Self-study in Teaching and Teacher Education: Characteristics and Contributions
This article will give you the background about self-study research, characteristics, and its relevancy to teaching documentation. Further, the author emphasizes the importance of studying one’s teaching practices to learn and improve, which requires the individual to be vulnerable and transparent about their teaching. The author finds that to undertake self-study one must be self-aware, curious, committed to change, situated in the context, and brave and resilient.
The author analyzes self-study research in Teaching and Teacher Education (TATE). An introduction to self-study of professional practice as scholarship and methodology is followed by descriptions of 10 selected articles. Next is a presentation of 10 self-study characteristics identified in the articles. The final analysis shows three broad self-study research contributions: a) teachers and teacher educators advance the education field by becoming accomplished practitioner-researchers, b) a self-directed professional learning paradigm is advantageous for teachers' and teacher educators' professional development, and c) when teachers and teacher educators commit to their professional growth in supportive environments, they benefit themselves and others.