Learning to become a learning professional: reflections on one year of teaching

This research aims to study the ways in which a teacher learns through and about professional practice. Data presented here is drawn from one year of teaching and focuses on pedagogical practices, critical reflection upon those practices and the impact of the implementation of a new physical education syllabus in Maltese secondary schools. The study employs autoethnography to reveal thoughts, feelings and learning experienced by a new teacher implementing a new curriculum; in other words, I (Attard) am studying myself.

I start with my personal life. I pay attention to my physical feelings, thought, and emotions. I use what I call systematic sociological introspection and emotional recall to try and understand an experience I've lived through. (Ellis & Bochner, 2000 Ellis C Bochner AP Autoethnography, personal narrative, reflexivity 2000 in: Denzin N, & Lincoln Y, (Eds) Handbook of qualitative research London Sage 733 768  Google Scholar], p.?737)