How to ... be a reflective practitioner.

Whilst many definitions of formative assessment have been offered, there is no clear rationale to define and delimit it within broader theories of pedagogy. This paper aims to offer such a rationale, within a framework which can also unify the diverse set of practices which have been described as formative. The analysis is used to relate formative assessment both to other pedagogic initiatives, notably cognitive acceleration and dynamic assessment, and to some of the existing literature on models of self-regulated learning and on classroom discourse. This framework should indicate potentially fruitful lines for further enquiry, whilst at the same time opening up new ways of helping teachers to implement formative practices more effectively.

Developing a theory of formative assessment

This paper reviews a selection of research from the field of foreign and second language teaching into what is referred to here as teacher cognition – what teachers think, know, and believe and the relationships of these mental constructs to what teachers do in the language teaching classroom. Within a framework suggested by more general mainstream educational research on teacher cognition, language teacher cognition is here discussed with reference to three main themes: (1) cognition and prior language learning experience, (2) cognition and teacher education, and (3) cognition and classroom practice. In addition, the findings of studies into two specific curricular areas in language teaching which have been examined by teacher cognition – grammar teaching and literacy – are discussed. This review indicates that, while the study of teacher cognition has established itself on the research agenda in the field of language teaching and provided valuable insight into the mental lives of language teachers, a clear sense of unity is lacking in the work and there are several major issues in language teaching which have yet to be explored from the perspective of teacher cognition.

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Teacher cognition in language teaching: A review of research on what language teachers think, know, believe, and do

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Developing the theory of formative assessment

93 empirical studies on learning to teach were reviewed in order to establish what is currently known about how people learn to teach and to critique the quality of the reporting of that research. Among other observations concerning teacher education, the review highlights the tensions between the hopes and expectations of teacher educators and the expectations and experiences of beginning teachers. While this review supports the findings of others that many traditional programs of teacher education have little effect upon the firmly held beliefs of the beginning teachers, it also provides examples of successful programs. Such programs typically build upon the beliefs of pre service teachers and feature systematic and consistent long-term support in a collaborative setting. It is concluded that this body of research has advanced the field in significant ways, offering new directions for research and program reform. The critique of the papers themselves reveals that authors need to pay more careful attenti...

https://www.jstor.org/stable/info/1170752

A Critical Analysis of the Research on Learning to Teach: Making the Case for an Ecological Perspective on Inquiry

In much of the recent debate over the teaching of English there has been a notable lack of empirical evidence on teachers’ thinking and classroom practice; this has particularly been true of the National Curriculum Council's case for revising the English Order. In the absence of such information, the study set out to gather evidence of teachers’ thinking and classroom practice in two fundamental areas of the English curriculum—the teaching of literature and media education—as a contribution to the debate. Sixty teachers responded to an attitude questionnaire and a sub‐sample of 20 teachers filled in a survey on the teaching of media education. The findings of the study seriously question the validity of the case for revising the Cox curriculum.

Abridged Too Far: Evidence from Teachers against the Case for Revising the Cox Curriculum.

Enabling pupils to become proficient at using spoken language is seen as one of the major goals of education. Pupils are expected to express their thoughts and engage with others in joint intellectual activity so as to advance their individual capacity for productive, rational and reflective thinking. The guided co-construction of knowledge, in which a teacher talks with pupils in whole class, group and individual situations to guide their thinking, together with opportunities for collaborative learning to promote critical thinking and problem solving, is, therefore, seen as being central to the educational process (Hardman, 2008a).

Reforming Teacher Education in East Africa: The Importance of Socio-cultural Context

This paper reports on a small-scale, exploratory study into the impact of Creole dialect forms on the writing of 9–11-year-old pupils in the Commonwealth of Dominica. The grammatical features of these non-standard dialects and the frequency with which they occur in the pupils' writing (N = 55) are itemised and compared with similar studies carried out in England and St. Lucia. The investigation found that the use of non-standard dialect in writing was a comparatively rare phenomenon compared with other grammatical and orthographic features, and supported the findings of earlier studies. Pedagogic implications arising from the findings are considered together with some tentative pointers for future research.

Dialect Interference in the Writing of Primary School Children in the Commonwealth of Dominica

In 1998, the Government introduced the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) in all primary schools in England in a bid to raise literacy standards. The first cohort of primary schools in the northern Local Education Authority ( n = 19) implemented the project in January 1997, the second cohort ( n = 20) began in September 1997. Each cohort consisted of three different year groups (Year 2, Year 4 and Year 6). The aim of this project was to focus upon exam results from these schools and thereby identify possible predictors of success (e.g. socio-economic status, age of pupils, teaching and learning style). We looked at differences within and between each cohort. We also carried out in-depth case studies of three northern schools. Each case-study involved interviews with key staff. The wider implications of the findings for the implementation of the NLS and for the training needs of teachers are considered.

Frank Hardman

Papers

Abridged Too Far: Evidence from Teachers against the Case for Revising the Cox Curriculum.

Reforming Teacher Education in East Africa: The Importance of Socio-cultural Context

Dialect Interference in the Writing of Primary School Children in the Commonwealth of Dominica

Evaluating the effectiveness of the National Literacy Strategy: identifying indicators of success

Observing and Recording Classroom Processes