""It's not the doing that matters; it's the thinking about the doing,""
said John Dewey. As a teacher, you work hard to make a positive
difference in the lives of your students. But this kind of progress
doesn't happen overnight, and it doesn't happen accidentally. It's the
result of intentionality, planning, effort . . . and thought. The
difference between learning a skill and being able to implement it
effectively resides in your capacity to engage in deep, continuous
thought about that skill. In other words, recognizing why you do
something is often more important than knowing how to do it. To help you
deepen your thinking and reflect on your capacity as an educator, Pete
Hall and Alisa Simeral return to the Continuum of Self-Reflection, which
they introduced to coaches and administrators in their best-selling
Building Teachers' Capacity for Success, and redesign its implementation
so you can take charge of your own professional growth. In these pages,
you'll find tools specifically made to enhance self-reflection on
professional practice, including the Continuum of Self-Reflection and
the Reflective Cycle. You'll be able to assess your current
self-reflective tendencies, identify opportunities to reflect on your
instruction, and begin to forge a path toward continuous growth and
educational excellence.
