Performativity and affectivity: Lesson observations in England's Further Education colleges

TLDR: The authors investigated the different expectations, relationships and identities of teachers and (mis)conceptions of "authenticity" in teaching and learning observations (TLO) and found that affective reactions to perceived managerial intrusion into their professional space had a negative impact on them and their students' learning.

Abstract: Teaching and learning observations (TLOs) are used in educational environments worldwide to measure and improve quality and support professional development. TLOs can be positive for teachers who enjoy opportunities to ‘perform’ their craft and/or engage in professional dialogue. However, if this crucial, collaborative developmental element is missing, a TLO becomes intrinsically evaluative in nature and creates complex emotions – within and beyond the classroom. For some teachers, affective reactions to perceived managerial intrusion into their professional space has a negative impact on them and, in turn, their students’ learning. International research on TLOs has focused on schools or universities. My research centres specifically on England’s Further Education colleges (FE). Through Interpretive Interactionism, I investigate the different expectations, relationships and identities of teachers and (mis)conceptions of ‘authenticity’ in TLOs. Teaching involves our unique (dis)embodied ‘performativity’ (...