Reflection on Teacher Leadership Standard 3: Educational Research

Prior to this program, I had little time to look into research concerning my teaching practice. The practice of teaching occupied my mind constantly, but other than the occasional professional development, I rarely took time to consider the profession of teaching and how to improve it. Not that I had ignored research or had no desire to look into research; I just never set that as a priority in my career. While taking Action Research and Applying Research, however, I saw the potential for becoming a better teacher through educational research, both through practicing such research and reviewing it.

Through the Action Research class I devised a plan to improve how I use revision in my AP English Language & Composition class. I developed a workshop model that used peer review to improve student writing. I was able to measure both how students improved developed action plans to improve their writing and how they used those plans to improve their writing. The end results were promising, and I have used that model regularly since I conducted the study.

Through that research I identified multiple articles that apply to my practice. One, for example, considered the reliability and validity of peer review specifically in AP English classes. The study found that “carefully designed peer review tasks can provide students with helpful feedback” (Schunn et al., 2016, p. 22). Through that research I have expanded my own use of peer review in my classroom, and I intend to continue looking into and conducting research on peer review as a means of improving my students’ writing.

In the Applying Research class I saw the potential for identifying good research and critiquing said research. The class helped me identify the different components of research and examine the relationship between those components.

Again, the assignments in that class aligned with my own classroom practice; the secondary research article I analyzed dealt with the need to identify propaganda and promote media literacy, while the primary research cited in that article studied strategies for teaching how to identify fake news and propaganda. While I initially found the secondary article by Hobbs (2017) informative and valuable, I later analyzed that she had overgeneralized the results found in the primary research by Kahne & Bowyer (2017). The overgeneralization did not significantly affect Hobbs’ (2017) argument, but it did cause me to pause and reflect about the importance of examining the primary research.

Upon reflection, I wish I would have had the Applying Research class before Action Research. After taking Applying Research I find myself more familiar with the terms used in research paper. I better understand what independent and dependent variables are, I comprehend how research is assembled and carried out, and I know the statistical tools being used and their purpose. I had none of that knowledge when I conducted the literature review for my Action Research project, and that information may have affected my use of that literature to guide my own research. For example, a study by Yoder (1993) examined how peer review could be used to help journalism students in college. Had I known about external validity, I might have realized that the results Yoder (1993) found were unlikely to be able to be generalized to my particular population of high school English students. Besides, Yoder (1993) had a small sample size that may not have been representative of the larger population.

I plan to continue to consume and examine educational research throughout my career. One challenge I foresee is access to primary research; through the Seattle Pacific teacher leadership program I have access to the library’s databases, but when that access has ended, I will have to find other means to access primary research. I am not worried about secondary research; the internet is full of that, and I feel confident in my ability to sort the wheat from the chaff. For example, a recent article by Ford and Lee (2018) in the English Journal offered a case study on how to improve high school vocabulary instruction. The authors cited 11 sources, most of which were other secondary or curricular sources. The one piece of primary research came from a study of fifth graders, focused on learning in context, and was 34 years old (Jenkins et al., 1984). I found several ideas within the article, but without more solid research proving their efficacy, I’m reluctant to change my entire vocabulary program based on one piece of secondary research.

References

Ford, R. D., & Lee, M. E. (2018). Fostering a new approach to vocabulary, 30 years in the making. English Journal, 107(4), 39-44.

Hobbs, R. (2017). Teaching and learning in a post-truth world: It’s time for schools to upgrade and reinvest in media literacy lessons. Educational Leadership, 75(3), 26-31.

Jenkins, J. R., Stein, M. L., & Wysocki, K. (1984). Learning vocabulary through reading. American Educational Research Journal, 21(4), 767-787.

Kahne, J., & Bowyer, B. (2017). Education for democracy in a partisan age: Confronting the challenges of motivated reasoning and misinformation. American Educational Research Journal, 54(1), 3-34.

Schunn, C., Godley, A., & DeMartino, S. (2016). The reliability and validity of peer review of writing in high school AP English classes. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 60(1), 13-23.

Yoder, S. L. (1993). Teaching writing revision: Attitudes and Copy Changes. Journalism Educator, 47(4), 41-47.

Most teachers start their careers after a period of training that includes student teaching or an internship. As students they take classes, observe other educators, then gradually work themselves into their student teaching role, always under the guidance of a master teacher. Eventually, they move into the workplace with that little bit of experience.

Not me. I had a year of substitute teaching, with no training, and they threw me into an English classroom with an understanding that I would start my classes in a year. It’s a wonder that 14 years later I’m still in the profession. Somehow I learned the skills necessary to not only survive as a teacher, but to thrive as an educator and professional. As I read about adult theories of learning, I realized that most of my education did not come from the classroom. I learned how to be a teacher informally, within the context of my particular assignment that first year, which included three different preps, an intervention class among them. I had colleagues who listened and offered suggestions. I had a paraprofessional who guided me through that intervention class, giving me tips on how to handle different students and situations. I had a wife who was a new teacher in her own right, albeit one who had the standard training before she got her first job. I learned how to be a teacher through self-directed instruction, informally, and in the context of my work experience.

Hansman (2001) relates a similar experience in which she learned how to be a writing teacher “in the unplanned intersection of people, culture, tools, and context” (p. 44). Teachers in these situations often live day-to-day, and we learn what we need to get through that day’s situation. We do not plan these experiences; they happen when other teachers stop in our classrooms after school and ask how we’re doing. Through those conversations we get ideas that we can use to implement the next day’s lesson. As time goes by, we slowly add skills to our multilayered toolbox: classroom management, lesson planning, curriculum development. This context-based learning happens in other ways. I joined the National Council of Teachers of Education shortly after getting my job; Hansman (2001) notes that membership in such organizations “can also provide adults with the cultural context, tools, and social learning to progress in their fields or professions” (p. 49).

My formal teacher training eventually gave me the background necessary to succeed, but I constantly sought training in different areas of practice that I felt I needed to excel. This self-directed training involved mostly learning through books and texts that I sought, but the application of that learning gave me the biggest gain. At one point, I researched whatever I could about teaching The Crucible just so I could make my unit more engaging. I sought out colleagues, I consulted online forums, and I read reviews of plays. I was able to apply the knowledge to my unit immediately, and the results showed more students involved and discussing the themes presented in the play. This action matches what Merriam (2001) describes as characteristics of a self-directed learner.

My most important learning has happened informally. In the fifth year of my career, I was given an assignment as an English-language arts coach, and while the two-year assignment came with little direction or objectives, I learned greatly simply from observing and talking with other teachers. Through these discussions and conversations we reflected on our practice, and my style of coaching developed to one of asking questions, rather than providing answers (as a fifth-year teacher, I often wondered whether I had any answers). Marsick and Watkins (2001) refer to research being done on informal learning that studies “how teachers learn informally through reflection and action” (p. 26), and my work as a coach followed that model consistently.

Even today, much of my learning is informal. I sit at my desk and wonder how to better teach a particular skill, turning toward my bookshelf and pulling out resources until I find something that will work in my context. I teach, I reflect, and I change my practice as necessary. No classroom lecture taught me how to do this.

Accomplished Teaching End of Course Reflection

Teacher Leadership Standard 4: Engage in analysis of teaching and collaborative practices

Over the course of this quarter I have learned much about the process of reflective practice as a teacher. I have seen how effective the process can be in collaborative sessions, and I have learned how to practice reflection individually and in progressively larger groups of people. What I missed was my own fault - I misread the date of our second face-to-face meeting in the University Place cohort, so I missed out on an opportunity to reflect with my colleagues about my videotaped lesson and about my students’ work. Through the process of developing and teaching the lesson, however, I learned much about my own practices and was able to apply techniques I learned through the reading of our text, Reflective Practice to Improve Schools: An Action Guide for Educators.

The initial reading assignments introduced me to a formalized reflection. The idea of reflection as a continuous practice appealed to me, partly because I have been reflecting in various forms throughout my career. The book’s authors created a Theory of Action for Reflective Practice, one that starts with a pause, continues with openness, and includes inquiry, thinking, learning, and action. The continuum ends with enhanced student learning (York-Barr, Sommers, Ghere, and Montie, p. 9). I have practiced all of these at points, but the coalescing of these elements into one theory has allowed me to focus my reflection on that final goal, enhanced student learning. Only by taking time and being open to change can I begin asking questions, thinking about the answers, learning new material, and applying it to my practice.

This process helped as I approached the videotaped lesson [lesson plan]. My initial conversations with my colleague Alex at our first face-to-face class led me to think I had a promising grasp on my lesson. His questions, however, led me to stay focused on my objectives and not try to fit too much into my instruction. After the lesson, I remembered why watching yourself teach is awkward, but I had to keep an open mind about what I initially thought was a decent lesson. The biggest question I asked myself was whether my students had actually learned anything. Our discussion was centered on a few students; not everybody had an opportunity to contribute, and upon reflection, I was able to come up with some collaborative strategies, such as think-pair-share, that I have since applied to other classroom discussions. [Synthesizing Elements of Accomplished Teaching]

While I missed out on an opportunity to reflect with my colleagues, I would like to have more such chances to do so within the scope of this program. I found the interaction enlightening and valuable. More opportunities for reflection would further help me meet the course objective to practice the fundamentals of reflection.

References

York-Barr, J., Sommers, W. A., Ghere, G. S., and Montie, J. (2006). Reflective Practice to Improve Schools: An Action Guide for Educators. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Corwin Press.