Is it “just to teach” or is it “more to learn”? Reflections, among peers, about (their own) pedagogical practices in higher education: Analysis of teachers’ perceptions about a peer observation of teaching program

Abstract

Several strategies have been proposed to fill the gaps in the pedagogical training of faculty, one of which referring to peer observation of teaching. To support faculty in their pedagogical practices, a peer observation of teaching program is currently being implemented at University of Aveiro (Portugal), already in its second edition. In the present paper, after briefly framing the concept of teaching professionalism in the specific context of Higher Education, we describe POP – Programa de Observação por Pares and analyze the reflections of 10 professors about their own pedagogical practices in Higher Education. They participated in the first edition of this program and met to reflect about it. This meeting was video recorded and the professors’ testimonies were transcribed. Their perceptions about the experience of participating in POP and about other dimensions related to teaching professionalism in Higher Education were analyzed using the content analysis technique (specifically, thematic analysis), which was implemented with WebQDA, a qualitative data analysis software. In this paper, we present the common themes that have emerged from this analysis, namely: the reasons that motivated the participation in POP; the advantages and limitations of participating in POP; the future potentialities of a program like POP. Among other considerations on the relevance of peer observation for professional development, we reflect on answers to the question about the role of professors in Higher Education: is it “just to teach” or is it “more to learn”?