Reference framework of competences for democratic culture - Teacher reflection tool E-Book

Claudia Lenz

• Herausgeber: Council of Europe
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Seitenzahl: 155

Beschreibung

A journey towards a democratic teacher ethos and a democratic culture in schools

Being a “democratic teacher” requires more than just being good at one’s subject. Among other things, it requires the ability to listen to learners, colleagues and parents and openness to the cultural affiliations and practices they bring to the educational process, empathy and a sense of responsibility for the well-being and empowerment of all learners.The teacher self-reflection tool aims to support teachers and other educators to develop their own competences relating to democratic culture and a “democratic professional ethos”, which builds on the values of democracy, human rights and intercultural dialogue. It offers guidance throughout this development process and on working with the Council of Europe’s Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC).The tool can be used as a means of getting acquainted with the RFCDC, but it can also be used as a companion to self-reflection on teaching and democratic competences.

Leseprobe

 

REFERENCE FRAMEWORK

OF COMPETENCES

FOR DEMOCRATIC CULTURE

 

Teacher reflection tool

 

Self-reflection –

A journey towards a democratic teacher ethos

and a democratic culture in schools

 

Authoring team

Claudia Lenz

Bernt Gebauer

Patricia Hladschik

Călin Rus

Angelos Valianatos

 

Contents

Click here to see the whole table of contents

Acknowledgements

The authoring team is grateful for the support provided by the Education Department of the Council of Europe, and especially by Michael Remmert, Head of the Education Policy Division, and Katerina Toura, Programme Manager in the Education Policy Division.

Special thanks are due to Martyn Barrett, Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of Surrey (UK) and Council of Europe expert who was actively involved in the early stages of development.

We would also like to thank all those who have provided feedback during the development and the piloting of the tool, especially the members of the Education Policy Advisors Network (EPAN) 2018-19 Working Group on Teaching and Learning, the participants in the Council of Europe Conference “Competences in Action” in 2019, in Florence, the members of the Networking European Citizenship Education (NECE) focus group on the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC), and the staff of the European Wergeland Centre, who provided valuable feedback at different stages of the development of the tool.

We further wish to thank the Intercultural Institute of Timisoara for developing the technical support for the tool’s piloting and its online version, as well as the teachers involved in the piloting of the preliminary version. Among them, we are especially grateful for the feedback provided by Veronica Fehlinger, Manola Gavazzi, Natalia Kidalova and Solveig Moldrheim.

Oslo, Frankfurt, Vienna, Timisoara and Athens, February 2021

Introduction

Who is the teacher reflection tool for?

No matter whether you are already experienced or are hearing about the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC)1 for the first time, this tool can become a companion for your professional life.

You can use it:

in order to get familiar with reflection;

from time to time as a stimulus for reflection;

in a structured way in your daily work;

as a “course” in your teacher training;

for team reflection.

If you are already familiar with the RFCDC

You can start with personal reflections from Part II– “Warming up”, or directly choose a thematic module that interests you.

If you are just discovering the RFCDC

Depending on your preferred learning and working style, you can choose one of the options described below (but you can also build a path through the tool in your own way).

If you prefer to have the concepts clear first, start with reading the RFCDC and then move to the other sections.

If you prefer to do something, explore something practical and get conceptual clarifications only when and if needed, then select any thematic module and, when you identify the need, go to Part I on the RFCDC in brief and clarify the relevant concepts.

If you prefer to reflect first on yourself and then think about concepts and/or practice, start with Part II – the warming-up section.

How to use this tool

The purpose of this tool is to accompany teachers and other educators in this process and in their work with the Council of Europe’s RFCDC.

It can be used as a starter to get acquainted with the RFCDC.

It can also be seen as a very general companion to self-reflection on teaching and democratic competences.2

This tool can guide you and structure your journey of exploring and developing your role and practice as a teacher, while allowing you to decide how much time and effort you wish to spend on it.

The teacher reflection tool addresses all teachers at all levels (in-service and pre-service; acquainted or not acquainted with RFCDC) and can be used on an individual basis, or for group or peer reflection.

Education for democracy and inclusive education need both reflective practitioners and a reflective school culture. This tool aims to inspire teachers to self-reflect, which in turn forms the basis for a reflective school culture.

A school culture based on self-reflection can use many methods and tools, including observation, peer feedback, group reflection in a team of teachers, communities of practice, and similar. This tool can be combined with all of these methods and can easily be integrated in wider school development processes.

This material is published as one of the tools that support implementation of the RFCDC in schools. It also supports the Council of Europe’s efforts to build a European network of democratic schools. By focusing on the teachers’ competences and on their professional ethos, it acknowledges the importance of teachers for the whole-school system.

In order to enable the best possible synergies between the different Council of Europe initiatives, the tool was aligned with the six major themes of the Council of Europe’s Free to Speak, Safe to Learn –Democratic Schools for All project. These themes represent central preconditions for democratic culture in education as well as challenges which need to be solved in democratic ways. You can select the topics which seem to be closest to your own interest or most relevant in your own context, or you can discover new aspects of democratic education while working through all the modules.

Reasons for an RFCDC teacher reflection tool

Do you experience challenges related to bullying, prejudice and discrimination in your school?

Would you like to see your students co-operating more and competing less?

Do you feel that you are not always reaching out to your students in classroom interaction?

If these questions sound familiar to you, this self-reflection tool might be the right companion for you.

Are you interested in what democracy in school is actually about and what this has to do with yourself and with your professional teacher ethos?

We invite you to follow us on a journey to help the development of your own competences relating to democratic culture and to encourage self-reflection on them. Each encounter with students, colleagues or parents brings new opportunities for interaction, co-operation and learning, as well as new challenges and possible conflict.

The qualities we need that contribute to a democratic school culture are not something we learn once, but something which constantly needs to be developed, maintained and adjusted in new situations and contexts. It is demanding for a teacher to realise the potentials for learning, co-operation and personal growth and to solve the challenges in constructive and respectful ways. Often the way ahead is through trial and error, and failure is therefore a part of that process, a part of becoming and being a “good teacher” (Biesta 2015; Larivee 2000). And it is a part of what we call a democratic teacher ethos.

Democratic and intercultural knowledge, attitudes, skills and values as outlined in the model of the Council of Europe’s RFCDC play an essential role in the development of a professional teacher ethos which builds on the values of democracy, human rights and intercultural dialogue. In order to be credible and sustainable, education for democracy, human rights and intercultural dialogue needs teaching environments based on democratic principles, including a democratic attitude of teachers, participation of the learners in the learning process and, not least, the ability to critically reflect on and adapt your own teaching activities.

Therefore, this tool is for you if you would like to develop your democratic professional ethos and competences on a continual basis, under conditions that are not always favourable.

It will help you structure your work according to democratic competences, using the reflective circle of planning, doing, reflecting, adapting. While this slows you down during the reflection phase, it ultimately increases your capacity to improve your teaching activities and your pedagogical practice in general.

The 20 elements in the Competences for Democratic Culture model

Competences for Democratic Culture (CDC) are not only relevant for the education sector, but also democratic culture in general. The 20 competence elements in the CDC model and the related descriptors can help us to reflect on how we do things, how we interact with people, how we co-operate and how we solve conflict. Developing CDC is a personal development.

However, CDC are most relevant in the context of education. Teachers and other educators have a massive impact on learners as significant others, role models and facilitators of learning processes and are far more than transmitters of knowledge. Educators can support learners in becoming independent thinkers, good co-operators, and self-confident participants in dialogue, discussion and decision making. They can support learners in becoming active citizens.

As a “democratic teacher” you are required to be much more than just “good” in your subject. It requires a lot of what CDC are about: the ability to listen to learners, colleagues and parents; openness to the cultural affiliations and practices they bring into the educational process; empathy and a sense of responsibility for the well-being and empowerment of all learners, to name but a few competences.

A teacher’s way of teaching and interacting has an important impact on the classroom climate and the individual learner’s well-being and achievements. These aspects of professional practice can be learned and systematically developed.

Pedagogical professionalism is a matter of constant development and, thus, depends on the ability and willingness for self-observation and self-reflection (Bailey, Curtis and Nunan 2001; Schoen 1983). This is even more evident when it comes to the development of democratic and inclusive learning environments. Carr and Kemmis (Carr and Kemmis 1986) underline that democratic change can only be reached through continuous and collaborative reflection on practice. In this context, the teacher’s professional development is at the same time a personal development. A democratic teacher wants to examine their own democratic attitudes; they want to question their own methods and learn from their interactions with the learners. The mental step back and the changing of perspectives enables us to analyse and change our own strengths and weaknesses and to further develop our professional democratic competences.

From this perspective, self-reflection can be understood as the intensive examination of one’s own learning and teaching processes with regard to CDC. This directly links to the Council of Europe Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education, which states that “teaching and learning practices and activities should follow and promote democratic and human rights values and principles” (Council of Europe 2010: 9; see also Council of Europe 2018: 17).

A guide to the parts of the teacher reflection tool

Part I enables you to discover the model of competences for democratic culture and provides you with an introduction to the RFCDC.

For readers who are not yet familiar with the RFCDC we strongly recommend you begin with this section and then proceed to Part II, in order to familiarise yourself with observation and self-observation under the CDC.

Part I deals with each thematic element separately so that readers are able to directly choose issues that interest them or deepen their knowledge according to their level of familiarity with the RFCDC.

Part II is a warming up section which familiarises you with the exercise of observation and self-observation and how the CDC descriptors can support your personal and professional development. The section starts with exploring everyday situations in which you may use your competences for democratic culture. It continues with reflection on your strengths as a democratic teacher and how to develop them as an ongoing process. In a last step, the section turns to the “hot moments” in a teacher’s life – situations you find challenging and in which you do not feel that you live up to your own standards as a pedagogue and person. With the help of CDC and the descriptors, the section will guide you through a reflection on how to solve such “hot moments” in more appropriate ways.

Before beginning the modules in Part III, we recommend you try one or all of the steps in Part II to familiarise yourself with observation and self-observation, but these activities can be done at any point.

Part III provides you with five reflective modules following the focus themes of the Council of Europe’s project Free to Speak, Safe to Learn – Democratic Schools for All. The modules can be done in any order. Each module is a separate, independent unit.

Making children’s and students’ voices heard

Addressing controversial issues

Preventing violence and bullying

Dealing with propaganda, misinformation and fake news

Tackling discrimination.

Each module follows the same structure which allows you to get familiar with the specific topic and come to conclusions as to how to improve your respective competences.

A brief introductory section to each topic shows the relevance of the issue in the school context, links to the field of CDC and starts with some guiding questions for reflection. A ready-made scenario that allows for analysis and comparison with your own teaching practices can be used as a warm-up and for becoming acquainted with the specific topic. In the next step, you will be guided through a reflection process on your own teaching activities and projects.

The tool can be used on an individual or peer-to-peer basis. It also enables collective reflection processes of the entire staff of a school. It can support and empower you under any conditions regardless of your experience or of how far you have come on your journey to create a democratic school.

References

Bailey K. M., Curtis A. and Nunan D. (2001), Pursuing professional development: the self as source, Heinle & Heinle Publishers, Toronto.

Biesta G. J. J. (2015), “How does a competent teacher become a good teacher? On judgement, wisdom and virtuosity in teaching and teacher education”, Heilbronn R. and Foreman-Peck L. (eds), Philosophical perspectives on the future of teacher education, Wiley Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 3-22.

Carr W. and Kemmis S. (1986), Becoming critical: Education knowledge and action research. Falmer, Fowler F.G. and Fowler H., London.

Council of Europe (2010), Council of Europe Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education, Recommendation CM/Rec (2010) 7 and explanatory memorandum, Legal Instruments, Council of Europe, Strasbourg, available at www.coe.int/en/web/edc/charter-on-education-for-democratic-citizenship-and-human-rights-education.

Council of Europe (2018), Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture, Volumes 1-3, available at www.coe.int/en/web/reference-framework-of-competences-for-democratic-culture/home.

Larrivee B. (2000), “Transforming teaching practice: becoming the critically reflective teacher”, Reflective practice, Volume 1 (3), pp. 293-307, DOI: 10.1080/713693162.

Schoen D. (1983), The reflective practitioner: how professionals think in action, Basic Books, New York.

Further reading and resources

Connecticut State Department of Education (2017), The coaching and self-reflection tool for competency in teaching English learners, available at https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/SDE/Publications/el/Coaching_Tool_for_Competency_in_Teaching_English_Learners.pdf?la=en.

Johnson K. A. (n.d.), “Teacher self-assessment tools”, Hamline University, available at www.tesol.org/docs/default-source/new-resource-library/symposium-on-student-empowerment-4.pdf.

Lambert K. (n.d.), “Making teacher reflection meaningful”, Education World, available at www.educationworld.com/making-teacher-reflection-meaningful.

Ontario College of Teachers (n.d.), “A self-reflective professional learning tool”, available at www.oct.ca/-/media/PDF/A%20Self%20Reflective%20Professional%20Learning%20Tool/EN/SPE%20Self-Reflection%20Brochure % 20EN % 20ACCESSIBLE % 20WEB.pdf.

Williamson A. M., Mears A. and Bustos C. (2015), “Reflection tools in teacher education classes: an analysis of implementation in online, hybrid, and traditional environments”, The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, Vol. 14 (2), available at www.tojet.net.

Zembylas M. (2003), “Interrogating ‘teacher identity’: emotion, resistance, and self-formation”, Educational Theory, Vol. 53 (1), pp. 107-127.

1 You can download the three RFCDC volumes from the relevant website (Council of Europe 2018). For the purpose of the self-reflection tool, Volume 1, “Context, concepts and model”, and Volume 3, “Guidance for implementation” (curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, teacher education, whole-school approach, building resilience to radicalisation leading to violent extremism and terrorism), are especially important.

2 As well as this printable version, an online tool with the same content is available, allowing users to store reflections in a confidential individual account: www.coe.int/en/web/reference-framework-of-competences-for-democratic-culture/-reflection-tool-for-teachers.

PART I

The Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture in brief

Education plays an essential role in building the future and reflects the type of world we want to prepare for the generations to come. Education should prepare learners to participate effectively in a culture of democracy and to live together with others in culturally diverse democratic societies.

The RFCDC offers a systematic approach to designing the teaching, learning and assessment of CDC, and introducing them into education systems in ways which are coherent, comprehensive and transparent for all concerned.

The RFCDC is intended for use in all sectors of education systems from pre-school through primary and secondary schooling to higher education, including adult and vocational education. The heart of the RFCDC is its model of the competences that need to be acquired by learners if they are to participate effectively in a culture of democracy and live peacefully together with others in culturally diverse democratic societies. The RFCDC also contains descriptors for all the competences in the model and offers guidance on how the RFCDC can be implemented in education systems.

This document is a summary but readers are encouraged to consult the full RFCDC (three volumes). Its primary aim is to help teachers and other education professionals get acquainted with the RFCDC. It emphasises three key aspects related to its use by teachers: pedagogy, assessment and a whole-school approach to promote the development of competences for democratic culture.

Background to the RFCDC

The Council of Europe views education as fulfilling four major purposes:1

preparation for life as active citizens in democratic societies;

personal development;

the development and maintenance of a broad, advanced knowledge base;

preparation for the labour market.

The four purposes are complementary and of equal value. The Council of Europe sees education as a process enabling individuals to make independent choices for their own lives, to recognise others as equals and to interact with them in meaningful ways. This view of education is linked to the ideals of democracy and human rights. Learning requires processes which engage the whole person: intellect, emotions and experiences. Experience-based and active learning complement learning based on theory for the competences that are needed for active democratic participation.

The conceptual foundations of the RFCDC

This kind of education is explicitly linked to the ideals of democracy and reflects the principles of human rights. These principles are of special importance with regard to the development of competences for active participation in democracy. This means that the focus should not only be on the transmission of knowledge.

The focus should also be on creating meaningful conditions in which learners can develop their full potential, in ways and at a pace suitable for and influenced by themselves. Moreover, learning is not only a matter of cognitive processes. Learning requires processes which engage the learner’s whole person: intellect, emotions and experiences.