CLASSROOM PRACTICE OF PUBLIC SCHOOLTEACHERS IN KATHMANDU
By
SarmilaPokhrel
This thesis is submitted to the Tribhuvan University
In the partial fulfillment of the requirements for
The Master of Philosophy in Education
Presented on 4th February 2013
1
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to explore teachers' approach to collegial learning and reflective teaching. I applied auto ethnography research, self-inquiry, and self-reflection theory for it. I triangulated data theoretically, experientially, and tool wise for their authenticity.
Exploring our diverse experiences of learning and teaching through individual and collective narratives, I learnt the rooted cultural approach to learning and teaching. I understood that my fellow teachers were not committed and dedicated to the self reflection in their professional life. They were not found reflective to develop the habit of telling and retelling their success and failures of their practices with self and others before the action and after the action. I didn't find my fellow teachers motivated intrinsically for self-inquiry and self-reflection upon their practice. It means, the real work of transferring learning skills in teaching had not come from teachers own reflection.
In this study I found myself detached from the rooted culture of teacher's professional life. Here I realized that a teacher can be professional by applying self-inquiry and self-reflection practices: training and other exposures to the teachers might have additive value on it.
LIBRARY RELEASE FORM
NAME OF AUTHOR: SarmilaPokhrel
TITLE: Auto ethnography: A research method exploring my learning and teaching skills collaborating with my fellow teachers
DEGREE: Master of Philosophy
YEAR THIS DEGREE GRANTED: 2013 A.D.
Permission is hereby granted to Tribhuvan University Library to reproduce copies of this thesis and to lend or sell such copies for private, scholarly or scientific research purposes only.
The author reserves publication and other rights in association with the copy right in the thesis, and except as herein before provided neither the thesis nor any substantial portion thereof may be printed or otherwise reproduced in any material form whatever without the author's permission.
……………………….
SarmilaPokhrel
Sanothimi, Bhaktapur
Date:February 4, 2013
DECLARATION
I hereby declare that this dissertation has not been submitted for the candidature for any other degree.
………………………..
SarmilaPokhrel, Degree Candidate February 4, 2013
ACCEPTANCE AND RECOMENDATION
Master of Philosophy in Education dissertation of SarmilaPokhrel Presented on
February 4, 2013.
APPROVED
………………………… February 4, 2013
Prof. Dr. BidhyaNathKoirala
Thesis Supervisor
……………………….. February 4, 2013
Dr. BhojRaj Sharma Kafle
External Examiner
……………………………… February 4, 2013
Prof. Dr. Divya man Karmachary
External Examiner
…………………………… February 4, 2013
Dr. ChitraBahadurBudhathoki
Member of research committee
DEDICATION
This Thesis is dedicated to my father Mr. Bishnu Prasad Pokhrel, mother Ms Mana Maya Pokhrel and my husband Mr. Dinesh Prasad Devkota in honor of their contributions to achieve this success and make me what I am now.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my sincere thanks to my thesis supervisor Prof. Dr. BidhyaNathKoirala, Co-ordinator of M.Phil program in Education, Tribhuvan University for his scholarly and continuous guidance. I am intrinsically motivated by his kind and sociable method of giving suggestion to reflect and explore my own practice in teaching learning activities that led me all the way throughout the development of this dissertation to this stage.
I wish to extend my special thanks to all the teachers who provided me their valuable time for interview and class observation.
Similarly, I would like to provide sincere thanks to Dr. Lava DeoAwasthi, Dr. AnandaPoudel, and Dr. Dil Prasad Shreatha for their valuable suggestions during this research study.
I would like to express sincere thanks to Mr. JawaharLalHamal and Ms.RaminaShrestha and Mr. Rajendra Sing Saud who really inspired me toward this study. I would like to express sincere thanks to M. phil. staffs for their valuable support during my study.
I would like to express my honor to my father and mother who show me the way of life. Likewise, I would like to give heartfelt thanks to my husband MrDinesh Prasad Devkota who has given me continuous inspiration to my study. At last I would like to give thanks to my two daughters Dikshya and SagunDevkota who always inspire me to go ahead in the way of my life.
SarmilaPokhrel
TABLE OF CONTENT
ABSTRACT
LIBRARY RELEASE FORM
DECLARATION
ACCEPTANCE AND RECOMENDATION
DEDICATION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
TABLE OF CONTENT
LIST OF TABLE
CHAPTER-I
INTRODUCTION
The Research Context
Exploring the learning skills
Exploring of teaching skill
Research questions
Need for study
Epistemological/Theoretical bases
Conceptual framework
CHAPTER-II
REFLECTING THE LITERATURE
CHAPTER-III
METHODOLOGY
Multiple textual representations
Triple crisis of auto ethnography
Philosophy of my reflective understanding
Self-inquiry and self-reflection as the method of my study
Unit of analysis
Ethical consideration
CHAPTER-IV
JOURNEY OF LEARNING
a) My brief journey of learning in the childhood
b) My journey of learning in lower secondary level
c) My journey of learning in secondary level
d) My journey of learning in PCL level
e) My journey of learning in Bachelor level
f) My journey of learning in master level
g) My journey of learning in M. Phil level
JOURNEY OF TEACHING
a) My journey of teaching before the B. Ed degree
b) My journey of teaching after B. Ed degree
CHAPTER-V
ANALYSIS OF THE STUDY
Learning in professional life
a) Passion and devotion for learning and teaching
b) Knowledge generation from parents and grandparents
c) Knowledge generation from children
d) Knowledge generation from students
e) Knowledge generation through reflective practice
f) Knowledge generation from other resources
Teachers' practice to transfer learning skills to the classroom
a) Interaction and presentation
Interaction and presentation practice in classroom
b) Taking feedback and comments
c) Cooperation and collaboration
d) Creating real life situation
e) Using technology
f) Selection of appropriate methods and techniques to teach differently
g) Reflective journal
h) Adoption of counseling technique
a) Motivational gaps
b) Professional gaps
C) Technological gaps
Plans to minimize these gaps
a) Develop the professional competency through passion
b) Students involvement in policy making
c) Practice of self-reflection in profession
CHAPTER-VI
FINDINGS, DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
Findings
Discussion
Conclusion
Reflection
Implication for future professional life
Recommendation for further research
References
Appendix-1
Appendix-2
Appendix-3
LIST OF TABLE
Table -1 49
Table-2 54
Table-3 58
Table-4 61
Table-5 68
Table- 6 71
Table-7 73
Table-8 75
Table-9 77
Table-10 78
Table-11 80
Table-12 82
1
CHAPTER-I
INTRODUCTION
"Reflection informs preparation"
- Digiulio C. Robert (2004:42)
The Research Context
The above quotation inspired me to be a reflective teacher for quality education. Generally, reflection offers the information for preparation. Especially, reflection in teaching learning activities proposes information to the teachers for improvement. So, I chose the auto ethnography as the research method and self-inquiry and self-reflection as the theory of inquiry to examine my past to prepare for the future by exploring my way of learning skills from the child hood to date of the research and transformation of my learned skills to teaching for seventeen years.
Auto ethnography is the research method forself-inquiry in my research. Before I selected my research area, I read a book called 'Great Teaching' to be a reflective teacher. I thought, I need to be professionalize myself (Koirala; 2008) and come up with new ideas to address the issues of quality education. Once Koirala (2068:445) says either we stop the journey of learning being satisfied or increase our learning to be curious. I thought, I should not stop the journey of learning being satisfied but to continue it to be curious. I also raised the questions myself" when to start if not now and who will start if not I?" For this issue, I needed to be reflective in learning and teaching. We need to minimize the habit of saying what is not doing and maximize the habit of doing what is saying for the professional development. The above saying of reflection also enabled me to explore my own way of learning and teaching.
I was sincere to the research area from the beginning when I enrolled in M. Phil. At first, I tried to go with the effectiveness of teachers' training to improve quality of public schools. In second semester, I was little bit inspired by leadership and tried to develop my ideas towards quality education which is the current issues of our country. Then I coined my research title 'teacher's leadership to quality education in public school where my area was the teacher's leadership and quality education. I prepared research proposal and submitted to Dr. Lava DeoAwasti. He suggested me that teachers don't have leadership role in quality education. Instead teachers have the role of teaching and learning activities.Later I realized that application of training required the teachers' reflection to their profession. Then I remembered the lecture of Dr. BalchandraLuitel who had taught us about his praxis and suggested us to read Parker Palmer's book 'The Courage to Teach.' I was influenced to be the reflective teacher for the better performance in my profession.
Then I realized thatI need to explore my own teaching learning activities being reflective professional. To this issue, I read the book suggested by Bal Chandra Luitel 'The Courage to Teach: Exploring the inner landscape of a teacher's life' of Parker Palmer. According to palmer (1998:2) "When I don't know myself, I can't know who my students are, I will see them through a glass darkly, in the shadow of my unexamined life and when I can't see them clearly, I can't teach them well. When I don't know myself, I can't know my subject-not at the deepest levels of embodied, personal meaning".
Then I was curious to explore how is the current practice of teachers along with me to apply the learning skills to teaching profession being reflective professional. Then I consulted it to my supervisor with some curiosity to explore how do the teachers learn and how do they apply these learnt skills in real class room situation. I also wanted to find the gap in my teaching and learning skills. He suggested me to make the format of teaching and learning skills and prepare research questions. When I started making the format, I reviewed so many literatures that inspired me to explore my own method of learning and teaching skills along with others as a reflective teacher.
For this investigation, I again consulted to my supervisor. He inspired me to read the thesis of BalchandraLuitel and ShasidharBelbase to get the knowledge about auto ethnography and go ahead as my wish. At first, I prepared an essay about auto ethnography as my research method. As I presented it through the power point, I got so many ideas about auto ethnography from my teachers and colleagues. Then, I reviewed the literatures about auto ethnography for exploring own learning and teaching skills in teaching learning activities. From the literature, I learned that auto ethnography research method is very suitable to explore own teaching and learning and its collaboration with other teachers which is the current issue for quality education.
Again I read Denzin and Lincoln (2005) and derived the ideas that self-reflection research method covers a deep and wide area. From them, I understood that reflective elements of auto ethnography can make more self-aware research. Along with the self-reflection, self-inquiry (Dhakal; 2011) is another form of research method to ask the questions (1) what have I been learning and teaching? (2) How have I been learning and teaching? (3) Why have I been learning and teaching (4) who am I that have been learning and teaching?
Then I searched in Google about auto ethnography as a research method used by English teachers in Nepalese context, I found an article published in NELTA journal (2005) entitled Auto ethnographic Research: An Emerging Methodology in Nepalese ELT Scenarioby Koirala , Belbase, Sanjel, Pageni. From this article I learned that auto ethnography method can be used to improve the educative and pedagogical practices in ELT which demands the use of personal narratives for uncovering the self.
Etymologically, the word auto ethnography comprises of three different words: auto, ethno and graphy which signify the textual representation of one's own personal experiences in his/her social, political, economic and cultural context (Luitel;2003).
Auto ethnography is
"….research, writing and method that connects the autobiographical and personal to the cultural, political and social context. This form usually features concrete action, emotion, embodiment, self-consciousness and introspection…and claims the conventions of literary writing"(Ellis and Bochner; 2000 inBelbase; 2006).
Further, Jones(2005:765) states that auto ethnography involves setting a scene, telling a story, weaving intricate connections among life and art, experience and theory, evocation and explanation….and then letting go hoping for readers who will bring the same careful attention to our words in the context of their own lives. Auto ethnography writing can be depicted as the metaphor of a camera (Ellis & Bochner; 2000 in Luitel; 2003) which focuses on rarely heard stories.
In auto ethnography, the author of an evocative narrative writes in the first person, making him or her object of research and thus breaching the conventional separation of researcher and subject (EllisBochner; 2000 in Belbase; 2006).
According to Denzin & Lincoln (2005:764) "Auto ethnography is a performance that asks how our personal accounts count". Denzin & Lincoln(2005) further states that auto ethnography is multiple reflections. It is a balancing act which works to hold self and culture together. It writes a world in a state of flux and movement-between story and context, writer and reader, crisis and denouement. It creates charged moments of clarity, connection, and change.
From the above definition, it can be understood that auto ethnography is a self-critical reflective form of writing where the author uses his or her life experiences in some topics of discussion and it should be understood as a mere autobiographical narration but it is to describe significant points of life in definite political, social, economic and cultural context seeking changes and improvement. I have tried to convince that my exploring on learning and teaching skills through the auto ethnographical research method would coin the reflection of my pedagogical practices.
Exploring the learning skills
"If we are not hungry, we are less likely to learn where the food is located then we are striving".
-Tolman (in Klein 1996: 316)
Learning skills refer to the skills that make learning possible. In other words, learning skills actually mean learning strategies or learning methods or learning techniques." In modern English, learning skill refers to the ability that comes from knowledge, practice, aptitude to do something well or to a competent excellence in performance" ( www; audiblox. com on 10th April-2012). So, learning is a special kind of ability which comes from knowledge for better performance. It is acquiring new or modifying existing knowledge, behavior, skill, values and may involve synthesizing different types of information.
Learning is not compulsory but it is contextual. "Learning doesn't happen all at once, but builds upon and is shaped by what we already know. To that end, learning may be viewed as a process, rather than a collection of factual and procedural knowledge( on 10th April 20012).
Jean(1997)further elaborates the meaning of learning. For the author "Learning could be considered a complex, transformational facet of everyday life". It may occur as a result of habituation. For human beings, learning may occur as a part of education, personal development, schooling etc. It may be goal oriented and may be aided by motivation. The study of how learning occurs is part of neuropsychology, educational psychology, learning theory and pedagogy ( on 10th April 20012).
According to the cognitive approach, learning involves the recognizing of when important events are likely to occur and understanding of how to attain reward and avoid punishment. According to constructivism, "Learners construct understanding that makes sense to them, new learning depends on current understanding, social interaction facilitates learning, the most meaningful learning occurs within real-world tasks" (Digiulio; 2004:54).
One of the most widely used models of learning styles is the 'Index of Learning Styles' developed by Richard Felder and Linda Silverman in the late 1980s. According to this model (which Felder revised in 2002) there are four dimensions of learning styles. These dimensions are continuum with one learning preference on the far left and the other on the far right ( on 15th April 2012).
Learning Styles Index:
Sensory / / IntuitiveSensory learners prefer concrete, practical, and procedural information. They look for the facts.
/ Intuitive learners prefer conceptual, innovative, and theoretical information. They look for the meaning.
Visual / / Verbal
Visual learners prefer graphs, pictures, and diagrams. They look for visual representations of information. / Verbal learners prefer to hear or read information. They look for explanations with words.
Active / / Reflective
Active learners prefer to manipulate objects, do physical experiments, and learn by trying. They enjoy working in groups to figure out problems. / Reflective learners prefer to think things through, to evaluate options, and learn by analysis. They enjoy figuring out a problem on their own.
Sequential / / Global
Sequential learners prefer to have information presented linearly and in an orderly manner. They put together the details in order to understand the big picture emerges. / Global learners prefer a holistic and systematic approach. They see the big picture first and then fill in the details.
Source: "( April 2012 AD)
If we know where the preferences lie on each of these dimensions, we can begin to stretch beyond those preferences and develop a more balanced approach to learning. Not only we improve our learning effectiveness, we will open up ourselves to many different ways of perceiving the world.