The concept of reflective practice and teaching people to be reflective practitioners is examined. The document begins with a look at professional knowledge according to three prominent professionals in the educational administration field: Schon, Schein, and Achilles. "Reflective" strategies that could be incorporated into courses and…

This paper describes a format developed to confront those things that are taken for granted (TFGs) by inservice teachers of grades 2 through 5 as they struggled with learning to improve the teaching of writing in their school through the use of focused, rule-governed reflection on artifacts of practice. In addition to reflection, the participants…

This research documented an innovative technique called Classroom Reflections (CR) that could successfully develop teacher candidates (TCs) abilities as reflective practitioners. Elementary and secondary TCs used their drawing of a critical incident first to analyze their own practice and then with others to construct deeper meaning. TCs were in a…

This paper advances the thesis that high level thinking in classrooms happens when students become conscious of experience and knowledge realities and decide to pursue them flexibly and creatively. The specific research focuses on the author's conviction that effective stimulators of student reflection will accommodate knowledge encounters that…

The Impromptu Teaching Model was designed by the University of Central Arkansas for use by preservice teachers in laboratory teaching experiences. Two teaching exercises, microteaching and reflective teaching, form the basis for impromptu teaching. Microteaching provides teachers with the opportunity to master various technical skills of the…

One of the most important tasks in working with teachers is helping them develop their own abilities to create developmentally appropriate curriculum for young children. This paper reflects on, from two perspectives, the ongoing process of teachers developing an understanding of how children learn and how that process affects curriculum…

This paper briefly reviews the evidence on the use of the reflective journal as a learning and professional development tool for teachers and school administrators. It argues that a new trend tends to permeate the teaching profession: reflecting on what teaching really means. It also contends that a reflective educator is aware that taking time…

This study explored classroom teachers' roles as reflective decision makers, surveying 260 K-12 teachers about professional development, teaching strategies, textbooks, testing and measurement, and mechanisms they used to distinguish between successful and unsuccessful teaching methods. Results indicate that nearly all of the teachers think about…

Reflects on ethical issues that are central to the author's work as an educational researcher. Argues that research ought to be practiced as a form of service that respects teachers and students and enables researchers to grow through a process of reflection. (SG)

The authors examine the literature that sets the foundation for a lesson design cycle for differentiating instruction in inclusive classrooms. Use the cycle to differentiate at the four design points of understanding the learners, delineating content and materials, assessing what learners know, and differentially arranging teaching/learning…

This paper reports on a study of the frequency and level(s) of teachers' reflection and the thoroughness of their recall of their own and their students' specific classroom behaviors. The sample consisted of 3 groups of elementary school teachers: 4 novice student teachers, 5 teachers with 1 to 6.5 years experience, and 3 teachers with from 10 to…

Reading, writing, and reflecting can be used as tools during teachers' professional development opportunities. Various forums and activities that support an evolving view of professional development tend to encourage active participation and decision-making, reflective practice, and constructing knowledge based on discussions and readings. Book…

Numeracy can be defined as having the competence and disposition to use mathematics to meet the general demands of life at home, in paid work, and for participation in community and civic life (Willis 1992). An important aspect of developing the capacity to use mathematics in everyday life is, for students at school, to use mathematics to meet the…

Teaching can be understood as acting and deciding in a complex system. On that problem oriented mathematics instruction (POMI) can be characterized as very high complex particularly regarding to mathematical-cognitive aspects. To cope with resulting demands in the long run, the teacher has to be sensitive for this complexity. But what does this…

This study documented variations in program designs and implementation strategies, linking them to beginning teachers' professional growth, particularly reflective practices. Data were collected in six sites during 1999-00 as part of an evaluation of the implementation of the California Formative Assessment and Support System for Teachers, which…