Infusing Teachers' Reflection Into Professional Development: A Reflective Professional Development Intervention Model of Early Writing Instruction

• In Event: Crown Plaza Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: The Early Childhood Workforce and Professional Development

Abstract

This study presents a professional development (PD) model for promoting preschool teachers’ writing instruction utilizing teachers’ reflective practices. Thirteen Pre-Kindergarten teachers were followed for the entire Pre-K year. Teachers were assigned to intervention and control condition. A reflective PD workshop was developed based on classroom observations and teachers’ reflections in Fall semester. Intervention group teachers completed a reflective PD workshop, and a reflective teacher-researcher meeting in Spring semester. By the end of the Pre-K year, classroom observation suggested that intervention group teachers provided significantly higher quality of literacy and writing instruction than control group teachers. Intervention group teachers also implemented new teaching practices with high fidelity. Findings demonstrate the merit and necessity of utilizing reflective practices into in-service teachers’ training.

Author

• Chenyi Zhang, Georgia State University