On the balance beam, three of the six American athletes completely lost their balance. Two even fell to the floor. Consider their situation. The observer needs to be empathetic and help the teacher realize that the observation produces positive and constructive feedback and that those positives outweigh the negative stage-fright possibilities. Teachers need to know that stage-fright behaviors will usually decrease with observation experiences.
Stage fright is often due simply to lack of experience.
With this experience, observed lessons come closer and closer to the natural teaching behavior. As teachers become more comfortable, the value of observed lessons will grow proportionately. Sky magazine, North Miami, Florida, Vol. 15, No. 2, p. 82, February 1986. Stephen G. Barkley is Executive Vice President of Performance Learning Systems, Inc., an educational consulting firm with more than 25 years experience in staff development and graduate teacher education. He can be reached via email.