Novice Teachers’ Professional Development

刘晋池

Abstract With batch after batch of college students heading off to the west， The College Students Western China Volunteer Teaching Program has been vigorous and spectacular， and the work of volunteer teaching has been solid and steady. But do volunteer teachers achieve their professional development during a years teaching as novice teachers？ This paper adopts narrative inquiry， a widely valued research method in educational research， to inquire a volunteer teacher and a student， thus explore the changes of the volunteer teacher and the students have made after one-year teaching.

Key words novice teacher； professional development； volunteer teacher； narrative inquiry

中图分类号：G451 文献标识码：A

1 Introduction

The Western China University Graduates Volunteer Teaching Program （VTP） is a government-oriented social movement aimed at the advancement of social equity and the establishment of a harmonious society. University students， as the undertakers of volunteer teaching， serve as a vital part of this program. Passion surges in the hearts of college students， and it is flaming brightly in the western region. But what is the reality of the College Students Western China Volunteer Teaching Program？ On the background of New Curriculum Reform， novice teachers professional development is regarded as key to the success of reforming. Did these volunteer teachers achieve their professional development after one-year teaching？

After interviewing with a volunteer English teacher Miss Zhang and a student called Xiao Yan in Longzhou Middle School in Guangxi Province， the author uses the method of narrative inquiry to analyze the professional development Miss Zhang has achieved and the changes Xiao Yan has made.

Miss Zhang： A postgraduate student majoring in English Pedagogy in Zhejiang Normal University.

Xiao Yan： A middle school student in Longzhou Middle School in Guangxi Province.

2 Some scenes in one-year teaching

2.1 First Impression

Miss Zhang：

“As I stepped into the classroom the first time， some girls with sweet smiles looked at me curiously； some naughty boys whistled to show their warm welcome and use their mobile phones to take photos； even some sleepy students in the back row raised their head. It is a class of 65 students. They are about 17 years old. Most of the boys have long colored hair， and almost every student had a mobile phone. However， their dirty and old T-shirts destroyed their so-called fashion. I made a brief self-introduction and began to communicate with them. To my surprise， a fairly large number of the students didnt like English because it was difficult and boring to them. Some also held that learning English was of no use. They said the only thing they would do in English class was sleeping. Some students even told me that they couldnt recite the 26 letters after 3 years learning. I was really shocked. But I had a strong confidence in helping them to fall in love with English.”endprint

Xiao Yan：

“I still remember the first day Miss Zhang came to our class. She wore a beautiful dress and a big smile. She told us many things about herself， her family， her school and her hometown in her self-introduction. I was deeply attached. Unlike the other old mean teachers， Miss Zhang was so gentle and fine. I really like her. However， when she asked me whether I like English， I honestly answered no. I found a slight disappointment in her face. But I couldnt tell a lie to Miss Zhang. English was so difficult for me to learn. I couldnt follow my former English teachers in class. To me， English book was just a sealed book. But Miss Zhang said we will fall in love with English. I thought she was kidding.”

In the eyes of Miss Zhang， the complicated condition of the students was a big challenge for her： they had no interests in learning English and their English was so poor； they were traitorous and vulgar； they had narrow vision and yearned for outside world. Thankfully， the students were honest and pure. But as a novice teacher， Miss Zhang was full of passion and confidence. She had her own class， own students and own teaching plan， and she couldnt wait to apply the principles and knowledge she had learned in university into practice.

In the eyes of the students， this young teacher gave them a fresh feeling. Similar age and nice appearance narrowed their distance. Her splendid stories in outside world were such a great temptation. Obviously， students like her. When it turned to English learning， students lost heart immediately. It proved that students rejection to English had been ingrained.

2.2 Classroom Management——A Headache for Teachers

Miss Zhang：

“When I was still a university student， my teacher told me， ‘As a teacher， you should set your authority at the very start. Let the students be afraid of you， and you will control the class. At that time， I disagreed with him， regarding him as a tyrannical teacher. I even confidently believed that I could build a comfortable study atmosphere for my students under the guidance of equality and democracy， thus bring their creativity and initiative into full play. So in my class， I would never punish my students， even though they were talking or walking. To me， my pure students would never make big mistakes， and I always gave them tolerant and kind smiles. However， I was wrong. Actually， students were always observing me. They didnt know me in the first class， and they would try to keep quiet. After several days， they made sure that I wasnt a cruel teacher， and they started to do whatever they want in my class. When I was really angry， I put on a stern expression， pounded the table and scolded them. It was too late， everything would not work.”endprint

Xiao Yan：

“In Miss Zhangs class， we all felt relaxed. She was so kind to us that many naughty boys in class would not be afraid of her at all. The first time Miss Zhang got angry was in morning reading class. She caught a cold that morning. When she came into the classroom， we were doing our own things： talking， laughing and sleeping. She scolded us and let us read English book. Some boys complained that they could not read English by themselves. Miss Zhang read the textbook herself with her hoarse voice and kept us reading after her. She was such a kind and conscientious teacher.”

Just as Fenvick said， classroom management is the most complicated and most difficult part in teaching. If a teacher wants to be successful in teaching， the first task is to manage the classroom well. Kooning also put up with 4 key points in successful classroom management： co-existence， round consideration， teaching funnily and teaching multiply. As an authority figure， a teacher should make several rules and procedures for students to obey. Experienced teachers will set classroom management as a main aim during the first weeks. On the contrary， novice teacher may ignore the importance of classroom management， and focus on teaching methods and teaching content. Unfortunately， disordered classroom will destroy their teaching in class. Miss Zhang was a conscientious novice teacher， she put a lot of effort in teaching， but without an ordered class， everything would be in vain. It was a great point in her professional development.

Research indicates， a novice teacher， who cant maintain class order at the very start， will never control the students using disciplines. In order to attract students attention， he should make an effort in other aspects like attractive teaching. But to a novice teacher like Miss Zhang， it seems challenging.

2.3 Attractive Teaching

Miss Zhang：

“To tell the truth， when I was designing my first class， my mind went blank after several hours study. I wasnt sure how much they could accept and what kind of teaching method was most suitable for them. I followed the other English teachers in Longzhou Middle School， and adopted teaching-receiving method. The results could be imagined. Students fell asleep， talked to each other， listened to music， read magazines and used their mobile phones to surf the Internet.

Just as the old saying goes， ‘A fall into the pit， a gain in your wit. I started to observe students needs， interests and actual situations. I took them to a multi-media classroom， and taught them how to use different easy methods to remember new words through competitions and games. It really made a difference. The classroom had never been so vibrant but ordered.”endprint

Xiao Yan：

“It was my first time that I found memorizing new words was so interesting and easy. Previously， I hated memorizing new words， because I might spend several hours to memorize 10 new words， and it would disappear in my mind entirely the next day. Miss Zhang taught us using our imagination and association to put the letters together. The most impressive word is ‘hippo. I can imagine a scene like this to memorize the word： I said ‘hi to a hippo named ‘pp， he clumsily answered me， ‘o. How funny！ I will never forget this word.”

Barak Rosenshine and Morma Farst pointed out the criteria of effective teachers in their study. The criteria can be listed as follows， diversity of teaching materials and methods， task-oriented and using questions to inspire students cognition. Miss Zhang had recognized the importance of choosing teaching contents according to students psychological characteristics and using the methods which were easy for students to understand and accept. That was a big success in her teaching career as a novice teacher. But the difficulties Miss Zhang had met at first were also apparent. In normal universities， teachers always regard teacher professional development as knowledge and skills of teaching. But it is so difficult to combine these theories with practice. Therefore， some novice idealistic teachers feel puzzled facing with different kinds of students， teaching materials and teaching contents.

As to the students in Longzhou Middle School， Miss Zhang brought them new blood in English learning. They had found the interest of learning English， and felt the satisfaction of understanding what English teacher taught. English book， which was regarded as a sealed book by them was not that difficult. That was a memorable class for them.

2.4 Deep Feelings

Miss Zhang

“It was my 22nd birthday， and I came back from night classes as usual. Dimly， I heard some noise outside my room. When I opened the door， I was completely touched. A group of students with a big birthday cake were singing birthday song for me. I could not help crying. What lovely students！ We blew out the candles together， and ate birthday cake together. It may be my most unforgettable birthday in my life.”

XiaoYan：

I have deep feelings to Miss Zhang. Before she came， I was an introverted， vulnerable and cold girl. My mother was working outside， and my father didnt love me because Im a girl. He always beat and scolded me. So I was always feeling insecure. I hated everything around me， including classmates， teachers and strangers. It was Miss Zhang who changed me. She always gave me some sweets and talked to me with her warm smile. She told me her fun and sad stories. She shared her true emotions and feelings with me. Moreover， she often used her precious time after school to help me with my English. I felt respected and loved. From then on， I started working hard and being more positive and optimistic.endprint

Just as Max Van Manen， a Canadian professor of Phenomenological Pedagogy， has once said， good relationship between teachers and students is the golden rule of education. Teachers and their students have a special relationship， and what they do affect each other and the teaching effect. Based on this special relationship， a certain expectation has been developed in the classroom environment. When a sensitive educator opens heart and mind dealing with young students， she will notice numerous problems of these young persons. Hence， teachers should offer help to their students and should encourage them to live more socially constructive lives which contribute to the good of community. Miss Zhang sensitively found the problems of Xiao Yan and she knew the importance of getting on well with students. Therefore， she tried her best to care not only their bodies and minds， but also their pedagogical knowledge， thus developed a harmonious relationship with her students. On this occasion， students motivation had been stimulated naturally.

Moreover， the foundation of a good relationship between a teacher and their students requires a good communication skill from the teachers' side. Students like teachers who treat them with real hearts. When expressing own feelings and telling own stories to students， Miss Zhang was a sincere person in XiaoYans eyes. They were touched by each other and two hearts joined together. When Miss Zhang celebrated birthday with her students， she was moved to tears. At that time， to all the students， Miss Zhang was not a teacher but a sister or a friend. They like teachers with true emotions.

2.5 Teaching Achievements

Miss Zhang：

“To my delight， the atmosphere of learning English in my class was becoming stronger and stronger. Instead of being afraid of speaking English， students had learned to make up dialogues by themselves. Moreover， in the final examination， my students got good grades， ranking the first in the school. I was so excited to see the improvements they had made. One day， a students mother came to my room with some local products. She showed her thanks to me for my teaching and caring for her daughter. It was my first time to feel the respect given by parents as a real teacher. I refused her gifts， but I would never forget the sensation she had given to me.”

Xiao Yan：

“How time flies. It was time for Miss Zhang to go back to her school. We grudged her. If possible， we would selfishly keep her teaching us forever. However， we know that Miss Zhang had her own family， own friends and own life in Zhejiang. She encouraged us to work hard to go to Zhejiang Normal University after 2 years. It was our appointment. I will try my best to fulfill the promise.”endprint

After one years hard working and sincere caring， Miss Zhang got rewarded. Just as Nash put forward， the pedagogic relationship， moreover， although defined in terms of the transmission of knowledge， is inherently one of care， which is the most important quality of a good teacher. If a teacher does not feel deep and abiding love for children as children， who does not watch with interest the unfolding of their minds， who is not ready to share in their games as well as their tasks， and who does not sympathize with the most troublesome， who does not recognize the infinite possibilities of their natures， has no right to be a teacher （Salmon， 1914， p. 10）. Miss Zhang uses her heart to teach， just like Palmers ‘care for students with your heart. Her responsibility and love won the respect and admiration of students and parents， and it really deepened her self-identity as a teacher. To the students， Miss Zhangs teaching was a great treasure for them. It might be a belief， an interest， a method， a sensation or an aim.

3 Conclusions

Form the above analysis and the description of a volunteer teacher and a student in supported schools， we can conclude that volunteer teachers really brought a lot to the supported schools and students there. Volunteer teachers teaching in poor and remote areas added new energy to the development of local education and to some extent relieved the pressure from teacher shortages—especially the dire shortage of English and biology teachers in some areas. Volunteer teachers brought advanced educational concepts and new ideas to schools in the poor areas， thereby helping to improve the level and conditions of local education. Whats more， they devoted themselves wholeheartedly， feared no pain， and began to develop deep friendships with local students and teachers. On the other hand， the volunteer teachers themselves， one-year teaching in remote areas strengthened their bodies and minds. At the same time， their teaching abilities were greatly improved. Most importantly， as novice teachers， volunteer teachers teacher identities started to take shape in the process of teaching.

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