Reflection On Reflection

In recent years, the professional development of teachers has been drawing a lot of attention from educational theory and practice of community. "Reflections" as a way to improve their teaching and develop their professional competence has been widely mentioned. Reflective teaching with regard to foreign language drew a lot attention from foreign language teachers, because of its good characters, such as being inclusive to different schools, the depth of its theory and the practical guidance to teaching practice. Many experts and scholars in Chinese educational field are busy doing further research on the theoretical study of reflective teaching as well as focusing on using the theory in teaching practice. Nevertheless, the role of reflection is rarely metioned in many works about reflective teaching. Questions such as, to what degree reflection can help teachers with their professional development? What kind of reflection is effective? What is the proper definition of reflection? Is reflection an efficient way to accelerate teachers' professional development ? We need to do further studies. This means that, on the one hand, we focus on studying reflection on a daily basis .On the other hand, there is still a great deal to be uncovered in our study of reflection. With qualitative research methods, the author studies the theoretical basis of reflective teaching in foreign language teaching, its definition and characteristics as well as its role in promoting the professional development of teachers. By interviewing some foreign-language teachers involved in basic education, the author studies and analyses the problems and causes which exist currently in reflective teaching carried out by teachers in high schools, i.e. the simple form, the superficial content, the lack of professional theoretical knowledge, where there is reflection but no action. Furthermore, the author explores the favorable conditions for English teachers in secondary schools to carry out effective reflective teaching, meaning that teachers should have critical reflective thinking, positive attitude, scientific strategies, and awareness of cooperating with other teachers. In addition to this a harmonious environment and a good atmosphere for developing reflective teaching are likewise to be considered beneficial.