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Dilemmas, reflection and effectiveness

The dilemmas in educational decision-making, which suggest that reflection is a continually necessary element of teaching, are analysed in a seminal work by Berlak and Berlak:

  • Berlak, H. and Berlak, A. (1981) Dilemmas of Schooling, London: Methuen.

And thirty years ago, Calderhead captured some of the complexities of teaching that suggest that reflective action is vital and unavoidable:

  • Calderhead  (1994)  ‘Competence and the complexities of teaching’.  Mimeo.  ESRC seminar series on teacher competence. (Reading 3.5)

For analyses on the nature of professional knowledge and its potential to enhance learning, see:

  • Schön, D.  A. (1983) The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action. London: Temple Smith.  (Reading 3.2)
  • Heilbronn, R. and Yandell, J. (2011) Critical Practice in Teacher Education: A Study of Professional Learning.  London: Institute of Education. (Reading 3.6)
  • Timperley, H. (2011) Realising the Power of Professional Learning. Maidenhead: Open University Press. (Reading 16.6)

Lawrence Stenhouse and other seminal writers provide a theoretical base for an exploration of the relationship between professional practice and research.

  • Stenhouse, L. (1975) An Introduction to Curriculum Research and Development. London: Heinemann. (Reading 3.3)
  • Elliott, J. (1996) Action Research for Educational Change. Milton Keynes: Open University Press.
  • McNiff, J. (1993) Teaching as Learning: an Action Research Approach. London: Routledge.

Many other writers have built on their work:

  • Sotto, E. (2001) When Teaching Becomes Learning. London: Continuum.
  • Menter, I., Elliot, D., Hall, J., Hulme, M., Lewin, J. and Lowden, K. (2010) A Guide to Practitioner Research in Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press.
  • Mitchell, N. and Pearson, J. (2012) Inquiring in the Classroom.  Asking the Questions that Matter about Teaching and Learning. London: Continuum.
  • Zwozdiak-Myers, P. (2012). The Teacher’s Reflective Practice Handbook: Becoming an Extended Professional through Capturing Evidence-Informed Practice. London: Routledge
  • Wilson, E. (ed) (2013) School-based Research: a guide for education students, 2nd. Edition. London: Sage
  • Dana, N. F. & Yendol-Hoppey, D. (2014). The Reflective Educator’s Guide to Classroom Research: learning to teach and teaching to learn through practitioner enquiry. London: Sage

The significance of learning and developing practice with colleagues is elaborated in:

  • Dadds, M. (1995) Passionate Enquiry and School Development. London: Falmer.
  • Wenger, E. (1999) Communities of Practice.  Learning, Meaning and Identity.  Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 
  • McLaughlin, C., Black Hawkins, K., Brindley, S., McIntyre, D. and Taber, K. (2006) Researching Schools: Stories from a Schools-University Partnership.  Maidenhead:  Open University Press.
  • Forde, C., et al. (2006). Professional Development, Reflection and Enquiry. London: Sage

In teacher education a basis for reflection in the UK has been firstly competences and latterly standards. Information about Standards changes from time to time and from country to country; such information can be obtained from government sources. Some writers include reference to national standards in texts focused on reflective practice, e.g.

  • Hansen, A., et al. (2012). Reflective Learning and Teaching in Primary Schools. Exeter: Learning Matters.

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