Beyond Performance Management by Observation: An Enquiry into Effective Professional Development for Teachers across a Multi Academy Trust

Performative lesson observation is widely used in schools, proportedly, as a tool through which leaders may improve standards of teaching and learning. However, the high­pressure and judgemental nature often associated with such an approach is largely considered to mitigate any potentially positive outcomes of the observation process. This action research project sought to explore whether a Multi Academy Trust (MAT) was able to change a performative lesson observation model to a more effective strategy for teacher growth in confidence and self­esteem, thus impacting positively upon teacher practice and self­efficacy. The project was funded by the Carey Philpott Partner Research Fund via the Carnegie School of Education at Leeds Beckett University and it involved the three founding primary schools of a newly established MAT. The project developed from an original intention to introduce Video Enhanced Observation (VEO) to support peer and self­observation practices into a wider approach based upon coaching models. There is strong evidence to suggest that models of observation that are non­judgemental and development­focused have the potential to remove the barriers of the traditional performative model and to reap the benefits of increased motivation, collaboration and culture of scholarship to improve teaching and learning. Yet underlying issues around professional autonomy and the involvement of teachers in their own development adds to the complex nature of teacher evaluation. As such, there is more work to be done in ensuring that such changes have a lasting and sustainable impact upon the profession. A growing appreciation for the complex, phenomenological nature of teacher development led the study towards an investigation of the nature of professional autonomy and teacher agency. The findings of this study contribute to wider discourses among practitioner researcher communities as it argues that teachers should be involved in the processes of improving their own practice ­ as agents of change, not objects of surveillance. Further that collaboration and the opportunity to be involved in professional dialogue enhances professional learning.