Self-Study as Professional Learning for Science Teacher Educators

• In Event: Exploring the Intersections of Self-Study, Science Teaching, and Science Teacher Education

Abstract

Purpose
This paper will explore the potential of framing self-study as a means of professional learning for science teacher educators and teacher candidates.

Theoretical Framework
There have now been several efforts to frame self-study as “professional learning for teacher educators” (Gallagher, Griffin, Parker, Kitchen, & Figg, 2011; Hoban, 2007). Lunenberg and Samaras (2011), for example, studied two efforts (one in the USA and one in The Netherlands) at self-study as professional learning and identified six guidelines as a “pedagogy for teaching self-study”: (i) starting point the “I”; (ii) emphasize the learning side of self-study research; (iii) knowledge generation and presentation; (iv) critical collaborative inquiry; (v) transparent and systematic research practices; and (vi) teachers’ modelling. Whilst these guidelines are valuable because they identify the key principles of self-study research, the authors felt that there needs to be more focus on point (ii), the learning side of self-study research, especially if self-study is intended to be professional learning for teacher educators. Authors 1 and 2 present a study of 12 academics (mostly teacher educators) at an Australian universitywho embarked on a 12-month professional learning program specifically focused at developing their skills in self-study research. Authors 3 and 4 studied the impact of a teaching observation protocol on teacher candidates’ ability to examine their own science teaching in light of reform-based practices; in so doing they created their own ongoing, professional learning dialogue about how best to teach science teacher to be critically reflective practitioners.

Methods and Data Sources
Authors 1 and 2 collected data from audio recordings of regular meetings of a professional learning community of academics and from journal entries of participants in the community. Authors 3 and 4 used design-based methods to enact a particular pedagogical approach in their methods course. Their goal was to encourage teacher candidates to reflect critically on their experiences teaching science during field placements.

Results
All members of the professional learning community wrote a case study about their self-study research and commented on a developing model of professional learning. One member of the group commented that “it’s essential to self-study to uncover dilemmas and problems and we have to have a safe place to talk about them.” Through examining the coursework of their science teacher candidates, Authors 3 and 4 were able to have a sustained professional learning dialogue about which research-based approaches to teaching science were in greatest need of attention during their coursework.

Scholarly significance of the study
The characteristics of a mature professional learning community are particularly suitable for self-study groups because they are consistent with the sharing of tensions and dilemmas evident when unravelling the complexity of teaching in self-study research (Berry, 1997; Britzman, 2003). The dyad of Author 3 and Author 4 were able to see where they needed to focus future efforts in their instruction to better prepare preservice teachers, particularly in areas where they needed to be more transparent about modelling particular pedagogies.

Authors

• Garry F. Hoban, University of Wollongong

• Wendy S. Nielsen, University of Wollongong

• Patricia D. Morrell, University of Portland

• Adele Schepige, Western Oregon University