SEVEC supports communities of veterinary educator practice through the development of tools for providing formative feedback on educational practices.
Formative Assessment Rubric for Peer Evaluation of Teaching (FARPET)
The FARPET is a research-based tool for guiding observational peer evaluation of teaching processes, designed with particular attention to online veterinary medical education. We developed the FARPET in response to the sweeping changes brought on Veterinary Colleges by the global pandemic. CVMs are being thrust into a new teaching and learning environment before they have been able to develop clear senses of best online practices or how to evaluate the quality of their work. While there are tools that describe the quality of online instructional design, there are none in veterinary education that effectively describe the quality of online teaching. We are finding the tool does equally well in describing live, in-person instruction for the purposes of aiding educator skills development.
The FARPET is formative in nature and works under the expectation that each observation is seen as a learning and growth opportunity for the observed educator. The domains and subdomains described within this instrument reflect the best educational practices through a carefully crafted set of items using practical and observable rubric descriptors. By design, observers need not be content experts and experience should be a non-factor for completing core items. We invite all SEVEC members to consider the FARPET as a tool for improving their practice as educators both online and in person.
We have had multiple iterations and testing cycles of the instrument and are currently working with VMU, NCSU, and UFL to implement the tool for formative feedback in online and in-person contexts. The FARPET will continue undergoing adjustments over time, primarily in the form of appearance and fine-tuning language. Community feedback and experience using the tool will drive many such changes and are invaluable at this stage.
Cheers,
The UFL/ VMU / NCSU / OSU Peer Eval Tool Team
4/19/22
SEVEC 