Teacher Training Using Peer Observation and Video-Based Fieldwork: Observing Linguistic Input Quality in German as a Foreign Language Lessons at Elementary School

A sound reflection and analysis of linguistic input quality in German as a foreign language classroom can be made easier through lesson study, peer observation and an observation scheme. Based on the Teacher Input Observation Scheme TIOS (Kersten 2018), we, therefore, developed an observation form for linguistic input quality at South Tyrolean elementary schools, the LIOS II (Language Input Observation Scheme). The categories of the observation scheme, called LIOS II, also serve as a checklist for lesson planning and as a basis for peer observation and support lifelong learning. To ensure greater objectivity and validity during peer observation, we designed a detailed framework with verbal descriptors. During the pilot phase, a team of primary school teachers and a team of researchers evaluated the transcript of a lesson in German as a foreign language. Based on the numerical evaluations on a five-point rating scale and the discussions with the focus group, we revised the LIOS II. Especially in the categories "students are active, and tasks are problem-solving" and "explanations and comparisons", there emerged different evaluations and a lively discussion. We then revised these categories in the verbal descriptors accordingly. During the next phase of the project – a lesson study in an elementary school – the LIOS II will serve as a checklist for lesson planning and as an observation scheme for peer observation. So, the LIOS II can provide a helpful instrument for lifelong learning in the field of linguistic input quality