Writing to Learn, Learning to Write - English for Academic Purposes

  It was my first time working as a teacher. The lesson took place in a room which was no more than four by four metres with a group of 17-year-old teenagers. Having just received my teaching degree, I did not have experience dealing with teenagers as I nearly was a teenager too. I entered the classroom and introduced myself, trying not to shout too much but not speaking too low also. The lack of attention students were giving to my lesson combined with my lack of experience, made me think that to draw their attention, a loud noise would be enough, so I decided to slam the door. I had not noticed that half of it was made of glass and, the moment I slammed the door, the glass smashed into pieces. It did call my students´ attention but, indeed, not in the right way. From that moment on, the students baptized me the clumsy teacher but, even though I could have harmed someone, it resulted in a positive experience; students saw the human part of their teacher and, eventually,   fo...

  Outline of the article: Dolk, M., & den Hertog, J. (2008). Narratives in teacher education. Interactive Learning Environments, 16 (3), 215-229. doi:10.1080/10494820802113970   ·          Purpose: To present the results of an experiment made among prospective teachers regarding learning through experience and writing. ·          Thesis statement: Writing about experiences in the classroom can be advantageous in the learning process of future teachers. ·          Audience: Future teachers´ tutors, prospective teachers, pedagogues.           I.             I. Abstract      II.              II.  Introduction A.     Prospective teachers´ conception of theory B.   ...

Dolk, M., & den Hertog, J. (2008). Narratives in teacher education. Interactive Learning Environments, 16 (3), 215-229. doi:10.1080/10494820802113970   Exposes the main characteristics of a program named MILE. Exemplifies the advantages of learning through experience and writing about it. Provides steps to construct a narrative on education. Describes the progress observed in students throughout the experiment.