Reflective practice II
1.5.3.1
Critical reflection on experience
1.5.3.2 Insights
gained through reflection
1.5.3.3 Awareness
of the planning-action-interpretation cycle
1.5.3.4 Reflecting
on beliefs
1.5.3.5 From reflection
on action to knowledge in action
1.5.3.6 Critical reflection on received knowledge
1.5.3.1
Critical reflection on experience
The idea of reflective practice is that the experiential knowledge
gained by a teacher in the course of carrying out their work should not
simply be left unconsciously stored, but should be critically reflected
upon. Reflection in this sense is not just a superficial review of events,
but a deep examination of what occurred and why, what the outcomes might
have been if the action taken had been different, what action might be
taken in similar circumstances in future, and so on.
1.5.3.2
Insights gained through reflection
We can, and perhaps should, include in our post-lesson reflection a review
of the beliefs informing the events that we are reflecting on. As explained
earlier in this module, a conscious examination of the beliefs underlying
an action should facilitate belief-reformulation of a nature and level
that would not occur with unconscious processes alone or, as Wallace (1991:
13) puts it, lead 'to the conscious development of insights into knowing-in-action.'
The revised beliefs will then inform future conscious or intuitive action.
This suggestion is not intended to underplay the role of practice in the development of professional intuition and expertise, but rather to emphasize that reflection can moderate and enhance the developmental value of experience. See, eg, Atkinson (2000: 78).
1.5.3.3
Awareness of the planning-action-interpretation cycle
The process of planned action described in section 1.4
can occur at various levels of awareness. In a reflective approach, the
aim is to raise the level of consciousness during the understanding, or
interpretation stage of the cycle, in other words, to help us notice
what we are subconsciously thinking about a recent experience, and to
question that intuitive reaction.
For example, imagine a teacher who uses repetition drills to teach vocabulary. After several lessons in which each new word is drilled, the teacher is disappointed to observe that a) the students have done poorly in the half-term vocabulary test, and that b) they are inattentive and restless during the drills, and use them as an opportunity to 'mess around'. The teacher could dismiss the problem on the grounds that the class are lazy and ill-disciplined, that they have no aptitude for language learning, or could have one of those professional crises that we all occasionally experience, and continue using the drills feeling sure they are just a lousy teacher and praying that no one will notice.
Alternatively, the teacher could critically reflect on the observation. This might lead them towards an alternative interpretation, that perhaps such drills are meaningless and boring to these students, and that their de-motivating effect alone could explain the poor test performance and behavioural problems. Deeper reflection might explore why the drills were inherently boring, and how they differed from other activities that the students seemed to enjoy more. An action research approach (see section 1.6) would involve making an action plan to introduce alternative vocabulary-learning, motivation-boosting activities, and observing the effects of this experiment prior to further critical reflection, and so on.
1.5.3.4
Reflecting on beliefs
In a belief-led approach to reflection-on-action, the 'drill-crazy' teacher
in our example would not start by asking 'Why are the students responding
this way to my attempts to teach them vocabulary?' but with the more fundamental
'Do I believe that drilling is a good way to teach vocabulary, and why
(not)?' The teacher would then be ready to question whether the evidence
(the students' reactions) supported his or her personal theory or not,
and having (presumably) decided it did not, proceed with asking 'why?'
before amending or replacing the theory with a more promising one, and
moving on to design alternative activities.
1.5.3.5
From reflection on action to knowledge in action
In either a classic reflective approach or one which focuses more on beliefs,
what begins as conscious reflection-on-action ends as a development of
knowledge-in-action. So, as the teacher gains experience, his or her developing
ability to reflect-in-action will enable him or her to make appropriate
on-the-spot adjustments to lessons, and avoid undesirable situations in
the first instance.
1.5.3.6
Critical reflection on received knowledge
A similar belief-focussed approach can also be used when dealing with
received knowledge, ie things you read about, or are presented
with in training (eg much of the material in this DELPHI resource).
Lewis and Hill (1992), for example, start each chapter of their book with a short questionnaire consisting of belief statements such as 'Words are best taught in groups of similar meaning', to which readers can respond 'Agree', 'Disagree' or 'Undecided'. After reading the chapter they are invited to revisit the questionnaire, to see if their response (ie belief) has changed (as I invited you to do in section 1.2). A variation that requires a deeper level of thought would challenge readers to explain why they have agreed or disagreed with a statement about teaching behaviour, in order to get at their underlying beliefs about teaching and learning.
