Modelling the Process of Reflection with Pre-Service Student Teachers

Abstract

The article traces the role of reflection in teacher education and explores the issue of the necessity of creating a system of developing student teachers reflective skills in the process of their university studies. The importance of reflection in linking theoretical knowledge with teaching and learning practices is emphasized. The model of guided reflection employed at the Department of Foreign Philology at H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University is described in detail and examined through different research methods, including qualitative and quantitative analysis of various documents (questionnaires, observation charts, reflective essays etc.) and interviews with participant focus groups. The article presents samples of activities used in pedagogy and methodology classes, and observations of student teachers’ behaviours while performing them. Some information about students’ perception of the model steps is also provided. The collected data prove that student teachers manage to get accustomed to continuous reflection and, thanks to gradual transition from communal reflective activities to pair work and individual assignments as well as constant and sufficient scaffolding, interaction with the ‘knowledgeable other’ feel more confident, are getting aware of the benefits of reflection, and are developing skills of reflective practitioners, which are crucial for their further professional and personal growth.