Learning in the Practicum: Engaging Pre-service Teachers in Reflective Practice in the Online Space
Source: Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, Volume 42, Issue 2, 2014, pages 132-146
This article describes a project designed to improve the practicum in rural areas.
The researchers placed pre-service teachers (PSTs) in two different moderated online discussion forums: an unstructured personal blog space and a structured threaded discussion forum where discussion topics guided them to reflect on their practicum experiences in relation to theoretical components of their studies.
The findings indicated a marked difference in the contributions made to each form of online discussion with significantly greater participation in the unstructured blog format.
Furthermore, the analyses of both forums found that PSTs rarely engaged in high-level reflection.
Examination of lecturer involvement in the forums suggests that their contributions did not sufficiently encourage PSTs towards optimum critical reflection.