As teachers, we are always reflecting on and refining our craft. In this article, the author shares how her understanding and implementation of comprehension strategy instruction has evolved over the past ten years. These shifts include her current thinking about the gradual release of responsibility instructional model, how content and big ideas…

The aim of this paper is to share my perceptions and reflections on the experience of introducing elements of autonomy in a constrained educational setting in Argentina. I recorded these perceptions in teaching diaries written weekly after each class for the academic year 2005 (over 35 weeks). These teaching diaries are part of a larger,…

In this essay, the authors argue that only by sharing their mistakes and uncertainty can they fully reflect on their own process as teachers, only by understanding their process can they begin to identify the many factors that contribute to classroom messes in the first place, and only by acknowledging the perpetual messiness of their practice can…

This book is a discussion of teaching as learning--rooted in the author's personal history as a teacher and learner, and offered as one story among many to help other teachers ask questions about their own practice. The book is not intended to be a manual or a step-by-step guide for use in the classroom. Instead, it emphasizes the triumphs that…

In this paper, the author describes the three instructional strategies (respect for diversity, the power of reciprocal learning, and personal reflection) that she believes allowed her to become a successful teacher and career educator. She contends that though details and events may vary from classroom to classroom, respecting diversity,…

States that, for one instructor, professional inquiry in a graduate education program has led to a critical examination of day-to-day practice in the classroom, especially regarding the writing process in the grade 7-9 writing workshop he formerly taught. (PA)

Considers the importance of teachers changing their practice from the traditional norm. Offers insights into how this change can be achieved. Discusses conditions necessary for supporting improvisation and change. (PA)

As a beginning teacher, the author did not recognize that knowing her students was as important as knowing her subject. Teachers should personalize assignments and ask students to write a letter about themselves, write notes explaining tardiness or late homework, create learning logs, and help solve classroom problems. (MLH)

Using an autobiographical approach for pedagogical reflection, the author raises questions about how to include "hospitable kinship" and "gift exchange" in teaching and learning. Her experience with a Zimbabwean community circle of hospitable kinship has prompted her to consider how this method of community formation might be…

This paper examines some of the emotional issues that can interfere with teachers' professional skills and abilities to reflect on what they are doing in a non-emotional, non-judgmental way. For example, the recent move to include students with disabilities in mainstream classes has placed stress on many teachers, making them feel overwhelmed,…

Teachers, parents, policymakers, and others interested in researching what is best for teaching children literacy skills will find literally thousands of resources purporting to be "best practices." This book suggests examining real classrooms--teachers and students actively involved in literacy learning--to determine what works in…

This paper discusses "Doing Theory in the Methods Class: Focused Reflection," a chapter from the book "Whole Language Voices in Teacher Education" edited by Kathryn F. Whitmore and Yetta Goodman. The book chapter focuses on guided classroom reflection as a key element in the education of preservice teachers, exploring whether…

A female African American educator with dreadlocks in a class of predominantly white college students begins each semester by warning students that the terms "black" and "white" will be used regularly. She also points out factors that might inhibit speaking in class, such as white students' fears that awkward phrasing of their…

Discusses an activity developed to encourage beginning graduate students studying English as a Second or Other Language (ESOL) and second language acquisition in a teacher training program in Paraguay to reflect on what happened in their tutoring groups and to apply this knowledge to the classroom context. Another activity focuses on whole-class…

Argues that reflective practice informed by anthropological perspectives can help educators address practice-based puzzlements and improve educational practice in culturally diverse classrooms. Offers examples of how reflective practice, informed by anthropological concepts and methods and illuminated by understanding of different cultures,…