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Substantive dialogue using evidence of practice evokes reflection, and as Frances
explains, the preservice teacher considers what they have taught and importantly
why they made those decisions. She recognised the effects of bringing forth the
often hidden thoughts of why the preservice teacher planned and taught in the way
that they did through suspending judgement to open up spaces for discussion.
Akin to the comments from teaching fellows and clinical specialists, mentor
teachers acknowledged that particular aspects of the Teaching Tracker Tool
increased the preservice teacher’s reflective capacity. For Mikaela, elements of the
tool including the ‘proximity and verbal flow data was an excellent way to give
objective feedback so student teachers reflect on their own without you having to
say a criticism as such’ (Mikaela, Mentor Teacher). As Mikaela suggests, the role of
the mentor teacher is no longer that of critic – instead space is opened up for reflec-
tion. William, a preservice teacher, pronounced the post-lesson discussion using the
tool as ‘very useful. It allowed me to reflect’. This was echoed by preservice teacher
Kim who explained that ‘[I]t made it easier to reflect on my own teaching practice
[and as well, we were] able to give feedback to other preservice teachers easier’.
Similarly, Milo explained that the T3:
helped me to reflect on my lesson and work out for myself which things I should improve.
It gave me some immediate feedback straight after class, but I could also look at it at a later
time. It wasn’t just things like ‘you did this really well’, because I usually know what I’ve
done well. It was more than that. (Milo, Preservice Teacher)
In his senior mathematics classes, Jay identified data from the T3 that indicated
that students in the back of the class were not following class instruction, and this
generated a process of reflection leading to change:
The T3 was great for pinpointing particular aspects of my practice where, in this case, it
highlighted the difficulties students were having with regard to their seating location, which
affected the audible and visible components of the lesson. Without the aid of an observing
teacher and the T3, this issue may have been left unattended. Having a debriefing after-
wards also proved helpful in brainstorming ways to improve practice in specific areas. (Jay,
Preservice Teacher)
Jay decided to podcast key mathematics concepts as it:
Allowed students to view teacher instruction regardless of location and pace. It also benefit-
ted me... in rehearsing how the content could be delivered in-class. (Jay, Preservice
Teacher)
In this data, the relationship between the preservice teachers and their teacher
educators has shifted as the participants now focus on making sense of evidence
together. The provision of descriptive observation evidence provided greater agency
to the preservice teachers and allowed for deeper reflective dialogue. This led to
conversations during placement that tended to be a more collaborative sharing of
ideas and was altogether more collegial. By coming together around the task, the
object of activity was expanded, and this led to improvements in the quality of
teaching practice for the preservice teacher. Participants also incidentally reported
that this approach led to growth for the observers.
J. Kriewaldt et al.