NCTE 2023

Gaining teaching experience as a teacher is not enough to provide automatic professional development, for we do not learn much from experience as much as we learn from reflecting on that experience. Reflective practice involves teachers systematically looking at what they do, how they do it, why they do it, what the outcomes are in terms of student learning, and what actions they will take because of knowing all of this information. Thus, experience combined with systematic reflection can lead to professional growth so that we can become more effective teachers. In this keynote address I outline what reflective practice is, how it can be accomplished and conclude with four key principles of reflective practice for language teachers.