Towards Reflective Teaching

Jack C Richards

Initially teaching might get difficult

• Why do you think are the reasons for this statement?

• Beacuse teachers are lookin for their teaching style.

• With time the teachers develop their “teaching style”; which consists of the configuration of strategies the teacher uses to carry out his class.

• Which aspects do you beleive can affect a teacher if this establishes a set up way of teaching a class?

What is reflecitve teching?

• Critical reflection of what happens in the classroom.

• Bartlell (1990) Points pout that becoming a reflective teacher is a matter of asking yourself “what” and “why”not as and end but as part of a higher enrichment of your practice

Asking “why” and “what” gives you:

• Responsibility • Autonomy • Exercise control

How does reflective teaching take place?

• Stage 1: The event itself • Stage 2: Recollection of the event . Which is thinking of what happened with no analysis

or critical thinking.Stage 3: Review and response of the event How can you do this? Description of what happened Ask why and what happenedYou can also do a needs and strategies analysis.

Peer Observation

• Agree to observe each other • Pre observation Orientation • The observation • Post observation

Pre observation significance:

• Set a goal for the observation • Preview problems that might happen • Determine which will be the materials for the

activities to chech thei effectivity for the observation

• Be clear that while the observation there will be no evaluation just gathering of information

What should we observe?

• Organization of the lesson • Time management • Student’s performace • Teacher’s questions ans students answers • Student performance during pairwork • Class interaction • Class performace • Use of their forst language

Benefits teachers have found from peer observation

• Detailed information about the student’s performance

• Unexpected information about the interaction • Information about the dinamics of the class

Teacher’s experience: Things the would like to change

• Short term:Larger variety of activities Completeness of activities Time management • Long term:Better working relatioship with the colleagues Analysis of the program and planning

Written accounts of experiences

• Self reports Inclues check lists and analysis to yourself• Autobiographies:Groups of 10-12 students get together to write

their biographies on their learnin for 10 weeks the teacher checks their job weekly. The biographies should be held by reaction sheets

• Journal Writing Goals:a) To provide a record of significant learning

experiences b) To think and keep in touch with the self-

development processc) Express in a dynamic way your self-

development d) To foster creative interaction . Among:

Teacher-teacher, Teacher-student and teacher’s self-development

Collaborative Diary Keeping

• During 10 weeks teachers keep diaries of their teaching and their colleagues read them to give them feedback.

• Then their problems are taken to group discussions

• Teacher’s write responses to other teacher’s diaries

Teachers reported that:

• It raised awarness of the class process • Helped to encourage and support eachother • The group became agroup of ideas• The teachers learned from eachother • They reconsidered how and why we teach

certain topics as we do.

Discussion questions:

• With which kind of reflective tachong would you feel better?

• Do you consider peer observation is something salvadorean teachers can do? Yes-No Why?

• Do teachers need tobe reflective?• Which are the necessary characteristis of a

tecaher tobe reflexive?• What might hinder teacher refletiviness on each

of the different scenarios?