Through the eyes of the learner: learner observations of teaching and learning

The belief that we have a lot to learn from our learners, and that our learners have a lot to learn from each other, led me to consider alternative ways of involving learners in our exploratory practice, and inspired the creation of a new developmental tool: learner observations of teaching and learning. This is similar to peer observation in nature, but instead of having a peer teacher observing the lesson, it involves a learner observing the lesson by carrying out structured observation tasks. This article discusses the rationale, the procedures and techniques, and the findings of an exploratory study carried out at Bilkent University School of English Language (BUSEL), and proposes an exploratory framework through which learner observations of teaching and learning can be effectively used to achieve collaborative exploration of teaching and learning.