The power of pause: experienced and novice teachers developing dimensions of expertise through video collaboration software
Date 22 February 2024
Exploring the use of video collaboration software in the University of Northampton initial teacher education program
This blog post discusses a research paper under review that explores the use of video collaboration software in the University of Northampton initial teacher education program. The study aimed to enhance reflective practice among teacher educators and novice teachers, utilising the software to record and analyse behaviour and interactions in both school-based and online teaching sessions. The research employs an ethnographic methodology, focusing on professional dialogues between mentors and teacher education students. The findings suggest that video collaboration software supports collaborative self-development, building metacognition around teaching expertise in a peer-to-peer setting. Both mentors and novices benefit from the reflective skills developed through dialogue, ultimately improving novice teachers’ reflective skills associated with dimensions of expertise.
The sample included six novice teachers and four mentors, all from the Initial Teacher Education (ITE) team at the University of Northampton. Novice teachers were in their final year of a three-year undergraduate Primary Education degree, ensuring sufficient teaching experience for reflective practice. Ethical considerations were adhered to, with approval obtained from the university and informed consent from participants. Measures were taken to ensure anonymity and confidentiality, particularly regarding videos captured in authentic classroom settings, using IRIS Connect’s features to protect children’s identities.
The study utilised video collaboration software to record twelve teaching episodes chosen by six novice teachers during the first UK national COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020. The lessons included both face-to-face and online teaching, offering a diverse perspective. Novice teachers and mentors independently watched the videos, adding time-stamped tags and comments to identify observed pedagogical approaches. Following this, each novice-mentor pair engaged in reflective discussions based on the identified pedagogies, discussing professional behaviours, success or challenges, children’s behaviours, language use, and subject knowledge.
The study concluded that video collaboration software, specifically IRIS Connect, enhances interactions between mentors and initial teacher education (ITE) students, facilitating reflective practice and supporting learning to teach.
Video collaboration software offers advantages for reflective practice and learning to teach, particularly by providing agency to ITE students in selecting and sharing teaching episodes. The ability to pause, think, rewatch, and comment was considered a valuable reflective tool. It allowed for more in-depth discussions closely related to practice. The study recommended the incorporation of video collaboration in initial teacher education programs, emphasizing mentor training and valuing the reflective process. The focus on promoting ITE student agency was highlighted. While the study focused on beginning teachers, the results suggested that video collaboration could benefit teachers at various career stages, contributing to the development of mentoring skills and reflection throughout their careers.
The paper is currently in its second phase of review with amendments being made and will hopefully be published in the summer in the Technology, Pedagogy and Education journal.
