Instructional Decisions of English/ Language Arts Teachers and Their Reflections on Those Decisions

Abstract

In the current climate of national and state level educational reform, teachers navigate an endless barrage of new ideas, mandates, reforms, curriculum, standards, evaluations, and expectations. Regardless of reform efforts and mandates, or perhaps because of them, teachers make decisions concerning what students need to know and be able to do, and frame experiences through which students learn. This case study explores the perceptions of three middle school language arts teachers as they reflect upon their curricular and instructional decisions. Through interviews over the course of eight weeks, a teacher belief survey, and application of a growth model protocol, this study explored the instructional decisions teachers made and their reflections on those decisions. Results of this study can inform reflective practice for administrators and teachers.