ABSTRACT
Darling-Hammond (1997) aptly points out characteristics of teacher learning: “Teachers learn just as their students do: by studying, doing, and reflecting; by col laboration with other teachers; by looking closely at students and their work; and by sharing what they see” (p. 319). This passage epitomizes what is involved in profes sional development initiatives in Japan. Darling-Hammond further suggests several strategies that result in effective professional development (p. 326). They include: experiential learning in tasks of teaching, assessment, and observation; grounding in teachers’ questions and inquiry; teacher collaboration and sharing of knowledge; and sustained modeling, coaching, and problem solving (see Darling-Hammond & McLaughlin, 1995). These strategies for professional development, considered and tried in the U. S., are closely related to the approach that Japanese teachers have been using for some time. We pointed out in chapter Two that teaching is learned, trans mitted, and reformulated as craft in Japan, and Japanese teachers commonly view craft knowledge as embedded in teacher-generated experience and knowledge. Given their view of teaching as craft, experiential learning, which focuses on teacher collaboration and reflection, is central to school-based teacher development and other peer-driven initiatives.
