Teachers can reflect on their practices by articulating and exploring incidents they consider critical to themselves or others. By talking about these critical incidents, teachers can make better sense of seemingly random experiences that occur in their teaching because they hold the real inside knowledge, especially personal intuitive knowledge,…

Since the author began work in reflective practice, at first informally in the late 1970s and then more formally in the mid-1980s, he has always looked at reflective practice as a compass of sorts to guide teachers when they may be seeking direction as to what they are doing in their classrooms. The metaphor of reflection as a compass enables…

This paper presents a case study that investigated and compared the stated beliefs and observed classroom practices relating to language teaching of one experienced and one novice English language teacher. Areas where observed practices converged with or diverged from stated beliefs are explored and discussed with reference to factors which might…

Over their careers teachers tacitly construct and reconstruct a conceptual sense of who they are (their self-image) and what they do (their professional role identity). Teacher role identity includes teacher beliefs, values, and emotions about many aspects of teaching and being a teacher. Reflecting on teacher role identity allows language…

Reflective practice means that teachers must subject their own teaching beliefs and practices to critical examination. One way of facilitating reflective practice in ESL teachers is to encourage them to engage in classroom observations as part of their professional development. This paper reports on a case study of a short series of classroom…

There is a longstanding recognition in the field of language education that teachers must continually reshape their knowledge of teaching and learning. This knowledge is developed initially in teacher education programs, then becomes part of teachers' education throughout their careers through reflective practice. Reflective practice occurs when…

Reflective practice, a popular item in current second-language teacher education and development programs, can help bridge the gap between a teacher's beliefs and classroom practices. This article outlines a case study, highlighting how one teacher of academic writing initiated the exploration of her teaching and how she used classroom…

Reports on a such teacher development group in Korea that sought to promote reflective practice. Specific focus is on the role of cooperative talk used during group meetings to help four English-as-a-Foreign-Language teachers reflect on their professional practice. Outcomes of the study discussed include the use of silence and choice of topic, the…

Examined the role that support from the school and colleagues played as one teacher developed during his first year as a secondary English as a Second Language teacher in Singapore. Data from observations and interviews indicated that the teacher considered collegial support the most important school-based support during that first year. The paper…

This study investigated ways in which regular group discussion might promote reflective teaching. Subjects were three experienced teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Korea who came together in weekly meetings to reflect on their work. Two were college teachers, and one taught in a private company. The study examined what the…

Examined the reflections of a non-native English speaker who taught English as a foreign language in Korea, discussing her preferred modes of reflection during group meetings, individual meetings, and journal writing and describing her level of reflection in each activity (descriptive or critical). Overall, she clearly preferred group discussion…