Iniciação à prática profissional e formação do professor reflexivo

Observing classes consists of a rather specific practice within pedagogical supervision. It is also considered of paramount importance in the framework of reflexivity, thus playing a relevant role in the professional development of teachers in training, both initial and continuous. This is the viewpoint which guides this paper, focusing on aspects linked to initial teacher training, especially those which are currently experienced as an outcome from the Bologna Reform. The assumption is that students in training should be more autonomous and that the training institution values the role of dialogic communication among all agents which contribute to the students’ personal and professional development. This will result in the favouring of a professional culture which considers them as peers within a community of practice. This study uses a qualitative methodology and the research focus is mainly concentrated on the practice carried out by future teachers, more specifically on their discourse and on the way they perceive themselves as individuals and practitioners. To achieve that we will use the categorisation outlined in the Target Language Observation Scheme (TALOS), which analyses the content of the practitioners’ reflections on three observed classes as a way to evaluate their own professional practice. The study shows an improvement in the observation skills and self-observation skills of the subjects who are part of the sample. It must also be highlighted that the early perceptions practitioners had about themselves at the initial supervised teaching period differs from the one they have at the end. These perspectives are the result of changes occurred throughout the training process, particularly in the way they perceive themselves, they act and reflect. As a conclusion it can be added that by assuming their practice as a complex process intensifying reflexivity, practitioners have become more open-minded when regarding new forms of action.