Chapter Notes: The Practical-Argument Staff Development process

Virginia Richardson and Mary Lynn Hamilton

Teachers as Inquirers has been used as a constructivist way of explicating beliefs and understandings about teaching and students for staff development.

Process/product studies identify the underlying variables through correlational studies, then use staff development training as a treatment to test relationships between teacher behavior and student outcomes.

"A practical argument is a device used to assist teachers in examining their beliefs and possibly reconstructing the. These beliefs consist of four types of premises: value, situational, empirical, and stipulative. Together, these arguments represent an intention for action."

In watching videotapes, teachers are asked to stop the tape whenever they wanted to discuss what occurred. They were asked to describe their rationale for instruction, and about their performance.

Participants who gave a presentation about something that came up in discussion embedded a medium high amount of theory and research, had high audience interest and generated considerable discussion and questions.

Advisory Committee as External Evaluators

I've been wondering about this. The advisory committee is given the research questions and goals. They are brought together to ask the critical questions on whether the design and process are yielding credible and practical evidence. Do they judge the worth or merit of the research design and process at all?

As an internal evaluator I act as a critical friend, asking what are we trying to find out. I think this is a characteristic of any good researcher. This is a meta-role. The person looking at what is being done, but also doing it at the same time.

Jottings: Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes

When writing field notes, think about: Frame, Audience, Details.

Dictate FieldNotes, Use Typewriter

Book Notes: Teaching Science for Social Justice

Deficit model thinking. Students are disadvantaged because they are lacking, rather than a perspective that is different and power related.

Valuing cultural versus academic knowledge.

Memo on Class last night 8/30/04

MN: Structure the analysis around persons in attendance?

Questions
What drew you here?

Purpose
Experience is to become a team
Capture your perception of your own teaching practice.

Trusting, collaborative community, part of the research process. Desire to collect data, Information will be shared. A design and development process.
Scope and Direction, don't know. Discovery, research our process. Insight, motivational, creativity, sharing, collaborative => forms a community.

Overall impression: the teachers will listening quietly.

Laurie's attention seemed to be caught when Brenda mentioned the database-driven webstie.

TN: What is expertise?

Summer Vacation stories

BA: What can we do to make it [work]? About technology. "This is where I am" in how the project's topics match her own professional inquiry.

KS: "down dumbing" we have in schools [about technology?] Looking for intellectual stimulation.

DK: What does it mean to be literate in content areas? Is very enthusiastic.

AR: English is his Second language. He is from Peru. {Why is he here?}

LS: Wants professional dialogue. Learn it, try it, in order to become a better [science] teacher. Hopes to become more knowledgable.

SR: Does not have a strong background in Science. When it comes to technology, he is interested in the Human Interaction. Questions the pedagogical value of technology.

MN: Classroom Experiment of Communication between Teachers.

Goes over Syllabus.

Teachers will act as a Design Team.
Venue for discussion, reflection, contributions to collaboratively dialogue.
Will ask you to do [that] in your classroom.
Improve your practice by experiencing the design process.

SR: Lack of Time - Manage a Process/Teaching. Become a better teacher, management. Not just an addon

LS: Use of digital camera pics.

Memo on Videotaping on 8/30/04

I downloaded some sample clips from the three audio options I am implementing.
1. Stereo Microphone
2. Mono Telescopic Microphone - Regular Setting
3. Mono Telescopic Microphone - Tele Setting

1. I thought the sounds was of good quality. It did pickup a lot of background noise, what I consider to be whispering, typing of keys, moving books. It picked up the buzz of the computers. This seemed to be the loudest of all three clips.

2. I thought the sound was of good quality. I didn't hear as much buzz, that may be due to placement in the back of the room. I considered this to be the second loudest of the mics, a close second.

3. This one picked up a lot of computer noise, a whirring sound. It also wasn't very loud. What it did pick up was fairly clear, but not crisp like the other two.

I also noticed in watching the video that if the classroom dynamic is teacher-centered, then the back camera captured well the feel of the class. Whereas when students were talking the front angle, seeing their faces as they talked was important.

Overall, I want to continue the taping. This data would be good for a Professional Development paper.

Another thing that would be good is to take a opening shot of a clock. So that I can synch the two tapes.