Developing reflective skills among Arab student teachers

1. Developing reflective skills among Arab student teachers Ruwaida Abu Rass July 7, 2015

2. The Influence of prior learning experiences • Memorization & Learning by heart • Transmission of material • Authoritative instructors • Students’ expectations-ready made recipes • Teacher’s guide

3. Living in two worlds • Exposure to the Jewish culture(Eilam, 2002) • Individualism, criticism & creative thinking • (Al-Haj, 1999; Azaiza & Ben Ari, 1997; Eilam, 2002) • Society and culture-collectivism & tradition • Family system- hierarchical & patriarchal • Changes- opportunities for advancement (Torn & Iliyan, 2008)

4. Conceptual Change • A process rather than an end • A developmental process • Trial, error & inquiry • A wide variety of methods, activities, games, stories, songs… • Individual as well as co-teaching

5. Conceptual Change • Three dimensions: • 1. Socio-psychological: Providing emotional support • 2. Professional & pedagogical support • 3. Reflective- developing reflective skills for evaluating their developmental process

6. Definition • Developing reflective thinking means helping student teachers think about their experiences, analyze their beliefs, values or knowledge in relation to these experiences and consider options or alternatives for action (Ferraro, 2000).

7. Promoting Autonomy • Autonomy-supportive education is constructive and developmental in nature (Perry, 1999). • The advisor’s role: Agent for change • Helping trainees develop critical thinking skills (Emanuel, 2005).

8. Promoting Autonomy • Encouraging ample opportunities for practice, inquiry and reflection and challenging students to take responsibilities for making decisions and choices (Kegan, 1994; Perry, 1999) • Processes of exploration, interpretation, and negotiation through which pre-service teachers investigate the sources of their knowledge and beliefs (Mori, 2003)

9. Promoting Autonomy • Supervising and evaluation of teacher learning should be nonjugemental to encourage student teachers take risks (Gebhard & Oprandy, 1999)

10. My role as an agent for change • Empowering • Encouraging them to believe in themselves and their abilities • Trying to expand their horizons • Supportive, encouraging, welcoming and approachable

11. Research Questions • 1. How do the employed strategies and ways of advising the students affect their perception to my role as a pedagogical adviser? • 2. How does my way of advising the students including providing feedback affect their perception to themselves as independent students who grow and develop professionally?

12. Subjects • Third-year female Arab students • Majoring in EFL • The Academic Arab Teachers’ Training Institute at College Beit Berl • 2010-2011 • 6 students

13. Requirements • Teaching a lesson once a week and five lessons during the intensive practical work week • Participating in the Didactic Seminar Course • Issues related to EFL theories and methodology are discussed • Discussing articles related to professional development at the end of the school year • The first day at school

14. Data Collection • Three portfolios: • a) Lesson plans: Alternative Task & Reflection • b) three reflections • c) the observation notes of the student teachers • My observation notes • a) notes of observed lessons • b) staff meetings and individual conferences

15. Data Collection • Two questionnaires • Interviews • Video taped lessons

16. Data Analysis • Collected data - systematically organized, coded and indexed. • Grouping and creating categories • Chronologically and thematically analyzed

17. Data analysis • Two types of desired change • a) Developing reflective skills • B) Experiencing trial and error

18. Categories and sub-categories • Developing reflective skills • a) Critical self-evaluation • b) Accepting comments from the pedagogical adviser and the trainers • c) Objective evaluation & • Experiencing trial and error • a) Employing different strategies, techniques… • b) Being exposed to different settings • c) Making mistakes and learning from them

19. Results • Developing Reflective Skills • Some improvement/ varied • Daboul & Nola- provided rationale for their choices, (D) the need to be more creative • (D) Contradictions- having enough experience • Didn’t consider the alternative task seriously

20. Results • Zuzu & Dobi- some improvement • At the beginning of the school year- focused more on the activities, their performance and blaming the pupils for not cooperating • By the end of the school year- focused more on the activities, students’ interaction and involvement

21. Results • Salim & Cool • Improved the least • Brevity “good”, “useful”, “helpful” • Lack of consistency • Conflicting messages • Salim: Demanding adviser (1st questionnaire) • 2nd year-enough experience

22. Results • Critically evaluating their performance through reasoning choices • Avoiding reporting about less pleasant experiences • Very defensive • Differences • Daboul provided reasoning • Dobi expressed her satisfaction- employing different strategies for teaching vocabulary

23. Results • Dobi & Zuzu • Positive as well as negative experiences • Appreciating employing different ways of teaching including games, listening texts, video segments • Salim & Cool • Their reflections and answers didn’t show deep thinking

24. Results • Experiencing trial and error • Hesitantly varied their ways at the beginning • Felt safe to follow the teacher’s guide • Frontal and traditional • Shift • Eager to apply activities related to the topics of their seminar papers

25. Results • Repeated calls • Started to realize the importance of varying their methods and activities at the end of the school year • Satisfied, but felt the need of having more experience to be fully competent and confident • Salim & Cool- “important”, “helpful”, “useful”

26. Results • Showing resistance to being exposed to different settings • Rejected the idea of accompanying different teacher trainers (educators) totally • Compromise • Still reluctant • Contradicting opinions

27. Conclusions • Shaping beliefs is a long process • One year is not sufficient to help EFL trainee make conceptual change, develop professionally and be more autonomous

28. Conclusions • Preparing a three-stage program • A. The lesson plan in the first year should include only two sections: Describing the lesson and providing self-evaluation • Adding the alternative task section in the second year • Adding the self-reflective section in the third year

29. Conclusions • More attention should be paid to the influence of the first culture, patterns of thinking and behavior in teacher education

30. References Al-Haj, M. 1999. Higher education among the Arabs in Israel: Situation, needs and recommendations. Haifa, Israel: Univeristy of Haifa, Center for Multiculturalism and Educational Research. Eilam, B. 2002. 'Passing through a western-democratic teacher education: The case of Israeli Arab Teachers'. Teachers College Record, 104 (8), 1656-1701. Emmanuel, D. 2005. Role perception of the pedagogical advisor from three points of view: A renewed look at the program for specialization in pedagogical advice. Position Paper 2. Tel Aviv: MOFET (in Hebrew). Ferraro, J. M. (2000). Reflective practice and professional development. Retrieved from http://searcheric.org/digests/ed449120.html Gebhard, J. G., Gaitan, S., & Oprandy, R. (1999). Reflecting through a teaching journal. New York: Cambridge University Press. Kegan, R. (1994). In over our heads: The mental demands of modern life. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Mori, R. (2003). Knowledge/personhood dichotomy in TESOL. The Language Teacher, 27 (4), 14-15. Perry, W. (1999). Forms of ethical and intellectual development in the college years: A scheme. San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass. (Original work published 1968). • Toren, Z., & Iliyan, S. (2008). The problems of the beginning teacher in the Arab schools in Israel. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24: 1041-1056.