The Importance of Setting the Stage: Maximizing the benefits of peer review of teaching

Abstract

The motivation for engaging in peer review of teaching vacillates between providing opportunities to improve teaching and evaluating teaching performance. We strive to find ways to maximize the benefits of peer review of teaching because this activity provides a valuable opportunity for peer collaboration and curricular coordination within a program. This article discusses a range of strategies that we have used to engage online instructors in thinking critically about the quality of their online instruction; we show how these strategies help set the stage for maximizing the benefits that a well structured peer review of online teaching can provide.