From beliefs to practices: The gap in reflective teaching among university teacher educators
Reflective Teaching (RT) is considered a tool that enables teachers to think about educational events in a thoughtful, analytical, and objective manner. A limited number of studies have addressed RT in Arab universities in general and in teacher preparation programs in particular. Thus, the researcher conducted this mixed-method study to explore the beliefs about RT from the perspective of University Teacher Educators (UTEs) and compare them with their actual practices. The study included all UTEs in the teacher preparation program at Hashemite University, totaling 20 UTEs. They were asked to complete a questionnaire assessing beliefs about RT. Based on the findings, a group of 5 UTEs was selected for classroom observations, interviews, and the analysis of their lesson plans and reports. The results revealed that UTEs believe they adopt RT practices to a high degree before, during, and after classroom sessions. Classroom observations and interviews indicated that RT practices were nearly positive during class, with classrooms being learner-centered and rich in RT practices. However, RT practices before and after class were found to be negative and less apparent, contradicting their stated beliefs. The study recommends providing sufficient guidance and training for UTEs in RT skills and strategies, encouraging them to integrate these practices into their professional development. The findings suggest that classrooms implementing RT can be considered successful.
Downloads
Ayers, J., Bryant, J., & Missimer, M. (2020). The use of reflective pedagogies in sustainability leadership education—a case study. Sustainability, 12(17), 6726. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176726
Barton, G., & Ryan, M. (2014). Multimodal approaches to reflective teaching and assessment in higher education. Higher Education Research & Development, 33(3), 409-424. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2013.841650
Becerra Sepúlveda, C., Picol Córdova, C., Silva Martínez, E., & Tapia Pavez, V. (2024). Incidence of teacher reflection on the teacher's understanding of diversity and its role in the transition to inclusive education. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 24(4), 869-881. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12674
Bennett, D., Power, A., Thomson, C., Mason, B., & Bartleet, B. (2016). Reflection for learning, learning for reflection: Developing Indigenous competencies in higher education. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.53761/1.13.2.7
Bharuthram, S. (2018). Reflecting on the process of teaching reflection in higher education. ReflectivePractice, 19(6),806-817. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2018.1539655
Bloom, B. (1956). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Cognitive domain. Ed. by BS Bloom. vol. 2. Affective domain, by DR Krathwohl and others. Longmans.
Boud, D., & Molloy, E. (2013). Feedback in Higher and Professional Education: Understanding It and Doing It Well. Routledge.
Brookfield, S. (2017). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. John Wiley & Sons.
Calderhead, J. (1989). Reflective teaching and teacher education. Teaching and teacher education, 5(1), 43-51. https://doi.org/10.1016/0742-051X(89)90018-8
Chan, C. & Luo, J. (2022). Exploring teacher perceptions of different types of ‘feedback practices’ in higher education: implications for teacher feedback literacy. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 47(1), 61-76. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2021.1888074
Colomer, J., Serra, T., Cañabate, D., & Bubnys, R. (2020). Reflective learning in higher education: Active methodologies for transformative practices. Sustainability, 12(9), 3827. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093827
Darling-Hammond, L., Flook, L., Cook-Harvey, C., Barron, B., & Osher, D. (2020). Implications for educational practice of the science of learning and development. Applied developmental science, 24(2), 97-140. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888691.2018.1537791
Dervent, F. (2015). The effect of reflective thinking on the teaching practices of preservice physical education teachers. Issues in Educational Research, 25(3), 260-275.
Dewey, J. (1933). How we Think: A Restatement of the Relation of Reflective Thinking to the Educative Process.Boston, MA: DC Health and Company.
Farrell, T. & Ives, J. (2015). Exploring teacher beliefs and classroom practices through reflective practice: A case study. Language teaching research, 19(5), 594-610. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168814541722
Fraser, S. (2019). Understanding innovative teaching practice in higher education: A framework for reflection. Higher Education Research & Development, 38(7), 1371-1385. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2019.1654439
Freeman, D. (1989). Teacher Training, Development and Decision Making: A Modelof Teaching and Related Strategies for Language Teacher Education, TESOL QUARTERLY, 23, 1,27-45. https://doi.org/10.2307/3587506
Freire, P. (2020). Pedagogy of the oppressed. In Toward a sociology of education (pp. 374-386). Routledge.
Gibbs, G. (2013). Reflections on the changing nature of educational development. International journal for academic development, 18(1), 4-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360144X.2013.751691
Greene, J. C., Caracelli, V. J., & Graham, W. F. (1989). Toward a conceptual framework for mixed-method evaluation designs. Educational evaluation and policy analysis, 11(3), 255-274. https://doi.org/10.3102/01623737011003255
Guo, L. (2022). How should reflection be supported in higher education? —A meta-analysis of reflection interventions. Reflective Practice, 23(1), 118-146. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2021.1995856
Guskey, T. R. (2014). On your mark: Challenging the conventions of grading and reporting. solution tree press.
Hamilton, M. (2018). Bridging the gap from teacher to teacher educator: The role of a teaching portfolio. Studying Teacher Education, 14(1), 88-102. https://doi.org/10.1080/17425964.2017.1414041
Harvey, M., & Vlachopoulos, P. (2020). What a difference a day makes: Reflection retreats as academic development in higher education. Journal of further and Higher Education, 44(3), 378-392. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2018.1541976
Hattie, J. (2008). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. routledge.
Herbert, K., & van der Laan, L. (2024). Towards a typology of learning and teaching professional development practice uptake by university academics in Australia. Professional development in education, 50(5), 862-877. https://doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2021.1973068
Johnson, D., & Johnson, R. (2021). Learning together and alone: The history of our involvement in cooperative learning. In Pioneering perspectives in cooperative learning (pp. 44-62). Routledge.
Karlen, Y., Hirt, C. N., Jud, J., Rosenthal, A., & Eberli, T. D. (2023). Teachers as learners and agents of self-regulated learning: The importance of different teachers competence aspects for promoting metacognition. Teaching and Teacher Education, 125, 104055. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104055
Katsiveli, S. (2023,). In Search of an ‘I’ and a ‘We’ in ‘Team’”: A Group-Analytic Tool for Teaching Teamwork. In The International Conference on Strategic Innovative Marketing and Tourism (pp. 9-17). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. 10.1007/978-3-031-51038-0_2
Koutroubas, V., & Galanakis, M. (2022). Bandura’s social learning theory and its importance in the organizational psychology context. Psychology, 12(6), 315-322. 10.17265/2159-5542/2022.06.001
Kreber, C. (2013). Authenticity in and through teaching in higher education: The transformative potential of the scholarship of teaching. Routledge.
Light, G., Calkins, S. & Cox, R. (2009). Learning and teaching in higher education: The reflective professional.
Locke, E., & Latham, G. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705–717. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.57.9.705
Machost, H., & Stains, M. (2023). Reflective practices in education: A primer for practitioners. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 22(2), es2. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.22-07-0148
Moon, J. (2013). Reflection in learning and professional development: Theory and practice. Routledge.
Munna, A., & Kalam, M. (2021). Teaching and learning process to enhance teaching effectiveness: a literature review. International Journal of Humanities and Innovation (IJHI), 4(1), 1-4. https://doi.org/10.33750/ijhi.v4i1.102
Perrotta, K., & Bohan, C. (2020). A reflective study of online faculty teaching experiences in higher education. Journal of Effective Teaching in Higher Education, 3(1), 50-66.
https://doi.org/10.36021/jethe.v3i1.9
Piaget, J. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children. International University.
Pollard, A., & Collins, J. (2005). Reflective teaching. A&C Black.
Prenger, R., Poortman, C., & Handelzalts, A. (2017). Factors influencing teachers’ professional development in networked professional learning communities. Teaching and teacher education, 68, 77-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.08.014
Richter, E., Brunner, M., & Richter, D. (2021). Teacher educators’ task perception and its relationship to professional identity and teaching practice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 101, 103303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103303
Rogers, R. R. (2001). Reflection in higher education: A concept analysis. Innovative higher education, 26, 37-57. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010986404527
Rossman, G. B., & Rallis, S. F. (2016). An introduction to qualitative research: Learning in the field. Sage Publications.
Ryan, M. (2011). Improving reflective writing in higher education: A social semiotic perspective. Teaching in higher education, 16(1), 99-111. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2010.507311
Ryan, M. (2012). Conceptualising and teaching discursive and performative reflection in higher education. Studies in Continuing education, 34(2), 207-223. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2011.611799
Ryan, M. (2013). The pedagogical balancing act: Teaching reflection in higher education. Teaching in higher education, 18(2), 144-155. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2012.694104
Ryan, M. (2015). Teaching reflective learning in higher education-A systematic approach using pedagogic patterns.
Ryan, M., & Ryan, M. (2013). Theorising a model for teaching and assessing reflective learning in higher education. Higher Education Research & Development, 32(2), 244-257. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2012.661704
Saxena, A. (2023). Reflection and Reflective Practice in Higher Education Educators. McGill University (Canada).
Schon, D. (1987). Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass
Silver, R., Kogut, G., & Huynh, T. (2019). Learning “new” instructional strategies: Pedagogical innovation, teacher professional development, understanding and concerns. Journal of Teacher Education, 70(5), 552-566. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487119844712
Sims, S., & Fletcher-Wood, H. (2021). Identifying the characteristics of effective teacher professional development: a critical review. School effectiveness and school improvement, 32(1), 47-63. https://doi.org/10.1080/09243453.2020.1772841
Smith, B., & Wyness, L. (2024). What makes professional teacher development in universities effective? Lessons from an international systematised review. Professional Development in Education, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2024.2386666
Soodmand, H., & Farahani, M. (2018). Inhibitors to EFL teachers’ reflective teaching and EFL learners’ reflective thinking and the role of teaching experience and academic degree in reflection perception. Reflective Practice, 19(1), 46-67. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2017.1351353
Stenhouse, L. (1975). An introduction to Curriculum Research and Development. London: Heinemann Education
Sutherland, K. (2018). Holistic academic development: Is it time to think more broadly about the academic development project?. International Journal for Academic Development, 23(4), 261-273. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360144X.2018.1524571
Tight, M. (2024). Reflection: an assessment and critique of a pervasive trend in higher education. European Journal of Higher Education, 14(2), 324-342. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568235.2023.2193345
Topping, K. 2020). Peer tutoring and cooperative learning. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education.
Van Beveren, L., Roets, G., Buysse, A., & Rutten, K. (2018). We all reflect, but why? A systematic review of the purposes of reflection in higher education in social and behavioral sciences. Educational Research Review, 24, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2018.01.002
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes (Vol. 86). Harvard university press.
Wangpo, K., Wangmo, S., Chaudhuri, K., & Pelden, Y. (2021). Reflective Practices in Teaching: A Study on Faculties of Royal University of Bhutan Colleges. Asian Journal of Education and Social Studies, 20(2), 50-63. 10.9734/ajess/2021/v20i230483
Zeichner, K. (1994). Research on teacher thinking and different views of reflective practice in teaching and teacher education. Teachers’ minds and actions: Research on teachers’ thinking and practice, 9-27.
Zeichner, K. & Liston, D. (2013). Reflective teaching: An introduction. Routledge.
Copyright (c) 2026 Mohammad Ahmad Alkhateeb
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Jurnal Cakrawala Pendidikan, Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan, with ISSN: 0216-1370, is published by the Institute of Education Development and Quality Assurance (LPPMP UNY). Cakrawala Pendidikan has been recently has been re-accredited by Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture decision Number 230/E/KPT/2022 which is valid for five years since enacted on 30 December 2022.
