Critical incidents are used to encourage reflective practice (Tripp 1994, Rodgers 2002) in professional settings, and to develop reflective practice in Initial Teacher Education, for example during professional training placements in schools. A critical incident is any observable experience or activity which presents itself as an important or significant episode, and affords analysis. Zeichner and Liston (1996) provide a helpful definition of the reflective practitioner as a teacher who ‘… examines, frames and attempts to solve the dilemmas of classroom practice; is aware of and questions the assumptions and values he or she brings to teaching; is attentive to the institutional and cultural contexts in which he or she teachers; takes part in curriculum development and is involved in school change efforts; and take responsibility for his or her own professional development’ (p.6). The particular role of the more experienced teacher within the professional dialogue is therefore central to the process of the development of deeper reflective practice. An enquiry-based project in one HEI set out to develop and evaluate pedagogical understanding of critical reflection on practice (Harrison and Lee 2009). The authors made a number of recommendations. One was to deploy the use of a Reflection Framework (adapted from Ward and McCotter, 2004, p. 250) for training purposes to support HEI tutors, supervising teachers and student teachers in identifying the level (depth) of reflection engaged in. This paper reports on emerging practices of a cohort of four senior teachers in different schools during 2009-10. All attended a half-day training event, in which the recommendations of the Project Report were shared and discussed; they were volunteers to join an action research project in which they could use their emerging understanding of deeper reflective practices and how to support student teachers during professional learning conversations in relation to the Reflection Framework. The main focus of the conversations was Critical Incident Analysis. The three research questions to be explored for this paper are: (1) How do the senior teachers plan and conduct professional dialogues with student teacher to encourage deeper refection on the critical Incident? (2) How and to what extent does the use of the Reflection Framework support the depth of analysis in professional dialogue (3) What are the perceptions of the participants of the use and value of the Reflection Framework in developing their reflective practices?

This is an action research project involving two researchers and four secondary teachers. 24 student teachers placed in the four schools also formed an opportunistic sample of less experienced teachers. Professional dialogues at two points in the year focused on critical incidents in the student teachers’ work. Action research methodology (McNiff 1988, Zeichner 2003) permitted exploration of approaches taken by the senior teachers, both with the Reflection Framework and how they chose to manage the learning conversations with student teachers. Data was collected through: (1) Audio-recording and transcription of learning conversations, following ethical guidelines (BERA 2004). Thematic analyses on the transcripts allowed further questioning of the experienced teachers based on ‘stimulated recall ‘ (Calderhead 1981, Gass and Mackey 2000)). This permitted further levels of reflection by these teachers (Agyris and Schon 1978). (2) Semi-structured interviews with each participant soon after each conversation. Recordings were transcribed and analysed thematically.

We are in the process of collecting, assembling and analysing data, and aim to contribute to the knowledge base about the choice of processes that underpin professional learning conversations: the chosen areas of content, and the range, types and level of criticality of reflection in the talking. On the basis of the stimulated recall and interview data we aim also to contribute to the knowledge base about the role and function of targeted professional training and awareness-raising in relation to effective strategies that can encourage deeper reflective practices. Publication of the conference paper should result in papers in both professional and academic journals.