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This paper describes and analyzes pedagogical
strategies used in a course of teaching skills in pre-service early
childhood teacher education. Contextual learning, principles and
theories of knowledge production and educational philosophy are
applied to design pedagogical practices and assignments in this
course. The strategies are filling students in the real settings
for opportunities of constructing knowledge which is necessary in
teaching skills practice, offering indirect and direct teaching
skills experiential learning and training students skills of self
- reflections and self-evaluation in naturalistic ways for learning
development. These strategies are well-planned to promote students'
self-directed learning in terms of course contents. In performing
their tasks for teaching skills practices, they are challenged to
make their own decisions of their missions and planning activities
for teaching skills practices in authentic and targeted settings.
Evidences of their tasks are managed to be collected in various
forms for self-reflections and self-evaluation. Digestions of data
in seminars are collected and applied for learning and skills improvement.
Implication and donations for applying such strategies are also
discussed. Flexible learning, political and social contexts of learning-centered
classroom are included in this presentation.
A primary concern towards these pedagogical strategies is learning
of both teachers and students. Based on democratic education and
learner-centered concepts, expectations of roles and responsibilities
of a teacher are dramatically changed. Instead of transferring a
fixed-content to students as conventionally do, teachers become
facilitators and partners of students' learning tasks in three stages
; including preparation, operation and conclusion stage, In preparation
stage, real-settings are appointed as contextual means of learning
and clarification of a whole process of strategies are made by teachers,
In an operation stage, equipments needed for recording students'
teaching performances are facilitated by teachers. In conclusion
stage, seminars are collaboratively run and moderated by both students
and teachers, once in every two weeks. In proceeding these strategies,
teachers learn to take risks when they allow students to have power
in decision making on knowledge production. Moreover, teachers face
anxiety when students are allowed to propose skills for practice
and make their own schedules of teaching performances for video-tape
recording.
On the basis of contextual experiential learning, self-directed
learning and self-reflections concepts, a variety of responsibilities
on tasks assigned require students to play different roles in "Plan-Do-Review"
cycle. Even though the main framework of this course is designed
by teachers, each procedural task along each strategy require students'
participation. For example, in planning, knowledge of teaching and
learning of young children in kindergarten classrooms are conceptualized
by students, by using observations and written journals data. In
seminars, they are motivated to discuss, and exchange ideas to make
assumptions of each content relating to teaching skills. The acquiring
knowledge is then applied in planning for activities for practicing
teaching skills, according to their needs and interests. Interactive
negotiation and discussion on activities designed are made in order
to encourage learning process and tasks improvement. Video-tape
recording students' teaching performances are played for group discussions,
in creative mode of seminars. Contents and suggestions made are
expected to be generalized in next performances. Informative description
about what has been learnt is written in narrative form in their
journals.
Students' video-tape records and journals are concrete evidences
for self-reflections and evaluation. A critical and analytical paper
of their skills improvement is complete for sharing in the last
seminar. By the end of this course, their portfolios are completely
created to tell a whole story of their learning in this course.
These pedagogical strategies are designed for students' consistent
engagement in procedural learning activities. Their knowledge of
contents and teaching skills are interactively learned and improved
in contextual learning. Such learning is actively and collaboratively
participated both individually and in group process. Their learning
competencies are expected to be potential tools of life-long learning
in different contexts as a professional educator in near future.
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