Handout used during my workshop at Teachers Helping Teachers 2015 in Krygyzstan.

1. The Expert Teacher of English as a Foreign Language
Workshop at Teachers Helping Teachers 2015 in Kyrgyzstan
Brent A. Jones
Konan University, Hirao School of Management
Abstract - This workshop-style presentation introduces the general topic of teacher expertise, with
the aim of coming up with a collective list of qualities (both innate and learned) that separate
expert teachers from their novice or competent colleagues. The work of Prof. Andy Goodwyn at
University of Reading in the UK will be outlined together with discussion of an ongoing research
project that involves a group of teachers exploring reflective journaling as part of a wider
professional development project.
Overview
- What are we talking about?
- Why is it important?
- Where are we going?
- How might we get there?
Question One - What would you call a "highly skilled" teacher?
___________________________________________________________________________
Question Two - What does the word "professional" mean?
___________________________________________________________________________
Metaphorical Thinking Exercise (complete the following sentences) -
A teacher is . . .
My students are . . .
My classroom is . . .
My school is . . .
Question Three - What is one idea from today's talk that you want to follow up on?
___________________________________________________________________________
Notes:

2. Expertise (Goodwyn, 2011)
- A high level of knowledge or skill in a specialised area that is acquired from experience,
practice, training or study.
- Knowledge developed within a community of practice
- The innate human capacity for extensive adaptation to physical and social environment
Professionalism (Hargeaves, 2000)
The concepts of professionalism and professionalization are ‘essentially contested’, as philosophers
say. Outside education, professions have been represented theoretically, in the image of those who
belong to them, and who advance their interests as having a strong technical culture with a
specialized knowledge base and shared standards of practice, a service ethic where there is a
commitment to client needs, a firm monopoly over service, long periods of training, and high
degrees of autonomy.
Characteristics of Top Performing Individuals (Ericsson, et al, 2007)
They perceive more. Experts see patterns, make finer discriminations, interpret situations more quickly and
as a result make faster, more accurate decisions. Novices slowly review all information and don’t have
the contextual experience to recognize patterns
They know more. Not only do experts have more facts and details available to them, they have more tacit
knowledge–that all-important unconscious “know how” that only comes with experience. Novices rely
on limited explicit knowledge
They have superior mental models. Experience helps experts have rich internal representations of how
things work and how knowledge is connected. They use this to learn and understand situations more
rapidly. Novices rely on simple, sometimes inaccurate, rules of thumb and loosely connected knowledge
They use personal networks more effectively. Experts know who to go to for help and answers. Novices are
not able to identify access critical information and people as quickly
They have superior “meta-cognition”. Experts are better self-monitors than novices. They set goals, self
evaluate against a standard, and make corrections and adjustments more quickly from feedback
Deliberate Practice (Gram, 2013)
It must be designed to improve performance. Opportunities for practice must have a goal and evaluation
criteria.
It must be based on authentic tasks. The practice must use real work and be performed in context.
It must be challenging. The tasks selected for practice must slightly outside of the learners comfort zone,
but not so far out as produce anxiety or panic.
Immediate feedback on results. Diagnostic feedback must be continuously available both from people
(coaches) and the business results produced by the activity.
Reflection and adjustment. Feedback requires reflection and analysis to inform behaviour change.
10,000 hours. For complex work, ten years seems to be the necessary investment of in deliberate practice to
achieve expertise.
Supporting the Novice to Expert Journey (Gram, 2013)
Action Learning. Small teams create a plan of action to solve a real business problem. Impacts of
these actions are observed, analyzed, lessons extracted and new actions prepared.
Cognitive Apprenticeship. The standard apprenticeship model updated for knowledge work.
Instead of demonstrating a manual skill, experts model and describe their thinking to “apprentices”
who then work on the same problem while they articulate and verbalize their own reasoning.

3. Communities of Practice. Groups with common professional or project goals work together sharing
and discussing best practices. In doing so they develop rich tacit knowledge that is often
impossible in formal learning programs.
Simulation and Games. Great simulations are a surrogate for real experience. This allows the
learner to attempt challenging tasks, experience failure and learn from errors–all critical elements
of deliberate practice.
Feedback in the Workflow. Wonderful natural feedback exists in the form of business results and
performance data. We don’t tend to think of it as a learning tool, but in the context of deliberate
practice, it’s one of the most powerful.
Stretch Assignments with Coaching. One of the most powerful approaches to “practice” is
challenging work assignments that push current capabilities.
References
Day, C., Kington, A., Stobart, G., & Sammons, P. (2006). The personal and professional selves of
teachers: stable and unstable identities. British Educational Research Journal, 32, 4, 601 – 616.
Dreyfus, H. & Dreyfus, S. (2005). Expertise in real world contexts. Organization Studies,
26(5), 779-792.
Ericsson, K., Prietula, M. & Cokely, E. (2007). The making of an expert. Harvard Business Review
(July-August), 115-121.
Gram, T. (2013). Practice makes perfect revisited: Deliberate practice and the development of
expertise. HRVOICE.org. Retrieved September 4, 2015 from www.hrvoice.org
Hattie, J. (2003). Teachers make a difference: What is the research evidence. Paper presented at the
Australian Council for Educational Research Annual Conference on Building Teacher
Quality, Melbourne, October.
Kinsella, E. (2001). Reflections on reflective practice. Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy,
68(3), 195–8.
Goodwyn, A. (2011). The expert teacher of English. London, UK: Routledge.
Schön, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action.
London: Maurice Temple-Smith Ltd.
Biographical Statement - Brent A. Jones has been teaching English as a second or foreign
language for nearly 30 years, first in Hawaii, and then in Japan and other parts of Asia. He is
currently the Director of Language Programs at Konan University, Hirao School of Management,
which leavers him almost no time to pursue his true passion, brewing beer. He has been involved
with Teachers Helping Teachers since 2006.
Appendix 1 - Ten actions of a reflective practitioner (Source: Kinsella, 2001)
1. Recognize your practice experience as an avenue for learning.
2.Think about and reflect on the meaning of your practice experience on a regular basis.
3. Recognize ‘other ways of knowing’ as important for good practice and as a legitimate focus for
your professional development.
4.Work to develop your self-knowledge, political, social and economic knowledge, and practical
knowledge, as well as traditional technical/scientific knowledge.

4. 5. Constantly examine your client’s context, the context of practice, the cultural context, and the
systemic contexts in which your work occurs.
6. Critically reflect on the ideologies that inform the systems in which you work, and take
meaningful action to advocate for positive change; envision new possibilities!
7. Examine the assumptions that you bring to your practice.
8. Articulate your espoused theory of practice; recognize it as a dynamic growing entity.
9. Frequently compare your espoused theory of practice (what you say) with your theory-in-use
(what you do).
10. Develop praxis: Action informed by reflection.
Appendix 2 - Hattie's dimensions and characteristics
Characteristics Source of Evidence
1 Deep understanding of teaching and learning
2 Problem solving approach
3 Anticipate, plan and improvise
4 Excellent decision makers – prioritise decisions
5 Optimal classroom climate for learning
6 Recognise the multidimensional nature of the
classroom
7 They recognise that teaching is context dependent
and highly situated
8 Constantly monitoring student progress and
providing valuable feedback
9 Testing ‘hypotheses’ i.e. is this working?
10 More automatic i.e. they keep plenty of ‘mental
space’ available
11 High respect for all students
12 Passionate about teaching and learning
13 Highly motivating – building students self-
regulation, self-efficacy, self-esteem
14 Set appropriate but challenging goals and tasks
15 Positively impact on achievement
16 Enhance surface and deep learning