Promoting meaningful peer feedback among in-service Chinese language teachers in an online lesson study

Abstract

<p></p><p>Peer feedback is crucial to peer learning among teachers in a lesson study. However, teachers often have difficulties providing high-quality feedback on peer performance, which may influence their engagement in peer feedback practice. It remains unknown how teachers can be guided to provide meaningful instead of general or superficial feedback to other teachers' performance. To address the gap, this study proposed a framework guiding teachers to give meaningful feedback by focusing on core components of classroom teaching. A quasi-experimental study was conducted with 60 primary school teachers in an online lesson study. The results reveal promising effects of the approach on improving peer feedback quality and teacher engagement in peer feedback practice in an online lesson study. The teachers using the proposed approach outperformed those not using the approach in providing meaningful comments on questioning and assessment practice in classroom teaching, and in providing constructive comments on peers' weaknesses by giving explanations with references to theories. Although this study was conducted with teachers of Chinese as a local language, the findings have implications for professional development among teachers of Chinese as a foreign or second language.<br></p>