Failing the Practicum: Narrowing the Gap Between Expectations and Reality With Reflective Practice

The practicum has come to be recognized as one of the most important parts of the language teacher education program and many preservice teachers assume that they will be able to neatly translate what they have learned in their theory classes into practice (Richards & Crookes, 1988). However, preservice teachers have spent more time in classrooms as students than as student teachers, and these prior experiences may have more influence on how information on teaching is translated into classroom practices during the practicum than what they have been exposed to in the language teacher education program (Bailey, et al. 1996; Johnson, 1994). Because preservice teachers may not be aware of the influence of their experience as students on their teaching during the practicum, Bailey and colleagues have suggested that language teacher education programs include activities that encourage them to bring their “past experience to the level of conscious awareness” (p. 11) so that it can be subjected to analysis. One method of encouraging such reflection is by encouraging preservice teachers to identify the maxims they use during teaching practice. As Richards (1996) notes, a teacher’s maxims “function like rules for best behaviour” (p. 286) and these rules reflect their belief systems and prior knowledge. This article outlines a