I believe research is very important to do in academia, both in the position of a student and as a teacher. As a teacher, it is a way to see if what you're doing is working in the sense that it has a positive impact on your students, and if it isn't, then hopefully it will also inspire you to change your practice to enhance positive student experience. It's important to remember that teachers should also always be learning - both from their experiences and through research combined.
I know that asking questions and researching them shouldn't stop after post-secondary. However, I can't help but feel that teaching could be overwhelming at times and when you have stacks of papers to mark, self-reflecting and researching may not be on your list of priorities. But I do agree that it is important to reflect on your teaching at some point so that the students are given the best possible opportunity to succeed and that largely depends on their experiences in the classroom. If you find you're not getting the results you want in your classroom, you shouldn't stop until you find something that works.
There are obviously obstacles in implementing new research strategies in the classroom and I think getting approval to try new things is a huge barrier for teachers. There are permission slips, and you need approval from administrative staff, etc., that can really dampen your efforts to get every student and perhaps other teachers on board. It can be frustrating when you want to initiate positive change. Researching together, like the teacher-researchers in the article had, might help the initiatives gain momentum, as well as help other teachers reflect on their own practices.
Lastly, stemming from Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Freire, I think it's essential to demonstrate to your students that you are not the sole giver of knowledge, but that you too, learn from others and the knowledge they have to give. Like Karen Nesmith realized in the article, you should be willing to do those things you ask your students to do and I wholly agree with that.
Wednesday, 27 July 2011
Teacher as a researcher
I have never thought of teacher as a researcher, but now that I think about it, it does make sense. As Krystal suggested that teachers acting as researchers with other teachers in order to find out the best way to manage the classroom, I think on top of that, teachers sometimes also act as researchers when the students have problems at home.
A teacher is always learning new things from the students, although mostly not academic knowledge. When teaching, the first thing for a teacher to accomplish is not to make sure that every student is doing great in class (in terms of academic) however, it is to make sure every student feels comfortable in the classroom that comes first in becoming a good teacher. Therefore, teacher always research about ways to create a safe classroom environment from her own experience with the students, from outside (probably from the library), and also from other experienced teachers. That makes a teacher a researcher, a researcher who is always trying to improve her classroom management skills in order to help students learn better and more.
A teacher who doesn’t see herself/himself as a researcher most likely is see his/her teaching as a job. She/he probably does not care that much about improving his/her classroom and the students performances and therefore does not spend time researching information that will help her/him gain more knowledge on classroom management. It is quite important for a teacher to realize that she/he is also a researcher since therefore this teacher will always try to find new ways in dealing with students’ problems.
I do believe in that every person is perfect in their very own way. However, when it comes to teaching, I think every teacher has space to improve and can never see her/himself as a perfect teacher because students change according to various reasons. Students in the old days are definitely different from students in nowadays, just like fashion, hairstyles,makeup and all the things that you can possibly think of. Hence, a teacher should always research new knowledge in order to suit the students’ needs.
Teacher as Researcher - Instructional Intelligence
Teacher as Researcher – Instructional Intelligence
I find this week’s topic of narrative research interesting as it illustrates the pedagogically sound principle of reflective practice. Throughout this course we have been required to reflect following our assignments and to be honest I found this a frustrating component. Perhaps due to course load time constraints or my learning needs as an ESFJ, I prefer clear cut and quantifiable guidelines and felt uncomfortable with the need to analyze assignments. I think this comes from my preference to get feedback from others as well as my own highly self-critical nature.
I find this week’s topic of narrative research interesting as it illustrates the pedagogically sound principle of reflective practice. Throughout this course we have been required to reflect following our assignments and to be honest I found this a frustrating component. Perhaps due to course load time constraints or my learning needs as an ESFJ, I prefer clear cut and quantifiable guidelines and felt uncomfortable with the need to analyze assignments. I think this comes from my preference to get feedback from others as well as my own highly self-critical nature.
I have begun to see that reflective practice does hold considerable merit. In my LA course this semester we have learned that the act of writing helps students organize and further their thoughts. Further the narrative format is a way of writing that accesses both our senses and feelings in a personally accountable way. We are giving voice to our feelings and ideas and in essence allowing ourselves to be vulnerable. The experience of writing a narrative story in my LA course was an excruciating process yet the outcome was profoundly exhilarating! I was able to discover my voice and allow myself the gift of creating a personal touchstone. I do think it is important to consider the audience of the reflection just as students behaviour is affected by the observer hence our reflections are impacted by the fact that they are not wholly for us as they become documents of academic assessment.
The article on re-imagining curriculum was profound as it spoke to the idea of a cooperative arrangement of curriculum between teachers and students. The impact of studying curriculum by the M. Ed. teachers allowed the students the opportunity to move from receivers of curriculum to participants with curriculum. This was the “empowerment and possibility of invitation” that the author Bandes and Fels speak of.
This notion reminds me of the article I found to supplement my reading facilitation. It was entitled “Instructional Intelligence” and was written by John Mazurek. The article explains that instructional intelligence is the ability to combine and integrate instructional processes in ways that are powerful for student learning. The author reiterates the need for teachers to be consciously aware of their instructional decisions to be able to understand why their lessons work or don’t work. The author purports that only through the practice of focused reflection and a commitment to articulate the process of teaching can instructional intelligence be realized.
Narrative research has value I believe, but perhaps is difficult to quantify. The value is perhaps more in the avenues for exploration and in the questions it gives birth to. Perhaps this personal need I have to find the most productive way to reach outcome is my real foe. What I am beginning to realize is that the answers I seek may not be out there in literature and textbooks. The answers to becoming the educator I envision will originate from within only when I embrace the questions that the answers convey.
Narrative research has value I believe, but perhaps is difficult to quantify. The value is perhaps more in the avenues for exploration and in the questions it gives birth to. Perhaps this personal need I have to find the most productive way to reach outcome is my real foe. What I am beginning to realize is that the answers I seek may not be out there in literature and textbooks. The answers to becoming the educator I envision will originate from within only when I embrace the questions that the answers convey.
Narrative in teaching and learning: Narrative research
Narrative inquiry provides researchers with a framework through which they can investigate the ways people experience the world as seen through their stories. Narrative research is increasingly used in studies of educational practice and experience, primarily because teachers, like all other human beings, are storytellers who individually and socially lead storied lives (Stories of Experience and Narrative Inquiry, Connelly & Clandinin, 1990).
One discussion on narrative research that I had with a university instructor of mine was particularly memorable for me. She was working towards her doctorate in Kinesiology. Kinesiology has a school of thought that is predominantly highly scientific in methodology and research, however, her speciality was looking at pedagogy in physical education. She exclaimed this posed many sources of frustration for her as her academic peers would always want her to show some sort of measurable analysis in her research papers. They didn’t see narrative research as being measurable. Her rebuttal was that the best way to defend pedagogical advances in education is relative to experiences. Experiences cannot easily be attached to numbers. There are times when words speak better than numbers, and it is for this reason that much of her research is based on personal and individual experiences. She did also see the value in backing up these personal experiences with more quantitative analysis, as she said it tends to alleviate some of the researcher bias than may be involved using narrative alone.
Narratives research enables the study of teachers and their teaching in development within the teachers’ social, cultural, and institutional settings. (Reflections on the Narrative Research Approach, Moen, T., 2006). However, I also believe narratives do not semantically make sense unless they are compared with other narratives. As Vygotsky said, every function in cultural development appears first on a social level (interpsychological) and later on an individual level (intrapsychological) (Vygotsky, 1978, p.57). As a teacher, personal narrative is important because one can only think about teaching and think about learning by contemplating how one acts and reacts in a range of situations, both professionally and personally. However, one can only make meaning of these experiences by learning from others’ experiences as well.
I strongly believe the use of narrative research/inquiry is critical in being able to adopt a cultural opening up of acceptance to all others. I also believe that continual research into best teaching practices is important. But if every teacher has a narrative and every narrative is different, then whose narratives do we believe/adopt/accept as our own? Ultimately, I believe we need to find our own personal narrative based on the narratives of others.
Through others, we become ourselves. ~ Lev Vygotsky
One discussion on narrative research that I had with a university instructor of mine was particularly memorable for me. She was working towards her doctorate in Kinesiology. Kinesiology has a school of thought that is predominantly highly scientific in methodology and research, however, her speciality was looking at pedagogy in physical education. She exclaimed this posed many sources of frustration for her as her academic peers would always want her to show some sort of measurable analysis in her research papers. They didn’t see narrative research as being measurable. Her rebuttal was that the best way to defend pedagogical advances in education is relative to experiences. Experiences cannot easily be attached to numbers. There are times when words speak better than numbers, and it is for this reason that much of her research is based on personal and individual experiences. She did also see the value in backing up these personal experiences with more quantitative analysis, as she said it tends to alleviate some of the researcher bias than may be involved using narrative alone.
Narratives research enables the study of teachers and their teaching in development within the teachers’ social, cultural, and institutional settings. (Reflections on the Narrative Research Approach, Moen, T., 2006). However, I also believe narratives do not semantically make sense unless they are compared with other narratives. As Vygotsky said, every function in cultural development appears first on a social level (interpsychological) and later on an individual level (intrapsychological) (Vygotsky, 1978, p.57). As a teacher, personal narrative is important because one can only think about teaching and think about learning by contemplating how one acts and reacts in a range of situations, both professionally and personally. However, one can only make meaning of these experiences by learning from others’ experiences as well.
I strongly believe the use of narrative research/inquiry is critical in being able to adopt a cultural opening up of acceptance to all others. I also believe that continual research into best teaching practices is important. But if every teacher has a narrative and every narrative is different, then whose narratives do we believe/adopt/accept as our own? Ultimately, I believe we need to find our own personal narrative based on the narratives of others.
Through others, we become ourselves. ~ Lev Vygotsky
Narrative in teaching and learning - Teacher as researcher
Being a teacher never struck me as being a researcher also. Now that I think about it however, it does make sense that a teacher can also be a researcher. I'll try to place this in different contexts to clarify why I agree with the statement of "teacher as researcher".
Inside the school, teachers play many roles. Teachers have to co-operate with other teachers and administrators to ensure that the school runs smoothly. Teachers also have to work with other teachers to ensure a good working environment. Teachers sometimes have to act as mediators between students and administrators as well. Teachers also have to act as researchers with other teachers to find out what are the best classroom management strategies through guess-and-test. By way of research, teachers can find out the best possible classroom management skills for different types of students through discussion with other teachers.
Inside the classroom, teachers are constantly researching as well. Teachers have to find the best options for each student because each student has different needs. As a researcher in the classroom, teachers have to use different strategies to make sure each student is cared for and that each student is learning at the best of their abilities. Teachers have to research which methods best suits which students for a good growing and learning environment. I'm sure even expert teachers are still constantly researching for better ways of managing their classroom because bettering one's classroom management requires continuous research because each year the students and the environment changes.
Outside school, teachers have to be researchers in order to better themselves as a teacher. I would like to think of this as the phrase, "One can never be good enough". As a student at SFU and a daughter in my family of four, there has rarely been times where I have said to myself that I have done well or good enough. Most of the time, there are always improvements to be made. This goes for teaching as well. Even though I'm not quite a teacher yet, I believe that all teachers should always look for ways to improve their teaching so that students can get the most out of school. Outside of school, teachers have to constantly re-adjust their attitudes and their teaching to make sure it is the best that the students are receiving. To do so, teachers need to research. Teachers can do so by researching better ways or methods to teach (or examples of successful teaching), ask expert teachers for suggestions and improvements, and even go to students and ask them what it is that they like or not like about the teacher's teaching in the classroom.
I believe that researching should be a constant act that a teacher does because let's not forget, teaching is a profession that requires a lot of time and dedication. Teachers teach for different reasons but most importantly, the students are what will constitute our future society. By researching, teachers show that they are taking their profession seriously and knows that students can benefited by their research.
Inside the school, teachers play many roles. Teachers have to co-operate with other teachers and administrators to ensure that the school runs smoothly. Teachers also have to work with other teachers to ensure a good working environment. Teachers sometimes have to act as mediators between students and administrators as well. Teachers also have to act as researchers with other teachers to find out what are the best classroom management strategies through guess-and-test. By way of research, teachers can find out the best possible classroom management skills for different types of students through discussion with other teachers.
Inside the classroom, teachers are constantly researching as well. Teachers have to find the best options for each student because each student has different needs. As a researcher in the classroom, teachers have to use different strategies to make sure each student is cared for and that each student is learning at the best of their abilities. Teachers have to research which methods best suits which students for a good growing and learning environment. I'm sure even expert teachers are still constantly researching for better ways of managing their classroom because bettering one's classroom management requires continuous research because each year the students and the environment changes.
Outside school, teachers have to be researchers in order to better themselves as a teacher. I would like to think of this as the phrase, "One can never be good enough". As a student at SFU and a daughter in my family of four, there has rarely been times where I have said to myself that I have done well or good enough. Most of the time, there are always improvements to be made. This goes for teaching as well. Even though I'm not quite a teacher yet, I believe that all teachers should always look for ways to improve their teaching so that students can get the most out of school. Outside of school, teachers have to constantly re-adjust their attitudes and their teaching to make sure it is the best that the students are receiving. To do so, teachers need to research. Teachers can do so by researching better ways or methods to teach (or examples of successful teaching), ask expert teachers for suggestions and improvements, and even go to students and ask them what it is that they like or not like about the teacher's teaching in the classroom.
I believe that researching should be a constant act that a teacher does because let's not forget, teaching is a profession that requires a lot of time and dedication. Teachers teach for different reasons but most importantly, the students are what will constitute our future society. By researching, teachers show that they are taking their profession seriously and knows that students can benefited by their research.
Narrative Research
Personally, I believe that teachers should examine their practice in order to identify areas needing improvement or to implement new practices. However, I think that the inclusion of research in the classroom can be made difficult by the ethics of research. Like Brandes and Fels (2006), I also question if children are solely engaged and coerced into participating in research projects because of the fact that their classroom teacher is the researcher. Furthermore, Schon (as cited in Brandes and Fels) raises some good questions: “How is it that action research is suspect as a research methodology, held accountable by warnings of coercion, and power differentials? Yet action research simultaneously so coherently mirrors the reflective (and ethical) practice of reflective practitioners”.
In regards to narrative research, all teachers will have stories that contain wisdom and stories that they will tell in order to help them understand themselves. Under this approach, teachers must acknowledge that their stories are co-constructed by themselves and their students. Some of the stories teachers have may become the dominant stories (stories that stand out the most or those that seem to be the most true to them) in their lives. (Murdock, 2009) As Niomie pointed out, narrative theory emphasizes the fact that the individual is not the problem, but that the individual is being affected by the specific problem (Murdock).
With knowledge of the challenges presented by the ethics of research, I think that teachers still must take any opportunities they can to engage in research and self-reflection regarding their teaching practices. Teachers can tell their stories, reflect on them, and learn from them. Teachers’ stories can act as a guide, pointing them in the best direction for themselves and their students.
Murdock, N. L. (2009). Theories of counseling and psychotherapy: A case approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
In regards to narrative research, all teachers will have stories that contain wisdom and stories that they will tell in order to help them understand themselves. Under this approach, teachers must acknowledge that their stories are co-constructed by themselves and their students. Some of the stories teachers have may become the dominant stories (stories that stand out the most or those that seem to be the most true to them) in their lives. (Murdock, 2009) As Niomie pointed out, narrative theory emphasizes the fact that the individual is not the problem, but that the individual is being affected by the specific problem (Murdock).
With knowledge of the challenges presented by the ethics of research, I think that teachers still must take any opportunities they can to engage in research and self-reflection regarding their teaching practices. Teachers can tell their stories, reflect on them, and learn from them. Teachers’ stories can act as a guide, pointing them in the best direction for themselves and their students.
Murdock, N. L. (2009). Theories of counseling and psychotherapy: A case approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Narrative in teaching and learning: Narrative research
My experience with Narrative practice has been in the area of counseling or psychotherapy. In Narrative psychotherapy one generally works with clients to support the externalization of specific problems. Specifically, one works with clients to support the notion that “the problem is the problem - the person is NOT the problem”. Through a process of meaning making, we work to support clients to externalize problems and reconstruct their narratives such that they have a better understanding of “the problem’s” effect on their lives. Through narrative therapy, clients work to “re-author” or “re-story” their life’s narratives.
Taking this knowledge and applying it to teaching, learning, and narrative research, the idea of “re-storying” continues to be meaningful for me. Narrative is the process of meaning making in teaching, learning and research. The process of narration is suggestive of a narrator and an audience. In essence, we are not so much just telling a story of what happened, we are making meaning of what happened in teaching, learning, and research. In terms of assessment in teaching, I cannot help but compare and contrast narrative methods with more objective, quantitative means of assessment. In narrative assessment, we work with students to make meaning of what has been learned. Portfolios are often used as a means of narrative assessment. Using portfolios in teaching and learning serves to foster reflective practice for students. Portfolios are both a process of reflective inquiry as well as a means of documenting what is known, what is learned, and what can be used in the future. Bruner (1986) has argued that Narrative is a way of learning.
As I am writing this, I am wondering ….how I can work to combine my Narrative work in counseling and psychotherapy with that of teaching? I am also wondering … how can we promote authentic narrative practice in teaching and learning within the high demands of the education profession. In my experience, Narrative practice takes both time and space for ideas and reflections to surface (it is creative) - how can we expect this to happen authentically within high stress and high-demand situations? How can we prevent students (and teachers) from simply “going through the motions” as they will do when there are so many other expectations and/or stressors. How can we balance qualitative with quantitative ways of teaching and learning to support optimum development in out teachers and our students?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)