Learning to Teach, Teaching to Learn: A Self-Study to Promote Gender Awareness through Debates in Teacher Education

Abstract

Education should encourage active citizenship through a critical and transformative lens to promote a more just, equal, and inclusive society. This article presents a self-study that examines my teaching practice as a novice teacher educator. It describes my first experience using debates to discuss gender inequalities through critical pedagogy. With this study I aimed to answer: (1) What can I learn from my first attempt to use debates that focus on gender issues in teacher education to improve my teaching practices based on critical pedagogy? and (2) How can participation in debates frame pre-service teachers personal and professional views on gender issues? Data collection methods included the teacher diary, students’ surveys, exit slips and a group interview. Data analysis encompassed both more traditional techniques (i.e., data analysis spiral method) and more complex and relational methods (i.e., thinking with theory). Findings are presented through a visual network showing the connections among three categories: tensions to improve, positive lens, and awareness of gender issues. This article, therefore, makes public the knowledge built and created through my experience so that it can inform my (and potentially others’) future practice. Findings show that debates offer a variety of benefits for teacher education in terms of both pedagogical insights and raising awareness about critical issues. However, debates are not magic formulas, and they may not serve nor impact all pre-service teachers in the same way.