PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 87 Exploring Reflective Teach ing through Informed Journal Keeping and Blog Group Discussion in the Teach ing Practicum* Exploración de la enseñanza reflexiva en la práctica docente a través de la escritura informada de diarios y de discusiones grupales mediante blogs Edgar Alirio Insuasty** Lilian Cecilia Zambrano Castillo*** Universidad Surcolombiana, Colombia This article reports the findings of a study which examined how student teach ers could be empowered as more reflective practitioners through journal keeping and blog group discussions. It was carried out with six student teach ers who developed their practicum over six months. Data were collected through journals, blogs, metaphors, conferences and a questionnaire. The results demonstrated that student teach ers enriched their perceptions about what reflective teach ing implied. Furthermore, jour- nal keeping was approached as an informed process by virtue of which student- teach ers could go beyond the descriptive documentation of what happened in their classes. Their journal entries also revealed reflective references, most of which were mainly focused on evaluating teach ing, diagnosing and solving problems. Key words: Teach ing practicum, reflective teach ing, informed diary keeping, group discussions. Este artículo reporta los resultados de un estudio que examinó cómo se podía potenciar los practicantes como docentes más reflexivos a través del uso de diarios y discusiones mediante blogs. En el estudio participaron seis practicantes, quienes desarrollaron sus prácticas durante seis meses. Los datos se recogieron a través de diarios, blogs, metáforas, conferencias y cuestionarios. Los resultados demostraron que los practicantes enriquecieron sus percepciones acerca de lo que significa la enseñanza reflexiva. Por otra parte, el diligenciamiento del diario, el cual se hizo como un proceso informado, les permitió ir más allá de una etapa descriptiva y enfocarse en la evaluación del proceso de enseñanza, la identificación y solución de los problemas que surgieron en la clase. Palabras clave: práctica docente, enseñanza reflexiva, escritura informada de diarios, discusiones a través de blogs. * This article is derived from the research “The Development of Reflective Teach ing: A Way to Improve the Teach ing Practicum in an ELT Program” conducted by the authors (August 2007-November 2008) as a thesis requirement which enabled them to obtain the degree of M.A. in English Didactics at Universidad de Caldas. ** E-mail: edalin@usco.edu.co *** E-mail: licezam@usco.edu.co This article was received on December 16, 2009, and accepted on June 12, 2010. 88 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo Introduction Reflection should be a basic component of teacher development because pre-service and in- service teach ers are called to evaluate and rearrange their teach ing in order to optimize the teaching- learning process. A reflective teach er is expected to go beyond the practice of reciting textbooks, giv ing tests, following imposed syllabi, and taking for granted that everything is going well. Teach ers are supposed to become critical of their own practices in order to make their students’ learning experi- ence something dynamic, valuable and meaningful for their lives. In spite of the importance that reflec- tive teach ing involves, the potential of reflection in the Colombian educational context has not been fully explored. Zambrano and Insuasty (2008) carried out a small-scale descriptive study which sought to investigate the extent to which the teach ing practi- cum in the foreign language program of a public university had been approached as a reflective expe- rience. The teach ing practicum component of this program was found to have fallen short in providing student teach ers with opportunities to develop into reflective practitioners, despite the existing institu- tional regulations in that sense. In general terms, student teach ers did not seem to be aware enough of the principles of reflective teach ing and, conse- quently, were not committed to implementing this approach. The researcher’s professional response to the student teach ers’ low level of reflectivity was the conception and implementation of a Reflective Teach ing Intervention Proposal (RTIP), which was framed and explored in the practicum supervisory relationship between six student teach ers and the two researchers. The initial plan consisted of seven induction workshops. They were aimed at broad- ening student teach ers’ insights into reflective teach ing, its main purposes, and reflective teach ing tools. In addition to these conceptual foundations on reflective teach ing, student teachers were asked to keep a journal and to participate in group blog discussions throughout the practicum period. The present study sought to develop the fol- lowing objectives: (a) to determine the type of perceptions student teach ers had about reflective teach ing, (b) to broaden student teach ers’ insights into reflective teach ing, (c) to stimulate student teach ers to explore reflective teach ing tools dur ing the practicum experience, and (d) to ascertain to what extent student teach ers became reflective practitioners. The next sessions of this article will discuss the basic concepts of reflective teaching, its rationale as well as two implementation frame- works. Moreover, the major findings of three similar studies will be added. Then, the research methodology will be depicted. Finally, the results, findings and conclusions will be discussed. Theoretical Framework In general terms, reflection has been described in many ways. Koszalka, Song, and Grabrowski (2002, as cited in Conderman & Morin, 2004) de- fined reflection as “active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or practice” (p. 111). In order for reflection to evolve in meaning and use- fulness, Rodgers (2002, as cited in Amobi, 2006) suggests that “reflection should be taught, learnt, assessed, discussed, and researched” (p. 26). As to the conceptions of reflection in the edu- cational field, there is also a wide range of stand- points. According to Ross (1989), reflection is “a way of thinking about educational matters that involves the ability to make rational choices and to assume responsibility for those choices” (p. 22). Likewise, Bartlett (1994) contends that reflection is more than thinking and focuses on the day-to-day PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 89 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... classroom teach ing of the individual teach er as well as the institutional structures in which the teach er and students work. Bartlett (1994) also says that “becoming criti cal means that as teach ers we have to transcend the technicalities of teach ing and think beyond the need to improve our instructional techniques” (p. 203). He suggests that we should move away from the “how to” question to the “what and why” ques- tions because they give us some power over our teach ing, and in this way we can begin to exercise control and open up the possibility of transforming our everyday classroom life. Bartlett (1994) claims that reflective teach ing should be seen as “a form of critical inquiry located in a socially critical orienta- tion to teach ing” (p. 203). Thus, second language teach ers should assume that they are both the pro- ducers and creators of their own history. Risko, Roskos, and Vukelich (2002, as cited in Conderman & Morin, 2004) believe that reflec- tion creates the foundation for assessing situa- tions and making rational decisions and provides educators the opportunity to generate connections between theory and practice, to come to deeper understandings about their personal beliefs while adapt ing new perspectives, and to use inquiry to inform instructional decisions. Richards (1990, as cited in Farrell, 2003) also sees reflection as a key component of teach er de- velopment. He defines critical reflection as a pro- cess in which “experience is recalled, considered, and evaluated, usually in relation to a broader pur- pose” (p. 15). He also argues that this process is a basis for evaluation, decision making and a source for plann ing and action. According to Schön (1983, as cited in Corco- ran & Leahy, 2003), reflection requires a public testing of private assumptions, which happens through a dialogue of words or actions with other participants in the teach ing-learning context. In this sense, Kemmis (1986, as cited in Bartlett, 1994) contends that: reflection is not just an individual, psychological process. It is an action oriented, historically-embedded social and political frame, to locate oneself in the history of a situation, to partici- pate in a social activity, and to take sides on issues. Moreover the material on which reflection works is given to us socially and historically; through reflection and the action which it informs, we may transform the social relations which characterize our work and our working situation. (p. 204) In order to comply with the requirements of reflective teach ing development, teach ers can have access to a variety of resources such as the ones presented by Murphy (2001). They include audio or video recording, class observation, interviews, journal keeping, focus groups, etc. Why Reflective Teach ing? Reflective teach ing is an approach which has gained significant momentum in language teach ing. In his personal reflection about thirty years of TEFL/TESL, Richards (2008) contends that language teach ers have moved away from a search of the perfect method and have shifted their at tention to developing and exploring their own teach ing through reflective teach ing and ac- tion research. Other theorists have, over the last few years, advocated different rationales for the emergence and the worthiness of reflective teach ing. Gore (1987) enhances collegiality as one of the out- comes of reflective teach ing, since via working in small groups to question and examine teach ing behavior and provide honest feedback, students may develop trust and respect for each other as teachers and professionals. According to Smyth (1992), reflection places an emphasis on learning 90 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo through questioning and investigation in order to lead to a development of understanding. As a matter of fact, exploring the nature of reflec- tive practice, Calderhead (1993) and others found that reflective teach ing contributes to professional development by encouraging teach ers to analyze, discuss, and evaluate practice. From a constructiv- ist point of view, Colton and Sparks-Langer (1993) contend that teach ers are expected to learn from their experiences by constructing mental represen- tations of their personal meanings when they are stored in memory to be revised as experience dic- tates. Ferraro (2008) also perceived that teachers could improve their effectiveness in the classroom by gaining a better understanding of their own indi- vidual teach ing styles through reflective practice. Murphy (2001) points out that teach ers can grow as professionals in different ways and this growth lets them look inward, both within themselves and within the courses they offer, to access information about what happens in their language classrooms. He proposes three main pur- poses of reflective teach ing: First, to expand one’s understanding of the teach ing learning process; second, to expand one’s repertoire of strategic op- tions as a language teach er; and third, to enhance the quality of learning opportunities one is able to provide in language classrooms (pp. 499-514). Frameworks to Develop Reflective Teach ing Reflective teach ing has been conceived by different scholars as a cyclical process of teach er development. Bartlett (1994) proposes a cycle for the process of reflective teach ing. It is made of five components, namely, mapping, informing, con- testing, appraising, and acting, which are not lin- ear or sequential. Each one of these elements is a response to a particular question, as shown here: Mapping. (What do I do as a teacher?) For Bartlett it implies observation and the collection of evidence about our experiences in the classroom. This stage also involves asking questions about what we do as teach ers. What is very important in the mapping phase is that observation must be done by individual teach ers (and through the use of personal diaries, learning logs, portfolios, and journals). The teach ers’ approach to the mapping phase should be a descriptive one. Informing. (What is the meaning of my teach ing? What did I intend?) “It is looking for meaning behind the maps” (Bartlett, 1994, p. 210). That is, the teach er revisits his first records - his maps - adds to them, and makes sense of them. As such, the in- forming phase provides the teach er with an under- standing of the difference between teach ing routine and conscious teach ing action, and the ability to unearth the principles behind them as well as rea- sons underlying one’s own theory of teach ing. Contesting. (How did I come to be this way? How was it possible for my present view of teaching to have emerged?) “This phase involves contesting our ideas and the structures that hold them in place” (Bartlett, 1994, p. 211). To this end, teach ers can share their understandings and reasons for teach ing in particular ways with their colleagues. While becoming experienced teach ers, they devel- op their own theories of teach ing and learning and their professional histories which contain assump- tions about the best ways of teach ing. Appraisal. (How might I teach differently?) It has to do with a search for alternative courses of action. “Appraisal begins to link the thinking di- mension of reflection with the search for teach ing in ways consistent with our new understanding” (Bartlett, 1994, p. 213). Appraisal is a quest for al- ternative courses of action; that is, emerging plans or strategies to enhance the quality of teach ing and learning processes. PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 91 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... Acting. (What and how shall I now teach ?) It is concerned with implementing those emerging teach ing plans. Freire, as cited by Bartlett (1994), states that “reflection without action is verbalism, and action without reflection is activism” (p. 213). To sum up, what is expected with this cycle, according to Bartlett, is that “We rearrange our teach ing practice after mapping what we do, unearthing the reasons and assumption for these actions, subjecting these reasons to critical scrutiny, appraising alternative courses of action, and then acting” (1994, p. 213). Murphy (2001) suggests the following steps for those teach ers who are interested in deepening awareness of their teach ing and learning behaviors through reflective teach ing: (a) Gather information on whatever is taking place within a lan- guage course, (b) examine such information closely in an effort to better understand what they collect, (c) identify anything puz- zling about the teach ing-learning process, (d) build awareness and deepen understanding of current teach ing and learning be- haviors, (e) locate and collaborate with others interested in pro- cesses of reflective teach ing, (f ) pose and refine questions tied to one’s teach ing that are worth further exploration, (g) locate resources that may help to clarify whatever questions are be- ing posed, (h) make informed changes in teach ing, even if only modest changes, (i) document changes in teach ing-learning be- haviors and responses, (j) continue such efforts over time and share emerging insights with others. (p. 500) In addition to the theoretical foundations we have just briefly described, this study has also been informed by other research-derived insights. Chacón (2008) conducted an investigation with the Practicum student teach ers at the University of Los Andes- Táchira. Findings showed that intervention helped improve student teach ers’ competencies to reflect because it fostered reflection-in-prac- tice and reflection-on-practice. Ho and Richards (2008) carried out a study aimed at investigating how journal writing promoted reflective thinking. They concluded that “journal writing can provide an opportunity for teach ers to write reflectively about teach ing, though in itself does not necessar- ily promote critical reflection… some initial train- ing in reflective writing may well be necessary as a preparation for journal writing” (p. 13). Muñoz, Quintero and Munévar (2008) carried out collab- orative action research which was aimed at enrich- ing the potential of young educators in the teach er training schools with the concept and practice of pedagogical research. The major finding was that teach er trainees could improve their research abili- ties while learning to teach . These studies are relevant to our research since all of them are concerned with improving reflec- tive teach ing practice from different perspec- tives. The study conducted by Muñoz, Quintero and Munévar (2008) proves that the practicum can be a propitious arena to promote reflection and research competences. The study by Chacón (2008) supported our initiative of intervening in the practicum by encouraging student teach ers to reflect upon their teach ing practicum. On its part, Ho and Richards’s study (2008) was valuable be- cause it provided us with procedural insights on how to categorize the descriptive and reflective references found in the student teach ers’ journals. On the other hand, they recommended taking into account diary keeping as an informed process. Methodology This research study was framed within the category of Curriculum Action Research since it abides by the main objectives and procedures of this research design. In his introduction to McK ernan’s book (1996), Elliot suggests that “the aim of doing action research as a teach er is to achieve educationally worthwhile changes, and at the heart of this enterprise are considerations 92 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo of curriculum and pedagogy”. As a matter of fact, what is sought with this research proposal is to start intervening one of the major curricu- lar components of the foreign language program: the teach ing practicum. The study also had other defining features of action research such as being small-scale, localized, and aimed at discovering, developing, or monitoring changes to practice (Wallace, 2000). Observational and non-observational tech- niques were used to collect data. The former were journals, blog group discussions and conferences. The latter were metaphors and questionnaires. Journal entries were done in terms of description, interpretation, intervention points, action plans and follow-up. Blog group discussion was done by means of the postings and feedback of stu- dent teach ers and supervisors in their own blogs. Stu dent teach ers and their practicum supervisors also held a group and individual conference as a way to exchange their impressions about the Re- flective Teach ing Intervention Proposal (RTIP) process. As to the non-observational techniques, student teach ers were administered three ques- tionnaires aimed at determining student teach ers’ perceptions about reflective teach ing and its im- portance and at capturing student teach ers’ per- ceptions about the impact of the reflective teach ing insights and practical tools they explored through- out their teach ing practicum experience. Further- more, student teach ers individually drew two metaphors, an initial one which would represent them as prospective teach ers and a final one which would represent them as reflective practitioners. The main purpose of this task was to find out which were the insights and beliefs they held about the teach ing learning process and to assess their initial and post-intervention perceptions on reflective teach ing based on the descriptions they made of their metaphors. They made different kinds of rep- resentations. For example, Student-teacher 3 drew a teach er and his students outside the classroom, surrounded by nature and statues like the ones we could see in the San Agustin archeological park in his first metaphor and in his second metaphor he included many details to explain his preceptions about his experience during the practicum (see Appendixes 1 and 2). This Action Research Spiral (ARS) consisted of two cycles, each one of which involved four stages: (1) designing an intervention plan aimed at improv- ing the practicum based on reflective teach ing, (2) implementing the intervention plan, (3) observ- ing and completing a follow-up, and (4) reflecting. Once the data gathered in the first cycle were ana- lyzed, the initial plan was revised and adjusted as the point of departure for the second cycle. In general terms, data analysis followed the stages outlined by McKernan (1996): “First, processing the evidence, editing and coding. Second, mapping the data by noting the frequency of recurrence of issues, themes and units. Third, making the interpretation of data/model building. Fourth, presenting of results, reporting evidence” (pp. 223-227). Content analysis was specifically conducted in accordance with the procedures suggested by McKernan (1996): “First, defining the universe of the content. Second, writing careful definitions of key categories being coded. Third, analyzing the data and coding categories. Fourth, quantifying and doing counts” (p. 147). Results The implementation of the RTIP resulted in an enhancement of the student teach ers’ initial per- ceptions about reflective teach ing and in an on- going improvement of their reflectivity through informed journal keeping and blog group discus- sions. An overview of the most relevant conceptual PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 93 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... and practical gains student teach ers experienced throughout the two cycles is presented here by tracing the initial assumptions student teach ers had about reflective teach ing, documenting the ongoing development of their reflectivity and presenting their informed notions of reflective teach ing. In order to ensure the confidentiality of the six participants, they are identified in this report as Student-teach er 1 (ST1), Student-teach er 2 (ST2), and so on. Baseline Perceptions of Student Teach ers about Reflective Teach ing As an explanation of their initial metaphors, stu dent teach ers depicted various roles such as being a controller, a guide or innovator they would play in their future profession. However, none of them disclosed any relevant features which would shape a reflective practitioner. They did not see themselves as researchers, critical analysts of their own teach ing practice, neither did they see teach ing as a process where experience should be docu- ment ed, evaluated and whose results are used to make informed decisions, to implement changes and so to be able to rearrange teach ing objectively. In addition to metaphor development, student teach ers were administered a questionnaire aimed at finding out their previous knowledge about reflective teach ing. As a response, student teach ers stated a wide range of diverse but discrete percep- tions. For example, ST2 pointed out that “reflec- tive teach ing is a way of improving the learning process”. ST4 answered that “It allows teach ers to self-evaluate and improve weaknesses”. ST3 and ST5 asserted that “the main purpose of reflective teach ing is to identify and solve problems in dif- ferent ways”. Some of them also wrote some refer- ences which did not evidence traits of reflectivity as pursued by reflective teach ing. For instance, ST1 pointed out that reflective teach ing is useful “to teach students not to memorize grammar structures, but to teach how to live in a changing world”; ST3 claimed that “it is a model where a student teach er puts into practice all the psycho- logical knowledge”. Reflectivity Development as Evidenced by Informed Journal Keeping One of the major components of the RTIP was informed journal keeping. After having been pro- vided with insights into reflective teach ing and reflective journal keeping, student teach ers wrote journal entries about their practicum experiences. At the end of the two cycles, 72 of those journal entries were analyzed and coded according to the categories and subcategories presented by Ho and Richards (2008) and adapted by the researchers. Table 1 shows that 435 out of a total of 576 analyzed references were classified as reflective and 141 as non-reflective. In general terms, Table 1 reveals that the most recurrent issues student teach ers wrote about were concerned with evaluating teach ing (312 out of 576 analyzed references). Most of the references deal with positive or negative evaluation of lessons, students or teach ers’ problems and problems within the school context. In some of the references student teach ers let us see their willingness to evaluate their lessons either in a positive or negative way. They highlighed the good results they had achieved or they showed previously identified problems concerned with the learner, the teach er or the institutional context, as shown in the following examples: The repetition and labeling of the parts helped my students to identify the vocabulary little by little. Once again, this demon- strated the usefulness of the Natural Approach, specially the production stage-by-stage process used to write more elabo- rated sentences. (ST2) 94 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo Table 1. Frequency of reflective and non-reflective categories Categories Sub-categories Instances ST1 ST2 ST3 ST4 ST5 ST6 T 1. Theories of teach ing Theories and beliefs about teach ing and learning A belief or conviction 5 2 3 4 3 3 22 An expert’s view 1 2 0 0 0 3 6 A justification for something 2 5 5 1 0 11 24 A personal opinion 9 7 7 3 3 2 31 Applying theories to classroom practice Contradictions between theory and practice 4 0 1 2 2 0 9 How a theory was applied 0 0 2 0 2 0 4 Pedagogical knowledge 0 0 3 0 0 0 3 Knowledge and expe- rience 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2. Approaches and methods The content of a lesson 13 13 16 11 14 38 105 The learners 2 1 3 2 0 3 11 3. Evaluating teach ing Evaluating lessons Positive evaluations of lessons 13 29 12 11 17 31 113 Negative evaluations of lessons 11 4 0 0 1 6 22 Diagnosing problems Students problems 10 7 13 11 5 11 57 Classroom interaction 0 0 2 3 2 0 7 Teach er’s problems 3 3 0 6 0 3 15 Problems of the school context 5 1 1 0 0 3 10 Solutions to problems Alternative ways of presenting a lesson 0 0 5 4 4 0 13 Deciding on a plan of action 16 3 17 16 8 11 71 Seeking solutions from tutor 0 3 1 0 0 0 4 4. Self-awareness Perceptions of them- selves as teach ers Their teach ing style 5 3 3 1 0 4 16 Recognition of perso- nal growth 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 Setting personal goals 2 1 2 1 0 1 7 Recognition of weaknesses 4 16 0 2 0 1 23 PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 95 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... Through references like this one student teach ers showed they did not limit themselves to just describing what they did in the classroom, as happened before the intervention proposal. ST2 went beyond narrating her experience; she deter- mined what worked well and made a contrast be- tween what the theorists state and the actual results in the classroom. In so doing, student teachers become more reflective because as Bartlett (1994) points out: “they begin the search for principles or reasons which are the basis for their theory of teach ing” (p. 210). They also became a little aware of the value of making informed decisions in their teach ing experience in order to facilitate their stu- dents’ learning process. Another way of evaluating their lessons was focused on diagnosing problems concerned with students, the institutional context and the stu- dent teach ers themselves. Although some of the student teach ers argued that they were initially afraid of getting lower grades if they wrote down all the difficulties they had during the class, they finally learned to be more self-critical of their own performance and identified their own weaknesses as we can see in the following testimonies1: I know it was a little terrible because they wanted to work in groups, but they couldn’t stay in a specific place, and they were very noisy. It was stressful; I had to call their attention several times. Sometimes I didn’t know what to do. (ST2) The mistake I made when preparing the guide they had to color, cut and at last classify was to have students color the drawings. I should have colored the drawings myself and stuck the colored 1 Some extracts taken from the data were originally expressed in Spanish. They were translated into English for the purpose of this publication. drawings in order for them to cut and classify. Due to the fact stu- dents had to do all of these activities, we were short of time. (ST6) It has been so difficult to find some actions to solve this problem. If I speak loudly or shout it hurts my sore throat. If I am indiffer- ent, they continue in the same behavior. (ST1) Student teach ers not only diagnosed problems, but also proposed some alternative ways of solving them, as can be seen in the following examples: When I noticed this fact, I proceeded to explain it in an easier way using Spanish to make the topic clearer for them. (ST6) In order to clear up the students’ doubts, I walked around the classroom checking what they were doing and giving personal explanations. (ST5) These courses of action proposed by ST6 and ST5 also stem from their reflective teach ing atti- tude. Even though they did not explicitly provide any theoretical support when proposing the strate- gies to overcome the above mentioned difficulties, the researchers could infer the tenets underly- ing their plans. In the first reference, the student teach er’s decision was based on the premise that learners can sometimes benefit from the use of their native language, especially when some grammati- cal components must be explained. Finocchiaro and Brumfit (cited by Richards & Rodgers, 2001) point out that “Judicious use of native language is accepted where feasible” (p. 156). In the second reference, the student teach er lets us see that he is applying one of the teach ers’ roles Harmer (2007) proposes, the teach er as a tutor, where he can go around the class and stay briefly with a particular group or individual and offer some guidance. 5. Questions about teach ing Asking for reasons 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 Asking for advice and suggestions 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 Total 106 105 97 76 61 113 578 96 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo The second most frequent concern of student teach ers in their journal entries was framed within the category “approaches and methods”, as can be seen in Table 1. 124 out of 578 references were regis- tered in this category. However, most of these were concerned with describing the content of a lesson without suggesting explicitly the type of approach or method which supports their practice. In spite of having taken courses during their career where stu- dent teach ers deeply analyzed different approaches and methods for language teach ing, they did not confront the theoretical foundations that supported their performance with what actually happened in the classroom. For example: “The class started with a review of what was seen in the previous lesson… After, a game where a student had to pass a kind of capsule was played… Next, the same was done but with background music…” (ST6). However, this type of practice made student teach ers aware of the importance of collecting evi- dence about their own teach ing. Regarding this, Bartlett (1994) claims that “In writing, we begin not only to observe, but we take the first step in re- flecting on and about our practice… The aim is to raise your consciousness of your teach ing through writing: This is the first step to “sussing out” the meaning behind your ideas” (p. 210). As can be seen, this type of reference corre- sponds to the mapping phase of Bartlett’s Reflective Cycle which does not involve the teach er in critical reflection, since s/he just gives an account of what goes on in her/his practicum lessons. The third most important issue student teach ers wrote about was theories of teach ing. In this cat- egory, they wrote descriptive references aimed at expressing a belief or conviction or an expert’s view: “During this school term, there were some children who didn’t get a satisfactory academic performance; however, I cannot give a mark of poor performance (“I”) to a preschool child” (ST2). As can be seen in the reference, the student teach er did not justify her decision of not assign- ing a bad grade to a pre-school student. In the category of theories of teach ing, other references were focused on more reflective actions such as expressing a justification for something or expressing an opinion shaped by experience. For example: The children seemed to be motivated when they were asked to perform commands and it was, to a large extent, due to the fact that it implied movement. I realized that Juan (pseudonym) who does not usually participate in class was very interested in per- forming commands. This confirms what the TPR method pos- tulates: Giving a physical response to commands makes students move and this turns to be appealing to children. (ST6) Through this reference we can perceive that the student teach er conciliates theory and practice. She confirmed the effectiveness of that theoretical assumption proposed by Asher (1977). “This phase in reflective teach ing begins the search for princi- ples that underlie our teach ing, the search for rea- sons which are the basis for our theory of teach ing” (Bartlett, 1994, p. 211). It is important that student teach ers become aware of their teach ing actions, confront them with what theorists propose and try to create their own teory of teach ing and learning based on the specific context where they teach . “Maybe the students’ good attitude was due to the fact that they had heard the song in their native language” (ST2). English songs can be a very useful resource to promote language development. With this particu- lar reference, ST2 is posing the worthy hypothesis that the choice of a particular song made by taking into account the students’ previous familiarity with it can impinge on their attitude. “I worked with PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 97 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... flashcards to introduce professions… Pictures help so much students to learn and catch easily” (ST1). This seems to be an obvious statement likely to be found in ELT literature. However, it is in this case the voice of a student teach er who has reflected on his/her experience of using pictures and who has derived a meaningful lesson from this teach ing strategy. As is widely known, the teach er can find students with different learning styles in a classroom –the visual style being one of the most prevalent– and it is through the use of pictures that the teach er can cater to students’ learning needs. To a lesser extent, student teach ers also showed some self-awareness manifestations such as per- ception of their teach ing style, recognition of per- sonal growth, the setting of personal goals and recognition of weaknesses. All of these traits have been classified as reflective since they suggest a high sense of introspection on the student teach ers’ part. Here are some selected examples: “I always correct the mistakes through an indirect reinforcement, I stress and correct… This is a way in which the kid feels neither badly nor frustrated” (ST1). It is important for the student teach ers to be aware of the teach ing style that works best for them. In this case, ST1 has grown aware, via intro- spection, of the need to give students construc- tive feedback. “Most of the mistakes I have made during my teach ing experience have had to do with pronunciation for not having looked up some unknown words in advance” (ST2). As stated in the theoretical framework, one of the characteristic features of reflective teach ing is problem solving. Introspective self-examination enables student teach ers to identify what needs to be improved upon. “To know that they had liked the lesson I had prepared for them made me feel proud of myself ” (ST2). A reflective practitioner should not only be concerned about spotting and solving problems, but he or she should also recognize the worth of his/her efforts to do a good job. Finally, in the fifth category, which is concerned with asking questions about teach ing, one of the student teach ers (ST1) wondered what to do with her students’ disruptive behavior. Another one rec- ognizes the worth of asking for advice or sugges- tions, as seen in the following reference: “I have to revise the activities and ask for a second opinion to my practicum advisor or another experienced teach er” (ST2). At the very beginning, student teach ers need to be guided in their search for professional growth, so, it is important that they look for feedback op- portunities which can empower them as reflective and assertive professionals. Reflectivity Development as Evidenced by Blog Group Discussions The initial task student teach ers completed was to answer a question posted by one of the researchers concerning which beliefs about teach ing and learn- ing a foreign language they thought they were applying in their practicum classes. For the subse- quent weeks, each one of the student teach ers post- ed a problematic situation they were facing in the practicum and invited their peers to give their opin- ions about it. Most of their posts had to do with be- havior problems in their respective courses. Most of the comments made by their practicum peers were suggestions on how to solve their difficulties. Here there is a sample of a blog posting taken from ST4. As can be seen in this blogging example (Ta ble  2), student teach ers share their points of view about the way disruptive behavior and lack of students’ self-esteem should be coped with. By doing this they are extending their own individual teach ing insights. This supports the idea of teach ing as interaction (Bartlett, 1994). Even though all of the 98 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo six participants did not become actively engaged in blog group discussions because of time and com- puter literacy limitations, as expected, the merits of this kind of interaction were enhanced by the stu dent teach ers themselves. Weblogs (or blogs) are a meaningful educa- tional tool which can encourage reflective practice (Beale, 2007). They can create a sense of community within which participants can post their comments and read what others have written about their dif- ferent classroom incidents. Table 2. Sample of a blog posting (taken from ST4) The most difficult issues that I am facing up in my practicum (eighth course) are related to disruptive behaviour and students’ apathy toward English Language. With regard to the indiscipline I have tried to apply some techniques for con- trolling the group but It seems to be impossible. Students talk all the time and have difficulties for staying at their own places; for avoiding the idle talk between them, I reorganize students or stop my class waiting for silence but I feel that those strategies are not working. Another fact that hampers students to learn English is the lack of self-esteem; they believe they can not learn English language because they are “ignorant people”. I tell them that everyone is intelligent but it is necessary to make efforts for achieving our objectives. Furthermore, students think that English Language is not an interesting subject because it is difficult and they consider that it will not contribute in their future plans. I would like you to help me with ideas for improving the English teach ing-learning process in my practicum. Please answer the following questions or add some comments about my difficulties: How can my English classroom management get better? How do you handle disruptive behaviour in your English class? Do you know some strategies for increasing students self-esteem? I thank you in advance. ST6’s response was as follows: I think you have to involve them in several activities in which they can move. – You can ask them to make small groups to develop certain activity. The winner gets points and at the end of the week or month you count those points and you can give to them a reward like a certificate for being good students or something like that. But you have to tell them that those activities have to be developed in groups, no just one person per group because sometimes one person develops the activities and the other just look at him/her. – You can make activities with listening and use them to make the students compete. Post-Intervention Perceptions of Student Teach ers about Reflective Teach ing The most prevailing perceptions student teach ers held about reflective teach ing at the end of the RTIP process were identified by means of their final metaphors and opinions in an individual conference and a questionnaire. At the end of the second cycle student teach ers were asked to draw a second metaphor which was aimed at representing themselves as teachers after PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 99 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... having done their teach ing practicum. Moreover, we intended to see the extent to which they recog- nized themselves as reflective practitioners. For an illustration, turn to Appendix 2 to see ST3’s second metaphor. What follows is an account of the way ST3 interpreted his own metaphor: st3 drew a room in which nature and the city complement each other. In this room there are different objects each of which symbolizes something relevant of the practicum process. There is, for example, a watch representing the amount of time the teach ing practicum was allotted. It is also time for reflection. Time for solving problems. Time for diary-keeping. A bird, representing the students’ enthusiasm and energy as well as the student teach er’s. A picture where there are two people fishing, the underlying message being “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime”. There is also an ink pot with some drops falling on a kind of oil painting. This represents all the thoughts reflected in the journal as well as all the writing done by supervisors, practi- cum peers and students. There is a window which represents the reflective thinking in the practicum. (ST3) In the accounts student teach ers gave about their own metaphors, two of them (ST3 and ST5) explicitly revealed that they had gained insights into Reflective Teach ing. ST3, for example, empha- sized the importance of devoting time not only to teach ing the subject matter, but also to reflecting, diary-keeping and solving problems. ST5, on his part, highlighted teach ing as a construction process from the teach er’s reflective posture and willingness to self assess and to make necessary changes. Even though the other student teach ers did not make overt references to Reflective Teach ing, they showed awareness about some of its mean- ingful traits such as being self critical (ST2 and ST4) and problem solving (ST1 and ST6). In addi- tion, ST2 also seemed to favor the transition from teach er-centered to learner-centered instruction. In the individual conference, student teachers contended that a reflective practitioner needs to be engaged in evaluating and analyzing one’s teaching experience critically, doing research, identifying and solving problems, gaining insights from dis- cussing one’s teach ing with others, rearranging teach ing, and improving classroom process. They also reiterated the usefulness of journal keeping and blog group discussion as reflective teaching tools which enriched their practicum experience. In the final questionnaire student teach ers were administered, they matched reflective teach ing with crucial issues such as evaluating, analyzing and examining one’s teach ing experiences critically, identifying and solving problems, and improving classroom processes. Discussion Throughout the RTIP implementation, student teach ers demonstrated they expanded their in- sights into reflective teach ing and adopted a more reflective and critical attitude in their practicum. Informed diary keeping and blog group discus- sion proved to be positive strategies for this pur- pose because they promoted the development of student teach ers’ critical thinking through writing. Bartlett (1994) claims that in writing we begin not only to observe, but take the first step in reflecting on and about our practice. On Journal-Keeping as an Informed Process Keeping a diary or a journal, either for peda- gogic or research purposes, is a valuable experi- ence for pre-service or in-service teach ers as many scholars such as Bailey (1994) and Burns (2003) have pointed out. The present study let us state that journal-keeping can be a useful tool to em- power student teach ers as reflective practitioners 100 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo as long as it is approached as an informed process. Writing journal entries, for its own sake, does not lead to reflectivity development. Student teach ers need to be provided with some prior insights into reflective teach ing and guidelines on how to frame their ideas in the journal from a reflective perspec- tive. It is crucial to encourage them to go beyond the mere description of what goes on in class by giving a theoretical sense to classroom incidents, finding inconsistencies between one’s teach ing intentions and one’s teach ing actions, identifying things worth improving, adopting some courses of action and completing a follow-up. At the very beginning, student teach ers can be advised to follow some frameworks such as the one proposed in this study in terms of description, interpretation, intervention points, action plans and follow-up. As they gain more experience in this kind of reasoning, student teach ers can use different formats for writing their journal entries. Another aspect that makes journal keeping an informed process is the supportive feedback student teach ers can be provided with by their practicum supervisors. In this respect, practicum supervisors are expected to read the student teach ers’ entries carefully and systematically and write back com- ments or questions aimed at encouraging them to be more analytic and self critical. In keeping with Bartlett’s phases of contest- ing and appraisal (1994), student teach ers built up the association between Reflective Teach ing and evaluating and analyzing one’s teach ing critically This particular association goes hand in hand with the way Richards (1990, as cited by Farrell, 2003) defines critical reflection as a process in which “ex- perience is recalled, considered, and evaluated, usu- ally in relation to a broader purpose”. In the context of the practicum, this broader purpose has to do with empowering the student teach ers’ professional competence and improving “classroom processes and outcomes”, as Pennington stated. Another important initiative student teach ers undertook was identifying and solving problems that arose in the classroom. Loughran (2002) con- tends that one element of reflection that is common to many is the notion of a problem (a puzzling, cu- rious, or perplexing situation). What that problem is, the way it is framed and (hopefully) reframed, is an important aspect of understanding the nature of reflection and the value of reflective practice. In the same way, Ross strongly advocates the focus of Reflective Teach ing on “an educational dilemma” and the consequent analysis, responses, framing, re- framing, experimentation, solving, assessment, and implementation to deal with the specific dilemma. To a lesser or greater extent, student teach ers got to make sense of what they did in the classroom by justifying their decisions. They sometimes found discrepancies between theory and practice and were open to share their accomplishments and difficulties with their practicum peers and supervisors. More- over, they showed the initiative to propose courses of action to solve the problems that cropped up in the classroom. At last, they implemented and completed a follow-up of the plans they had come up with. On the Usefulness of Blogs as a Way to Enhance the Social Nature of Reflectivity Development Reflectivity development cannot be exclusively assumed as individual experience of introspection. It implies that the student teach er has his/her as- sumptions and decisions known, questioned or challenged by others. It is through a dialogue with his/her practicum peers, supervisor, cooperating teach er or pupils that the student teach er can grow professionally. According to Bartlett (1994), one of the ways of making sense of what goes on in the PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 101 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... classroom is by unmasking the principles behind the teach ing actions. Richards and Lockhart (2004) also contend that by examining attitudes, beliefs and assumption, teach ers are incorporating reflec- tivity into their teach ing practices. A practical alternative that may facilitate this interaction is the use of technological aids such as blogs. This is an appealing resource which let student teach ers submit their individual reflections to public scrutiny and perceive their teach ing prac- tice as a manifestation of collegiality. In this sense, Gore (1987) states that collegiality is one of the out- comes of reflective teach ing, since it may contribute to establish individual teach er’s trust and respect. By virtue of their reflectivity development, re- flective practitioners are better equipped to cope with the changing educational challenges they are faced with in their teach ing practice. However, most of those challenging situations require a col- lective response from the faculty members. There- fore, student teach ers are not expected to work alone concerning common problems and purpos- es. The popular saying “two heads are better than one” proves to be true when a particular problem needs to be solved. But in times when everyone is too busy to get together, the use of information and communication technologies such as blogging is a good option to socialize one’s personal reflec- tions, experiences and initiatives. In the present study, most of the student teach ers contend that blog group discussion is a useful tool to socialize one’s experiences, to search for solutions to problems, to improve the teach ing practice and to exchange views about the prac- tice. At the beginning of their practicum, student teach ers proved to be actively engaged in posting problem situations and making comments on their peers’ teach ing experiences. However, at the end of the semester not all of them kept using blogs because they argued they were overloaded with different academic tasks in their course of studies at the university and in their teach ing practice. Conclusions From the rtip consequential implementation, the following general conclusions can be drawn: The worthiness of exposing student teach ers to a reflective teach ing intervention lies in the fact that student teach ers can expand their insights into reflective teach ing and assume a more reflec- tive attitude in their teach ing practicum process. Student teach ers’ reflective behavior should not be expected to stem from nothing. It needs to be shaped by a systematic professional development process through which student teach ers are in- volved in a wide range of observation, analysis, exploration and evaluation experiences. A paral- lel between the base-line perceptions and post- intervention perceptions student teach ers hold about reflective teach ing showed that they gained a better understanding about this approach. They growingly built an association of reflective teach ing to a teach er professional development process which involves awareness-raising of their teach ing and learning beliefs, written documenta- tion of the teach ing practice, interpretation of what underlies their practice, search for inconsistencies between their teach ing intentions and teach ing ac- tions, identification of intervention points, and, of course, exploration of alternative courses of action and follow-up. Reflection should not be taken for granted as the panacea for teach er development. It should be something worth being taught, learnt, assessed, discussed and researched, in keeping with what Rodgers suggested. The potential of reflective teach ing to enhancing teach er development should be explored in more systematic ways from pre-ser- vice to in-service teach er education. A good way of empowering student teach ers to become more 102 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo critical thinkers, self evaluators, problematizers, decision makers and transformers of the educa- tional reality is by providing them with discussion spaces and practical reflection tasks throughout their pre-service teach er education. One of these tasks was journal-keeping which stu dent teach ers undertook as an informed process. Unlike their prior practicum journal-keeping experiences, the participating student teach ers were given guid- ance on how to frame their journal entries in the light of the reflective teach ing cycle proposed by Bartlett (1994). It was by virtue of these insights that student teach ers went beyond the description of class incidents by focusing on the assessment of their teach ing process, and the identification and solution of emerging problems. Another meaningful reflection task was blog group discussion. This tool let student teach ers see themselves as members of an academic community by exchanging their practicum experiences. At the same time, they recognized the usefulness of blogs because through them they could enrich their per- ceptions about teach ing and teach ing performance. Nevertheless, despite their initial enthusiasm, their participation and commitment decreased because of time and technology constraints. The teach ing practicum is a propitious arena to cultivate reflectivity development. As a central element in most pre-service teach er education programs, teach ing practicum is promoted as a formation process through which student teach ers are called to confront their pre-service academic training to their teach ing experiences in a real edu- cational context. It proves to be a favorable oppor- tunity in order for student teach ers to start making their first pedagogical explorations and shaping their own teach ing identity, and the implementa- tion of a reflective teach ing approach in the practi- cum can play an important role in this purpose. Student teach ers need to be empowered to become reflective professionals who reflect con- tinuously on experience and devise new patterns of action aimed at improving student learning and achievement. To this effect, the teach ing practicum should provide prospective teach ers with insights into the principles and practical tools of reflec- tive teach ing. But most importantly, prospective teach ers should be encouraged to devise their own professional development plans to be pursued in their actual teach ing practice. References Amobi, F. (2006). Beyond the call: Preserving reflection in the preparation of “highly qualified” teach ers. Teach er Education Quarterly, 33(2), 23-35. Asher, J. (1977). 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La enseñanza reflexiva en la for- mación de los estudiantes de pasantías de la carrera de educación básica integral. Retrieved August 23, 2010, from http://www.tesisenxarxa.net/TDX-0625107- 120634/index.html. PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 103 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... Colton, A., & Sparks-Langer, G. (1993). A conceptual framework to guide the development of teach er re- flection and decision making. Journal of Teach er Edu- cation, 44(1), 45-54. Conderman, G., & Morin, J. (2004). Twenty ways to reflect upon your practice. Intervention in School and Clinic, 40(2), 111-115. Corcoran, C., & Leahy, R. (2003). Growing professionally through reflective practice. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 40(1), 30-33. Farrell, T. (2003). Reflective teach ing: The principles and practices. English Teach ing FORUM, 4, 14-40. Ferraro, J. M. (2008). Reflective practice and professional development. 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Celce- Murcia (Ed.), Teach ing English as a second or foreign language (pp. 499-515). Boston: Heinle & Heinle. Richards, J. (2008). Towards reflective teach ing. Retrieved August 23, 2010, from http://www.tttjournal.co.uk/ uploads/File/back_articles/Towards_Reflective_ Teach ing.pdf. Richards, J., & Lockhart, C. (2004). Reflective teach ing in second language classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2001). Approaches and methods in language teach ing. Cambridge: Cambridge Univer- sity Press. Ross, D. (1989). First steps in developing a reflective ap- proach. Journal of Teach er Education, 40(2), 22-40. Smyth, W. J. (1992). Teach er’s work and the politics of reflection. American Educational Research Journal, 29(2), 267-300. Wallace, M. (2000). Action research for language teach ers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Zambrano, L. C., & Insuasty, E. A. (2008). Analysis of the teach ing practicum in the light of a reflective teach ing approach. Lenguaje, 36, 447-471. About the Authors Édgar Alirio Insuasty is an associate professor at Universidad Surcolombiana. He holds a B.A. and a graduate diploma in ELT from Universidad de Nariño. He also holds a Master’s degree in English Di- dactics from Universidad de Caldas. He is the coordinator of the research group “Comuniquémonos”, acknowledged by Colciencias. Lilian Cecilia Zambrano Castillo is an assistant professor at Universidad Surcolombiana. She holds a B.A. and a graduate diploma in ELT from Universidad de Nariño. She also holds a Master’s degree in English Didactics from Universidad de Caldas. She is a member the research group “Comuniquémonos”, acknowledged by Colciencias. 104 Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras Insuasty & Zambrano Castillo Appendix 1: Student-Teach er 3’s Metaphor in the First Cycle Guide one My Initial Teach ing Metaphor Task one: Make a drawing that represents you as a prospective teach er. PROFILE Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2010. ISSN 1657-0790. Bogotá, Colombia. Pages 87-105 105 Exploring Reflective Teaching through Informed Journal Keeping... Appendix 2. Student-Teach er 3’s Metaphor in the Second Cycle