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Reflection

Borton’s (1970) cue questions:

(Cited in Jasper, 2003, p.99)

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What does that mean?

Thinking and analysis

Drawing conclusions

Describing event or process

Future goals and actions

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It is not sufficient simply to have an experience

in order to learn. Without reflecting upon this experience it may quickly be forgotten, or its learning potential lost. It is from the feelings and thoughts emerging from this reflection that generalisations or concepts can be generated. And it is generalisations that allow new situations to be tackled effectively. Gibbs (1988)

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Gibbs on reflection

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Gibb’s model of reflection

An example:

Chartered Scientist is a legally-recognised qualification similar to Chartered Mathematician, Chartered Psychologist, or Chartered Engineer, requiring demonstration of Master’s level achievements, usually through a qualification, by writing about high-level knowledge and by reflecting on what has been learned through professional experience.  

Alongside subject-related skills, core competencies must be described including:

•Knowing and managing personal strengths and weaknesses

•Identifying the limits of own personal knowledge and skills.

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Reflective writing for professionals

Description

A factual explanation of the event, idea or object, with some background information about the place and the people who were involved. Some elements should be kept confidential.

Feelings

An exploration of your feelings towards the event, idea or object at the time and afterwards. This is expected to be both honest, but also to avoid saying anything that could be offensive to others. If the writing is going to be public, this is particularly important.

Evaluation

How satisfactory was the event, in both your opinion and that of others (you will need evidence about the latter)? In your judgement, were there both good and bad aspects to it? Was it resolved afterwards, and if not, why not?

Analysis

More detail and depth about the things that influenced the event, including reference to any theory that underpinned your understanding of what was going on. You can refer to other writers, and reference them (accurately!). This will allow you to relate your experience to that of others (previous research, for example), and perhaps to construct a more theoretical understanding.

Conclusion

What did you learn from the event, and could anything else have been done to take matters in a different direction? Could things have been improved, or avoided, if you had behaved differently?

Action Plan

What needs to be done so that you can improve next time? Is there some specific matter to which you need to give attention, so that you cope better in future? How will you do this?

One of the simplest approaches to take is to consider:

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Roth (1989) summarises Reflective Practice processes as follows:

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Types of reflective writing assignments Journal: requires you to write weekly entries throughout a semester. May

require you to base your reflection on course content. Learning diary: similar to a journal, but may require group participation. The

diary then becomes a place for you to communicate in writing with other group members.

Log book: often used in disciplines based on experimental work, such as science. You note down or ‘log’ what you have done. A log gives you an accurate record of a process and helps you reflect on past actions and make better decisions for future actions.

Reflective note: often used in law. A reflective note encourages you to think about your personal reaction to a legal issue raised in a course.

Essay diary: can take the form of an annotated bibliography (where you examine sources of evidence you might include in your essay) and a critique (where you reflect on your own writing and research processes).

Peer review: usually involves students showing their work to their peers for feedback.

Self-assessment: requires you to comment on your own work.

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People learn:

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Levels of learning

Learning is both an active and a reflective process. If you look at the learning cycle you can see that reflection or thinking about what you have done and how and why you did it, form an integral part of learning. Because learning is often subconscious, we don’t realise that we have gained new knowledge until we stop to contemplate a particular activity. Reflection then, is a way for critical analysis, problem solving, synthesis of opposing ideas, evaluation, identifying patterns and creating meaning. Reflection will help you reach the higher levels of learning 17

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Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle

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Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle

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Schön, 1983

Areas for Reflection

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Social /group components

How did the team perform and why (group dynamics)?

How did the team handle -negotiating tasks, conflict resolution? Could it be done better? How?

Did peer assisted learning take place? Why/why not?

Technical /academic components

What worked and why? What problem-solving

techniques did your team use?

What didn’t work and why?

What theories were applied /tested/ evaluated?

What was your evaluation of the overall product or report?

Individual/self components

What did I learn? How did I learn it? What could I do more

effectively to support my individual learning, my team, my colleague’s learning?

How did I feel during the project and why? How did it affect my behaviour?

There are three main areas to base your reflections on. The first is the ‘academic and technical content’ of the project, second is the team process and lastly, your personal reflections – what did YOU learn.

A very simple example, version 1:

I woke up late because my alarm didn’t ring. My own fault, but there you are. By the time I had finished my breakfast (my usual bowl of cornflakes, and a cup of black coffee with three sugars), I had missed my bus (that’s the number 9a, picked up at the bus stop outside Halfords), which had left on time (just for a change).

So I got to University, and by the time I had found the right room, I was over 30 minutes late for the OOPR2 Exam. Unfortunately, the invigilator wouldn’t let me take the exam because it was “against University regulations”. Didn’t he realize how important it was for me to pass that exam? My overall grade depends on it, and now I stand to have a resit in September when I wanted to have my holiday in Ibiza.

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A very simple example, version 2:I was over 30 minutes late for my exam, which meant I was not allowed to sit it. This will have repercussions on my degree mark, and on my holiday plans. This is the first time I have actually missed an exam, but not the first time I’ve actually been late to exams and important interviews.  I have learned that:• I need to improve my time-keeping for critical events• The University has strict rules governing late arrivals at exams• I need to be better prepared The reasons that I arrived late were:• My alarm clock didn’t ring because I forgot to reset its time after daylight saving on Saturday night (although I had reset all the other clocks in the house).• I totally rely on the alarm clock ringing - I have no back-up system• I rely on my bus – a break down or it leaving early would also cause me to be late• I did not know in which room the exam was; if I had, I would still have been a few minutes late, but at least I could have sat the exam.

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A very simple example, version 2:

 ... In order to improve the situation for next year, I plan to:• Have a process to check all the clocks in the house when the clocks are due to change• Make sure I have a back-up alarm system (using my digital watch) for all days when it’s important to get up early• On exam day, aim to catch the earlier bus … its only 20 minutes earlier.• Possibly consider missing breakfast, and buying a sandwich on the way from the bus to the exam room. I do believe that a good breakfast is important though!• Make sure I know the correct room well in advance of the exam, by checking each room number when I first get the timetable. I suspect I need to reflect more on my priorities – this degree is really very important to me.

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Johns’ model of reflectionLooking in

Find a space to focus on self

Pay attention to your thoughts and emotions

Write down those thoughts and emotions that seem significant in realising desirable work

 

Looking out

Write a description of the situation surrounding your thoughts and feelings

What issues seemed significant?

AestheticsWhat was I trying to achieve?

Why did I respond as I did?

What were the consequences of that for the patient/others?

How were others feeling?

How did I know this?

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Johns’ model of reflectionPersonal

Why did I feel the way I did in this situation?

Ethics

Did I act for the best? (ethical mapping)

What factors (either embodied within me or embedded in the environment) were influencing me?

EmpiricsWhat knowledge did or could have informed me?

ReflexivityDoes this situation connect with previous experience?

How could I handle this situation better?

What would be the consequences of alternative actions for the patient/others/myself?

How do I feel now about this experience?

Can I support myself and others better as a consequence?

How `available’ am I to work with patients/families and staff to help them meet their needs?

Ref: Johns, C. (2000) Becoming a Reflective Practitioner: a reflective and holistic approach to clinical nursing, practice development and clinical supervision. Oxford: Blackwell Science

Ref: Johns, C. (2000) Becoming a Reflective Practitioner: a reflective and holistic approach to clinical nursing, practice development and clinical supervision. Oxford: Blackwell Science

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One idea for reflection and personal development

Luft and Ingham’s Johari Window4 quadrants – each showing a different perspective of the same person

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One idea for reflection and personal development Luft and Ingham’s Johari Window

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One idea for reflection and personal development Luft and Ingham’s Johari Window

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Πηγές

Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods, GRAHAM GIBBS (1988) http://www2.glos.ac.uk/gdn/gibbs/

Jasper, M. (2003) Beginning reflective practice. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd

Schon, D. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass

Roth, R. (1989). Preparing the reflective practitioner: Transforming the apprenticeship through the dialectic. Journal of Teacher Education, 44(3), 31-35.

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