Reflecting on reflection: improving teachers’ readiness to facilitate participatory learning with young children

Abstract

This paper explores whether teacher's habits and assumptions about their practice can be enhanced by Continued Professional Development through nurturing self-awareness of lived experiences. Within the paper a practical understanding of critical reflection as a process is explored and particular attention is given to Moon's (2008) assertion that one person cannot make another person reflect. Reflection as a process is re-evaluated through the application of Theory U and the axiom that reflection needs to start with the self. The paper's central argument is that at the heart of critical reflection is the need for embodied readiness. Without such openness as the first step, critical reflection is misinterpreted. The main outcome of the study was the development of '9 R's of Reflection', a practical framework which enabled critical reflection to become part of teachers' day to day practice enabling them to focus positively on the challenges they faced within the applied educational setting. The findings of the study demonstrate that the '9 R's' broke down sites of conflict between the desire to follow children's interests and the pressure to conform to the technical demands that dominate modern education so that the teachers changed their habits and become better at participatory teaching.

Students' Perception of the Methodological Effectiveness of Italian Courses at the Italian Cultural Institute in Osaka

“…In view of what happens in the classroom, the dissemination of the research data should help teachers avoid incurring static and rigid interpretations of their teaching and assign the language a social role of interaction between people. According to Miller (2005) and McLeod (2015), by focusing on the problem and the motivations that produce it, teachers should re-evaluate the teaching situation and invest, first and foremost, in their own training. In this regard, the research has managed to identify a training requirement linked to the methodological aspect and to create a professional development and growth plan that is currently in the implementation phase.…”

Risk-Taking and Professional Development: Physical Education Teachers’ Narratives of Experience

“…Over time, changes included the addition of trainee and mentor views on taking risks and also the potential barriers that could be faced by trainee teachers. It also included a more in-depth consideration of reflective practice (McLeod, 2013). The most recent introductory presentation 'Teaching is a Risky Business' can be found in Appendix 1.…”

“…Reflection on practice by teachers has been a long-held concern and is considered almost crucial for present-day teacher and teacher training professional development (Edwards, Gilroy, and Hartley, 2002;McLeod, 2013;Moon, 2004;Rushton and Suiter, 2012). It enables teachers to take responsibility for continual development in their own learning and the learning of the pupils they teach (Rushton and Suiter, 2012;Moon, 2004).…”

“…This section aims to consider what is meant by reflection and how it relates to risk-taking and the Risk-Taking PDP. Definitions of reflection and reflective practice will be explored from the early writings of Dewey (1910) to more contemporary works of Schön (1987) and finally application of reflective practice to teaching through 9 R's of Reflection (McLeod, 2013).…”

“…Raising the awareness of training teachers to such aspects as problematisation, reflection, innovation, contingency and resilience may offer a firm foundation, within a safe and secure training environment from which teachers can grow and develop practice (Capel and Blair, 2007;McLeod, 2013). Although there are no guarantees of success, within an environment where making mistakes and learning from them is accepted (Carlile and Jordan, 2012), training teachers may develop confidence and resilience to continue with such practices and embrace the unexpected once teaching in schools (Le Cornu, 2009;Tait, 2005).…”