Being observed can be anxiety-inducing, even if you’ve been observed for many years. In our department, however, our hope is that both observers and observees approach observations with collegiality, curiosity, and compassion. If you are being observed this semester, think of the experience as an opportunity to gain a third-person perspective from an interested and generous colleague about what seems to be working well in your class and also about what could be modified to further improve students’ learning experiences.

It is the responsibility of your assigned observer to schedule the class visit and post-observation conference and submit the observation report (signed by both you and your observer). However, here is a brief checklist of what you should do to facilitate the timely completion of your observation report:

• respond to your observer’s email about scheduling the class visit no later than one week after receiving it, but preferably as soon as you reasonably can. (Please note that your observer is required to observe only ONE class session from any ONE of your 3- or 4- credit classes.)
• make sure that you arrange for a post-observation conference after the class visit. (Either you or your observer may request to have a representative of the department at the meeting. Just contact fyw@qc.cuny.edu to arrange it.)
• review and sign your observation report and then return it to your observer after the post-observation conference.

We recommend that you email your observer and copy fyw@qc.cuny.edu IF:

• your observer has not contacted you to schedule a class visit one week after observation assignment have been distributed.
• one week after your class visit your observer has not contacted you to schedule a post-observation meeting.
• you have requested but not received a copy of the observation report before your post-observation meeting.
• your observer has not provided you with a signed copy of the observation report with an included memorandum of your post-observation meeting by the 11th week of the semester.

Thank you!

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