Post-observation conversations in the museum: using the self-evaluation of the supervisee as the starting point

Post-observation conversations are often used to discuss the quality of teaching and education; however, little is known about the use of this method for the evaluation of teaching in museums. Drawing on interviews, in the first research question, we explored how museum guides (n = 14) and educators (n = 8) perceived a post-observation conversation when they used the guide's self-evaluation as the starting point. This is in contrast to the educator (observation) directed conversations that currently prevail in the participating museums, all located in the Netherlands. For the second research question, we coded seven conversations in order to investigate the guides’ and educators’ actual participation. Results indicate that guides felt a sense of ownership; furthermore, the participants evaluated the conversations as more equally balanced. Analysis of the conversations confirmed that there was a balanced interaction and that the guides greatly influenced the conversation's content.