Philosophies in Action: A Personal and Analytical Look into Reflective Teaching

In this thesis, I will address the implementation of reflective teaching into everyday practice and how this reflective teaching impacts teacher actions and decisions in classrooms and schools. I engaged in reflective teaching for a semester of my student teaching practicum experience, focusing extensively on my philosophy of education, its evolution, and its implementation. Additionally, I interviewed in-service teachers at a rural Mississippi high school on how they engage in reflective practice and implement their philosophies into their teaching daily. The research from both the journals and interviews was uploaded into a qualitative data analysis software where it was analyzed, coded, and categorized. From this data, I was able to establish the skills and practices necessary to truly engage in reflective teaching. Based on my findings, I devised guidelines for future teachers so that they can engage in reflective teaching throughout their career. I found that even though each teacher has individual beliefs and values that guide their practice, engaging in reflective teaching follows a similar pattern for each teacher