Peer observation to foster collective teacher efficacy: teachers' perceptions about collegial visits

Abstract

PurposeThis study explored teachers' perceptions of a specific, collaborative peer observation structure, collegial visits, and collegial visits' connection to collective teacher efficacy (CTE). The research question was: how do teachers perceive collegial visits, particularly with respect to their influence on CTE?Design/methodology/approachWithin this qualitative descriptive study, 13 K-12 educators from three northeastern USA schools (one urban high school and a suburban middle and elementary school) were interviewed individually and/or in a focus group.FindingsUtilizing social cognitive theory as a framework for analysis, the authors found a theme of a shift from uninformed to informed perceptions of the collective. Results demonstrated that collegial visits foster positive CTE beliefs.Practical implicationsSince collegial visits were found to increase participants' CTE, a construct others have associated with increased student achievement, school leaders should consider implementing collegial visits as a professional learning structure in their schools after considering their specific context.Originality/valueThough there has been recent scholarship connecting peer observations and CTE, there has been no research, to date, to examine the effect of the specific structure of collegial visits on CTE.