(observations)=
# Observations of teaching and learning

> This is a reflection on two peer observations of my teaching that were
> conducted on semester 2 2020/21. It covers my initial goals for the
> observations, the main feedback I received, and points for future reference.

The main aspects of teaching with which I struggle the most are pacing and
assessment (both formative and summative).
My natural pace is fast and I enjoy fast-paced content as a student.
Of course, I realized early on in my career that this is not the case for a
majority of students and slowing down allows me to better cater to students
needs.
As I mentioned in {ref}`pivotal_assessment`, assessments were usually not
something I enjoyed or got much value out of as a student.
Discussions and well designed formative assessments can not only help teachers
assess learning but also help slow down the pacing of a lecture
{cite}`wilson2019effectivelesson`.
As the instructor, it can be difficult for me to assess them on my own and
student feedback, while very useful, can be biased by personal preferences or
their perceptions of what a university lecture should be.
When I had the chance to get feedback from my peers, I naturally focused on
these two aspects of my teaching delivery.
[A5,K2,K5,K6]

Both of these sessions were done during the shift to fully online delivery
because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While I am comfortable with online delivery and had prior experience, both
observers are well versed in this form of delivery as well and could provide
a good reference point to gage the quality of my own practice.
My main concern moving online was making sure that students were not being left
behind.
Ideally, this should take the form of frequent formative assessment (quizzes)
but creating such resources is labour intensive and there was little time to
make preparations before the start of the module.
[K2,K4,V3,V4,V1]

## Observation 1: ENVS258 Environmental Geophysics

The first observation was a computer-based synchronous practical activity for
the ENVS258 Environmental Geophysics module.
In the preceding session, students had learned how to process raw data from the
instrument into measurements of gravity acceleration.
The topic of this particular session is the further processing and
interpretation of disturbances in the Earth's gravity field due to the variable
densities of subsurface geological structures.
Under normal circumstances, this part of the module would involve students
performing their own measurements across the campus.
However, with full online delivery the focus had to be shifted towards the
processing of the data using computer programming tools.
[V4,K4]

The feedback from the observer indicated that the pacing of delivery and the
use of technology were very good.
The main area of development identified was the lack of engagement from a
portion of the cohort.
While some were actively participating through the chat system and answering
questions, a portion of students did not communicate at all.
After our initial discussion, the observer suggested including more activities
for students to do in groups and report back their findings as a way to engage
the quiet students {cite}`wlodkowski2017enhancing`.
As a bonus, such activity would also allow me to gage their understanding of
the lesson content.
[v1,V2,V3,K2,K5,A2,A3]

## Observation 2: ENVS398 Global Geophysics and Geodynamics

The second observation was also a computer-based synchronous practical activity,
this time for the third-year module ENVS398 Global Geophysics and Geodynamics.
In this module, we cover the dynamics of the Earth's outermost layer through
the lens of geophysical models and how they fit existing data.
It provides an integrated view of different techniques they learned throughout
their degree on a global level.
My part of this module focuses on using computer programming, physics, geology,
and a variety of real datasets to understand the processes that shape the
Earth's surface.
In the synchronous sessions, I provided some introductory content for the
activity through live-coding the basic steps required.
Afterwards, they would be assigned group activities where they complement the
code, compare results, discuss, and then summarise back to the class.
This last step was incorporated after the first observation.
[A1-5,K1,K2,K4,K6]

Once again, I asked the observer for specific feedback on the pacing of my
delivery.
This was particularly useful since the observer was from a different discipline
and would likely have the same amount of prior knowledge as the students
themselves.
I also requested feedback on the strategy recently implemented to try to boost
engagement and assess learning.
[K5,A5]

Feedback from the observer was very positive on all aspects.
Areas of improvement identified were refinements in the pacing, which they
thought should be slower, and the balance of theoretical and practical content,
with some theory that could be removed or assigned as bonus material.
Another aspect that requires improvement is the time allocation for the
discussion activity and summary at the end of the session.
The amount of content that was assigned to each session was too large to allow
proper time for students to discuss and relay back the main points to their
peers.
[V1,A5]

## Summary

Both observations were very useful and highlighted both aspects of my practice
that works well and also others that could be improved.
Having two observers with different backgrounds provided non-overlapping
feedback that got around some of the blind spots from which experts in a field
can suffer {cite}`kalyuga2007expertisereversal`.
The pacing of delivery, which was one of my main concerns, was reasonable but
could be made a bit slower.
Both observers suggested ways to improve engagement and implement a form of
formative assessment that fits well with the high level expected of final year
students.
Initial trials of this change were successful but require fine tuning for the
following academic year.
In my {ref}`cpd`, I lay out plans for accomplishing this in a reasonable time
frame.
[A1-5,K2,K3,K5,V1]