Transatlantic Self-study: Lessons across the ocean Dr. Déirdre Ní Chróinín, Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Dr. Tim Fletcher, Brock University, Canada Prof. Mary O’Sullivan, University of Limerick, Ireland

The context

The problem Lack of empirical evidence of PETE pedagogies that can effectively prepare future teachers to facilitate meaningful PE experiences in contemporary school settings

Theoretical ideas

LAMPE (Learning About Meaningful Physical Education) A set of PETE pedagogies based on criteria for meaningful experience in PE: challenge, social interaction, increased motor competence, fun and delight (Kretchmar 2000; 2001; 2006; 2007; 2008).

What were the experiences of teacher educators implementing LAMPE? Empirical evidence

Context

LaBoskey’s (2004) criteria for quality in self-study (a) self-initiated and -focused, (b) improvement aimed, (c) interactive, (d) multiple forms of qualitative data, and (e) validity based in trustworthiness.

A critical friend is a: “trusted person who asks provocative questions, provides data to be examined through another lens, and offers critique of a person’s work as a friend” (Costa and Kallick, 1993, p. 50).

Value of critical friendship “garnering multiple perspectives on our professional practice settings helps to challenge our assumptions and biases, reveal our inconsistencies, expand our potential interpretations, and triangulate our findings” (LaBoskey (2004, p. 849).

Research Design 2 year period (4 semesters) Teacher/ critical friend role/ Meta critical friend Multiple data sources: Planning and Reflection template Critical friend response SKYPE Conference Non-participant observer Work samples Student interviews/ focus groups

YEAR 1

How were my assumptions challenged? How/when was I made to feel vulnerable during the lesson? How did I handle this?   What moments were particularly “joyful” for me teaching this lesson? Why were they joyful? What insights and understandings about teaching and learning did I gain?

Reflecting on Year 1 Templates: Structure to be ‘critical’ Expectations not articulated - assumptions Newness of the friendship: qualified language Skype conversations – ‘live’ response “cathartic”

´Meta´ critical friend Overall: understanding of our PETE selves and of LAMPE ´Meta´ critical friend

YEAR 2

CRITICAL FRIEND: RESPONSE Reading the account above:  What resonated with my thinking was…    The questions that it raised for me are…..  If I was going to be contentious I might suggest….  LECTURER FINAL RESPONSE: IMPLICATIONS FOR DEVELOPMENT Reflecting on the response above: My position now is….  I still have questions about….   

DATA SOURCE APPROX. DATA (2 yrs.) Teacher educator journal entries 100 000 wds Critical friend responses 25 000 wds Recorded audio conversations 14 hrs Naturalistic observations 75 hrs Individual interviews with students* n = 23 Focus group interviews with 4-5 students* 2 Student artifacts ~ 400 individual submissions

Analysis Turning points (Bullock & Ritter, 2011, p. 175): There is an affective (e.g., emotional or motivational) element to the data. The data frame a problem of practice. The author of the data is implicitly or explicitly asking for help from the critical friend. The data are bounded by the action-present; there is still time to take action on the problem.

Reflecting on Year 2 Reflection template: space for the contentious element of our critical friendship to grow.

Reflecting on Year 2 Critical friendship: Supported development and implementation of LAMPE: Empirical evidence of PETE pedagogies Personal and professional learning as PETE

Recommendations Shared understandings (motives and roles) Structures that support interaction – digital technologies Ensure balance of ‘critical’ and friendship’ roles

Researching PETE pedagogies Self-study design using critical friendship: guide teacher educators’ pedagogical decision-making enhance the development of high quality, high impact PETE programmes a starting point to reshape the practices of school-based PE

“more closely connecting the self-studies of teacher educators to the mainstream of teacher education research so that the voices of practicing teacher educators are incorporated into syntheses of research on particular aspects of teacher education” (Zeichner, 2007, p. 36)

Deirdre.NiChroinin@mic.ul.ie tfletcher@brocku.ca Mary.osullivan@ul.ie