Taking a return to school : Using self-study to learn about teacher educator practice
- Authors: McDonough, Sharon
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Studying Teacher Education Vol. 13, no. 3 (2017), p. 241-256
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- Description: The work of teacher educators is complex and multifaceted and requires knowledge of pedagogy and practice in both schools and teacher education institutions. This complexity, combined with calls for teacher educators to work in close partnership with schools, sees some in teacher education working in hybrid roles and across the boundaries of schools and universities. Drawing on a self-study conducted over a one-year return to teaching, I explore my return home to teach in a secondary school and I examine the continuing impact of this experience on my practice as a teacher educator. Using the concept of tensions as a conceptual framework to analyse the data I explore three tensions in this article: (1) teacher as technician versus teacher as pedagogue; (2) challenging versus being responsive to other’s views of learning; and (3) teacher versus teacher educator identity. I explore how a return to teaching in school and the tensions I experienced enabled me to develop my practice and understandings as a teacher educator. I argue that rich professional learning can result from using self-study to examine teacher educator practice, particularly for teacher educators working in hybrid roles and partnership contexts. © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
“Struck by the way our bodies conveyed so much:” A collaborative self-study of our developing understanding of embodied pedagogies
- Authors: Forgasz, Rachel , McDonough, Sharon
- Date: 2017
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Studying Teacher Education Vol. 13, no. 1 (2017), p. 52-67
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- Description: Embodied pedagogies offer methodological and pedagogical possibilities for exploring and understanding the emotional and embodied dimensions of teaching and learning to teach. In this paper we present a collaborative self-study that examines what we have learned about the nature, value and facilitation of embodied pedagogies through our experiences as both facilitators and participants. Through engaging in this self-study we have deepened our understanding of three aspects of embodied pedagogies: the nature of embodiment as a process of learning and coming to know, the challenges associated with engaging learners in embodied pedagogies, and some of the factors that contribute to skilful facilitation of embodied pedagogies. Articulating these understandings offers insight for ourselves and for other teacher educators looking to engage preservice teachers in embodied explorations and understandings of teaching and learning. © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Rewriting the Script of Mentoring Pre-Service Teachers in Third Space: Exploring Tensions of Loyalty, Obligation and Advocacy
- Authors: McDonough, Sharon
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Studying Teacher Education Vol. 10, no. 3 (September 2014), p. 210-221
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- Description: Supporting pre-service teachers as they develop their understandings of teaching, learning and their identities as teachers is complex and multi-faceted work. I draw on self-study to explore my work in a new partnership model between a school in Victoria, Australia and a regional university. During 2013, I worked in both contexts and carried out the dual roles of teacher educator and secondary teacher. In this partnership, I set out to create a third space for mentoring and supporting pre-service teachers, making connections between their on-campus work and their developing practice in schools. Throughout the self-study, I kept field notes and a reflective journal. In analysing these, I identified the tensions and challenges of working in this space and in articulating my pedagogy as a university mentor. I experienced uncomfortable moments of learning, where I faced tensions related to issues of obligation, loyalty and advocacy. I argue that engaging in processes of translation and mediation enables university mentors to articulate a pedagogy of mentoring and, in so doing, to rewrite the script of mentoring for pre-service and supervising teachers.
- Description: C1
Learning the business of teacher education research: Editorial work as capacity building
- Authors: Reid, Joanne , McDonough, Sharon , Bown, Kathryn , Santoro, Ninetta , Mayer, Diane , Singh, Michael
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education Vol. 41, no. 4 (November 2013), p. 345-349
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- Description: C4
Examining Assumptions About Teacher Educator Identities by Self-study of the Role of Mentor of Pre-service Teachers
- Authors: McDonough, Sharon , Brandenburg, Robyn
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Studying Teacher Education Vol. 8, no. 2 (2012), p. 169-182
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- Description: The role of university-based mentors providing support for pre-service teachers (PSTs) on professional experience placements has long been an element of teacher education programs. These mentors often face challenging situations as they confront their own assumptions about teaching and learning, while also supporting PSTs who may be experiencing stressful placements in classrooms. In this article, we examine the learning undertaken by two teacher educators participating in a professional experience mentor program in a regional university in Australia. The research was conducted as a self-study in two phases. The first phase involved gathering data (email correspondence, mentor entry and exit surveys, meetings) and discussions throughout 2010; the second phase was a retrospective analysis of 10 critical emails. Identification and analysis of our assumptions revealed both the dominant categories of assumptions that underpinned our beliefs and practices, and the tensions and challenges we faced in our roles as mentors. Data analysis generated five themes that characterized our experiences as mentors: (1) ideals and reality; (2) emotions and assumptions; (3) transition to new leadership roles; (4) transitions as transformative experiences; and (5) tunnel vision. By systematically examining our practice, we developed a deeper understanding of the powerful ways that taken-for-granted assumptions influence our practice; we have also exposed the crucial influence of emotions and transitions on the growth of our professional identities. © 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.