FORMAL PEER OBSERVATION (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, associate, and non-tenured track  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.
  • Full-time non tenure-track faculty should review their department's promotion policy for submitting a Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review) report.

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 non tenure-track faculty seeking promotion and 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 About the UTA Policy About Promotion and Tenure and Peer Review

Step-by-Step Process for Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review)

  1. Faculty members needing a Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review), should to contact a certified peer observer or a faculty member who is of equal or higher rank than the faculty member being observed. If the faculty peer is eligible to be a peer observer and would like training on how a peer observer, the faculty member should submit the name of the faculty peer to peer.observation@uta.edu for training information. The faculty peer is not required to have training to be a peer observer, but it is strongly suggested. The faculty member should be aware of time commitments and availability of the peer observer/faculty peer and plan accordingly in scheduling the observation.
  2. Once communication has been established, the faculty member and peer observer set up a time for the pre-observation meeting.  During the pre-observation meeting the faculty member and peer observer discuss teaching goals and learning objectives and the faculty member completes the Pre-Observation Meeting form (with a final signature from the peer observer).  This meeting should take about 10-15 minutes.  If a scheduled time for the Course Observation has not been set, use this time to schedule the Course Observation.  The faculty member should provide a copy (digital or paper) of the Course Observation Form for the convenience of the peer observer. 
  3. The peer observer will observe the course during the scheduled time and the peer observer completes the Course Observation Form (with a final signature from the faculty member). 
  4. The peer observer and faculty member will set up a post-observation meeting (often within 72 hours after the course observation, however, it is recommended to have the post-observation meeting immediately following the course observation).  During the post-observation meeting, the faculty member and peer observer reflect upon the observed course session and the faculty member completes the Post-Observation Meeting form (with a final signature from the peer observer).  This meeting should take about 15-30 minutes. 
  5. After the post-observation meeting, the faculty member completes the Reporting Form (with final signature from the peer observer).  The Report form is required for all tenure and promotion dossiers and is evidence that a Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review) was conducted.
  6. The peer observer gives all the completed documents (Pre-Observation Meeting, Course Observation Form, Post-Observation Meeting, and Reporting form) to the faculty member for their personal records.  

FORMS:

List of Qualified Peer Observers

Peer Observer Training:  Contact:  peer.observation@uta.edu

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Pre-Observation Meeting (PDF Fillable)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Pre-Observation Meeting (Word document)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  On-Campus Course Observation (PDF Fillable)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  On-Campus Course Observation (Word document)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Online Course Observation (PDF Fillable)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Online Course Observation (Word document)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Post-Observation Meeting (PDF Fillable)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Post-Observation Meeting (Word document)

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Reporting Form (PDF Fillable) REQUIRED for tenure and promotion dossier

Formal Peer Observation (Peer Review):  Reporting Form (Word document) REQUIRED for tenure and promotion dossier

HINT:  Download the form onto your device then either print out paper versions and complete with a pen OR utilize the 'save as' feature by retitling the document with the faculty member name in order to keep the fillable items on the document.