Not Being a Scarecrow: Challenges of Re-visioning Teacher Supervision through Action Research

Classroom Observation as a sub-branch of Teacher Supervision has long been part and parcel of many educational programs. With that in mind, the present study aimed at providing an account of how such classroom surprise observations are perceived and represented by a group of language teachers as well as the supervisor of a local language institute. It also aimed at exploring the challenges experienced by those involved in re-visioning such evaluative supervisions through action research. The study was conducted at two stages: At the first stage an interview was done with seven language teachers and the institute's manager. At the next stage, the supervisor and one of the teachers collaborated in conducting an action research which addressed a concern raised by the teacher. The analysis of collected documents at both stages revealed a language of institutionalization which governed both the cognition and action of the participants. It seems that taking for granted the role of supervisor as the corrector of teachers' ''faults'' and ''deficiencies'' has legitimized a top-down system of evaluation and judgment at this context. Furthermore, a ''change phobia'' appeared to intimidate both the supervisor and the teacher into pushing away the limiting norms and going off the beaten track

Teacher Supervision, Action Research, Institutionalization