This paper regards a teaching experience from the course “Theories and Methods of Observation in Groups” during the Covid-19 pandemic. After a historical and epistemological framing of the construct “participant observation”, the critical aspects of the relationship between observer, conductor, group and institution are explored.
Numerous theoretical insights support the description of the peculiarities of the field experience, the importance of the reworking moment in the classroom, and the structure of the observational grid proposed as a support tool for the course. A similar contribution produced by some of the trainees on their own experience during the course supplements the study.