ABSTRACT
Reflective thinking can be described as the ‘Active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusions to which it tends’ (Dewey, 1933, p. 9). Understanding such thinking in pre, during and post teaching experiences is a guide to how reflection influences practice. To explore these periods of reflection the four student-teachers’ interview-observation-interview episodes from the video-taped lessons were analysed. However, it is important to remember that these times of reflection are very much context dependent. Context embraces domains such as: content knowledge, experience, time, action, feelings and self-confidence. All of these vary in different situations. Understanding the context for each of the four student-teachers is important in understanding the analysis of their reflection and how it influenced their thinking and practice. The case-studies in Chapter 9 illustrated how each student-teacher approached their teaching. The context in which they functioned was different and the focus of their reflection varied accordingly.
