INSTRUMENTALISATION OF THINKING: ON THE ILLUSION OF REFLEXIVITY IN TEACHER EDUCATION

Abstract

Contemporary teacher education research point out that one of the most important elements of teacher professionalism is reflexivity. Teacher (self)reflection is aimed at gaining autonomy, at not succumbing to uncritical traditions or established norms, at (self-)criticism, at not agreeing to follow “top-down orders”. In this perspective, reflexivity is a priority element of teacher training, which should be reflected in the teacher education programme. The authors reflect on the category of reflexivity in the context of professional development of teachers and teacher education. We refer to the reflection theory of Donald Schön, Max van Manen, Nevill Hatton and David Smith as well as Johan Luttenberg and Theo Bergen. The adopted research perspective for collecting and interpreting empirical material is a critical discourse analysis. The subject of the analysis is Regulation of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. The results of research and analyses indicate that the category of reflexivity is present in educational programmes only to a small extent and mainly refers to the level of technical reflexivity of a pragmatic nature. This is a consequence of the technical-scientistic, formalised approach to the construction of educational programmes in force in Poland. This programme is oriented towards instrumentally understood objectives and the usefulness of knowledge and skills on the labour market. A consequence of this is the lack of the broadly understood category of reflexivity as a deep reflection on action. In the analysed document, reflexivity is illusory and apparent in its nature, appears only to a limited extent, and is treated instrumentally.