Autobiographical vignettes: a medium for teachers’ professional learning through self-study and reflection

Many teachers use their own work as the basis for research and this can be a complex and confronting task. It demands merging the roles of teacher, researcher and research participant. These roles may not speak with one voice. Some voices are faint, mere echoes; other voices convey a more confident sense of the different roles. This paper draws on a range of autobiographical vignettes that were used to bring together the fractured voices that emerged during an inquiry-focused research project in a primary school. The paper contributes to understandings about the place and practice of using autobiographical writing in teachers’ professional learning and argues that autobiographical vignettes can provide a starting point for enhancing learning by acting as a catalyst for reflection and self-study. Self-knowledge is vital for teachers because it paves the way for shaping and continuing to shape what teachers know about themselves as learners and what they might learn about teaching.