An Approach to Research Based Teacher Education Through Collaborative Inquiry

This paper argues that in order to encourage student teachers to engage in systematic reflection and nurture appropriate dispositions towards inquiry, we must act upon the implications of our knowledge of their vulnerable condition and of their perceptions of what is relevant. It is suggested what this might mean in practice, and the role of collaborative enquiry in the promotion of reflection is analysed. There are three foci: the issue of student teachers approaching research; the relationship between professional collaboration in a small‐scale ‘critical community’ and the quality and form of reflection; and the dilemma of being honest and being sensitive in providing feedback, particularly where the role of student teacher vis‐a‐vis regular teacher is inverted.