论文部分内容阅读
Abstract: This paper aims to explore that teachers’ beliefs are the essential factor affecting teachers’ actions, and that teachers’ beliefs could be refined and transformed through their on-going reflective thinking in terms of theory and relevant professional development strategies.
Key Words: teachers’ beliefs, reflective teaching
1.Introduction
With the higher English education develops, there has been two problems arising, that is, the inconsistency between the teachers’ beliefs and students’ beliefs and the inconsistency between the teachers’ beliefs and teaching practice. Therefore, it is of the first important undertaking that English teachers in China comprehend and revise the teachers’ beliefs by an effective method of reflective thinking.
2.Teachers’ beliefs and Reflective Teaching
2.1Teachers’ beliefs defined
In this paper, the definition of teachers’ beliefs made by Richards and Lockhart is considered that “teacher belief systems are founded on the goals, values, and beliefs teacher hold in relation to the content and process of teaching, and their understanding of the systems in which they work and their roles within it” (Richards and Lockhart, 2000).
2.2Reflective Teaching
Reflective teaching, also called reflective practice is the reflection of teaching experience that teachers discover problems in practical teaching under the advantages of teaching practice, and seek the methods and strategies to solve problems through profound thinking and observation for purpose of self-improvement, and self-enhancement.
Wallace(1991) described three major models of professional education. Among them, the reflective model is the significant one. The reflective model is illustrated in Figure 1:
Figure1: Wallace’s Reflective Practice model of Professional educational development
According to this model, received knowledge is important the same as experiential knowledge. The two aspects are the source for teachers’ practice and reflective thinking. To understand the relationship of theory and practice, the significance of received knowledge and experiential knowledge is positive respectively for the two aspects’ own development.
3.Studies on teachers’ beliefs and reflective teaching
Since 1970s, teachers’ beliefs have also drawn attention of educators and teachers of English teaching. Pajares indicated that teachers’ beliefs can “inform educational practice in ways that prevailing research agendas have not and cannot” (1992, p.307). In China, many scholars have focused on the current situation, significance and trend of research on English teachers’ beliefs of teaching (Guo Xiaona, 2008; Wang Huixia, 2008). All these documents show that teachers’ teaching practice mostly correlated with their beliefs.
Reviewing the studies, there is a number of definitions of reflective teaching given by a lot of scholars. Richards points out that “Reflection and inquiry and critical thinking are seen as central for continued professional growth, and can help teachers move beyond a level where they are guided largely by impulse, intuition, or routine” (Richards, 1990:21). However, as to teachers’ beliefs, the research on reflective teaching has not been preoccupied in the combination of improving beliefs and reflective teaching as an effective method of English teachers’ education development.
4.Reflective teaching as an impetus for improving English teachers’ beliefs in China
Firstly, reflecting teachers’ beliefs is essential to enhance the awareness of English teachers’ beliefs, because they generally think their teaching ability is collected from the reflection of their personal teaching experience and professional practice. Secondly, Teachers are responsible for coordinating teaching theory with teachers’ beliefs through continually reflective teaching.
4.1 Approaches to Reflective Teaching
To achieve the role of an impetus for changing teachers’ beliefs, in the specific teaching circumstance, effective combination of approaches should be adopted to optimize the teachers’ beliefs so that the teachers can use to develop a deeper understanding of teaching.
The approaches to reflective teaching consist of:
4.1.1 Teaching journal writings. Events and ideas are recorded for the purpose of later reflection;
4.1.2 Lesson reports. The purpose of a lesson report is to give the teacher a quick and simple procedure for regularly monitoring what happened during a lesson, and how effective the lesson was.
4.1.3Surveys and questionnaires.
4.1.4Group discussion. (similarities and differences of the students, students’ feedback, and their own teaching suggestions)
4.1.5Action research. (planning, action, observation, reflection)
a selects an issue or concern to examine in more detail(e.g., the teacher’s use of questions).
b selects a suitable procedure for collecting information about the topic (e.g., recording classroom lessons).
c collects the information, analyzes it, and decides what changes might necessary.
d develops an action plan to help bring about the change in classroom behavior(e.g., develops a plan to reduce the frequency with which the teacher answer questions).
e observes the effect of the action plan on teaching behavior (e.g., by recording a lesson and analyzing the teacher’s questioning behavior) and reflects on its significance.
f initiates a second action cycle, if necessary.
4.2The framework of teachers’ teaching actions
Illustrating the effective impetus for revising teachers’ beliefs, there is a specific case used to describe the process of reflective teaching in English teaching. The framework includes Preparation before class, Teaching in class and Evaluation after class.
Taking the fifth unit named the Mythical American West in Introduction to American Society and Culture as example, the framework of teachers’ teaching actions in this text is as follows.
4.2.1.Preparation before class
(1)Teaching goals and content
A Knowledge goals:
Content :To know the American West social culture, history, life and values;
To comprehend the significance of frontier movement for American beliefs;
Language: To learn useful words and expressions.
B Ability goals:
To enhance Ss’ comprehensive language skills;
To foster Ss’ ability and strategy of independent learning (inductive, classification, analytic-minded, reasoning, and critical ability);
To develop the critical thinking ability and imaginative ability.
C Moral Goals:
To encourage students to be brave enough to speak English more in class;
To cultivate sensitivity to the foreign culture, the toleration with other nations and international vision;
(2)The teacher knows Ss’ English level in general; the students had previewed the background of this topic.
4.2.2.Teaching in class
(1)Introduce the teaching goals;
(2)Presentation of the text and relevant content with the help of content-based instruction, Communicative approach, Task-based approach, and certain methods;
(3)The mutual-communication between the teacher and the Ss (discussion, exercises, feedback)
Reflection: Is the preparation satisfactory?
4.2.3.Evaluation after class
(1)Achieve goals set;
(2)Having learned the American beliefs and frontier movement;
(3)Enlarge students’ English knowledge and comprehensive ability and increase the teacher’s teaching experience (The ongoing development for the teacher and Ss)
Reflection:What is the deficiency of my teaching plan and strategies?
How to improve it?
How to make Ss act more positively?
5.Conclusion
As the college English teaching has been paid more attention in education reform, college English teachers’ quality turns out to be significant and should not be neglected for the success of English teaching. However, there are some deficiencies existing in terms of English teachers’ beliefs in China. Therefore, it is illustrated that English teachers should change teachers’ beliefs, apart from possessing the necessary knowledge and skills. More importantly, reflective teaching should be emphasized as a vital concept in teacher development, including self-reflective, and reflective beliefs, reflective approaches, and reflective practices, learning from teaching and doing research, pursuing individual and collaborative professional development.
References:
[1]Pajares, M. F. (1992). Teachers’ beliefs and educational research: cleaning up a messy construct. Review of Educational Research, 62 (3), 307-332.
[2]Richards,J.C. (1990). Second Language Teacher Education. Cambridge University Press.
[3]Richards,J.C.,& Lockhart, C. (2000). Reflective teaching in second language classroom. Beijing: People’s Education Press.
[4]Wallace,M.J. (1991). Training Foreign Language Teachers. Cambridge University Press.
[5]常俊跃李莉莉赵永青.美国社会与文化[M].北京:北京大学出版社,2009.
[6]郭晓娜.(2008).教师教学信念研究的现状、意义及趋势.《外国教育研究》,10, 92-96.
[7]王慧霞.(2008).国外关于教师信念问题的研究综述.《宁波大学学报》,05,61-64.
Key Words: teachers’ beliefs, reflective teaching
1.Introduction
With the higher English education develops, there has been two problems arising, that is, the inconsistency between the teachers’ beliefs and students’ beliefs and the inconsistency between the teachers’ beliefs and teaching practice. Therefore, it is of the first important undertaking that English teachers in China comprehend and revise the teachers’ beliefs by an effective method of reflective thinking.
2.Teachers’ beliefs and Reflective Teaching
2.1Teachers’ beliefs defined
In this paper, the definition of teachers’ beliefs made by Richards and Lockhart is considered that “teacher belief systems are founded on the goals, values, and beliefs teacher hold in relation to the content and process of teaching, and their understanding of the systems in which they work and their roles within it” (Richards and Lockhart, 2000).
2.2Reflective Teaching
Reflective teaching, also called reflective practice is the reflection of teaching experience that teachers discover problems in practical teaching under the advantages of teaching practice, and seek the methods and strategies to solve problems through profound thinking and observation for purpose of self-improvement, and self-enhancement.
Wallace(1991) described three major models of professional education. Among them, the reflective model is the significant one. The reflective model is illustrated in Figure 1:
Figure1: Wallace’s Reflective Practice model of Professional educational development
According to this model, received knowledge is important the same as experiential knowledge. The two aspects are the source for teachers’ practice and reflective thinking. To understand the relationship of theory and practice, the significance of received knowledge and experiential knowledge is positive respectively for the two aspects’ own development.
3.Studies on teachers’ beliefs and reflective teaching
Since 1970s, teachers’ beliefs have also drawn attention of educators and teachers of English teaching. Pajares indicated that teachers’ beliefs can “inform educational practice in ways that prevailing research agendas have not and cannot” (1992, p.307). In China, many scholars have focused on the current situation, significance and trend of research on English teachers’ beliefs of teaching (Guo Xiaona, 2008; Wang Huixia, 2008). All these documents show that teachers’ teaching practice mostly correlated with their beliefs.
Reviewing the studies, there is a number of definitions of reflective teaching given by a lot of scholars. Richards points out that “Reflection and inquiry and critical thinking are seen as central for continued professional growth, and can help teachers move beyond a level where they are guided largely by impulse, intuition, or routine” (Richards, 1990:21). However, as to teachers’ beliefs, the research on reflective teaching has not been preoccupied in the combination of improving beliefs and reflective teaching as an effective method of English teachers’ education development.
4.Reflective teaching as an impetus for improving English teachers’ beliefs in China
Firstly, reflecting teachers’ beliefs is essential to enhance the awareness of English teachers’ beliefs, because they generally think their teaching ability is collected from the reflection of their personal teaching experience and professional practice. Secondly, Teachers are responsible for coordinating teaching theory with teachers’ beliefs through continually reflective teaching.
4.1 Approaches to Reflective Teaching
To achieve the role of an impetus for changing teachers’ beliefs, in the specific teaching circumstance, effective combination of approaches should be adopted to optimize the teachers’ beliefs so that the teachers can use to develop a deeper understanding of teaching.
The approaches to reflective teaching consist of:
4.1.1 Teaching journal writings. Events and ideas are recorded for the purpose of later reflection;
4.1.2 Lesson reports. The purpose of a lesson report is to give the teacher a quick and simple procedure for regularly monitoring what happened during a lesson, and how effective the lesson was.
4.1.3Surveys and questionnaires.
4.1.4Group discussion. (similarities and differences of the students, students’ feedback, and their own teaching suggestions)
4.1.5Action research. (planning, action, observation, reflection)
a selects an issue or concern to examine in more detail(e.g., the teacher’s use of questions).
b selects a suitable procedure for collecting information about the topic (e.g., recording classroom lessons).
c collects the information, analyzes it, and decides what changes might necessary.
d develops an action plan to help bring about the change in classroom behavior(e.g., develops a plan to reduce the frequency with which the teacher answer questions).
e observes the effect of the action plan on teaching behavior (e.g., by recording a lesson and analyzing the teacher’s questioning behavior) and reflects on its significance.
f initiates a second action cycle, if necessary.
4.2The framework of teachers’ teaching actions
Illustrating the effective impetus for revising teachers’ beliefs, there is a specific case used to describe the process of reflective teaching in English teaching. The framework includes Preparation before class, Teaching in class and Evaluation after class.
Taking the fifth unit named the Mythical American West in Introduction to American Society and Culture as example, the framework of teachers’ teaching actions in this text is as follows.
4.2.1.Preparation before class
(1)Teaching goals and content
A Knowledge goals:
Content :To know the American West social culture, history, life and values;
To comprehend the significance of frontier movement for American beliefs;
Language: To learn useful words and expressions.
B Ability goals:
To enhance Ss’ comprehensive language skills;
To foster Ss’ ability and strategy of independent learning (inductive, classification, analytic-minded, reasoning, and critical ability);
To develop the critical thinking ability and imaginative ability.
C Moral Goals:
To encourage students to be brave enough to speak English more in class;
To cultivate sensitivity to the foreign culture, the toleration with other nations and international vision;
(2)The teacher knows Ss’ English level in general; the students had previewed the background of this topic.
4.2.2.Teaching in class
(1)Introduce the teaching goals;
(2)Presentation of the text and relevant content with the help of content-based instruction, Communicative approach, Task-based approach, and certain methods;
(3)The mutual-communication between the teacher and the Ss (discussion, exercises, feedback)
Reflection: Is the preparation satisfactory?
4.2.3.Evaluation after class
(1)Achieve goals set;
(2)Having learned the American beliefs and frontier movement;
(3)Enlarge students’ English knowledge and comprehensive ability and increase the teacher’s teaching experience (The ongoing development for the teacher and Ss)
Reflection:What is the deficiency of my teaching plan and strategies?
How to improve it?
How to make Ss act more positively?
5.Conclusion
As the college English teaching has been paid more attention in education reform, college English teachers’ quality turns out to be significant and should not be neglected for the success of English teaching. However, there are some deficiencies existing in terms of English teachers’ beliefs in China. Therefore, it is illustrated that English teachers should change teachers’ beliefs, apart from possessing the necessary knowledge and skills. More importantly, reflective teaching should be emphasized as a vital concept in teacher development, including self-reflective, and reflective beliefs, reflective approaches, and reflective practices, learning from teaching and doing research, pursuing individual and collaborative professional development.
References:
[1]Pajares, M. F. (1992). Teachers’ beliefs and educational research: cleaning up a messy construct. Review of Educational Research, 62 (3), 307-332.
[2]Richards,J.C. (1990). Second Language Teacher Education. Cambridge University Press.
[3]Richards,J.C.,& Lockhart, C. (2000). Reflective teaching in second language classroom. Beijing: People’s Education Press.
[4]Wallace,M.J. (1991). Training Foreign Language Teachers. Cambridge University Press.
[5]常俊跃李莉莉赵永青.美国社会与文化[M].北京:北京大学出版社,2009.
[6]郭晓娜.(2008).教师教学信念研究的现状、意义及趋势.《外国教育研究》,10, 92-96.
[7]王慧霞.(2008).国外关于教师信念问题的研究综述.《宁波大学学报》,05,61-64.