Reflection-In-Action and Reflection-On-Action

REFLECTION-IN-ACTION AND REFLECTION-ON-ACTION* Hugh Munby Queen's University Introduction; Since the publication of Schon's (1983) book on the character and development of professional knowledge, our research has been directed at applying his theoretical position to the problem of how teachers acquire the knowledge of practice that allows them to teach as they do.2 Briefly, we have attempted to understand what lies behind the apparently simple notion that teachers learn to teach by teaching, by examining how teachers interact with their experiences in order to learn from them. This paper does not dwell on the results of our qualitative case studies of 13 participating teachers; these are reported elsewhere (Russell, 1988; Russell, Munby, Spafford, & Johnston, 1988). Instead, this paper explores some of the work that has been occasioned by Schon's writing. As shown below, his books have been interpreted variously, as different people have found different points to focus upon. In some cases, these differences suggest that there are difficulties in Schon's position; in other cases, there are grounds for thinking that the differences emerge from incomplete understandings of Schon's position. We find that discussing the various interpretations helps to push our own thinking forward, and to identify the questions that we find worth pursuing. The paper has four sections. The first is a sketch of our interpretation of Schon's theoretical approach. The second examines selected appraisals of the more general features of Schon's work. The third section focuses on his two concepts of reflection which seem to have been misinterpreted by some who use his work. The fourth section focuses on the concept of "reframing," which we take to be central to Schon's account of the development of professional knowledge. Here, the discussion moves toward identifying theoretical and empirical questions that are raised by our own work and by the appraisals noted in the second section. The paper's response to these appraisals is the starting point for speculations about the directions that might be taken to further our understanding of the conditions that promote teachers' professional knowledge. Salient Features of Schon's Approach Schon's two books (1983, 1987) advance the position that there is a fundamentally important aspect to the knowledge possessed by professionals that has been overlooked. Initially, he develops his case by arguing that our academic institutions place undue emphasis upon "technical rationality"~the disciplines of knowledge and the methods that are believed to make formal, prepositional knowledge reliable and valid. Our society's emphasis upon technical rationality, Schon argues, has led to an undervaluing of the practical knowledge of action that is central to the work of practitioners. This form of knowledge, which he calls "knowing-in-action," is the practical knowledge that professionals hold about their professional work and that cannot be formulated in prepositional terms. By exploring the elements of knowing-in-action, Schon demonstrates that professional knowledge itself has been virtually unrecognized because it appears not to be as "rigorous" as knowledge developed in the more familiar and public "scientific" research traditions. In his argument, Schon proposes a fundamental reorganization of how to think about professional practice and the relationship of theory to practice. For Schon, professional knowledge is developed 31 within action, just as it is articulated within action. The concept "reflection-in-action" is invoked to refer to the active and non-propositional processes by which new knowing-inaction is developed-a matter to which the paper returns later. Schon elaborates his position in his second book (1987), with special attention to what he calls "the reflective practicum"-the specific experiences that he believes help students to acquire knowing-in-action under the coaching of expert practitioners. In a later piece, Schon (1988) addresses what he means by reflective teaching-"giving the kids reason"~and argues for a reflective supervision that might help teachers become more reflective-in-action. Appraisals of Schon's General Approach Schon's work has attracted the attention of teacher educators, and there are many papers that refer to his 1983 work, although, as shown below, the lineage is not always clear. Yet, as is quite proper, his approach has received criticism. For instance...