Inquiry Question: How can I use reflection to self-assess my weakness as a teacher and improve upon them?
My inquiry into teacher self-assessment links directly to standard number seven of the Teacher Regulation Branch’s standards for education, competence and professional conduct of educators in BC. It states that:
“Educators engage in career-long learning. Educators engage in professional development and reflective practice, understanding that a hallmark of professionalism is the concept of professional growth over time. Educators develop and refine personal philosophies of education, teaching and learning that are informed by theory and practice. Educators identify their professional needs and work to meet those needs individually and collaboratively” (British Columbia Ministry of Education, 2017).
The standard articulates the fact that teachers are expected to improve their practice each year. However, experience alone does not necessarily lead to improvement. Rather professional development requires intentionality and action. As standard seven implies, teachers must take responsibility for their own growth by identifying their professional weaknesses and addressing them. Self-assessment is essentially the first step to professional growth, we teachers must first learn to identify our problem areas so that we caneffectively direct our professional learning (Peterson, Baker & McGaw, 2010). This is the aim of my inquiry.
I plan to engage in ‘reflective practice,’ as referenced in standard seven, as my primary tool for self-assessment. Through my research, I have come to understand the reflective practice as a process by which practitioners grow in their professional knowledge through the on-going critical examination of one’s own actions so as to engage in continuous learning through their experiences (Schön, 1991). Essential to my inquiry is understanding the nature of reflection with regards to the reflective practice, particularly the notion of reflection as “a product, not a process” (MacKinnon, Clarke et Erickson, p. 93, 2013). The goal of my inquiry project is not simply to reflect, but rather to produce reflection, namely tangible constructive insights and plans for improving my practice.
My inquiry project is rooted in a Schönean conception of the reflective practice. Therefore, I aim to emphasize ‘problem setting’ as opposed to problem-solving. Through readingsome of Donald Schön’s work, I have come to recognize how each problem is unique and intrinsically connected to the setting in which it arises. I must frame my “conceptualization of reflective practice in terms of the immediacy of the action setting” (Clarke, p. 245, 1995). My goal is to be a in continual conversation with my practice environments in the classroom and gym.
My inquiry will also emphasize the two fundamental processes of reflection coined by Schön: reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action (Capel, Breckon & O’Neil, 2006). I have come to understand reflection-in-action is an instantaneous assessment of one’s own behaviour as it happens, colloquially understood as ‘thinking on your feet.’ (Schön, 1991). On the contrary, reflection-on-action is “systematic and deliberate thinking back over one’s actions” to better understand what happened and why (Capel et. Al., 2006, p.19). Through both reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action, I will discern ways to identify and improve upon problem areas in my practice.
Donald Schön’s four-step conception of the reflective practice, trigger, frame, reframe and plan, will guide my inquiry. For Schön reflection begins when a ‘trigger’ causes the practitioner to be curious or intrigued by an aspect of their practice setting. After which they ‘frame’ that aspect in terms of the particulars of their setting. Then they ‘reframe’ that aspect with reference to their past knowledge or previous experience. Lastly, they develop a plan for future action (Clarke, p. 246, 1995). Through a spiralling process of “framing and reframing” the practitioner comes “to new understandings of situations and new possibilities for action” (Clarke, p. 245, 1995). Hens, the reflective process is cyclical and ongoing like a helix. After a plan is implemented in the practice setting, it prompts new triggers, which restart and extend the reflective process. As the practitioner continues to frame, reframe and plan they bring the insights gained from their previous spirals of inquiry. My inquiry seeks to incorporate these steps into my regular teaching practice.
As I go about each teaching day on my practicum I will be mindful of moments in which I find myself needing to reflect in action, or as Molly E. Romano puts it when I experience a “bumpy moment” (Romano, 2004, p. 666). This could be when I feel like I encounter an unpredicted problem with my lesson plan, a student or colleague that throws me off course or leaves me unsure how to act. As soon as possible I will make note of this moment in a journal. These moments will serve as my ‘triggers’. Then at the end of most teaching days, I will reflect on these actions. My reflections will seek to follow Schön’s remaining steps. I will ‘frame’ the moments in light of the classroom or gym setting frame noting the usual or unusual factors present at the time. Then I will ‘reframe’ the trigger in light of what I have learned in the B.ed program thus far and my previous teaching experience. I will use these insights to make a plan specific to my practicum setting and the class in which the ‘trigger’ arose. After I implement each new plan I will assess it in light of new ‘triggers’ that arise.
Every two weeks I will review my notes, and try to identify reoccurring trends among my ‘triggers’. I will use this information to analyze the effectiveness of the plans I implemented. I will use the information to determine if there are any areas of my teaching for which I seem to be lacking the knowledge or insights to improve upon my weakness. I plan to include in my analysis the feedback I receive from my SAs and FAs. Through comparing what I identify as my problem areas to their feedback I hope to gain a more objective understanding of the effectiveness of my use of the reflective practice for teacher self-assessment.
Lastly, I recognize my inquiry project is extremely teacher-centred. However, it will ultimately benefit my students. Through learning to engage in effective professional self-study from the start of my career I will be able to better identify my professional needs and address. This will ultimately make a better teacher. As a result, I will be able to create a more positive classroom environment and more effective learning experiences for my students.