Classroom Management: Creating a Positive Learning Environment

10 - Learning from Classroom Experience: Reflection and Action Research

10 Learning from Classroom Experience: Reflection and Action Research Li Wai-shing Teacher inquiry is an integral part of every lesson or unit taught. Each time we solicit reactions to an idea, activity or speculative question, we are inquiring, attempting to assess perceptions, understandings and beliefs. Sensitive teachers know that no matter how teaching is carried out, learning is always idiosyncratic and personal. The processes of inquiry are simply processes of assessment, i.e. strategies designed for finding out what the state of affairs may be as our students or others perceive them. Stevenson (1986: 3) Synopsis Good teachers are reflective practitioners: they are aware of and reflect on what is happening in the classroom. This chapter introduces the idea of an “inquiring classroom” in which teachers are critical of what they do and observe in class. Three kinds of reflection — technical, practical and critical reflection — are discussed, and action research, a related concept, is introduced. Action research is a tool to help teachers to reflect upon their own experience and construct action plans to tackle any problems or improve situations which they find difficult. It is also a good means for professional development. Other alternatives for dealing with classroom management issues are introduced, namely school action plans and personal management plans. These plans are effective for dealing with students’difficult behaviour at a school and personal level. Throughout the chapter, the use of systematic investigation and reflection upon teachers’ experiences to help in solving classroom management problems is emphasized. Objectives After reading this chapter, you should be able to: • understand the importance of an inquiring classroom; 184 Classroom Management • know why questioning and reflection are important means to better classroom management; • distinguish three levels of reflectivity; • distinguish three major practices of reflection; • identify critical incidents in the classroom and school; • conduct action research for effective classroom management; • construct personal management plans; • write school action plans. Pre-Reading Reflection and Discussion • Why do teachers have to be aware of what is happening in the classroom? • Why do teachers need to ask questions about their own behaviour and decisions in managing their classrooms? • Do you think that teachers need to guard against practices which have become routine? Why/why not? • Socrates said that “an unexamined life is not worth living”. Does this apply also to unexamined teacher decisions? • Recall any incidents which had a significant impact on you as a student or a teacher. How significant were they? • Do you think teachers have to carry out classroom research or investigations to improve their own practices? Why/why not? Introduction Misbehaviour in schools often used to be perceived as solely attributable to factors related to the children and their families (Farrington, 1972; Rutter, 1975). However, it can be illuminating to consider the part schools play in contributing to students’ behavioural difficulties (Rutter et al., 1979). There is evidence to show that pupil behaviour is largely shaped by the school environment and teachers (Cooper et al., 1994; Galloway and Goodwin, 1987); and teachers should therefore work together to examine school factors that are influencing pupils’ behaviour. Classroom management is best viewed and approached as an ongoing activity in which teachers pay more attention to preventive discipline, reflect on their own practices to improve their classroom management, and then take action to handle misbehaviour. No matter which approaches to management teachers adopt, they need to examine their own behaviour and management styles, to provide the best environment for teaching and learning. Increasingly, teachers are becoming reflective practitioners and carrying out action Learning from Classroom Experience: Reflection and Action Research 185 research to deal with discipline problems and critical incidents in schools; and similarly they are becoming more aware that constructing personal management plans can be helpful in changing pupils’ misbehaviour. In the scenario below, Mr. Cheung is shocked when told by a student teacher what she had observed in his laboratory. In what ways do you feel Mr. Cheung is a poor classroom manager? Do you think he is insensitive to his pupils? How can he enhance his classroom management skills? What kind of personal management plan can you suggest to Mr. Cheung to alleviate the problems he faced in his lesson? If Ms. Tsang is going to write an action research plan for better management of Mr. Cheung’s class, what should her priorities be? Classroom scenario This is the first time for ten years that Mr. Cheung has been called...