The professional development of kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong appears to be limited by their inability to extend thinking beyond their own personal concerns so that the needs of the children were not the major determinant of their classroom practice (Li, 2000a). Professional development of a teacher involves cognitive development, a change of the practitioner's perception of teaching and learning as well as a change in their coping strategies (Li, 2001). To facilitate the change, the key is cognitive structuring/advancement through the process of assisted performance taking place within the zone of proximal development (ZPD) (Tharp and Gallimore 1988) of individual teachers. Peer coaching and expert consultation, presumably in a collaborative school culture, are important elements in the process of cognitive development. This study is to compare the teaching and belief of teachers before, during and after the provision of peer coaching and expert consultation in a school-based staff development project. Data were obtained by recording vignettes of practice, listening to teachers' conversations in workshops and commentary in the video. The findings of the study suggest that assisted performance and case-based training hold some promise for teachers' learning process of professional development.
本港幼稚園教師的專業發展受其個人想法限制，使得她們在課堂教學時不能以兒童的需要為依歸(Li, 2000a)。教師的專業發展涉及認知發展的轉變，就是想法的轉變、以及對教學策略上的轉變(Li, 2001)。要促使這個轉變，關鍵在於個體教師在周邊發展的範圍內，透過建構的過程，將以兒童的需要為教學依歸的認知過程結構化或提昇化(Tharp and Gallimore 1988)。在學校文化的配合下，朋輩指導和專家諮詢是認知發展過程的重要原素。是次研究旨在比較教師們在朋輩指導和專家諮詢的提供前、後和期間的教學和想法的轉變，並透過錄音、聆聽教師的意見、工作坊的會談和錄影片段的旁白而搜集資料。研究結果顯示朋輩指導和個案培訓有助教師們的專業發展。
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