Peer observation, learning walks and professional learning communities for trainers and educators
A ready-made course you customise for your organisation, with a live session deck and two surveys. You only add the 9 details that are specific to your organisation.
- Length
- 30 min
- Lessons
- 6 lessons
- Frequency
- When an academy launches peer observation or a learning community
- Last reviewed
- 21 Oct 2026
After a microteaching demo, Imran says "I'll be honest, that was too fast"
Try it: this is one of 18 interactive activities in the course.
What's included
Three pieces that work together
Copy once, get everything. Learners prepare on their own, you answer questions live, and the surveys tell you what stuck.
Self-paced course
Short lessons with real workplace scenarios, not walls of text.
- 6 lessons, about 30 minutes
- Process, sorting activity, scenario, accordion and quizzes
Live session deck
An AhaSlides presentation to run after the course, in person or online.
- 10 slides
- Quiz, word cloud, poll, ranking slides
- A closing slide for your contacts
Two surveys
Find out what landed, and whether people use it on the job.
- Post-course feedback, about 2 minutes
- 30-day check-in
- Anonymous by default
- Results feed your next refresher
Learning objectives
At the end of this course, learners can
Each objective and the lesson that covers it.
| ID | Objective | Source | Where it's covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| TO 399.0 | Achieve ≥ 80% on the final assessment | n/a | Whole course |
| SO 399.1 | Explain why peer observation is a learning activity and not an appraisal, and what builds trust before the first visit | Best practice | Whole course |
| SO 399.2 | Agree two or three look-fors with the person observed and choose a simple observation protocol + your info | Best practice | Whole course |
| SO 399.3 | Record evidence during a learning walk or observation without adding judgement | Best practice | Whole course |
| SO 399.4 | Plan, run and debrief a short microteaching session or teaching demonstration | Best practice | Whole course |
| SO 399.5 | Describe the steps of a lesson study cycle and lead a learning-community meeting that ends with a next step + your info | Best practice | Whole course |
Your part: what a template can't do for you
- Your workplace details: fill in the 9 highlighted fields so the course describes your own policies, contacts and locations.
- Records: record completion in your own LMS or record system.
Course outline
6 lessons, about 30 minutes
Minutes per lesson are an estimate, shared out by page count.
1Why a visit felt like an inspection
3 pages
6 min
Why a visit felt like an inspection
3 pages
2Trust, purpose and the observer's role
3 pages
5 min
Trust, purpose and the observer's role
3 pages
3Look-fors, protocols and recording evidence
3 pages
5 min
Look-fors, protocols and recording evidence
3 pages
4Learning walks, microteaching and the hard debrief
3 pages
5 min
Learning walks, microteaching and the hard debrief
3 pages
5Lesson study and collaborative planning
3 pages
5 min
Lesson study and collaborative planning
3 pages
6Leading a learning community and final assessment
2 pages
4 min
Leading a learning community and final assessment
2 pages
Live deck and surveys
10 slides to run live, two surveys to close the loop
Pink slides are interactive. Both surveys are anonymous; pink questions are written for this course.
Post-course feedback: 11 questions, about 2 min
- Overall rating 5 stars
- Relevant, realistic, right length, helpful activities agree/disagree grid
- What was most useful? multi-select
- Confidence before this course, and now 1-5 scale
- What do you feel when a peer asks to observe you? multiple choice
- I know how to separate what I saw from what I think of it. 1-5 scale
- Do you take part in a learning community? multiple choice
- I would welcome a colleague observing my session. 1-5 scale
- One thing we should change or add open text
- Would you recommend this course? NPS
30-day check-in
- Have you used what you learned since the course? multiple choice
- How confident are you today? Compare with day 1 1-5 scale
- Do you know where to find the observation protocol? yes / no / not sure
- A moment where the training helped, or where you weren't sure open text
- Which topics should the next refresher focus on? ranking
Results show whether people use the training on the job, not just whether they finished it.
Make it yours
9 fields to fill in, and you're ready
Everything else is done. These are the details only your organisation knows; each one is highlighted inside the course.
- Ld contact
{{LD_CONTACT}} - Training standards link
{{TRAINING_STANDARDS_LINK}} - Concern route
{{CONCERN_ROUTE}} - Observation record rule
{{OBSERVATION_RECORD_RULE}} - LMS or record system
{{LMS_OR_RECORD_SYSTEM}} - Next course link
{{NEXT_COURSE_LINK}}
Show all 9 fields
- Survey 1 URL
{{SURVEY_1_URL}} - Survey 2 URL
{{SURVEY_2_URL}} - Course URL
{{COURSE_URL}}
FAQ
Common questions
Can I run peer observation, learning walks and professional learning communities for trainers and educators training online?
Yes. The course is self-paced and online, and the live deck lets you add a live session in the room or online.
How often is this training needed?
When an academy launches peer observation or a learning community, at the start of a CPD term, and as a refresher for new observers.
Who needs this training?
Trainers, facilitators, mentors, instructional coaches and teaching staff who observe peers, run learning walks or lead collaborative planning and learning-community meetings; run by L&D, a training academy lead or a staff-development lead.
What records should I keep?
Record completion in your own LMS or record system, so you can show who finished the course and when.
Can I edit the content?
Yes, everything. Change the wording, swap scenarios for ones from your workplace, add your logo, or remove parts that don't apply.
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Ready to run it?
Open the live deck to see how the session runs alongside the course and both surveys.