The Trade For Teachers
The Trade For Teachers
The Trade For Teachers
development. For Dewey (1933) and Schön (1987), reflective thinking is not just post-active in nature
but proactive and interactive as well. When reflection is done, teachers can appreciate that the nature
of their work engages them in a recursive cycle of reflective thinking that involves planning, acting and
reflecting (Lasley II, Matczynski, and Rowley 2002.)
Likewise, Lasley II et al. advocate peer coaching a professional development model representative of the
observation and assessment category of professional development. Virtually, this is a relationship
between two or more teachers commited to providing technical and psychological help for the
improvement of instruction and the development of student learning. Presented below are the three
phases of the cycle of reflective practice for peer coaching.
1. Planning- the focus of the observation, selecting the observation methodology, and negotiating
the role of the participants.
2. Acting- observing the teaching and learning episodes and making the record of evidence.
3. Reflecting- interpreting the observation record, making meaning, planning for new action, and
identifying new foci.
General pedagogical knowledge- with special preference to the broad principles and strategies of
classroom management and organization that appear to transcend subject matter
Knowledge of educational context- ranging from the workings of the group or classroom to the
governance of financing of school districts to the character of communities and cultures
Curriculum knowledge- with a particular grasp of the materials and programs that serve as the tails of
the trade for teachers
Knowledge of educational ends, purpose, and values and their philosophical and historical grounds