Providing high-quality feedback is essential for improving preservice teacher performance. Rather than post-lesson feedback, immediate performance feedback while teaching is considered effective. This article reports on developing and piloting a standardised tool for synchronous feedback. Eight teacher educators from a Dutch higher education institution were trained to use the tool (based on accepted models of teacher roles, observation criteria and feedback levels) with pre-recorded lessons. Interobserver reliability was good for teacher roles and sufficient for feedback levels. Positive evaluations of the tool and educators’ interest in its application, warrant further research into scalability and effectiveness of synchronous feedback delivery.
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Peer assisted study sessions (PASS), also known as Supplemental instruction, are structured peer guided sessions linked to a specific course, led by experienced and trained students called PASS-leaders. These PASS-leaders undergo several days of training before running their first session and receive supervision and feedback ‘on the job’. Research suggests that training improves student outcomes whereby supervision is considered best practice, as required by PASS protocols. However, it is unclear what type of supervision best supports PASS-leaders. Thus far, studies have not compared different methods for on-the-job interventions. Current practice involves supervisors observing PASS sessions without intervening but providing post hoc feedback. While this prevents undermining the PASS leaders, it delays their ability to act on feedback immediately. This study, carried out at an institution for initial teacher education, developed and tested a method for providing immediate feedback using a bug-in-ear device linked to a live-stream. Six PASS-leaders were observed during 4-6 sessions each, receiving either synchronous feedback with a bug-in-ear or in-person asynchronous post hoc feedback. In group interviews PASS-leaders reported appreciating the immediacy of synchronous feedback which allowed them to act on it in real-time. The surveys after each lesson indicated that they felt significantly more confident about teaching following live feedback. They described the supervisor as an invisible helper, providing support or assistance. Because the bug-in-ear method could only provide feedback on visible instructional and pedagogical actions, both PASS-leaders and PASS-supervisors recommended using this as a supplement to a pre-session briefing and a post-session debrief.
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Many institutes for initial teacher education struggle to organise effective performance feedback within the context of student teaching practicum. As the cooperating teachers who provide this feedback bring their individualised ontologies, feedback practices have been characterised by inconsistencies in the amount and quality of performance feedback. In this small-scale study carried out in the Netherlands, we explored affordances of eCoaching using a standardised feedback taxonomy. With the help of Bluetooth technology and the Synchronous Online Feedback Taxonomy, four teacher educators provided eCoaching to eight preservice teachers over the course of three lessons. We interviewed teacher educators and preservice teachers about their experiences with eCoaching using the feedback taxonomy during secondary school practicum. Overall, both groups of participants were positive about eCoaching using the taxonomy. Teacher educators observed preservice teachers self-regulating when implementing prior feedback in their lessons. Preservice teachers indicated increased confidence following the lessons with eCoaching.
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