Facilitating a teacher through reflective practice

Date of Award

8-1-2003

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Master of Education (M. Ed.)

Department

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

Abstract

This small-scale qualitative action research seeks to explore possibilities and challenges involved in facilitating a social studies a teacher to reflect on her own classroom teaching and learning processes. The study is based on the premise that reflection is significant to improving teacher's classroom practice. For this purpose, an action researcher worked with one social studies secondary level teacher from a community based private school of Karachi. In this regard, the study explores the participant teacher's existing perceptions and practices of reflection in general, and on her own classroom teaching and learning in particular. Subsequently, based on this reconnaissance, a general plan of action was developed and implemented with some variations to facilitate the teacher's reflection. The data for the reconnaissance and implementation of action stages were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted at pre and post classroom observation, classroom observations (through taking running notes), tape recording of input sessions and the researcher's reflective journal. The gathered data were analyzed soon after each action step for reflection and further action. The study reports some possible strategies to facilitate teachers in gaining an understanding of reflection and its practice. These strategies are: a) developing a conceptual understanding through sharing of relevant literature and b) the using Guided Reflection Protocol strategy. The study also reports the challenges faced in the process. Finally the report concludes by presenting key learnings of the researcher as a teacher educator and action researcher and focus for further research.

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