Teacher Observations: If You Aren’t Cheating, You Aren’t Trying

Teacher observations, the season is now among us. All teachers either fall in one of two categories. The totally freaked out, or the totally don’t care and let’s just get it over with. For the totally freaked out teachers, allow me to create some ease of mind.

Now the tips I am getting ready to share with you are definitely not tips that your principal, AP, content coach, or even people on the district level will approve of. But aren’t teachers, the majority of the time on opposing sides of these folks anyway?

In reality, when it comes to teacher observations, you have to do what you have to do. Especially to get the outcome you want to get at the end of the year. Admin is constantly doing things, and making certain decisions  that we would prefer them not to make. So, I just prefer to call it a little bit of toxic tit-for-tat energy.

Teacher Observations: Top Tips

The following tips are designed to help you get through teacher observations this season, with as little anxiety as possible. Especially when it comes to your formal/scheduled observation. Let’s start with:

1) Pick Your Best Class

For starters, it is NOT about picking your smartest class, or even your most well behaved class. Nope, not even your smallest class. It’s about picking your loyal, ride-or-die class. That class you know without a shadow of a doubt has your back. They may not have the highest scores, but loyalty of your students goes a long way when it comes to getting good observation scores.

Pro Tip:
If you are able to, get your evaluation first or last period, even during the lunch block. Why? Usually there is so much activity outside of the classroom happening at these times, that your assessing administrator is not able to be in your room the entire time. Meaning they may arrive late or have to leave early.

2) Bribe Them

Yes, you heard me right, bribe them! Offer the class you choose extra credit, a 100% on as a test grade or a quiz grade, forgive two missing assignments, etc. Whatever your heart desires. Heck, even try bribing them with food, candy, or treats. You know your students best. Just use something that will give them extra incentive to have your back even more!

3) Practice the Day Before

Whatever activity or lesson you are planning to do on the date of your formal/scheduled teacher observation, do the same exact thing, the day before. This will allow you and your students to work through any major kinks that come up. I know that there are still going to be some unknown variables thrown in on the actual observation day, but you can at least alleviate some of them.

Make sure to explain to your students what you want to see, what you want to hear, and what you need from them at different parts of the lesson or activity. You can even designate specific students to ask certain questions. Also, change some of the problems so that there is a sense of freshness to the activity or lesson on observation day. But your students should still have a general idea and be able to pull through for you successfully. 

Pro Tip:
Remind students that on the day of the observation, they still need to act like they have never seen this lesson, or done this activity before. Also remind them they need to avoid saying things like, “Oh yeah, we did this yesterday.” Whatever reminders you can think of, so they don’t blow your cover. 

Teacher Observations: Lesson Plan Dilemma

For those of you who have to submit your lesson plans in advance, and your lesson plans cannot show you doing the same thing two days in a row, stay tuned. Keep in mind that you are the person creating and submitting those plans. I am going to say to finagle them. Get them to say whatever it is that you need them to say to make things match up for the day of your formal. Basically on paper, make it look one way (you are doing your formal lesson or activity on the specified date only) but in reality, do what needs to be done (build in the extra day to do the run through).

Is Cheating On Teacher Observations Ethical?

Now I know what some of you are going to say about doing any of these tips to create a fail-proof scheduled teacher observation. You are questioning if these tips are ethical, if they are moral? In my book yes, yes they are, but you are always entitled to your own opinion. But before you take off on me, hear this out.

How fair is it to take one day, one lesson, and say that this determines how good of a teacher you are? You are in your classroom for 9-10 months a year working with your students on a daily. Why shouldn’t you ensure that all your hard work is represented well on the scheduled observation day.

The observation systems districts have in place are designed to demand a dog and pony show, in order for teachers to get effective to highly effective ratings. I see it like this, you have two choices, you can actually put on the dog and pony show, or you can not put on the dog and pony show. Just keep in mind that all hell can potentially break loose while you are on your doing teacher observations the ethical way, journey. Which can potentially lead to you getting a mediocre score. 

I do admire all the brave ones that want to do it the “honorable” way. As for me, I get highly effective every year. It is because I am highly effective on a weekly (not daily I’m taking the average) basis. And like most teachers, I want a great formal observation to put the cherry on top. For the observation score to acknowledge all the efforts I give throughout the year.

Conclusion:

For those of you still straddling the fence on whether on not to use these three tips. Just recall all the times of the year that your Administration asks you to make sure you are doing certain things, or that specific things are happening in your classrooms. Especially on days when the district office or visitors from other schools are going to be walking classes. Admin asks us to put on dog and pony shows when it will make them look good. So tell me what is so wrong with you putting on a dog and pony show, to make you look good?

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