Re-learning from experience: using autoethnography for teacher development

Abstract

This inquiry had two primary aims; firstly to evaluate the feasibility of using autoethnography to gain an informed and more descriptive view of past teaching experiences and secondly to understand more about the experience of a teacher’s professional development in order to become a more reflective practitioner. This paper presents a narrative examining my experience of one of the high-points of my professional career as a language teacher. Through this inquiry I came to realise that I had begun a process of ‘mythologising’ this particular class, specifically by inadvertently foregrounding the final video project produced by one group of learners at the expense of a more holistic reflection. Autoethnography was employed as a means of re-examining the experience more methodically, thus benefiting my current practice whilst also exploring the usefulness of the research method. The findings highlight both the advantages and potential problems of narrative methods of inquiry and self-reflection.

Keywords:

• Autoethnography
• reflective practice
• narrative inquiry
• research methods
• language teaching