TL;DR: The Classroom Observation Tool (COT) is the nine-level rubric DepEd observers use to rate a teacher against selected PPST indicators during a lesson. Under DepEd Memorandum No. 089, s. 2025, every public school teacher undergoes exactly two full-period observations per school year, one in the first or second quarter and one in the third or fourth. The rubric band applied depends on position: Levels 2 to 6 for Teacher I to III, 3 to 7 for Teacher IV to VII, 4 to 8 for Master Teacher I to II, and 5 to 9 for Master Teacher III to V. Portfolios are no longer collected. A separate version of the tool, the COT-RSP under DepEd Order No. 7, s. 2023, is used to score demonstration teaching when DepEd hires new teachers.
Search results for "classroom observation tool" are dominated by downloadable packets from school years that have already ended, and by material written for a performance system that was suspended and then rebuilt. This guide explains what the COT is, what the current issuance actually requires, and the separate hiring version of the tool that many people are really looking for. It sits alongside our broader guide to the DepEd teacher performance system.
What the COT Actually Is
The COT is a rubric, not a form you fill in about yourself. During an observation, the observer records what happens using an Observation Notes Form, then rates your demonstration of specific PPST indicators against the COT Rubric, and records the result on a Rating Sheet.
Four documents make up the current tool set, issued as Annex E of DepEd Memorandum No. 089, s. 2025:
| Annex | Document | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| E-1 | COT Full Rubric, Levels 1 to 9 | The scoring descriptors themselves |
| E-2 | COT Rating Sheet | Where the rating per indicator is recorded |
| E-3 | COT Inter-Observer Agreement Form | Used when more than one observer rates the same lesson |
| E-4 | COT Observation Notes Form | The observer's running record of what was seen |
The rubric runs Levels 1 to 9 across all career stages. You are never rated on all nine. Your position selects a five-level window.
Which Rubric Band Applies to You
| Teacher positions | PPST career stage | COT rubric levels |
|---|---|---|
| Teacher I to III | Beginning towards Proficient | Levels 2 to 6 |
| Teacher IV to VII | Proficient | Levels 3 to 7 |
| Master Teacher I to II | Highly Proficient | Levels 4 to 8 |
| Master Teacher III to V | Distinguished | Levels 5 to 9 |
A caution on that last pair. The memorandum's career stage table and its annex list of performance tools both split Master Teachers as I to II Highly Proficient and III to V Distinguished, and the qualification standards under DepEd Order No. 19, s. 2025 agree. But the memorandum's own table of rubric levels prints the split as I to III and IV to V. That is an inconsistency inside a single document, not a disagreement between sources, and it only affects Master Teacher III. If that is you, settle it with your rater in the pre-observation conference. Our career stages guide covers the wider mapping.
The score you receive on the rubric is then converted to the five-point performance rating using a transmutation table that also depends on your career stage. A COT score of 6 is an Outstanding for a Teacher III, a Satisfactory for a Master Teacher in the Highly Proficient band, and an Unsatisfactory for a Distinguished Teacher. The number on its own means nothing without the band.
How Many Observations, and When
Two full-period classroom observations per school year. The first takes place at any time during the first or second quarter; the second at any time during the third or fourth. The exact date is agreed between rater and ratee and written into the rater's Instructional Supervisory Plan.
Full-period matters. The memorandum states that for the purpose of rating performance, classroom observations shall be done for the entire class period, not a sampled fifteen minutes.
Separately from these two, DepEd requires frequent short-period and walkthrough observations of roughly 10 to 15 minutes. These are explicitly described as non-rated, formative and developmental. They are recorded in the Performance Monitoring and Coaching Form, not on a COT rating sheet. If someone drops into your room for ten minutes, that is not one of your two.
The Three Phases of an Observation
Pre-observation. The schedule must be set at least three working days ahead. Rater and ratee hold a pre-observation conference to review the COT rubric for the ratee's career stage and the specific indicators that will be observed in that observation period. The teacher submits the lesson plan to the observer at least one day before. Observers are discouraged from giving technical assistance on the lesson plan that will be used in the rated observation, which is a deliberate change from the coaching-heavy practice many schools got used to. Our DepEd lesson plan format guide covers what that plan needs to contain.
The memorandum also asks that the lesson plan, instructional materials and assessment tools used during observation "reflect those which are actually employed during regular class days" — a direct shot at the demonstration lesson that bears no resemblance to a normal Tuesday.
Actual observation. The protocols for observers are unusually specific, and they are worth knowing because they are your protection as much as anyone's. Observers must use the Observation Notes Form, sit on available chairs, sit apart from each other where possible, avoid discussing anything with one another during the lesson, avoid giving any feedback including facial expressions or other non-verbal signals, and thank the teacher and leave the room immediately afterwards.
Teachers in the Highly Proficient and Distinguished stages are additionally observed by at least one teacher-ratee, as part of mentoring and coaching.
Post-observation. Each observer rates independently, using only what was recorded in the Observation Notes Form, and only the indicators scheduled for that observation period. Where there are multiple observers, they hold an Inter-Observer Agreement Exercise, and the final rating is expressly not an average. It is reached by reasoned and consensual judgment against the rubric criteria. A post-observation conference follows immediately or within three days.
Disclaimer: observation counts, timelines and rubric bands are set by performance management issuances that DepEd revises regularly, and the memorandum described here is effective only for SY 2025-2026 through SY 2027-2028. Confirm the current requirements with your school head or division office.
What Changed, and Which Guidance Is Now Stale
Three points where widely circulated material is out of date:
- Four observations a year is old. Earlier cycles required one observation per quarter. The current memorandum requires two full-period observations for the school year.
- The observation portfolio is gone. The memorandum states plainly that no portfolio for performance assessment shall be collected, and that submission of a physical portfolio is not required. Documents supporting non-classroom indicators are described as crosscutting, so there is no need to duplicate copies per objective.
- The system was suspended before it was rebuilt. DepEd suspended implementation of the older Results-based Performance Management System through DM-OSEC-2024-001, following Executive Order No. 61, s. 2024. Interim guidelines under DepEd Memorandum No. 017, s. 2025 lifted the suspension from the fourth quarter of SY 2024-2025, and the current multi-year guidelines took over from SY 2025-2026. Any tutorial that presents an unbroken run of RPMS observation practice from 2017 to today is describing something that did not happen.
The Other COT: the Hiring Version
Many people searching for a classroom observation tool are applicants, not incumbents. DepEd uses a distinct instrument for them.
DepEd Order No. 7, s. 2023, the guidelines on recruitment, selection and appointment, sets up the Classroom Observation Tool for Recruitment, Selection, and Placement (COT-RSP). It focuses on Levels 2 to 6 of the rubric, to capture good performance at the Beginning towards Proficient career stage.
| COT-RSP element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Weight in the Teacher I comparative assessment | 35 of 100 points |
| Indicators observed | 1.1.2, 1.4.2, 1.5.2, 4.1.2 and 5.1.2, with a separate set for Indigenous Peoples Education applicants |
| Rubric band | Levels 2 to 6 |
| Number of observers | Two to three |
| Relationship rule | Observers must not be related to the applicant within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity |
| Forms | COT-RSP Rubric (Annex J), Observation Notes Form (Annex K), Rating Sheet (Annex L), Inter-Observer Agreement Form (Annex M) |
Observers must be trained COT assessors, and the order names the roles that typically qualify: Master Teachers, Head Teachers, School Heads, Public School District Supervisors, and Education Program Specialists or Supervisors. Our guide to DepEd teacher hiring requirements covers the rest of the 100-point assessment.
Practical Notes Before Your Next Observation
- Ask which indicators are scheduled. Only the indicators listed for that observation period are rated. This is a legitimate pre-observation conference question, not a favour.
- Teach the lesson you were going to teach. The memorandum asks for materials that reflect regular class days, and an over-produced set piece is now a mismatch with the policy, not a bonus.
- Do not read the observers. They are instructed to give no feedback, verbal or non-verbal, during the lesson. A flat expression is compliance, not judgment.
- Read the Observation Notes Form at the conference. The rating has to be traceable to what was recorded there. If a rating is not supported by a note, that is a fair thing to raise.
- Check the level band on the rating sheet. A rating sheet applying the wrong band to your position is the single most consequential clerical error in this process.
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Sources
- DepEd — DM 089, s. 2025: Guidelines on the Multi-Year Performance Management and Evaluation System for Teachers, SY 2025-2026 to 2027-2028 (official)
- DepEd — DM 017, s. 2025: Interim Guidelines for the DepEd Performance Management and Evaluation System for Teachers in SY 2024-2025 (official)
- DepEd — DO 7, s. 2023: Guidelines on Recruitment, Selection and Appointment in the Department of Education, source of the COT-RSP (official PDF)
- DepEd — DO 42, s. 2017: National Adoption and Implementation of the Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers (official)
- Official Gazette — Executive Order No. 61, s. 2024
- SchoolFinderPH — RPMS and IPCRF Explained
- SchoolFinderPH — Career Stages of Teachers
- SchoolFinderPH — DepEd Teacher Hiring Requirements
