FREE ONLINE WORKSHOP
Whose Observation Is It? Giving Teachers More Ownership Before Observations
A free interactive workshop for teacher trainers who want to involve teachers more meaningfully in shaping what happens before an observation.
Tuesday 15 September 2026
10:00 CEST / 9:00 UK
17:00 CEST / 16:00 UK
Replay available
Choose your session
When you're responsible for observing a teacher, there are often decisions to make before you even enter the classroom.
What will you focus on? What are you looking for? Which criteria will you use? What does this particular teacher need to work on?
Especially when you're relatively new to teacher training, it can feel as though making those decisions is part of doing the job well.
But somewhere in that process, the teacher can become surprisingly absent from an observation that is supposed to support their development.
They may know that they're being observed. They may know what the criteria are. They may even have had a pre-observation conversation with you. But how much have they actually shaped what you're going to pay attention to?
And what might change if they had more say before you walked into the classroom?
How my thinking about observations has changed
When I first became a teacher trainer, I put a lot of attention into what happened during and after an observation. I wanted to notice the right things, ask useful questions and give feedback that would genuinely help the teacher.
Over time, I started paying more attention to what had already happened before I walked into the classroom. Who had decided what I would focus on? How much did I know about what the teacher wanted to develop? And how involved had the teacher actually been in shaping the observation?
I began to realise that if an observation is meant to support a teacher's development, it makes sense for the teacher to have a meaningful role in shaping it.
This workshop grew out of those questions and some of the changes I've made to my own observation practice since.
What we'll explore together
During the workshop, you'll look at your own observation process and consider how much say teachers currently have before you enter their classroom.
Through reflection, discussion and practical activities, we'll explore:
where decisions about an observation currently sit, and who gets to make them
how a teacher's own development priorities can become part of the observation
ways of involving teachers more meaningfully in deciding what you pay attention to
what greater teacher ownership could realistically look like within the constraints of your own context
You'll leave having identified one change you could make to your own pre-observation process and an idea you can try with a teacher you work with.
Your pre-workshop workbook
When you register, you'll receive a short workbook alongside the link to join the workshop.
It will give you a chance to step back and think about what currently happens before an observation in your context, including the decisions you make and where the teacher comes into that process.
Bring it with you to the live session. We'll draw on some of those reflections during the workshop, so you can connect what we're exploring to your own observation practice.
A little extra for joining live
If you attend live, you'll receive an additional practical resource to help you take what we've explored into your next observation.
What teachers and trainers say about working with me
“My approach to feedback has really changed. Observations don't make me as nervous anymore, as I now understand they come from a place of mutual respect and support, rather than criticism or a top-down approach.”
Carolina Silvestre - English and Spanish teacher, Sofia, Hungary.
“Aurore's approach is the perfect blend of academic and human [...] She truly understands how to empower other teachers and trainers, one step at a time.”
Head Teacher, Teacher Trainer and Bilingualism Project Coordinator, San Pablo University, Peru
Is this workshop for you?
This workshop is mainly for new and relatively new teacher trainers who are already involved in observing teachers, or expect observation to become part of their role.
You may recognise yourself if you're comfortable in the classroom as an experienced teacher, but are still working out what good observation and developmental support look like from the trainer's side.
More experienced teacher trainers are very welcome too, particularly if you'd like some space to reflect on how much ownership teachers currently have within your observation process.
Choose your session
I'm running the workshop live twice on Tuesday 15 September to make it easier to join from different time zones.
Tuesday 15 September
10:00 CEST / 9:00 UK
Tuesday 15 September
17:00 CEST / 16:00 UK
By signing up, you'll also receive occasional emails from Teacher Trainer Compass about teacher training, observations, feedback and CPD, along with news about future workshops and programmes.
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link at the bottom of any email.
Can't make it live?
A replay will be available for a limited time after the workshop, so you can still register if neither session works for you.
If you can join live, I'd encourage you to. This is an interactive workshop, with time to reflect on your own observation practice and learn from the experiences of other teacher trainers in the room.
Live participants will also receive the additional workshop resource.