ABSTRACT
This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study examining the influence of professional development (PD) on tutors’ teaching philosophies. It found that tutors construe their role in three ways: as transmitter, facilitator, or reflexive practitioner. The findings suggest most tutors, prior to a PD program, hold a teacher-focused conception of teaching and learning (that is, as transmitter) but shift toward a student-oriented conception following the completion of the PD program (facilitators or reflexive practitioners). Epistemic shifts among tutors were attributed to three specific features of the PD program: workshops, peer mentoring, and peer networking. This study provides insights into PD features that cultivate student-oriented teaching philosophies reflecting contemporary pedagogical strategies that promote experiential and constructivist teaching approaches.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes
1 Tutors is the term used in Australia. In other contexts, the term refers to teaching assistants (or graduate teaching assistants), graduate student instructor, casual academics, sessional staff, or teachers.