Training Teachers to Supervise Their Peers

The empowerment of teachers is a key issue in education today. One way of empowering teachers is to enhance their role in the preparation of new teaching personnel. The Department of Special Education at West Virginia University has developed a pilot project to train peer teachers to provide supervision to practicing, but as yet uncertified, teachers in an on-the-job practicum experience. A series of training sessions develops peer teachers' skills in observing teaching performance, providing supervisory feedback, and evaluating teacher proficiency. This article discusses the rationale for and benefits of peer supervision, describes the components of the training sessions, and presents preliminary evaluation data.