Developmentally distinct experiences among novice teachers reflecting on Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL)

ABSTRACT

Reflecting on teaching is widely regarded as beneficial and has become a key component in teacher preparation programs. However, teacher educators can struggle to get teachers to engage in meaningful reflection, and teachers differ in their experiences with reflection. One lens for understanding differences in reflective experiences is that of adult development. Employing the constructive-developmental theory of adult development, this study investigated reflection on teaching experiences of seven novice Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) teachers. Findings showed that teachers differed in their experiences depending on their different developmental perspectives. For example, some teachers valued written reflection on teaching as critical for reflection itself, while others experienced it as redundant. Implications for supporting meaningful reflection experiences among developmentally diverse novice teachers are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Reflective practice
• reflection
• constructive-developmental theory
• Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL)
• adult development

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.