Session Information
22 SES 07 A, Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Higher Education
Paper Session
Contribution
Universities have been changing due to greater diversity of their publics, as well to new challenges coming from societies. Among these changes, pedagogical issues represent a huge importance. In parallel with these changes, in recent years there has been significant incremental growth of interest and measures designed to support learning and teachers’ professional development at an institutional level (Vieira, 2009). Such is the case of the University of Porto. Some of those measures have been undertaken by a Teaching and Learning Lab in order to develop a community of teachers coming from different Faculties. This paper intends to present one of these initiatives which aimed to share experiences and promote teachers’ self reflection. From peer to peer is a project that have been implemented from 3 years ago within a multidisciplinary peer observation scheme. Teachers from 12 Faculties of Porto University observe each other’s classes, aiming to go deeper on the teachers’ awareness about their performance to improve teaching practices in Higher education. Paper intends to discuss the impact of such multidisciplinary collaboration, both in teachers’ pedagogical awareness and sustained practices.
In Academia, teachers’ training follows the prevailing uni-disciplinary vision and this explains the idea that the improvement of teaching practices is a “natural” process coming along scientific improvement (Knight & Trowler, 2000). Additionally, some teachers’ training events rely on peer collaboration and assessment but it happens within the field of knowledge they are addressing(Byrne,2010; McMahon,2007).
Multidisciplinary peer observation challenges this idea and assumes itself as a teachers’ training model. Multidisciplinarity is also one of the greatest challenges the universities face today, as part of a general approach of innovation which aims to promote interdisciplinary practices in higher education (Franks et al. 2007).
Therefore the objectives of present paper are:
To discuss what approaches to pedagogical development support can sustain and enhance teachers’ pedagogical concerns,
To assess the impact of multidisciplinary peer observation on teachers’ curricular practices.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Byrne, J., H. Brown, and D. Challen. 2010. Peer development as an alternative to peer observation: a tool to enhance professional development. International Journal for Academic Development 15, no. 3: 215-228. Franks, D., P. Dale, R. Hindmarsh, M.B. Fellows, and P. Cybinski 2007. Interdisciplinary foundations: Reflecting on interdisciplinarity and three decades of teaching and research at Griffith University’, Australia. Studies in Higher Education 32, no. 2: 167-185. doi: 10.1080/03075070701267228. Knight, P., and P. Trowler. 2000. Departmental-level cultures and the improvement of learning and teaching. Studies in Higher Education 25, no. 1: 69-83. McMahon, T., T. Barrett, and G. O’Neill. 2007. Using observation of teaching to improve quality: Finding your way through the muddle of competing conceptions, confusion of practice and mutually exclusive intentions. Teaching in Higher Education 12, no. 4: 499- 511. Vieira, F. (2009). Em contracorrente – o valor da indagação da pedagogia na universidade. Educação, Sociedade e Culturas, 28, 107-126.
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