Cultivating Professional Development through Critical Friendship and Reflective Practice: Cases from Japan

Cultivating Professional Development Through Critical Friendship and Reflective Practice: Cases From Japan
Edited by Adrianne Verla Uchida and Jennie Roloff Rothman (Life and Education in Japan Series)

Cultivating Professional Development through Critical Friendship and Reflective Practice: Cases from Japan, edited by Adrianne Verla Uchida and Jennie Roloff Rothman, shows us an innovative bottom-up approach to professional development for educators. A critical friendship is where “two teachers come together willingly to explore facets of their development as decided by the friends” (Farrell, Foreword). These individuals might be colleagues, close friends or acquaintances who are an “invaluable, integral aspect of your personal growth as a professional” (Verla Uchida & Roloff-Rothman, Introduction). This volume enhances our knowledge of reflective practice and makes a valuable contribution to the field. The editors and contributing authors show how reflective practice can foster critical friendships as a means of professional development for educators.

The book consists of 11 chapters, organized into three parts, based on the type of critical friendship: intra-institutional friendships (those at the same institution), inter-institutional friendships (cross-institutional friendships), and those extra-institutional friendships (friendships that evolved beyond institutions). The editors draw on Farrell’s (2019) six reflective principles to examine how the critical friendship framework possesses a flexibility that fosters meaningful and supportive professional relationships. Although the chapters detail critical friendships in Japan, the themes are equally relevant for educators elsewhere. The context-specific and detailed documentation of the contributors’ stories makes the volume a valuable and inspiring resource for any educator. The volume will undoubtably prompt readers to nurture and reflect on their own critical friendships.

Foreword by Thomas S. C. Farrell
Introduction by Adrianne Verla Uchida and Jennie Roloff Rothman

Part 1: Intra-Institutional Friendships

Chapter 1: Bridging Teaching Beliefs and Visible Behaviors: Data-Led and Dialogic Reflection as an Anchor for Critical Friendship by Andrew Gill and Daniel Hooper
Chapter 2: Embracing Our Contexts: Fostering a Critical Friendship through Conversations on Parenting and Career Trajectories in Tertiary Education by Winifred Lewis Shiraishi and Adrianne Verla Uchida

Part 2: Inter-Institutional Friendships

Chapter 3: From Chai Dates to Critical Friends: Reflective Practice as Professional Development by Adrianne Verla Uchida and Jennie Roloff Rothman
Chapter 4: Epiphanies in Practice: How Good Friends Can Become Critical Friends by Aviva Ueno and Amanda J. Yoshida
Chapter 5: The "Critical" in Our Critical Friendship: Honesty, Candor, and Respect by Jackson Koon Yat Lee and Emily Choong
Chapter 6: The Realist and the Idealist: Experiences of Co-running a Teachers’ Reflective Practice Group by Peter Brereton and Michael Ellis
Chapter 7: Navigating Changing Identities Through Critical Professional Friendship by Chhayankdhar Singh Rathore and Eucharia Donnery

Part 3: Extra-Institutional Friendships

Chapter 8: Cultivating Critical Friendships Through Reflective Practice: A Community of Teachers from Different Educational Institutions by Atsuko Watanabe, Chitose Asaoka, and Akiko Fujii
Chapter 9: Critical Co-Presenterships: Podcasting as Reflective Practice by Matthew Y. Schaefer and Robert J. Lowe
Chapter 10: Getting on Board: A Phenomenological Approach to a Critical Friendship Between Leaders by Dawn Lucovich and Wayne Malcolm

Conclusions

Chapter 11: Tying it All Together: A Roadmap for Cultivating Critical Friendships by Jennie Roloff Rothman and Adrianne Verla Uchida

About the editors

Adrianne Verla Uchida has taught English in Japan since 2004. She is an Assistant Professor at Nihon University College of International Relations. She holds a Master’s degree in TESOL from Teachers College Columbia University. While this is her first co-edited volume, her academic interests include reflective practice, professional development, and teacher identity.

Jennie Roloff Rothman is Senior Coordinator of Teacher Professional Development in the English Language Institute at Kanda University of International Studies. She holds a Master’s degree in TESOL from Teachers College Columbia University. She has been teaching in Japan since 2004. Her academic interests include critical thinking and global issues in the language classroom, writing centers, EFL teacher professional development, and reflective practice.

Awards

Adrianne Verla Uchida and Jennie Roloff Rothman are the recipients of a Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) and are currently researching English language teacher identity and professional development post-pandemic in Japan.

Reviews

"...this book is an insightful and pragmatic guide for educators seeking to establish their own critical friendships or collaborative communities for informed principles, improved practice and professional development" (p. 41).
(Reviewed by Carolyn De Vishlin, Aichi University in issue 16 of GALE Journal. Full review here.)

Publication details

Publication date: 2023
Purchase (all formats)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.47908/27
ISBN (Print): 9798861658867
ISBN (ebook): 9798215898604
Ebook, $19.99 [available from Smashwords, Amazon Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and other ebook stores]
Print book, 333 pages, $29.99 [Available from Amazon and other online booksellers]
Series: Life and Education in Japan
Series editors: Diane Hawley Nagatomo and Melodie Cook