2.2.6.

Discussion
Teacher development as teacher learning is assisted by existing knowledge of teaching and learning, experiences, beliefs and values of the teachers, and individual ways of learning. However, each persons development occurs in constant exchange with their social circumstances. Learners make their own sense of the world, but they do so within a social context, and through social interactions (Williams and Burden, 2004:28). Therefore, although looking for an understanding of individual conceptual change, one cannot avoid considering the constant exchange with the social circumstances in which learning occurs. Figure 9 illustrates factors which impact on teacher learning incorporating different aspects of knowledge re-constructed constantly in a process of interaction and re-interpretation through the lens of affective factors, personal theories and social environment. A unifying perspective, that stresses the interpersonal and social climate which promotes learning, seems to be offered by a social constructivist approach, as showed in Figure 10 below (p. 99). I believe that a social constructivist perspective can offer a comprehensive framework for this study. At this point I need to reiterate the purpose of this study: the way people directly involved in the teaching and learning processes view their learning for development in relation to the training they receive in a particular educational context. Therefore, I believe that an understanding of individual growth will be achieved by means of constructivist views of learning, and complemented by explorations of the social dimensions of experience and learning.

PART II
1.

A social constructivist perspective on learning to teach

By building on constructivist views of learning, on social dimensions to teacher work and on the notions of interpretation and re-construction as a means of learning, I suggest that a social constructivist perspective offers a comprehensive approach to learning within ITE. In Part I (see 3.1.1.3 and 3.1.1.4) I referred in general terms to social and constructivist theories of learning. I now wish to develop these further and in particular their relationship to teacher learning. 2.3.1. Learning from a social constructivist perspective A social constructivist approach to learning, influenced by cognitive theories, places emphasis on the learner and on the importance of what he/she brings to any learning situation as an active meaning maker and problem-solver (Tracey and Morrow, 2006). Learning is viewed as 1

a self-regulatory process of struggling with the conflict between existing personal models of the world and new insights (Richardson, 1997; Greenon Brooks and Brooks, 1999). We construct new representations and models of reality in an attempt to achieve meaning by means of culturally developed tools and symbols, and we further negotiate such meaning through cooperative social activity, discourse, and debate in communities of practice (Fosnot, 2005). Humans represent the meaning of experience through abstraction, constructing symbolic representations of reality, and generalization. These constructions allow us to go beyond the immediacy of the concrete, to encounter multiple perspectives that generate new possibilities. As we attempt to generalize meaning across experiences, we first tend to categorize, classify and order new information based on correspondences with previous acquired concepts. Then we record the difference between the individual experiences and the symbolic generalizations (von Glasersfeld, 2005). The transition between the process of abstraction and that of noticing differences is made through what Piaget (1977) calls reflective abstraction. Reflection on the symbolic representations brings about new insights, new constructions, new possibilities that help us to become conscious of our actions on the world in order to gain new knowledge with which we act. In other words, the building of conceptual structures takes place through abstraction and reflection. From this perspective, the process of learning can be defined as a constructive building of meaning making which results in reflective abstractions producing symbols within a medium. These symbols then become part of ones repertoire of assimilatory schemes, which in turn are used when perceiving and further conceiving (Smith, 1993; Greenon Brooks and Brooks, 1999; Richardson, 1997; Fosnot, 2005). Figure 10 illustrates the relation between the self, the medium and the others in the process of learning as construction of meaning through reflection and abstraction of symbolic representations. When applied to TE, the social constructivist model of learning involves organising and reorganising, structuring and restructuring a teachers understanding of practice (Uhlenbeck et al., 2002:243 cited in Alger, 2006:297) through the interaction with the others in the professional medium. Teachers are viewed as learners who actively construct knowledge by interpreting events on the basis of existing knowledge, beliefs, and dispositions (Billett, 2001; Wilson and Demetriou, 2007). This underlines the importance of the knowledge and beliefs about learning, teaching, students, and content pre-service teachers bring to their TE classes as students. These understandings and beliefs function as interpretative lenses through which beginning teachers make sense of their experience (Tugui, 2006). A social constructivist view of learning suggests an approach to teaching that gives learners the opportunity for concrete, contextually meaningful experience through which they can search for patterns, raise questions and model and interpret and defend their strategies and ideas through interaction with the others (Richardson, 1997). Problems are not solved by the retrieval of rote-learned right answers; to solve a problem intelligently, one must share it in social circumstances. That is, one must see it as an obstacle that obstructs ones progress toward a goal (Steffe and Gale, 1995). Effective motivation to continue learning can be fostered by leading students to experience solving problems seen and chosen in a social context which in turn becomes an incentive for them to change it (Nunan, 1991; Smithers and Robinson, 2003; Fosnot, 2005). 2

The fact that no two teachers and no two learning situations are the same as they are individually constructed, emphasises the individual nature of learning (Smith, 1993). Therefore, there is a need for teachers to become aware of the ways in which they make sense of and construct their views of the world, particularly with regard to their views about education and how those views themselves come to be shaped and affect their actions (Williams and Burden, 2004). But this process is also influenced by the social context it is placed in. In other words, learning to teach involves analysis of knowledge formation and experience in order to understand personal change through interaction with the surrounding environment. Reflection is conceived as the rational analysis of an action or experience in this context (Calderhead and Gates, 1993). 2.3.2. Reflection The process of understanding the way reflection can assist learning is complex since reflection is conceptualised in various ways in the literature. Roberts (1998) identifies five main theories that view reflection as: Disciplined deliberative thinking as a basis for personal development (Dewey, 1933, 1938) Framing and reframing of practical situations as they are worked on, interpreted, tested out and clarified (Schn 1983, 1987). Personalising public knowledge through experience (Kolb, 1984) Reconstruction of current knowledge (constructivism). Means of accessing idiosyncratic images of teaching (Lortie, 1975). Dewey (1933) defines reflection as disciplined, conscious, explicit and critical thought which contributes to the intellectual and moral development of a person. He suggests a reflective cycle which involves (1) confusion due to an incomplete understanding of a situation followed by (2) a tentative interpretation of the facts. As an important phase of the reflective process a person enters in a moment of crisis is (3) the careful examination/introspection/exploration/analysis when one attempts to clarify the problem in hand. In the following phase one (4) elaborates tentative hypothesis to make the problem more precise. The overt attempt to bring about the anticipated result ends the reflective cycle (cited in Pollard, 2000). In Deweys (1910) view reflection contributes to professional growth because it frees one of a single view of the situation which would restrict how we define problems and so the resulting solutions. Thus reflection enables us to reframe problems and is a factor which contributes to changing ones perspectives. Schn (1983) says that our ability to conceptualise alternative perspectives on a problem lies at the very heart of professional development and also of creative, appropriate problemsolving. In this way our effectiveness depends on our ability to frame and reframe situations to come up with appropriate interpretations and actions. How we frame a situation depends on our learned expectations as students (Loughran, 1996; Francis and Ingram-Starrs, 2005). We label situations according to previous experiences, established frames and routines, until the moment of crisis when there is a good reason to reconsider them. Schn (1987) considers that professional development should be acquired by a deep-end strategy in which novices conduct reflective dialogues with themselves and with master coaches, their own ideas being confronted by the alternative perspectives and observations of the coach. In this context it is rather difficult to transfer the concept to ITE as it assumes that the novices have the resources for self-agency in learning and that they are already equipped with basic professional knowledge and competence (Osterman and Kottkamp, 1993; Eraut, 2004; Wilson and 3

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Demetriou, 2007). Moreover, the reflective process is far from being rational and systematic. We have to consider the emotional aspects of reframing as it involves shifts in self-concept, which can be associated with what is potentially an emotionally turbulent period of uncertainty (Lee, 2005; Korthagen and Vasalos, 2005). Schns conception of reflective practice is infused with constructivist roots and one of its defining characteristics is this constructivist orientation. Noddings (1995) suggests several constructivist concepts relevant in Schns theory: all knowledge is constructed, at least in part, through a process of reflection; there exist cognitive structures that are activated in the process of construction; cognitive structures are under continual development (purposive activity induces transformation of those structures, and the environment presses the organism to adapt). In this respect, she appears to have been influenced to a significant extent by Nelson Goodmans (1978) constructivist views as expressed in his seminal book Ways of Worldmaking (cited in Kinsella, 2006). 2.3.3. Reflection and teacher learning The perspectives of Dewey (1933) and Schn (1983) suggest that the term reflection can be used with three different meanings: Rational deliberative thought, drawing critically on diverse knowledge bases Reframing, recasting problems to arrive at apt solutions Self-awareness, whether of ones own images of teachers, ones personal theories, or any current knowledge relevant to a new learning task. Subsequent work in reflective teacher education has recognised the need for self-awareness as a departure point for development (Schulman, 1988; Griffiths and Tann, 1992 cited in Roberts, 1998) Other definitions of reflection gravitate more or less around these three meanings. Hatton and Smith (1995) describe reflection as deliberate thinking about action with a view to its improvement (p.34). The act of reflection is regarded as a tool for pre-service teachers to do the organising and reorganising of their understanding and is considered critical to teacher development. Reflection as a means to self-development becomes an end in itself in professional development. Loughran (1996) describes it as the purposeful, deliberate act of enquiry into ones thoughts and actions through which a perceived problem is examined in order that a thoughtful, reasoned response might be tested out. Ross, Johnson and Smith (1992) see reflection in terms of personal and professional growth and adopt a series of processes to promote student teachers examination of their own educational values and beliefs (cited in Day et al., 1993). Richards and Lockhart (1994) describe a reflective approach to teaching in which teachers collect data about teaching, examine their attitudes, beliefs, assumptions, and teaching practices, and use the information obtained as a basis for critical reflection about teaching (p. 1). They believe that reflective enquiry should lead to continuous professional development. Wallace (1991) stresses that reflective teaching is a cycle that includes reflection on both received knowledge, such as theory and pedagogy in teacher education programmes, and experiential knowledge, what happens within the context of classrooms. These definitions all suggest that reflective processes are inherent in social and constructivist learning. Content of reflection

Reflection also needs to be regarded in terms of its content. There could be identified three different levels of theorizing and reflecting in learning to teach (Zeichner, 1987, van Manen, 1977, Tom, 1984, Carr and Kemmis, 1986 all cited in McIntyre, 1993): Technical level the concern is with the effective attainment of given goals. The trainee reflects on his/her teaching and learns from other sources. In developing a repertoire of skills, the trainees success is likely to depend both on deliberate use of ideas from a wide variety of sources, and also on theorising about these ideas in relation to a wide range of criteria including some at the practical and critical levels.

Practical level the concern is with the assumptions, predispositions, values and consequences with which actions are linked. Trainees need to develop their ability to articulate and justify their own criteria for evaluating self-selected aspects of their teaching, to use these criteria through collecting and interpreting appropriate evidence, and to explore useful ways of developing their teaching in the light of these selfevaluations. This is the phase in which the central goal is for trainees to learn habits and skills of reflecting. Critical/emancipatory level the concern includes wider ethical, social and political issues. The study of the social and institutional context of teaching is not based upon their reflection on their own teaching but is aimed to feed into that reflection. It is through theorizing about others practices that trainees are helped to gain a critical perspective on the contexts within which they are working; and it is on the basis of such an understanding that they are encouraged to introduce this level of reflectivity into their reflection on their own practices.

Reflection has been recognised as a relevant element for teachers learning. It was frequently presumed that reflection is an intrinsically good and desirable aspect of teaching and TE, and that teachers, in becoming more reflective, will in some sense be better teachers (Calderhead and Gates, 1993). Though, any claims, that reflection is useful or essential for learning and therefore justifiable, must be grounded in evidence. For some, these claims also have to be theoretically informed. The importance of reflective practices can no longer simply be juxtaposed with notions of greater staff-centeredness, bottom-up and empowerment processes (Exworthy and Scott, 2004 cited in Ghaye, 2005). Purpose of reflection Reflection also needs to be considered in terms of its purposefulness. If a person is to engage in a particular act of reflection, there must be a reason or impetus for doing so (Lee, 2005; Francis and Ingham-Starrs, 2005). To become reflective one needs the desire to know, passionate creeds and why questions. One needs to be internally motivated to engage in both spontaneous and structured reflection. Therefore, trainees need help in developing internal purposes for reflection which may include the adoption of a passionate creed and learning to ask why questions. Valli (1993) considers meaningful reflection as the ability to problematize the relationship between theory and practice. In this respect, Grimmett (1988) suggests three directions of reflection (cited in LaBoskey, 1993): Reflection to direct or control practice Reflection to inform practice by deliberating and choosing among competing versions of good teaching Reflection to appreciate or apprehend practice by reconstructing an experience into a new possibility for action.

2.3.4. Reflection and implications for TE If we regard the process of reflection as the driving force of learning, building in reflection time and discussing connections across experiences or strategies that may facilitate reflective abstraction becomes an important issue. In the context of this research the purpose of reflection might be to uncover current routines and modes of thinking as they may support or block professional development. As suggested by the literature, there are certain activities that could foster reflection (Zeichner and Liston, 1987, Connelly and Clandinin, 1990, Graham, 1991, Carter, 1993, Valli, 1997, Davies & Adams, 2000). They are practical activities that can provide a context in which reflection can be encouraged. These activities are mostly situations in which various conditions that favour reflection are accentuated or harnessed in a formalized manner (Moon, 2008). Some examples derived from different theories are classified in Table 5 according to the purpose of reflection. Table 5. Activities fostering reflection PURPOSE OF REFLECTION Raise awareness of personal images of teaching Raise awareness of ones personal theories, values, beliefs ACTIVITY TO FOSTER REFLECTION Reflective autobiography, autobiographical letters, role play Uncovering activities: repertory grid, mind maps, structured conversations with tutors, exploration of metaphors and images THEORY SOURCE Lortie (1975) Griffiths and Tann (1992), social constructivist view Constructivist view that awareness of implicit beliefs is a prerequisite for personal change: Argyris and Schn, 1974; Griffiths and Tann, 1992. Constructivist view that we need awareness of our assumptions about L2 learning (Kagan, 1992) and that we develop our personal theories by analysing our experience (Kolb, 1984) Constructivism and observational learning. Woodward, 1992; constructivism and experiential learning theory. Effective teachers are capable of self-evaluation (Dewey, 1933; Day et al., 1987). We develop our theories by analysing direct personal

Explore connexions between Recall incidents from ones oneself as a learner and ones own L2 learning and practice as a teacher contrast them with those of fellow teachers.

Develop ability to analyse teaching situations Recall and analyse new and recent learning experiences

Structured observation and description Direct language instruction: analysis and discussion of rationales and contrast between different teaching strategies. Review and assess your own Recall incidents, assessment actions in class (become more according to course criteria, aware of the variables that discussion with supervisors affect planning, problemand peers. solving, analysis of situations, evaluation and conscious 6

decision-making) Try to interpret theoretical frameworks and concepts in terms of classroom incidents, to test the relevance of theories in the classroom. Become able to reframe interpretations of ones practice

Structured presentations or formal writing in which a theory is applied to classroom events to assess the relevance and truthfulness of the theory. Reflective conversations and reflective writing with skilled facilitator.

experiences (Kolb, 1984) Experiential learning strategy; social constructivism, Wallace, 1996. Constructivist models of professional development of a developing ability to reframe situations (Dewey, 1933, Argyris and Schn, 1974)

Teacher educators seem to prefer a series of activities to help student teachers become reflective such as case studies, classroom discussion, and journal writing. In particular, the use of autobiography has been used extensively as a way to encourage pre-service teachers to value their own lives and experiences as a source of knowledge about what they may expect to encounter in their own classrooms and the lives of children they will teach (Davies & Adams, 2000). There are various terms used in the literature for journal, such as log, diary, dialectical notebook, file, progress file, workbook and autobiographical and reflective writing (Knowles, 1993, Hatton and Smith, 1995). Middle school pre-service teachers use of autobiographical writing to help them unpack adolescent experiences and accompanying changes in identity are documented by Davies and Adams (2000) who explain how this provides students with ways to value their own life experiences as legitimate contexts of knowledge that can help them move beyond the normalizing constraints that objective knowledge claims imposed (p. 18). Autobiographical writing also helps teachers critically examines their own learning experiences in relation to literacy. At the pre-service level, Knowles (1988) has argued that teacher training institutions must accommodate and use the autobiographical writing of future teachers in order to help teachers critically examine practices they might likely repeat (cited in Joseph, Braun and Crumpler, 2004). In terms of the manner in which reflection functions in relation to learning in journal writing, the reflection is primarily in a represented form on paper, though it may be electronic or spoken into an audio-recorder, and the learning comes from the process of representing and reading back. Journals in teacher education seem to be more suitable for courses where there are smaller numbers of learners who have a clear sense of their goal (Moon, 2008). Although writing a journal may be alien to many student teachers, it will help to sell the idea if the purpose behind it and the anticipated learning that should result is clearly articulated. Biggs (2007) speaks about the importance of the alignment between the intended learning outcomes, the teaching/learning activities and the assessment tasks, that might be crucial when introducing reflective activities to student teachers. The learning activities addressed in the intended outcomes of ITE programmes need to be mirrored both in the teaching/learning activities the student teachers undertake and in the assessment tasks. This alignment is called constructive alignment because it is built on the constructive theory that learners use their own activity to construct their own knowledge or other outcome. The intended outcomes specify the activity that student teachers should engage in if they are to achieve the intended 7

outcome, as well as the content the activity refers to, the teacher educators' task being to set up a learning environment that encourages the latter to perform those learning activities, and then assess the outcomes to see that they match those intended. It is important to remember to ensure that such activities do not become simply recipes to follow. They should be used with awareness and concern that they do generate reflective activity. Reflection in initial teacher learning occurs in those examples where the student teachers are presented with difficult material and are forced to undergo reflective activity in order to produce a reasonable response. Educators can also ask questions that facilitate reflection in student teachers or teach them to probe for meaning by using a series of questions to chase meaning. If students are taught to use appropriate questions, they can make better use of dialogue among peers to facilitate reflection (Moon, 2008). Morgan and Saxon (1991) suggest that such questions could develop suppositions and hypothesis, focus on personal feelings, future action or projection, or develop critical assessment or value judgement. Pugach and Johnson (1990) indicate this as the first stage in initiating reflection: Reframing the issue by asking clarifying questions. Summarizing the problem. Identifying three possible plans of action, exploring anticipated outcomes and selecting one for implementation. Developing the plan for evaluation of the action to be taken. Video recordings showing examples of good practice, or on the contrary, negative examples, could be also used for the analysis of critical incidents. Critical incidents can be used to identify, articulate and examine student teachers' awareness and problematic. To direct them towards what might be done, teacher educators can ask questions about what happened and what caused it to happen. Critical incidents facilitate problematization through rendering into anecdotal form otherwise unremarkable aspects of teaching practice and enabling student teachers to work on their own concerns (Tripp, 1993:8). When the teacher educators listen to the student teachers, interpret what they say, and try to build a model for exploring the latters conceptual understanding, this can form the springboard for changing and developing these concepts. Yet this is a highly complex process. In the endeavour to arrive at a viable model, it is important to consider that whatever student teachers do or say in the context of solving a problem is what, at that moment, makes sense to the individuals. It may seem to make no sense to the teacher educators, but unless they can elicit an explanation or generate a hypothesis as how the student teachers have arrived at the answers, the chances of modifying the student teachers conceptual structures are minimal (Steffe and Gale, 1995). Hence, when we intend to stimulate and enhance student learning, we cannot afford to forget that knowledge does not exist outside a persons mind (von Glasersfeld, 2005). Therefore questions about how a particular individual constructs knowledge or learns become more relevant than questions on teacher learning in general. Convery (1998) considers that reflective learning requires an approach that is social and collaborative rather than individual. Although there are reform movements such as small learning communities in the schools that foster reflection and collaboration, others argue that learning is often seen as a fundamentally private endeavour (Roberts, 1998; Wilson and Demetriou, 2007). However, learning to teach is shaped through a combination of reciprocity 8

between the social context of the particular learning setting (TE programme, school, etc) and the individual teachers interest and disposition to learn about practice (Beckett and Hager, 2000; Billett, 2001; Hodkinson and Hodkinson, 2004). Therefore, teacher educators must find ways to help student teachers recognize the complex, multi-levelled nature of the consequences of their actions so that when they become teachers they can use this understanding to reflect upon and inform their practice (Harrington et al., 1996). There are certain circumscribed areas in which a constructivist orientation can modify a student teachers attitudes. If student teachers see themselves as learners, then the process of professional development is continual. If learning is a constructive activity, the task of the educator is not to dispense knowledge but to provide students with opportunities and incentives to construct it (von Glasersfeld, 2005) and teaching becomes a lifelong process of learning and change. The implications for teacher education in adopting a reflective approach to learning are multiple: Accepting that a person filters new information according to his or her expectations and existing knowledge of the world justifies the anticipation and response to the student teachers diverse expectations of and responses to the TE programme itself. Accepting that one has to work from the personal theories which each student teacher brings to a course justifies the space in the curriculum dedicated to developing selfawareness. Accepting that student teachers filter out and interpret input as to fit them into their personal theories and prior experience justifies the space in the curriculum dedicated to the exploration of each student teachers interpretation of input and their own classroom experiences. Accepting that student teachers learn through interactions with others justifies the time allocated to peer meetings and discussions. Figure 11 illustrates a social constructivist learning cycle and its implications for TE as mentioned above. ITE courses meet student teacher expectations of the course based on the assumption that these expectations mediate their further experience and set parameters to their subsequent learning. Those ITE courses which introduce specific activities (see Table 5 in this section) develop self-awareness and encourage reflection by exploring student teachers interpretation of input in relation to their existing personal theories and previous experience of teaching or learning. If there is a match between existing representations and the new information, then student teachers maintain the meaning as presently constructed. In the case of a mismatch, they revise their representations to incorporate the new input, re-starting the learning cycle at the point of meaning construction. 2.3.5. Teaching reflection and ITE programmes Reflective practice became popular in the context of teachers professional development, and many teacher education courses claimed to use reflection on teaching and learning. According to Furlong et al. (1994) reflection is the essence of professional expertise. It is reported to enable rapid and creative problem-solving appropriate to the context (cited in Calderhead and Shorrock, 1997). They agree that the enthusiasm for reflective practice may be partly accounted for in terms of the current attractiveness of many of the principles that have come to be associated with it: helping teachers to analyse, discuss, evaluate and change their own practice; heightening teachers awareness of the contexts in which they work; enabling 9

teachers to appreciate the moral and ethical issues implicit in their practice; empowering teachers to take greater control over their own professional growth and to influence future directions in education A legitimate question that educators ask refers to the why, how or when to teach reflection. In ITE, reflection on ones own practice has two main functions. The first of these is to develop student teachers immediate understanding of their own problems and needs as explored in the previous section. The second, the benefits of which are long-term, is guided practice in the skills and habits of reflection, which become increasingly valuable as they become more experienced practitioners and face inevitable change throughout their career (McIntyre, 1993 cited in Calderhead and Gates, 1993). Change however, as a fundamental part of the human existence (Newton and Tarrant, 1992), is driven by a desire to improve (see also a discussion on change in Chapters II and VI). Change in teachers practice involves expressing dissatisfaction with the old practices, or the knowledge or beliefs that they were based on. Literature on change management implies that any change requires adaptation, and one goes through stages of rejection, denial, understanding and acceptance, depending of the depth of the change requirements (Everard and Morris, 1996; Hedge, 2000). In other words, teachers need to acknowledge the need for and be willing to change in their practice, which will determine a reform of their system of beliefs in the process of changing (Everard and Morris, 1996). In the Romanian context TE has been undergoing structural and conceptual reforms for almost two decades (see chapter I). It is significant that as the approach to change has been top-down, teachers showed resistance and confusion. I agree that teachers must recognize a need to change, as it cannot be successfully imposed by others. But in order to recognize this need they have to challenge their professional knowledge, contrast it with the new theories proposed or imposed and construct new understandings that would lead to acceptance and desired implementation. But change in a teachers knowledge, skills and attitudes is a long process and cannot be confined to an often short training programme, as the literature has suggested. [] the secret of growth and development is learning how to contend with the forces of change turning positive forces to our advantage, while blunting negative ones it is not possible to solve the change problem, but we can learn to live with it more proactively and more productivelyTeachers capacities to deal with change, learn from it, and help students learn from it will be critical for the future development of societies. (Fullan, 1993: vii-ix). Kroll (2004) considers that teachers have to want to solve these problems, in spite of their difficulties, and they have to feel comfortable with not knowing everything at the end, but to accept their continual learning. TE programmes need to create contexts in which students feel safe to take risks, to disagree with one another, and to admit when they have difficulties in understanding something, in order to create a habit of mind to reflect in the student teachers; a learning community within the profession may support such contexts. [] the essential nature of teacher, which is a reflective way of approaching whatever it is that we are doing as teachers, and at whatever level of experience we are doing it. When better to learn the attitudes and intentions of developmental outlook, than when we are starting out? (Head and Taylor, 1997:12). 10

Whilst learning to reflect is an important goal for student teachers (Kroll, 2004), developing reflective individuals, teams, groups and organisations also requires habits of mind, moral and intellectual dispositions and improving existing patterns of relationships. It is suggested that educators can develop structures for empowerment which support teachers by creating opportunities for dialogue and for making improvements to practice and policy (Ghaye, 2005). As suggested by Ghaye (ibid.), there are many ways to do reflection. Much depends upon who is involved and why. The challenge is to develop the right reflective process, with the right people, at the right time and with the right purpose(s) in mind. ITE continues to espouse the importance of reflective practice. Yet, according to Ghaye (ibid.), year after year, student teachers report that many of their trainers urge them to engage in reflective practice but no one helps them to develop specific skills or provides a model for reflective practice. There is a gap between the goal of developing critically reflective practitioners and the lack of explicit strategies and support for reaching that goal. Less emphasis needs to be placed on reflection as the task of individuals and more emphasis needs to be put on creating collective and organisationally focused processes for reflection. Another way of saying this is: less about the individual reflective practitioner and more about the social context which supports reflection. (Reynolds and Vince, 2004:1). Dewey (1916) asserted that learning from experience is only possible if combined with rigorous use of systematic experimental method. This requires a learner to observe, understand the significance of what they observe and to make judgements based on such understandings. Sharing these understandings is inherent to the process. The implications for ITE refer to the way courses are organised in order to facilitate and promote reflection (see also Table 7 in this chapter). As shown in the constructivist model of learning to teach based on reflection, earlier in this chapter (see Diagram 11), ITE needs to provide activities that raise awareness of student teachers personal theories, values or beliefs, that help them explore the connexions between these representations and their practice, or that develop the ability to analyse, interpret and rephrase input in learning and teaching experiences and share these with others. As a trainer, Alger (2006) considers that she needs to provide trainees with efficient and effective tools to research that quality of reflection when they do not have a university supervisor or colleague to support a reflective dialogue. One approach to this problem is to help students develop a set of focused internalised questions that move them beyond the general sense of the lesson (what went well and did not go well) and towards dialogic and critical reflection. Explicit teaching about levels of reflection is a good first step. Hatton and Smith (1995) offer a typology of reflection to code the quantity and quality of reflection. This typology is hierarchical, with descriptive reflection being a basic level of reflection and critical reflection being the highest level of reflection. The first level of reflection is descriptive and develops to include some rationale or explanation for actions. At a superior level, dialogic reflection involves stepping back from the events/actions leading to a different level of mulling over, discourse with self and others and exploring the experience, events, and actions using qualities of judgement and possible 11

alternatives for explaining and hypothesising (p. 48). Statements in this category are often in the form of questions, or in the use of verbs such as wonder to frame thoughts. The last and most complex level is that of critical reflection where multiple perspectives express awareness that events and actions may be influenced by socio-cultural and political realities. There is evidence that the value of the structured reflection can enhance individual learning process and contribute to what is often termed organisational learning (Hill, 2005; Russell, 2005; Harrison et al., 2005; Alger 2006). Educators can support the development by reflective skills, through assignments and feedback with summative sessions to demonstrate how assignments have developed skills of reflective practice (Russell, 2005). Student teachers can be asked to use particular questions to guide their reflective process. By asking the questions why and what if rather than what and how, individuals challenge themselves and others to explain the reasons and justification for their actions in practice, and increase their ability to foresee broad possible consequences of their actions (Hill, 2005). Rackham (1996) proposes the SPIN model which represents such a method of helping adults by means of questions to identify needs, explain reasons, make judgements about their future actions and adapt to change. The model was developed from an extensive research study on effective sale skills, whose findings lead to the conclusion that successful change in opinion was made by asking smart questions in a particular sequence. Any situation of change normally involves awareness of existing and previous experiences, their analysis that leads to the understanding and acceptance of the new situation/concept/process, that later make their implementation easier. The SPIN model is based on the conceptualisation of change situations in four stages: Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-Payoff (see Diagram 13 below). Each stage corresponds to a set of questions which focus at different levels on identifying needs/problems and ways to meet/solve them. (1) In the first stage questions refer to facts or explore the persons present situation and tend to be open questions. In the case of student teachers they would refer to the courses attended, to motivation, interests and expectations (e.g. What courses did you attend during the pedagogical module?; How do you find these courses?; What do you expect to learn from these courses?). (2) In the second stage questions refer to problems or difficulties that the person experiences with the existing situation. Student teachers could be asked about their courses, about the difficulties they encountered in the classroom or about other areas of concern (e.g. What makes this issue difficult to explain?; Which objective of the lesson couldnt you achieve?; How can learning about lesson planning help you in your teaching?). (3) The questions asked in the third stage refer to the consequences of a persons experienced problems. Trainees could be asked to think about issues encountered in the classroom (e.g. How does this classroom management problem affect your teaching?; Could this lead to more serious problems?; Does your lack of confidence affect the way you present your lessons?). (4) The Need-Payoff questions explore the effects of the solutions found. In other words by answering these questions one can explain how the solution they found could help them solve their problems. These types of questions are considered the most helpful and constructive. They are not about convincing trainees on the rightness or incorrectness of different methods, strategies or concepts, but about creating the right conditions to allow them to convince themselves of what works best for them (e.g. How could planning your lesson help you 12

achieve your goals?; How could more simple and direct instructions help your pupils to do their exercises?; If you were more open to your pupils interest, how could that help you motivate them?). As stated above the purpose of asking these questions is to help student teachers identify needs and find themselves solutions. Most of the time the needs that one has are implicit. They are expressed under the form of dissatisfaction with a certain issue (e.g. Its hard to; Im unhappy with; Ive got problems with). The subjects of theses questions need to be lead to uncovering one or more implied needs that develop further in explicit needs that can be met (e.g. I need; I have to do). The explicit need can be the result of several implicit needs. Russell (2005) introduced a structured approach to a personal dialogue that created a written record of significant experiences. This encouraged learners to reframe their perspectives over the duration of a pre-service programme. According to Johnson (2001) a match between the reported values and the ones the tutor believes are important in the development of teachers professional knowledge. He concluded that reflection can and should be taught explicitly, directly, thoughtfully and patiently using personal reflection to interpret and improve ones teaching reflective practice with others. The results of explicit instruction suggest a more productive approach than merely advocating reflective practice and assuming that individuals will do this alone. When we go about the spontaneous, intuitive performance of the actions of everyday life, we show ourselves to be knowledgeable in a special way. Often we cannot say what is that we know. [] Our knowing is ordinarily tacit, implicit in our patterns of action and in our feel for the stuff which we are dealing with. It seems right to say that our knowing is in our action. (Schn, 1983:49) Educators need to bear in mind that reflective practice also involves change which is linked to individuals capacity to see themselves in new ways and to do different things. In doing so one needs to be mindful of Brookfields (2000) point that this might be energy-sapping with teachers feeling themselves puny, alone, vulnerable and demoralised in the face of structural power that seems overwhelming and unchangeable (p.145). That is why a careful approach to change needs to be taken.
2.

Personal reflections on learning to teach

In my attempt to understand the ways student teachers and teacher educators perceive (1) their learning in relation to their training experiences, and (2) the role that reflection plays in their learning to teach, I considered it necessary to adopt a social constructivist approach to teacher education as a meaningful framework for my research. I believe that learning to teach is a complex process that cannot be explained by a single theoretical paradigm, as it requires considerations of cognitive, affective, behavioural and social dimensions at the same time. Personal theories of teaching and learning resulting from student teachers prior school experiences, their personal characteristics and motivation, as well as the context in which the learning takes place (the training programmes) shape the experience of learning in a wide variety of ways, due to the uniqueness of each journey. I believe that in the case of teachers, learning is a lifelong process (Day et al., 2007; Wilson and Demetriou, 2007) due to the ever changing nature of the requirements of the profession. Awareness of all the particularities of each teachers journey is the continuous promoter of 13

learning. Raising awareness by means of reflective practice is very appealing to the TE because of the principles that have come to be associated with it, such as helping teachers to analyse, discuss, evaluate and change their own practice; enabling teachers to appreciate the moral and ethical issues implicit in their practice; to empower teachers to take greater control over their own professional growth and to influence future directions in education (Calderhead and Shorrock, 1997). The implications remain as to develop the appropriate means reach these goals. I believe that the social context particularly affects the way reflection is constructed (Roberts, 1998). In the context of the Romanian ITE, it may be that reflection uncovers current routines and modes of thinking which both support or block professional development. The literature review presented in this chapter discussed the existing work in the field of teacher development. TE literature was explored in relation to theories of learning to teach and the factors impacting on the learning process. It was considered that the social constructivist perspective offered the most comprehensive approach to learning to teach. Reflection was believed to play an important role in student teacher learning and several methods of developing the capacity for reflection within ITE programmes were discussed.

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