Lesson observation is widely recognised in European and international educational policy as a key mechanism for supporting teachers’ professional learning and improving instructional quality. At the same time, research has increasingly highlighted the tensions that arise when observation practices are embedded within accountability-oriented systems. These tensions are particularly visible in contexts where observation data are digitally recorded and made accessible to school leadership, potentially reshaping the purposes and meanings of feedback.

This study explores how lesson observation is enacted in a school context where both formative peer observation and summative evaluative observation coexist within a shared digital platform. While policy discourse frames observation as a tool for professional learning, teachers’ lived experiences often reflect competing expectations related to evaluation, documentation, and institutional control. Understanding how these tensions are negotiated in practice is essential for designing observation systems that genuinely support professional development.

Research Questions

The study is guided by the following research questions:

1. How is lesson observation perceived and enacted by teachers and observers within a digitally mediated school environment?

2. How do formative and summative purposes of observation shape the nature and quality of feedback?

3. How does digital visibility influence teachers’ and observers’ feedback practices and professional behaviour?

4. What role does feedback literacy play in shaping the developmental potential of lesson observation?

Theoretical Framework

The study is informed by three interrelated theoretical perspectives.

First, it draws on research on formative and summative assessment, which distinguishes between assessment practices aimed at supporting learning and those serving accountability and judgement purposes. When these functions overlap, tensions often emerge that affect professional trust and engagement.

Second, the study is grounded in the concept of feedback literacy, understood as the capacity to provide, interpret, and use feedback productively for learning. While feedback literacy has been widely studied in relation to students, this research extends the concept to teachers and school leaders as professional learners engaged in observation-based development.

Third, the study engages with literature on digital mediation and performativity in education, which conceptualises digital platforms as active agents shaping professional practice. From this perspective, visibility, traceability, and permanence of digital records influence how professionals act, communicate, and construct meaning in institutional settings.

Together, these perspectives allow the study to conceptualise lesson observation as a socially situated, digitally mediated practice shaped by institutional expectations, professional norms, and power relations. By adopting this lens, the study contributes to international debates on how professional learning is enacted in accountability-driven and increasingly digitalised educational systems.

This study adopts a qualitative case study design, enabling in-depth exploration of lesson observation practices within their real-life institutional context. The research was conducted in a secondary school where both peer observation and formal evaluative observation are implemented through a shared digital platform. Data Sources Three complementary data sources were used: Documentary data – written feedback from lesson observations recorded on the digital platform, including both peer observation and formal observation records. Semi-structured interviews – conducted with teachers, school leaders, expert teachers, and professional development trainers to explore perceptions, experiences, and meanings attached to observation practices. Questionnaire data – collected from 37 teachers to identify broader patterns related to perceptions of observation purpose, feedback practices, digital visibility, workload, and professional learning. Data Analysis Data were analysed using thematic analysis, combining deductive and inductive coding. An initial coding framework was developed based on the study’s theoretical foundations (formative/summative assessment, feedback literacy, digital mediation) and was refined through iterative engagement with the data. Documentary data were analysed to identify patterns in feedback purpose, language, and level of specificity. Interview transcripts were coded to capture perceptions of observation, experiences of digital visibility, and professional meaning-making. Questionnaire data were analysed descriptively to identify trends and triangulate qualitative findings. Ethical Considerations Participation was voluntary and all data were anonymised. Participants were informed that the study was conducted for research purposes only and that their responses would not be used for evaluation or appraisal. Special attention was given to the ethical implications of researching observation practices within a hierarchical institutional context.

The findings reveal a consistent tension between the developmental intentions of lesson observation and its enactment within an accountability-oriented system. First, while peer observation was largely perceived as supportive and professionally meaningful, formal observation was predominantly associated with evaluation and compliance. Survey and interview data demonstrate that teachers experience observation as serving a dual function, with accountability often overshadowing learning-oriented aims. Second, digital visibility emerged as a central shaping factor. The knowledge that observation feedback is accessible to school leadership influenced how observers formulated comments, leading to cautious language, self-censorship, and standardised expressions. This effect was evident across both observation types, though more pronounced in formal observation. Third, the study identified feedback literacy as a key mediating factor. Variations in feedback quality were linked not to teachers’ motivation but to uneven capacity to articulate pedagogically meaningful and actionable feedback. Many participants reported limited training in feedback practices, which contributed to reliance on generic or template-based formulations. Fourth, workload and the mandated number of observations were found to promote formalisation. Teachers frequently described observation as a procedural requirement rather than a reflective learning opportunity, particularly when time constraints were high. Overall, the findings suggest that lesson observation operates as a socially and digitally mediated practice, where professional learning is shaped by institutional conditions, digital infrastructure, and levels of feedback expertise.

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