EAP terminology

Academic lexicon

Academic definitions are characteristic of a discourse community. Considering specific terminology in this teacher cohort may be profitable. These definitions may provide teachers with a tool so that they feel more confident when researching or contributing in the academic writing field.

Banfi (1997) defines a profession as involving more than just a group of individuals who are all engaged in the same line of work (cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010). Furthermore, she proposes that a profession includes some features (Banfi, 1997as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010). Professionals as claimed by Banfi (1997), should be skillful, autonomous, have problem-solving abilities and be trained for that matter (cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010).

A good illustration of this description is given by the reflective model of professional development. Wallace (1991) suggests that there are models of professional development, which allows professionalism in a certain service (cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010). This model, for instance, can be seen in teachers’ communities where they both receive, work on and construct knowledge within the community (cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010).

 The term is closely related to professional competence. Banfi (1997) maintains that “[p]rofessional development comprises those activities in which processionals are engaged for the purpose of achieving professional competence” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p.28). Quest for progress and development through updating, reflective practices, collaborative work, and autonomy are summarized as the useful qualities towards competence at a professional level (Banfi, 1997, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010).

References

Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010) Unit 1: Building up a community of teachers and prospective researchers. Retrieved August 2010, from

http:// caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=6856

The case for change: methods of reflective practice

Plenty of research has been made in the educational field so as to bring about feasible methods to produce data that may help expertise and novice teachers grow in their praxis. Personal narratives cast light on this field giving birth to new methods. Among these, a vignette is a viable option to generate and assess knowledge, enhancing teaching and learning. Consequently, professional development is complied with while paving the way to expertise (cited in Angelides, 2006).

Miles (1990) defines a vignette as “providing a snapshot, or perhaps a mini-movie, of a professional practitioner at work” (as cited in Angelides, 2006, p. 3). In the case of professional development in teaching, vignettes follow a procedure. Miles (1990) claims that there should be a professional and an outsider working collaboratively (cited in Angelides, 2006, p.3). As clarified by her, the outsider-observer should act as a “critical friend” to schools as his/her aim is to encourage improvements.

Teachers can implement this method of reflection in order to gather data which may lead to professional competence. For instance, if they regard misbehavior as an issue in their school, they can work with this genre to derive causes and propose changes. As described by Miles (1990), the professional teacher narrates a situation, considering actions and end (cited in Angelides, 2006). After the account is written down, a colleague, principal or coordinator provides a personal judgment that is constructive and directed to qualitative changes (Angelides, 2006). The use of vignettes is a viable option to foster professional growth and reflection with the possibility of future improvements in reality.

References

Angelides, P. (2006). Supporting the continued professional development of teachers through the use of vignettes. Teacher Education Quarterly. Fall, 2006. Retrieved September 2010, from

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3960/is_200610/ai_n17197617/

Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 2: Personal narratives in teaching. Retrieved September 2010, from

http:// http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214