The Reflective Practitioner and Teacher Education: an answer to critics

Abstract

Abstract This article is an attempt to answer some of the criticisms of the notion of reflective practice in teacher education. It is argued that in a democratic society personal autonomy is an important ideal of education, including teacher education, and that therefore the notion of reflective practice should have a central place. The relationship between autonomy and the reflective self is clarified with reference to different models of the self. In the light of this, the purpose of teacher education for autonomy is defined in terms of the nature of the committed as well as the reflective aspects of the self. The argument is further illustrated and elaborated by examining Schb'n's attempt to reintellec‐tualize professional practice through an analysis of the reflective practitioner as artist. In addition to facilitating self‐analysis and reflection, teacher education should raise awareness of the need to produce and reproduce the milieu of democratic reform. In conclusion, the role of the disciplines i...