Framing the Problems of Practice: The Effects of Self-Assessment in a Study of Special Education Students' Internships

Abstract
This study was conducted to examine the effects of a self assessment procedure on the behaviors and thoughts of preservice student interns. Drawing upon the reflective teaching literature, we designed a self assessment process that allowed our student interns to (a) clarify and define the problems they encountered during practice, (b) identify the sources of their problems, (c) suggest alternative instructional strategies to address their problems, and (d) assess the adequacy of their solutions. The data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative methods, First, we assessed the effects of self assessment on interns' ability to exhibit teaching behaviors associated with student learning. Then, we analyzed the ways in which our interns framed and resolved their instructional problems. Results indicated that self assessment had no impact on interns' teaching behaviors when compared to traditional supervisory practice. However, the self-assessment process did inform us about what interns identified as problems of practice, how these problems were framed, and what interns thought they should do about them.

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