Novice Teachers Engaged in Reflective Dialogue: A Case Study Investigating the Perception of Audience

Abstract

Novice teachers experience a unique set of challenges as they enter the field of professional teaching. While extensive research regarding the reflective practice of expert teachers exists, there has been a shortage regarding the relationship between reflective practice and novice teachers. This study investigated this relationship and how reflective practice in novice teachers is specifically affected by the novice teachers' perception of the audience to their reflective dialogues.This qualitative study employed three case studies of novice teachers in their first year of professional teaching. Each case was constructed using data gathered through extensive field notes, in-depth interviews, and collection of written artifacts produced by the subjects. In addition, secondary subjects were observed and interviewed regarding their perceptions of the reflective process of the novice teachers. This data was analyzed in an iterative process and coded for themes to create individual cases as well as expedite cross-case comparisons. The novice teachers in this study exhibited important commonalities in the sources they chose for reflective dialogues and their attitudes regarding those sources. Important themes emerged regarding their perception of audience that affected the topics they chose to discuss in their dialogues. In addition, the nature of the authenticity of their dialogues was investigated and findings emerged indicating various layers of authenticity including: truthfulness, relevance, timeliness, and accuracy. Findings in this study assist in understanding the process of acclimation for beginning teachers and their progression from novice towards the tacit knowledge and practice of an expert teacher. The investigation also drew conclusions regarding the role of administrators, mentors, peers, induction programs, and non-professional support as they related to the assistance of novice teachers.