Teaching in Higher Education

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Situated learning, reflective practice and

conceptual expansion: effective peer observation
for tutor development

Amani Bell & Rosina Mladenovic

To cite this article: Amani Bell & Rosina Mladenovic (2015) Situated learning, reflective practice
and conceptual expansion: effective peer observation for tutor development, Teaching in Higher
Education, 20:1, 24-36, DOI: 10.1080/13562517.2014.945163

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2014.945163

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Teaching in Higher Education, 2015
Vol. 20, No. 1, 2436, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2014.945163

Situated learning, reflective practice and conceptual expansion:

effective peer observation for tutor development
Amani Bella* and Rosina Mladenovicb
a
Institute for Teaching and Learning, The University of Sydney, Fisher Library, F03, NSW 2006,
Australia; bBusiness School, The University of Sydney, Economics and Business Building, H69,
NSW 2006, Australia
(Received 7 November 2013; accepted 6 July 2014)

Despite tutors importance, they often encounter inadequate professional development

and support. This study describes the impact of peer observation of teaching activities
on tutors professional development using multiple data-sets over a three-year period.
The data was analysed according to three themes: situated learning, reflective practice
and conceptual expansion, in order to identify changes to teaching practice. Tutors
reported that peer observation of teaching is an effective development activity that
encouraged reflection on teaching and, for some, resulted in conceptual expansion and
lasting change to teaching. Tutors found the situated aspect of the peer observation
activity was an important factor, as it enabled them to observe how other tutors
supported their students engagement with the discipline-specific curriculum. Recom-
mendations for future research and for the professional development of tutors in
practice are provided.
Keywords: academic development; sessional staff; reflective practice; peer observa-
tion of teaching; professional development

Tutors on the margins

Tutors1 play a crucial role in university teaching and there has been a large increase in
casual teaching staff in Australia. Between 1989 and 2007 the number of tutors employed
has increased by 135% (Coates et al. 2009). Percy et al. (2008, 3) state that between 40
and 50 per cent of teaching in Australian higher education is done by sessional staff.
This is mirrored by similar increases in casual teaching staff in other countries (e.g. Gunn
2007 [UK]; Monks 2009 [USA]).
Despite tutors increasing importance, their marginalised status is vividly evoked by
phrases such as throw away academics (Kogan, Moses, and El-Khawas 1994) the
invisible faculty (Gappa and Leslie 1993), the underclass (Anderson, Johnson, and
Saha 2002) and ghosts (Kaplan 2012). Among other troubling work conditions, casual
academics have cited lack of adequate professional development as an issue for at least
20 years (Fine, Graham, and Paxman 1992; Coates et al. 2009).
The increasing demand for casual academics is likely to continue as sector wide job
losses through retirement are predicted to reach up to 35% (Hugo 2008). Given a
significant percentage of tutors aim to transition into academic careers (Gottschalk and

*Corresponding author. Email: amani.bell@sydney.edu.au

2014 Taylor & Francis
 Teaching in Higher Education 25

McEachern 2010), with casual employment preferred by only a minority of casual

academics (May et al. 2011), it is important to nurture the next generation of academics.
Professional development plays a key role in supporting tutors in their teaching and
equipping them for a possible transition into permanent academic roles. Tutors have
identified peer observation of teaching as useful for their professional development as
teachers (Kirley 2006; Bell and Mladenovic 2008).
Our paper is organised as follows: a summary of existing research on peer observation
for tutors and other academics, our framework for tutor development, a summary of our
tutor professional development context and previous research, methods, results and
discussion.

Peer observation of teaching: previous studies

We define peer observation of teaching as a collaborative partnership between two (or
more) academics who observe each other teaching, offer each other constructive feedback
on their teaching and reflect on their teaching based on both what was observed and their
colleagues feedback (Bell 2005). We see it as distinct from peer review of teaching,2 in
that the process is confidential and has no connection with performance management
(Peel 2005). There are few research studies that explore peer observation of teaching
for casual tutors (Truuvert 2012; Kirley 2006), and so we also draw on the academic
development literature in general to inform our research.
There are many advocates of peer observation of teaching as a way to reflect on and
improve teaching. For Brookfield (1995), a key benefit of peer observation of teaching is
notic[ing] aspects of our practice that are normally hidden from us (30). He goes on to
say that [f]or those of us with egos strong enough to stand it, colleagues observations of
our practice can be one of the most helpful sources of critical insight to which we have
access (83). Others contend that it is observing, rather than being observed, that is the
most valuable aspect of peer observation of teaching (e.g. Hammersley-Fletcher and
Orsmond 2005; Hendry and Oliver 2012; Hendry, Bell, and Thomson 2013).
Peer observation of teaching provides a space to reflect on teaching. Regular,
purposeful reflective practice is a key characteristic of excellent teachers in higher
education, and is the process through which [excellent teachers] integrate the various
dimensions of teaching (Kane, Sandretto, and Heath 2004, 300).
When peer observation of teaching is conducted under supportive conditions, benefits
include improvements to teaching practice, enhanced commitment to teaching, develop-
ment of confidence, application of theory to practice, increased awareness of student
learning experiences, affirmation of good teaching practice, improved skills in giving and
receiving feedback, transformation of educational perspectives, development of collegi-
ality, reflection on teaching, an alternative perspective to student feedback, accumulation
of evidence for promotion, and modelling peer and self-assessment for students
(Hutchings 1996; Quinlan and kerlind 2000; Napan and Mamula-Stojnic 2005; Bell
2005; Hammersley-Fletcher and Orsmond 2005; Donnelly 2007; Harris et al. 2008;
Barnard et al. 2011; Bell and Cooper 2013; Chester 2012).
Negative aspects of peer observation may include perceptions that it is intrusive;
a threat to academic freedom; not confidential; not representative, not accurate or
generalisable; not objective; time consuming; and of benefit only to the individuals
involved (Hammersley-Fletcher and Orsmond 2004; Lomas and Nicholls 2005).
26 A. Bell and R. Mladenovic

Fortunately, many of these negative factors can be mitigated if the peer observation
process is carefully designed and supported (Lomas and Nicholls 2005).
Despite the many benefits of peer observation outlined above, it is difficult to find
evidence of the effectiveness of peer observation of teaching (Bell 2002, 8), given the
limited number of research studies and the fact that peer observation of teaching is not
yet commonplace in Australian universities (Bell and Cooper 2013, 61). Our paper
addresses this gap by providing an analysis of tutors experiences of, and teaching
outcomes resulting from, peer observation of teaching using multiple sources of
qualitative data collected across three years.

Our framework for tutor development

Situated peer Invites Facilitates Enables

observaon reecon conceptual changes to
on teaching expansion teaching
pracce

Our framework for tutor development is based on three key concepts: situated learning,
reflective practice and conceptual expansion as the platform for changes to teaching practice.
First, we recognise that learning is rooted in the situation in which a person participates
(Fenwick 2003, 24). So for tutors, their learning is situated in educational contexts with
actual students, an actual curriculum, or actual problems of practice (De Rijdt et al. 2013,
67). By observing and by being observed in real teaching situations, tutors are more likely to
reflect on their own teaching and translate their learning to their teaching practice.
Integration into a community of practice is also a facet of situated learning (Lave and
Wenger 1991). Therefore, interaction with other tutors in their discipline was an essential
feature of the tutor development programme, and there was a mix of new and more
experienced tutors undertaking the programme.
Reflective practice is the second concept informing our tutor development framework.
First formulated by Schn (1983) and extended by Brookfield (1995) and many others, we
define reflective practice as intellectual and affective activities in which individuals engage
to explore their experiences in order to lead to new understandings and appreciations
(Boud, Keogh, and Walker 1985, 19). We designed the peer observation activity to strongly
emphasise reflective practice, and to allow tutors to view their teaching through two of
Brookfields lenses: their students eyes and their colleagues experiences (1995, 29).
Finally, the peer observation process provided tutors with an opportunity for
conceptual expansion, in terms of their understanding about teaching and learning.
Conceptual expansion is poorly defined in the education literature. In this paper we are
guided by the work of kerlind (2007) and define conceptual expansion for a tutor as a
shift in their focus away from themselves as the teacher and their teaching strategies to
their students and their students learning. This change in focus is important as Prosser
and Trigwell (1999, 142) note that:

university teachers who focus on their students and their students learning tend to have
students who focus on meaning and understanding in their studies, while university teachers
who focus on themselves and what they are doing tend to have students who focus on
reproduction.
 Teaching in Higher Education 27

In summary, as succinctly put by Amundsen and Wilson (2012, 110), [w]e understand
the development process as a dynamic interplay among individual, disciplinary, and
organisational elements and mediated by reflection on action.

Our previous research and context for tutor development

Our investigation into the professional development of tutors began in 2005 when leading
a faculty-based tutor development programme. A large number of casual staff in the
Business School of our university (100 in semester 1 2007, compared to 217 full time
academics) are employed each semester as tutors. As one aspect of the comprehensive
programme, we provided an option for tutors to observe another tutorial and to be
observed teaching, enabling situated learning to take place. The exercise was successful:
94% of participants found it valuable and 88% said that they would change their teaching
as a result of the exercise (for further details, see Bell and Mladenovic 2008).
The peer observation activity continued as a key component of the tutor development
programme over the next two years. Alongside the programme, we conducted research
into the reflective practices of tutors. In 2006 we analysed the self-reflective statements
that tutors wrote after participating in the peer observation exercise, and discovered that
most tutors reflected in a holistic way about their teaching (for further details see Bell,
Mladenovic, and Segara 2010). As a second phase of our research, in 2007 we
interviewed six tutors to explore how and when they reflected on their teaching practice.
Tutors saw a variety of benefits of reflection, including improving their teaching (for
further details, see Bell and Mladenovic 2013). We also asked the tutors if they had made
lasting changes to their teaching as a result of the peer observation activity this data is
presented for the first time in the current paper.
Although we have previously analysed some of the data arising from the peer
observation activity, in this paper we have drawn on all of the data collected over three
years to create a holistic picture of the impacts and implications of peer observation of
teaching for tutor development.

Methods
Our comprehensive analysis includes several different sets of data gathered from tutors:
peer observation and self-reflective statements, tutor surveys, a focus group and
interviews (see Table 1).
The details about these data sources are described in our previous papers (Bell and
Mladenovic 2008, 2013; Bell, Mladenovic, and Segara 2010). All data was collected in

Table 1. Sources of data from tutors.

Sources of data Number of tutors (year)

Peer observation statements 32 (2005)

Self-reflective statements 32 (2005), 25 (2006)
Survey 30 (2005)
Focus group 19 (2005)
Interviews 6 (2007)
Total individual data items 144
28 A. Bell and R. Mladenovic

accordance with an approved ethics protocol, and has been de-identified, with
pseudonyms used where appropriate.
We analysed all qualitative data according to the three themes of our academic
development framework: situated learning, reflective practice and conceptual expansion,
and also looked for instances where tutors mentioned changing their teaching. We each
independently analysed the data, then together reviewed and agreed on the data we had
coded to each theme and selected quotes to illustrate each theme.

Results
The peer observation of teaching activity allowed tutors to experience firsthand how their
colleagues presented discipline-specific content and engaged students in the learning
process. Observation enabled tutors to reflect on their own teaching practice, as the tutors
could relate the material and experiences to their own classroom. Tutors revealed changes
in how they thought about their teaching, and ways in which they had changed, or
intended to change, their teaching. These findings are discussed in detail as follows.

Situated learning
Tutors found great benefit in being able to see a peer teaching the same or a similar
subject. Fourteen tutors spoke or wrote about the importance of disciplinarity in enabling
contextually meaningful reflection on their teaching, for example:

It is great because the person you are reviewing is teaching the same content, so you can see
how different tutors interact/engage with the students. You can see/understand what you do
well/poorly and what the person you are reviewing does well/poorly. (peer feedback form 24,
2005)

[the exercise] was also important in terms of the content Im an accountant and I have
more than 10 years experience in accounting So sometimes I was worried whether Im
using terminology that the students would understand, given that I was teaching them
something like ABC in accounting to me. And having someone observing my tutorial was
good in terms of telling me whether the terminology that I was using was really
understandable by the students. (focus group participant, 2005)

The situated nature of peer observation allowed tutors to highlight the importance of
experiencing the technical and theoretical content as well as the discipline-specific
context of learning in improving their teaching practice.

Reflective practice
The peer observation activity encouraged reflective practice, with tutors reflecting on
technical, practical and critical aspects of their teaching in context (Bell, Mladenovic, and
Segara 2010). A large number of tutors reflected on their teaching in a holistic way, with
15 tutors making comments such as:

It is good to reflect on teaching and therefore be more conscious of it. Rather than
just walking away from the tutorial and hoping you have taught well, you actually assess it.
(self-reflection form 12, 2005)
 Teaching in Higher Education 29

It always helps to step back and evaluate your practices from a distance. (self-reflection form
6, 2005)

Looking at someone else helps one see ones own shortcomings (survey response, 2005)

Four tutors spoke of this reflective aspect being forced, for example:

[the peer observation activity] forces you to think not just about yourself, but the process of
reflecting on you, so it forces you to take a step back. (Mariam, interview, 2007)

[the peer observation activity] has forced me to sit down and think about methods for
improving my tutorials. (self-reflection form 30, 2005)

Charlotte found the self-reflection component to be confronting:

reflection on your own teaching can be quite confronting, because its you thats under the
microscope. (Charlotte, interview, 2006)

Conceptual expansion
In addition to the reflections on the general benefits of reflective practices for self-
evaluation and improved teaching practice, some reflections provided evidence of
conceptual expansion. We found many examples of tutors becoming more aware of their
students learning as a result of the peer observation activity:

It made me think about the reasons why I was doing certain things and how I might improve
student learning and participation. (self-reflection form 29, 2005)

I will be even more conscious of the needs of the students. (self-reflection form 26, 2005)

I will try to listen to students needs better (as individually as possible). (questions 15 tutor 1)

It gives you a chance to see a class for (sic) a students point of view. (question 14 tutor 24)

In the examples above, there is evidence of how conceptual expansion has led to changes
in current or intended teaching practices.

Changing teaching practices

One of the main aims of our tutor development programme was to enable tutors to make
lasting changes to their teaching practice so as to better support student learning. In 2005,
26 of the 32 tutors who participated in the exercise said that they intended to change their
teaching as a result of the peer observation activity. All but three of the 25 tutors who
undertook the exercise in 2006 said that they would make changes to their teaching.
Tutors reported a wide range of ways in which they planned to change their teaching; the
most common intended change was increasing student interaction:

It was very helpful to sit in on my partners tutorial and see him breaking the group into
smaller groups, giving a task and then reporting back to the whole group and discussing it
together. And I incorporated that last week into my tutorials, it worked very well. (focus
group participant, 2005)
30 A. Bell and R. Mladenovic

I realised I need to be prepared more and get students to participate more. (self-reflection
form 8, 2005)

I will definitely try and incorporate real world applications of the theory being taught. I
think this makes concepts easier to understand as students have some sort of an idea about
how theory and practice are interlinked. (self-reflection form 4, 2006)

All six tutors interviewed one semester after participating in the peer observation exercise
reported changes they had made to their teaching. Three tutors improved their
presentation skills to scaffold students learning and support more student engagement
and critical thinking. One tutor spoke about being more relaxed about silences, not
rushing in to say something. Another tutor is using more storytelling to link theory to
practice. Marcus is using a different way of asking questions to promote discussion:

I try and engage students a lot more than I did previously because in my discipline its a
little difficult to get discussion going on. Previously I used to ask students do you have any
questions?. Now after watching my peer do his tutorial I figured a better way of doing things
is to actually ask students on the spot; what do you think the answer to this is?; what do you
think of that?; instead of saying does anyone have questions?. (Marcus, interview, 2007)

All tutors who were interviewed said that the changes to their teaching had been lasting
rather than transient, for example:

Definitely they have [been lasting] because Im incorporating them this semester as well.
This is week five and it does make much more of a difference because I applied it starting
from week one. (Marcus, interview, 2007)

Charlotte qualified that she still needs to remind herself to apply the changes:

Its a continuing in other words, its feedback that I consciously continuously try to take
note of. I cant say that its a permanent change yet, because it would be a permanent change
if I dont think about it anymore, and it comes subconsciously. But at this point in time, I still
consciously have to remind myself to apply the changes that I needed to apply, so Im still in
the middle of a change management effort in a manner of speaking. (Charlotte,
interview, 2007)

Discussion
Our framework for tutor development is based on three key concepts: situated learning;
reflective practice and conceptual expansion, with the aim of supporting tutors to make
changes to their teaching practice that support student learning. Tutors found it helpful to
observe a peer teaching the same or a similar topic. Observing their peers provided an
opportunity for reflection which enabled conceptual expansion and changes to teaching
practice. Here we discuss these themes and argue that tutors made lasting positive
changes to their teaching.

Situated learning
Like Fenwick (2003) and De Rijdt et al. (2013), we recognise the importance of situating
learning in context. Hence our tutor development programme included peer observation
 Teaching in Higher Education 31

of teaching in the same or similar subject area. Observing and being observed in real
teaching situations enabled the tutors to reflect on their own teaching and translate their
learning to their teaching practice. Tutors realised that they were encountering the same
difficulties as each other. Tutors found it useful to observe a peer teaching the same
subject, as they understood the content and were able to see variations in how a subject
might be taught.
Another facet of situated learning is integration into a community of practice (Lave
and Wenger 1991). In our interviews with tutors (Bell and Mladenovic 2013), we found
that tutors did not have much time to discuss their teaching with each other when such
conversations did occur they were serendipitous. Therefore, the peer observation activity
provided a valuable opportunity for tutors to have such conversations.
The importance of learning from peers comes more sharply into focus when the
marginalised position of tutors is considered. The tutors in this study commented on the
lack of relationship between tutors and unit coordinators and some expressed their
discomfort in approaching the unit coordinator to discuss issues related to teaching.

The centrality of reflective practice

Reflective practice is acknowledged as central to the scholarly development of teachers,
including tutors (Hall and Sutherland 2013). Our study emphasises the centrality of
reflective practice in peer observation of teaching, as also found by Donnelly (2007), Kell
and Annetts (2009) and Chester (2012).
Because reflective conversations seem to have disappeared from the everyday practice
of our colleagues (McCormack and Kennelly 2011, 515), we need to create opportunities
for discussions that prompt reflection on teaching. Tutors in our study valued the
opportunity for reflective practice, albeit some spoke about forced self-reflection (also
found by Kirley 2006), which is reminiscent of Biggs comments about trapping students
into engaging deeply with learning using constructive alignment (1999, 26).
The emphasis on the process of reflective practice rather than an outcome (Amundsen
and Wilson 2012) means that tutors are equipped with a process that they can use
throughout their teaching career, and can adapt to other scenarios such as solitary
reflection after teaching, and reflection with colleagues on curriculum renewal. Our data
revealed that the reflective processes enabled tutors to expand their understanding of
teaching and learning, and change their teaching practice.

Conceptual expansion
We found evidence that some tutors had a shift in focus away from themselves as the
teacher and their teaching strategies to their students and their students learning
development. Seeing a class from a students viewpoint enabled tutors to step away
from the pressing concerns of content and class management, to observe how the students
were engaging with the material and class activities. This is similar to the findings by
Hendry, Bell, and Thomson, that a significant part of the experience of peer observation
included watching students reacting to their colleague and seeing students level of
engagement (2013, 6). This altered perspective facilitates, for some tutors, a change in
mindset from teacher focused to student focused.
32 A. Bell and R. Mladenovic

Changes to teaching
One of the primary aims of a professional development programme for tutors is to enable
lasting changes to teaching. Our study adds to the small body of work reporting that
tutors in peer observation partnerships made immediate changes to their teaching
(Truuvert 2012). Although the changes to teaching described by tutors might seem
small, the shift in mindset towards becoming a reflective practitioner is significant and
will hopefully continue to develop and evolve. In addition, what may seem like a small
change, such as being more comfortable with silences, might point to a realisation that
students can create their own knowledge if given the opportunity. Such a seemingly small
change might actually point to a large underlying shift in teaching approach, as shown by
tutors responses in this study.

Our revised framework

Our original framework underpinning this programme was that situated learning invites
reflection which facilitates conceptual expansion and change in teaching practice. While
the data reveals evidence of conceptual expansion that led to changes in teaching practice,
we also observed that situated peer observation of teaching provides a vehicle for
reflection which, in and of itself, inspires and enables tutors to change their teaching
practices. We therefore suggest a revised framework, which incorporates a pathway where
reflection leads directly to changes in teaching:

Situated Invites Facilitates Enables

peer reecon conceptual changes to
observaon on teaching expansion teaching
pracce

Further exploration of this framework is suggested, including research exploring how

the four elements work together, and what other factors might be involved.

Ways forward for practice

One practical way of building on our research is to engage tutors in a discussion about the
key themes arising from our research. For example, before participating in peer
observation of teaching, it could be helpful for tutors to learn about the experiences of
other tutors. A discussion about the benefits of situated learning might cue tutors as to
what to look for when observing their colleague.
Although we found that a one-time peer observation activity was effective, where
possible peer observation partnerships that go beyond a semester should be encouraged. It
may also be beneficial to design a programme where tutors can undertake multiple
observations if desired, and observe expert teachers if they wish. It takes time and space
for repertoire to develop, as indicated in the review by De Rijdt et al., who found that
staff development interventions extended over time show more positive results of
transfer of learning than one-time interventions. (2013, 69).
 Teaching in Higher Education 33

We also need to consider that tutors would not be interested in developing their
reflective practice unless their approach to teaching encompassed an understanding that
reflecting on teaching was valuable. kerlind (2007, 35) describes such dissonances as
matches and mismatches between academics and developers views of how best to
approach teaching development. So for tutors who are not interested in developing in
this way, peer observation of teaching may not be an appropriate or useful professional
development activity. Alternative forms of professional development could include
supporting informal conversations between tutors (Thomson 2013).
Those involved in supporting tutors development also need to attend to tutors
experiences of isolation. Tutors and other early career academics are often powerless to
change teaching practice and culture due to their low status in the faculty hierarchy and
their lack of job security (e.g. Remmik et al. 2011; Brookfield 1995; Petersen 2011).
Helping them to connect with their unit coordinators is a very basic starting point in
helping tutors integrate into and understand their disciplinary cultures (Mathieson 2011).
Lee contends that unit coordinators have a special responsibility to ensure that tutors are
included in the activities of a department and that there needs to be a policy of inclusion
and moving newcomers from the periphery towards the centre (2013, 65).

Conclusion and future research

The peer observation of teaching activity supported tutors to reflect on their teaching
practice, expand their conceptions of teaching and learning and even generate lasting
changes in teaching practice. Both the reflective practice encouraged by, and the situated
nature of, peer observation of teaching in the tutor development programme were central
factors in enabling tutors to change their teaching practice.
We found evidence that tutors changed their teaching; however, we did not measure
the impact of that change on students taught by the programme participants. Prior
research notes that measuring the impact of teaching development programmes on student
learning is difficult, and the changes found, if any, are usually small (Trigwell, Caballero
Rodriguez, and Han 2012; Stes et al. 2012). This provides fertile ground for further
research, including other outcomes which could be measured such as consistency of
teaching and marking across a course, and the involvement of tutors in course design and
in discussions about teaching issues (Wood and Mate 2012).
Changes to tutors teaching practice should be supported by unit coordinators, who
need to be mindful of the marginalised status of tutors. The professional development of
tutors will be enhanced if accompanied by efforts to welcome and include tutors in the
full life of their disciplinary culture. Research exploring effective ways to overcome the
significant disaffection and the isolation of the growing numbers of casual tutors would
be of value to the university sector.
Finally, we also suggest a longitudinal study of tutors changes to teaching,
investigating how changes made due to peer observation of teaching evolve over time.

Acknowledgements
We thank all tutors who participated in the tutor development programme, colleagues at the Institute
for Teaching and Learning for their comments on an early draft of this paper and Professor Keith
Trigwell for his helpful feedback on a later draft.
34 A. Bell and R. Mladenovic

Notes
1. Also known as casual academics, sessional staff, hourly paid staff, graduate teaching assistants,
adjunct faculty, part-time lecturers, teaching assistants and contingent faculty.
2. We define peer review of teaching as a quality assurance process, linked to performance
management or external quality audits. For a full discussion of the definitions of peer review of
teaching, see Lomas and Nicholls (2005).

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