Action Plan Project for “Shaping the Way We Teach English”
In this online course, we are focusing on new teaching techniques and resources. Choose one technique or classroom
innovation that you would like to incorporate into your class, and develop an action plan (below) for accomplishing this.
Date Created: July 7th 2008
Name of Action Plan Creator: John Alejandro Arias
New teaching techniques or ideas I plan to use: Active
Peer Observation
My Class Now
In my opinion, the aim when you get observed is to receive
feedback which can help you improve your teaching by
correcting the mistakes that you are doing on your
performance.
Nevertheless, when a peer or someone else comes to any
class to observe it, as the majority, the teacher gets
nervous and anxious; and this may take him/her to make
mistakes that they usually do not make. Things that
normally are not part of their classes.
Even more, when an observer is inside a class, not only it
affects the teacher’s performance but also the student’s,
perhaps in a good or bad way, but that is not the idea.
Class: Any one
Number of Students: Any number
Language Level: Any level
My Class in the Future (My Vision)
The two teachers will be an active part of the class,
preventing one of them of being a stranger for the learners
and the other one of feeling criticized.
Pre: Both teachers will sit down and the teacher who is
supposed to be observed will prepare his/her class giving
some instructions to the observer teacher for him/her to
perform in the class.
While: Both teachers will act their roles, which were
previously prepared, allowing them to feel confident
enough to make the mistakes they (observer and teacher)
normally do.
Post: Both teachers will share feedback, with their points
of view of the other’s performance and advices for the
other to improve the teaching. They should talk about
THEIR class
©2007 L. Opp-Beckman & K. Westerfield. University of Oregon.
Additional Explanation from Action Plan Creator

In “My Class in the Future (My Vision)” above, you described a change you would like to see happen in your class.
Provide additional information for the following related items. Write as though you are informing a person who knows
nothing about your educational setting.

1. The benefits I predict from this change:

• The change of the stressing observation to a mutual one. It is like putting the conditions on a scale. “I am going
to be observed but also I am going to be the observer”
• The way in which the students will feel in class with a stranger who may be looking at their performance but with
another teacher. Because when the first condition applies, the learners will automatically turn their normal
behavior depending on many factors, for instance the relation with their teacher and the observer’s attitude. And
at the end the feedback will be futile.
• The prevention of the mistakes that the teacher might do by means of the observation, since the objective is to
detect the errors he/she is making in a regular class without observer.

2. Challenges I expect:
• The teachers’ autonomy which will not allow the observer to be an active part of their classes.
• The observers who want to put their procedures, activities and opinions on the teachers’ class plan.

3. How I will address those challenges:

• For overcoming those challenges, I think is completely necessary to explain that the class plan is not going to
be shared, that the teacher has total freedom to prepare and organize it, and that this is a chance for them to
have a mirror of themselves inside the class because the observer will perform the instructions given by the
teacher. And this will allow him/her to reflect if the class plan is a success or not. On the other hand, the
observer is going to follow the instructions given by the teacher but in his/her way, allowing them to make the
mistakes they may do while teaching.

4. Steps and timeline (schedule) for completing the change:

• We need the participants to meet before the class for the teacher to prepare his/her class and for the observer

©2007 L. Opp-Beckman & K. Westerfield. University of Oregon.

 to receive the instructions. Then to perform what was planned in the class and when this finishes the teacher
shave to meet for sharing feedback which has to be applied in the next classes. Finally, both should meet again
to give their reflections about what has happened in their classes after having done the changes.

5. How I will assess the degree of success of the change:

• By the reflections of both participants after having applied the suggestions emerged in the post peer active
observation analysis.

©2007 L. Opp-Beckman & K. Westerfield. University of Oregon.

Review Comments from Your Partner

Reviewer’s Name: Luisa Fernanda Quintero Correa

Date: July 10th,2008

1. Is the proposed change clear (“My Class Now” vs. a vision for “My Class in the Future”)?
I think it is very clear, because he gives some good advices to overcome the stated problem.

2. Do the steps and the amount of time allotted for the change seem realistic?
They do seem realistic, because the proposal is concrete and clear. Of course, if the teachers involved in this
proposal, consider that it is necessary more time, it is important for them to do it, since they could find more
solutions in order to solve the possible problems that may appear.

3. What do you believe to be the strengths of the proposed change?

I think that the main strengths of the proposed change is that the observer will be active part of the class and this
may reduce the students and the observed teacher’s stress and anxiety from being observed.

4. Do you perceive any additional challenges and/or have additional advice for meeting challenges related to the
proposed change?
It would be good to observe the class again, so both teachers can reflect on that again, and see if the advices were
useful for the development of the class.

5. Does the type of assessment match the goals and outcomes of the proposed change?
The assessment is well connected to the goals and outcomes, because it is possible for both teachers to play a
role on the class and reflect on what each of them did, during the development of it.

6. Other comments or questions?

©2007 L. Opp-Beckman & K. Westerfield. University of Oregon.