes and the student experience. The key objectives of our study were: 1. To establish an enhanced understanding of the benefits of peer review; 2. To determine, via evidence, whether peer review and peer partnerships have an influence on attitudes towards teaching, continuous improvement and teaching practice, and; 3. To have deeper insight as to whether teaching practice is improved through peer review and if this has an impact on the student experience and student learning outcomes. This project aimed to fill a number of gaps in the current research. The study focused on the formative aspects of peer review by seeking to understand how the peer review process can impact teaching attitudes and practices. This aspect of peer review research has received scant attention in the extant literature.