An instructor's reflections on face-to-face and computer-mediated courses clarifies assumptions about teaching and principles of adult education. She concludes that the approach to teaching is fundamentally the same in both methods, but instructional roles and strategies differ. (SK)

The Singaporean education system is undergoing many changes in order to develop schools and nation which cultivate learning and education. A crucial success factor to these initiatives is the teacher. Singapore needs reflective teachers who can continually reflect upon their own practices to find better ways of teaching as well as maintain their…

In this article it is argued that in order to be an effective artist teacher it is helpful to be a reflective practitioner. Initially a working definition of the artist teacher is formulated and the artist teacher scheme that has developed in England over recent years is discussed regarding its importance in offering both accredited and…

Looking back, the author sees that she misjudged how one becomes an educational expert. She thought it had something to do with thoughtful experience, deep thinking, reflective practice, and the study of theory and research. And maybe there was a time when that was true. But today it seems that the less one has studied education, the less one has…

A current interest in education is the growing awareness that the development of social and emotional skills in children is critical for the foundation of academic knowledge in the classroom. The early childhood educator is in a position to be a powerful nurturer of the social emotional development in young children. It is important, therefore, to…

What English educators call "praxis," the intersections between theory and practice, remains the most viable theory for literacy teachers at all levels, and Paulo Freire, the educator who explained "praxis" to them, remains their most important source of philosophical inspiration. Freire's definition of "praxis," that it requires action and…

An examination of how the use of descriptive analysis of children's work such as the Modified Descriptive Review process supported professional inquiry and growth for educators and for children they serve, is presented. The Modified Descriptive Review process fed immediate actions as well as the posing and exploring of large questions about…

This study is a review of a program and an endeavor that sought to examine the effects of preparing prospective teachers in the skills and abilities of action research, utilizing technological resources, and determining the impact of that upon teacher education efforts. A cohort of secondary student teachers were taught and prepared in the…

The Early Childhood profession would benefit from a systematic inquiry into "calendar math." The authors offer an organized framework for this work. After a description of calendar math practices, the authors examine problematic aspects of its implementation, based on developmental theory. The essay concludes with a call for more reflective…

To benefit from reflective and reflexive actions there is a need to contrast these two terms to understand what each is and is not. Both terms can indicate a level and concern for self-development. For instance, to be reflexive is to self-examine, to consider internal conversation, and use this voice to guide, support, and enhance work.…

This paper examines recent education and teacher education reforms in the USA and Namibia and analyzes two tensions that have been a central part of debates about teacher quality and teacher education in many parts of the world: whether we should prepare teachers as technicians or as reflective practitioners; and whether we should prepare teachers…

While supervising a student teacher in school, an incident occurred that highlighted a contradiction between my practice and my beliefs and prompted me to question why I do not always live the values I profess. The aim of this article is to investigate how self-study can help me to understand the complex and context-based situations of my…

The first term of any preservice teacher education program can be challenging for students in many ways, and learning to read and write in a scholarly way is one potential challenge. This article chronicles events in my secondary education literacy course when I asked students to write in a descriptive, analytical, and reflective way about the…

This paper describes the rationale for, and the design, implementation and preliminary evaluation of a taxonomy to guide the grading and feedback of ePortfolio assessment of personal development planning (PDP) in a module where PDP is integrated into the curriculum. Conventional higher education assessment methods do not adequately address the…

This paper explores the metaphor of the "teacher as stranger" as a guide for curriculum inquiry. It describes investigations conducted by educators in an introductory curriculum studies course and illustrates the themes revealed in students' lived-curriculum journals. In particular, it examines several journals to document how…