Glossary
Chapter 6 Valuable Insights Revealed: A presentation and analysis of the key findings of the study
6.3 Training Received by Teachers on the New Forms of Assessment .1 A Presentation of the Training Sessions
6.3.3 Training at School Level
141
listen, the workshops are not so beneficial because most of the things we do know.”
Given the multi-faceted nature of the way in which the learning process unfolds, perhaps a multi-channel learning approach as advocated by Siemens (2005) might be a more favourable stance to adopt with regard to teacher learning. Off-site initiatives would essentially
constitute only one avenue for promoting teacher learning.
Basically, this would entail people learning from outside influences and using the
opportunities presented in a constructive way. By viewing off-site initiatives in this way the possibility that teachers would begin to see the value of these learning opportunities in paving the way for the development of existing knowledge structures and for additional learning to transpire, would be increased. In this respect, Elmore (1997) suggests that while off-site training does provide teachers with access to new ideas and inspires teachers to attempt new instructional practices, it does not necessarily result in radical changes with regard to teacher practices, especially if not supported by direct assistance in the classroom and the school.
Such support was encountered and experienced, as training at school level at Sterling Primary, the details of which are detailed below.
142
“Although, there are subject specialists among us, they are also finding it difficult to cope with the changes. We are all sailing in the same boat.”
The above sentiments expressed by Kajil reflect a sense that, while educators may be considered as experts in certain areas, they may still be amateurs in others. The implications of these sentiments for the novice/expert divide become problematic, in that the distinction between these two terms becomes blurred. Furthermore, simply categorising teachers as either a novice or an expert seems far too simplistic, since the data above reflect that even so- called expert teachers require development in certain key areas, with assessment being one of them.
To this end, Horii (2007) asserts that it is a fallacy for teachers to believe that they have attained the status as experts in their field, by simply having acquired a certain amount of knowledge. Kajil is a case in point. While she was a subject specialist in Natural Science, her admission of experiencing challenges in implementing the new assessment forms suggests that she needed to (like her colleagues) extend her knowledge of assessment, as well as develop her competence in the assessment of learners. Furthermore, the complexities associated with the notion that learning more changes the way we know has serious
implications for the way teachers learn. The advantage that experts have over novices in the profession is that the former have extensive prior knowledge and experience, in practical contexts, which guides them towards a way of organising their knowledge, in a deep and insightful manner (National Research Council, 2000). This ability to organise knowledge in a deep and insightful manner is evident in the following sentiments from Neel:
“The language in new assessment policy documents seems like Greek. If you are not a teacher experienced in that subject, you are going to get cooked. I have tried to sit down and translate this Greek to English. When NCS was first introduced, I spent the first six months going through the fancy documents to understand them. Then I put these away and taught according to what I know works well. My approach to incorporating the new assessment principles in my teaching has been to start with translating policy documents into terms and concepts that were easily identifiable with those that I had previously used in my teaching.”
143
While Neel alluded to the complex nature of learning about the new assessment forms, the fact that he did try to interpret what was being conveyed in policy documents suggests that the ability to derive meaning through translating the policy documents into familiar terms was something that was within the capability of an experienced teacher. Through interacting with policy documents in this way, Neel was in fact extending his knowledge by making meaningful links with the new and old ways of assessing learners. This would suggest that Neel was in fact developing deep knowledge about issues pertaining to assessment.
In addition, the thinking that experts tend to have a less difficult time accessing and using their knowledge by virtue of their intuition (National Research Council, 2000) is evident in Priya‟s sentiments:
“We as teachers know our subject matter and we know our learners. We use this knowledge of our learners and subject matter, along with our discretion, as well as the information that we are given in policy implementation guidelines, to draw up our own assessments accordingly.”
Priya was in a position to use a combination of her subject knowledge, experiential knowledge and content knowledge of assessment to design her own assessment activities.
Priya‟s assertion that she used her discretion to align assessment tasks to suit the calibre of her learners, while simultaneously attempting to fulfil policy requirements, suggests that she was in a position to organise her subject knowledge as well as her knowledge of assessment, and to access concepts and skills needed to implement the new assessment forms. This suggests that she was in fact developing her expertise in assessment.
However, the acknowledgement that no one is a permanent expert is a significant one (Hori, 2007), as Neel asserts:
“There is always lots of learning to be done as a teacher. We do increase our knowledge over time.”
144
Neel's sentiments allude to the notion that teachers are continuously engaged in a process of learning, suggesting that learning is indeed an ongoing process for members of the teaching fraternity. This makes sense if we consider the fact that we live in a complex world characterised by constant change which suggests that knowledge is tentative (Barnett, 1999/2002). Consequently, teachers are constantly involved in improving their skills and knowledge to cope with challenges in different contexts (Kelly, 2002), with the implication that they are novices throughout their careers. If we accept that a professional teacher‟s capability to cope with change requires the capacity to learn, (Visser, 1997) then it follows that teachers should constantly be developing their expertise, as Kajil suggests:
“I realise things have changed, therefore we have to change. You have to keep pace with the changes. With the new forms of assessment, we are now bombarded with too much information, so we try to cope and do the best we can.”
Being aware of the impermanence of expert status is critical in advancing one‟s learning. In addition, the realisation that intellectual change need not, proceed smoothly in one direction, necessitates an acceptance of the fact that change is not a linear process. Neel‟s constant back and forth engagement with assessment policies and practices that he used in the past and with those advocated by the new assessment policy, bears testimony to the fact that rather than being a linear process, change is in fact an iterative process. Hence, adopting the notion that an educator may be considered an expert at times and yet still a novice at others (Barack &
Yinon, 2005) seems an apt one.
To this end, Horri (2007) speaks of cognitive dissonance, which refers to a situation when one realises the limitations of the current ways of learning and knowing in a particular context. Such a stance can be equated to experiencing a detour, whereby immense support is required. This manifested itself in the participants in the study seeking support from peers at their school, as well as colleagues from other schools. This will be detailed in section 6.3.2.
Furthermore, dissonance provides the platform for teachable moments when something has to change and before one can proceed with learning. However, dissonance alone is inadequate in the promotion of deep and permanent learning (Horri, 2007). This refers to the necessity for further measures to be taken to facilitate deep and sustained learning. The manner in which participants attempted to acquire such learning about the process of assessment is detailed in section 6.3.
145
While school-based teacher learning presents a meaningful platform for exploring practices through building support networks, thus allowing for discussion as a suitable knowledge base of teaching, the tendency for such discussions to narrowly equate teaching with the act of merely transmitting knowledge as well as the best means of achieving this still tends to dominate much site-based learning (Shoonmaker, 2002). This situation continues to prevail, despite research that highlights the fact that learning occurs not only through content
exposure but also through interaction, reflection and cognition (Siemens, 2005). The manner in which on-site development was conducted at Sterling Primary, where information in the policy documents, was merely cascaded to the teachers present, bears testimony to the above.