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Although Schon’s reflective model (1983) is too simplistic to fully describe my learning journey, its reference to different reflective levels which link to their time frame is useful. Schon (1983) refers to reflection in action which describes a professional learner’s response at the time of an event, and reflection on action which occurs when reflection is done after an incident. I would support the view of Eraut (1994) that reflection in action does not accurately describe my intuitive reactions at the time of an incident because they were not usually measured responses and therefore not ‘reflective’. Furthermore, although Schon’s (1983) model refers to a time frame that separates different stages of reflection, I think that reference to only two reflective stages does not mirror my learning journey because it had more. For example, I often made further reflective judgements long after initial reflective judgements which are more comparable to Moon’s revisiting phase (1999), which leads to a learner moving on when something has been learnt. I will also use the five part model of reflective practice, issued by the University of Chester which comprises the following stages of reflection: descriptive, individualised reflection, reflection on issues, generalisation of issues and theorising. I found this model the most useful as it most suitably aligned to my own reflective practice, because these were the stages I used.
Furthermore, according to Bandura’s Modelling Theory (1977), sometimes referred to as reciprocal determinism, had I adhered to the school policy there would have been an increased chance that students would also have adhered to the policy. “Positive behaviour causes positive reinforcement through observational learning, a process where an individual assimilates information necessary to mimic good behaviour” Bandura (1977). This uniformity helps the school to cultivate a sense of community and identity which consequently enables pupils to have a sense of belonging to their school. A blanket policy also allows a greater cohesion between the teaching staff, according to Bandura (1977).
I will now critically reflect on an incident which led to reflection in the following areas; use of the subtle tongue, pupil ownership, a learners zone of proximal development and differentiation. Whilst employed at placement one, I worked with two year ten groups in a diploma lesson on performance pieces that they had already devised. The first group responded positively to my direction and feedback. For example, when I asked how their devised pieces went a student said ‘it was boss, thanks Miss’. The second group were much more challenging. One girl in particular responded negatively to my feedback: she opposed any suggestions about how she could improve the work, was confrontational and did not take direction. I felt offended and confused whilst in the reflection in action stage of reflective practice, however, after my negative feelings had subsided and I de-personalised the incident I entered the reflection on action stage and realised that I could learn about inclusion in the drama classroom.
Neeland’s (1984) demonstrated conclusively that drama should be child-centred, which means that the teacher should have an understanding of how the student feels. In light of this theory, I researched the student’s background and learnt that she was statemented and commonly displayed dis-interest or negativity towards the work, which led me to think about how she may have felt .I imagine that the girl felt alienated, picked on and threatened by my advice due to her heightened sensitivity compared to other students. I also realised that because she was often disciplined, some positive input into her work may have helped build a rapport with the student. I learnt that she had behaviour for learning difficulties which had recently got worse because she had left home and gone to live with her grandma. I imagine that she had developed a lack of trust with adults since she may perceive her own parents to have ‘let her down’, which may lead her to have anger or resentment towards adults in a position of authority.
I embarked on Moon’s (1999) additional information stage of reflection and moved on because I realised Needland’s subtle tongue would have benefitted the learner. Needland’s theory states that the language used to teach the learner should be modified to suit their individual needs, and that the subtle tongue uses language “which encourages and stimulates rather than inhibits.” Had I known the girl had low self-esteem, I would have taken greater care to make my language “considered and directed towards developing confidence”. For example rather than saying ‘let’s re block this section it’s not very good” I could have said ‘This is good, but will the audience be able to see everyone.’ The latter phrase contains praise, enabling the learner to trust me more; my advice would therefore not have been perceived as an attack on her work. The second phrase also outlines why the advice has been given which de-personalises the situation and would be less likely to further deplete the self-esteem of a learner. Finally, it is suggestive rather than authoritative which would probably have been better received by someone who does not welcome orders from those in authority.
Holte (2005) argues that values are deeply imbedded in a person and that a teacher’s behaviour stems from them; they are commonly based on their past experiences and perhaps unrecognisable until an incident arises to provoke their critique. She says, “Whether you like it not, values underpin what you say and do”. Due to this incident, I realised that my beliefs on education have been shaped by my own schooling. I went to a competitive, independent school where the staff addressed pupils in a direct manner, using a critical tone of voice if required. Due to this expereince, I had spoken to the girl in a direct, critical manner. I now realise that such a tone may be effective for some learners but not all, and I would refer to how language should be adapted for the learner in my revised philosophy of teaching.
Heathcote (1982), a well-known advocate of child-centred learning believes the benefits of pupil ownership come from giving responsibility to a learner. She states that ownership becomes operational if a teacher begins from where the child is; “The child becomes the sun about which the appliances of education revolve”. Had I given the student the responsibility to correct the work herself, rather than correcting it for her, she could have been empowered. Increased empathy with the student would have made my approach more child-centred.
Kemp (ref) and more recently Greenhaugh (ref) argue that ownership improves a pupil’s self-esteem which directly correlates to greater motivation in the classroom. They support the relationship between “a person’s overall appraisal of his own worth” and the responsibility they have over their work. In this case, I had not trusted the student to improve the work which according to Kemp would diminish her self-motivation. This was because I had re-directed the work rather than encouraging the learner to change the piece herself. Kemp argues that a teachers “choice to give reasonability to a pupil conveys a clear message of trust and is empowering for this reason alone”. I now think that pupil ownership is conducive to learning in the drama classroom and it can therefore be said that the experience has led to my moving on according to Moon’s model of reflective learning (1999).
It should be noted however that pupil ownership can only be facilitated with the loco parentis, or duty of care, of other students in the class. Although this duty of care is not defined by a clear framework; it is underpinned by legislation such as the Education Act 2002 and the Young Persons Safety Act 1995. Pupil ownership would therefore come secondary to pupil welfare and abandoned if it posed a threat to the safety of anyone in the classroom. The learner discussed was commonly disruptive and therefore I would have facilitated ownership responsibly.
In research conducted by Vygotsky (1987) a learners zone of proximal development is discussed. The Zone of Proximal Development is, according to Vygotsky (1987), “the area a learner can comfortably assimilate with”. A teacher can then provide “scaffolding” (which should assimilate with this zone) to further learning. This led me to reflect about whether I had mis-judged the learners’ previous knowledge base, and therefore confused her with additional information which she had not understood. For example, I wonder if the girl did not understand the terminology I used such as ‘blocking’ ‘articulation’ and ‘projection’, and therefore had not understood my direction leading to her feeling confused and intimidated. The experience enabled me to understand the importance of a student’s zone of proximal development.
I will now discuss a lesson which led to reflective learning on competition in the classroom and how it can best be adapted to maximise the benefits for the learner. The lesson used a team game to learn about different countries in the world. The class contained five male students who had learning difficulties and were generally disruptive in class. Each team was awarded a point if they collected a resource which correlated to their country. These points were written on the board and a winner was announced at the end of the lesson. As soon as I split the class into groups there was great enthusiasm and every student was on task. The students who have behavioural difficulties were amongst the most enthusiastic and their behaviour had improved dramatically since last lesson. I noted that male students were more eager to ‘win’ the game than female students. I felt pleased that competition had been so motivating for the students and I reflected on why this had been the case.
Although I knew in Kolbs’ (1984) reflection in action stage of reflection that competition was motivating, it was during the reflection for action stage of reflection that I realised why this particular form of competition had worked. Students had faith in the game because there was no ambiguity in the rewards system, this was because I had outlined exactly how a point could be obtained. This supports the research of Canter and Canter (1993) who state that awards should be clearly outlined for them to become effective.
After some time, during Moon’s revisiting phase (2006) I investigated why male students (who typically displayed challenging behaviour) had been most eager to ‘win’ the game. According to Pavlov’s behaviourist theory (1927) extrinsic rewards (those which are publicly viewed) can be more beneficial than intrinsic ones (those which derive from an inner sense of self-satisfaction) for learners who do not possess strong self-motivation. Since points were publically awarded and written on the board, they were extrinsic and therefore probably appealed more to the statemented students who have less self-motivation. This was evidenced in the lesson because learners who commonly display low level disruption and are therefore not often in receipt of rewards, responded very well to the opportunity to ‘show off’ in front of their peers. I do not think the chance to ‘further their own learning’ would have been so motivating for such learners. Learning was done however through the correct completion of the task.
On further reflection, I realised that it was also the practical nature of the game that had appealed to the students with behavioural difficulties. Three of the students discussed were SEN listed with mild ADHD and dyslexia which can show symptoms of high energy levels and a short attention span. I think that they responded well to the lesson because it was based around short non-literacy based practical tasks, which allowed them to move in the space. I would endeavour to include such tasks again if teaching students who had ADHD or Dyslexia. In the generalisation stage of reflection, I concluded that the National Curriculum Frameworks on SEN are not always directly transferable through subjects. This is because different subjects rely on different skills. For example, high energy levels (which characterise ADHD) are useful for the performance aspects of drama, whereas in more academic subjects they may inhibit a student’s ability to sit and focus for a sustained period of time.
Critical reflection has been a key component of my learning journey and led to the following conclusions, which have in turn led to a modification in my teaching practice. Greater use of child centred learning by using for example Needlands’ communication technique will lead to better communication between learners and myself. Pupil ownership can facilitate child- centred learning especially for students who are not usually given responsibility due to behavioural difficulties (Heathcote , >>) ; this should be facilitated with a duty of care in mind. A teacher must understand a learner’s zone of proximal development in order to correctly ‘scaffold’ their learning; otherwise a learner may become disinterested and frustrated with the lesson content. Competition can be motivating in the classroom however its benefits are most effective when it is differentiated according to the needs of the learners. For example, students who possess low levels of self motivation can respond better to extrinsic classroom rewards than intrinsic ones. Through reflective practice, I have learnt to manage behaviour better through using the whole school system and planning for behaviour, using multi sensory learning techniques and sequencing of activities.
The above conclusions were formed using several reflective skills which have been improved and will be of use in my on going professional practice. The ability to de–personalise an event and reflect on it objectively has enabled me to draw logical conclusions surrounding its occurrence. I have also developed empathy skills, which are a pre-requisite to understanding an event from a student’s point of view. A reflective learner should be able to cross reference an incident with current applicable literature which can inform the reflective process in its generalisation stage.
