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Theory and Practice

The lack of connection between my practice and philosophy became visible through reflecting on these parts. Beck & Kosnik (2014) argue that there are four processes of teacher learning; informal learning, formal learning, teacher inquiry and school-based profesional learning. They outline seven principles of professional learning:

 

1. “Teachers are already providing a strong education for students

2. Teachers are key experts on teaching

3. Much teacher learning takes place informally in the classroom

4. Teachers should be major players in the design and selection of PD

5. The school as a whole is also an important setting for professional learning

6. Beyond the school, PD at the system (government, school district) level can be very valuable

7. At every level, there needs to be balance between input from teachers and input from other sources” (p.18)

 

Through looking at these principles, I am realising that what could be missing for me is simply time in a learning environment as an educator. The past year and a half has been highly focused on theory, with few practical opportunities available. Prior to starting this MA, I was not engaged in teaching as a profession either, and the opportunities were sparse and far apart. Therefore, I think the connection between practice and philosophy might not be as outspoken, because I have not had the opportunity to actually connect the two. For me, the problem is not that which is outlined by others in the field (Beck & Kosnik, 2014; Lieberman, 2008) the irrelevance of professional development or failing quality of it, but rather the lack of actual teaching opportunities. Seeing this clearer makes me motivated to seek out more practice. I can often be frustrated after teaching opportunities because I didn’t achieve all that I wanted, however the way out of this catch 22 is in fact not to disengage, but rather add more experiences.

 

On the other hand, I also learnt that I do things that were perhaps not visible to me prior to re-watching the micro-teaching and reading the feedback. In the journey towards creating a more authentic image of myself as an educator, I will practice to myself identify with some of the characteristics that were pointed out to me in the feedback and that I saw in the video. I think that the incorporation, or to an extent perhaps acceptance, of these, will make me feel closer to who I am as an educator. I might feel less disconnected and “undone” as a result.

 

Moving forward, I would like to create some strategies for how to keep my relationship between my practice and philosophy more alive. Here is my first attempt:

1. Have my teaching philosophy printed out and visible when I plan sessions.

2. Create a “bank” of exercises that fit into my philosophy, for example. norm critical ice-breakers.

3. Reflect on my facilitation or teaching bearing my philosophy in mind, after each session.

4. Regularly take stock on whether my philosophy is still relevant.

   5. Be transparent with my teaching philosophy to learners when possible and relevant.

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My Learning in IMAESC

However my learning began almost six months prior to writing my teaching philosophy. How has my learning looked overall, throughout IMAESC? As there are no reflection journals to access from this time, I have chosen to draw upon three things. Firstly, my reflection document before the beginning of the leadership programme Young Leaders Visitors Programme (YLVP), which I was part of in 2015. Secondly, my cover letter to IMAESC, and thirdly a blog post I wrote to reflect upon a programme I facilitated in June 2016. These are all documents where I outline my view on learning, facilitating and issues connected to adult education.

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Firstly, I will consider the importance of listening. In my pre-reflection to YLVP I state that "I want to maintain an attitude of seeing everyone as my teacher". This has been reflected by myself in other places, for example this blog post written about a programme I facilitated the summer before IMAESC started. In my cover letter I mention nothing about this however. In other words, I state listening is important in 2015, don't mention it in my cover letter to IMAESC, but state it again in my reflections on the programme I facilitated. In my teaching philosophy, I again fail to mention it. What does this say about my learning? I believe that this shows I am very much in the learning, and various concepts are seen as relevant to myself at various points. It does show that the concept of listening to others, even when facilitating, was a known to me prior to the programme. This might be a reason to why the concept is not as present in my documentation during IMAESC, as I may have been focussing on aspects that were new to me instead.

Secondly, I turn to norm-criticism. In my cover letter as well as teaching philosophy I mention this. In my cover letter, I state "...societal norms and behaviours are the primary reason for injustice" and the teaching philosophy was outlined above. What is noticeable here is that I have very much held on to this, despite it not being mentioned within IMAESC at all. My analysis is that I have in this aspect formed an identity not just as a response to the knowledge I have been subjected to, but also that which I have not been subjected to.

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Thirdly, I know that my conceptualisation of adult education has become much more detailed and that in particular Freire and the Pedagogy of the Oppressed has gained a key role. Many of my assignments throughout the programme discuss popular education and the ideas of Paulo Freire. This is something which was never mentioned by me before, and has clearly had an impact on my thinking around adult education.

 

In sum, it is challenging to assess the learning throughout the IMAESC programme, however from the materials available and through self-reflection, it is clear that the learning has introduced both new concepts and built on previously known ones.

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