The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers

Tan, Zhiyao; Gong, Qian; Liu, Jia; Liu, Feifei; Lu, Liyun; Deng, Wenxin

doi:10.3390/bs15121745

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Open AccessArticle

The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers

by

Zhiyao Tan

,

Qian Gong

^*,

Jia Liu

,

Feifei Liu

,

Liyun Lu

and

Wenxin Deng

School of Teacher Education, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210023, China

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Behav. Sci. 2025, 15(12), 1745; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121745

Submission received: 5 November 2025 / Revised: 11 December 2025 / Accepted: 12 December 2025 / Published: 16 December 2025

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Abstract

Critical thinking, regarded as an indispensable high-order thinking for pre-service teachers, is of great significance in effective teaching and the cultivation of students’ critical thinking. Given that it has been confirmed by previous studies that the development of pre-service teachers’ critical thinking can be promoted by microteaching, a “Practice-Feedback-Journal” microteaching model was innovatively constructed in this study, aiming to cultivate the critical thinking of pre-service teachers. To investigate the impact of this model, 41 participants from a Chinese normal university were selected for a 12-week microteaching intervention experiment. Subsequently, content analysis of their online reflective journals was conducted using the Nvivo 20 software, based on the critical thinking framework. The findings suggest that the model has the potential to enhance Chinese pre-service teachers’ critical thinking. Evidence indicates that reflective feedback and case-based teaching strategies appear supportive, while cooperative learning also emerged as a promising approach due to its dual simulation of both student and teacher perspectives. As a small-scale exploratory study, this research offers preliminary insights and potential avenues for cultivating higher-order thinking in teacher education.

Keywords: critical thinking; microteaching model; qualitative analysis; pre-service teachers

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MDPI and ACS Style

Tan, Z.; Gong, Q.; Liu, J.; Liu, F.; Lu, L.; Deng, W. The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers. Behav. Sci. 2025, 15, 1745. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121745

AMA Style

Tan Z, Gong Q, Liu J, Liu F, Lu L, Deng W. The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers. Behavioral Sciences. 2025; 15(12):1745. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121745

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tan, Zhiyao, Qian Gong, Jia Liu, Feifei Liu, Liyun Lu, and Wenxin Deng. 2025. "The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers" Behavioral Sciences 15, no. 12: 1745. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121745

APA Style

Tan, Z., Gong, Q., Liu, J., Liu, F., Lu, L., & Deng, W. (2025). The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers. Behavioral Sciences, 15(12), 1745. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15121745

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The Impact of “Practice–Feedback–Journal” Microteaching Model on Critical Thinking Development in Chinese Pre-Service Teachers

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