Building, Breaking, and Adjusting Cycles of Reflection Among Students and Teachers to Realize the Goals of Service-Learning

Experiential approaches to teacher education resonate with trends in universities in Europe and North America toward education “beyond the classroom” such as service-learning. Both models share the assumption that reflection upon ‘real’ action facilitates deep learning within and across disciplines. Research on reflection in service learning and teacher education challenges the autonomous benefits often ascribed to reflection and practice teaching, however. This paper examines one teacher’s development ‘on-the-job’ as it was augmented through an educational research partnership. Findings in the area of literacy practices indicate the development of a concept of teaching writing compatible with other teaching emphases. The findings raise questions about the local value of enriching cycles of teacher reflection.