Formal Peer Observation

FORMAL PEER OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW)

Formal Peer Observations (Peer Review) are formal teaching observations that are required for tenure and promotion dossiers. Similar to the Informal Peer Consultations, Formal Peer Observations (Peer Review) are teaching observations to support faculty development in effective teaching practices through supportive feedback from successful teaching faculty members.

WHO PARTICIPATES IN FORMAL PEER OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW)?

  • All UTA tenure track and/or associate faculty member seeking tenure and promotion.

 

WHEN ARE FORMAL PEER OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW) CONDUCTED AND WHAT COURSES ARE OBSERVED?

  • Observation can be conducted in all course modalities (on-campus, online, hybrid, blended, etc.) and type (lecture, lab, studio, etc.).
  • Observations can be completed in any time during the year. Full-time faculty just need to be currently teaching a course during the observation.

 

WHEN DO FORMAL PEER OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW) START AND HOW OFTEN ARE THEY NEEDED?

  • Full-time tenure-track complete their Formal Peer Review Observations (Peer Review) as part of their 3rd year review and another complete an additional Formal Peer Review Observation (Peer Review) during their application for tenure. Full-time tenure-track faculty are encouraged to have at least one Informal Peer Consultation prior to their Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review) to prepare them for their Formal Peer Review Observation (Peer Review).
  • Tenured faculty who intend to submit a dossier for promotion must have a Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review), no earlier than two years prior to the date of the submission of their dossier for promotion.

 

WHO CONDUCTS THE FORMAL PEER REVIEW OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW) AND IS THERE DOCUMENTATION?

  • Formal Peer Review Observations (Peer Review) are conducted by certified peer observers or a faculty member who is of equal or higher rank than the faculty member being observed.
  • All consultation appointments are confidential and documentations recorded/collected from the observations are under the ownership of the individual faculty member.
  • Documents included in the Formal Peer Review Observations (Peer Review) are: pre-meeting, observation feedback, post-meeting, and reporting form.

 

WHY PARTICIPATE IN FORMAL PEER REVIEW OBSERVATIONS (PEER REVIEW)?

  • The Formal Peer Review Observations (Peer Review) are teaching observations for tenure-track faculty in preparation for their 3rd-year review and subsequent years as part faculty dossier for tenure and promotion. Only the Reporting Form(s) are required records for tenure and promotion dossier.

 

For more information regarding Formal Peer Observations, please click this link.