Thanks to Nigel Ford for the beautiful photography on the theme of reflection

Supporting Information Literacy educators: Reflective pedagogic planning improving

information literacy practice.

Barbara Sen & Pamela McKinney

Copyright - Barbara Sen

Images – Prof. Nigel Ford, Information School

In this session

• We will explore how reflective practice can be used in practical ways to support teaching practice

• We will explore key theories on reflection• You will gain practical skills in reflective practice.

– Through reflective writing and reflective discussion

• You will gain an understanding of and use a pedagogic planner for improving teaching practice

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For context…a little bit of theory

Reflection

• “Reflection provides an active and structured way of thinking and of facilitating professional development.”

» SchÖn (1983)

• With this idea of reflection, reflection is not just an abstract concept; it is dynamic (“active”), and practical (“thinking and facilitating”), giving a framework (“structured way”) for professional change and development.

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The Reflective Dynamic

Outcome of reflection

Future needs

Current Influences

Past Experience

Refl ecti on

What change is needed?

How will the change be achieved?

Reflect on the success of any change.

Reflection in a work based setting (Grant 2007):

• “reflection in action”– During a training session,

you become aware, and act upon, the need to rearrange the layout of the room so that all participants can watch a demonstration.

– Reflecting whilst doing.

• “reflection on action”– After a team meeting, you

consider how you responded to a particular comment or criticism, how this made you feel, what you have learnt from the experience, and how you might respond on the future.

– Reflecting back on an event.

BOTH INVOLVE LEARNING

Reasons for reflection• Self appraisal• Personal development• Professional development• To recognise the need for learning• To improve learning or performance• To embed learning• Problem solving • Priority setting• Planning and evaluation• To inform future practice• To manage change• To improve understanding• Stress managementAll of these can have applications in a teaching context.

Reflective thinking is good

• But it often helps to write things down– It helps consolidate your thoughts.

• Use the first person – “I”. – e.g. “It was during the training session that I first noticed that

there was something wrong. Afterward I considered the reactions of the participants and reviewed the feedback forms…”.

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What is Inquiry-based learning?

• Student-centred and student-directed learning – students pursue their own research

• Learning driven by questions• Consistent with constructivist

theories of learning • Problems, case scenarios, small and

large investigations. Messy and ‘real world’

• Individual and collaborative projects• A way to involve students in research

and link teaching with research

Some examples of IBL for IL

• Search for and review a journal article on a topic of interest to the student

• Interview another student about their information need, conduct literature search & present the results

• Develop research questions based on reading a text, search for literature to investigate that research question

• Week long collaborative inquiry induction activity developing familiarity with the Library

An opportunity to practise reflective writing

Exercise – reflective writing

Working on your own and working quickly

• Using the template, in Box 1, write about a recent experience of teaching using inquiry-based pedagogy.

• Think of a time in your teaching when you came away feeling that you had learnt something from the situation. Maybe you felt that as a result you need to change your behaviour, or the way you or others do things, or you felt the need to develop new skills.

• Be prepared to share what you write with a partner (you may wish to avoid any names or personal comments). Write neatly.

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Jacobs (2008)

“reflection means that we ask questions “

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Reflection

• Basic questions:

– What happened?– How did you feel?– How did it affect others, how did they feel?– What did you learn from the experience?– Have you developed as a result of this experience?– What improvements or changes can be made?– How will you achieve them?– How will you/the situation develop as a result?– What impact might changes have?

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Exercise - reflecting• Now reflect on the experience you have written

about. • Consider the questions below. Write your answers in

Box 2 • Write neatly as you will share this with others.

– What happened?– How did you feel?– How did it affect others, how did they feel?– What did you learn from the experience?– Have you developed as a result of this experience?– What improvements or changes can be made?– How will you achieve them?– How will you/the situation develop as a result?– What impact might changes have?

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Four levels of reflection: Moon, J. (2008)

1. Descriptive writing– Descriptive and contains little

reflection. May tell a story but generally from one point of view.

2. Descriptive writing with some reflection– A descriptive account that

signals points for reflection while not actually showing much reflection. What little reflection there is lacks depth.

3. Reflective writing (1)– Description, but it is focused,

with particular aspects accentuated for reflective comment. Shows some analysis, some self-questioning.

4. Reflective writing (2)– Clear evidence of standing back

from the event. Shows deep reflection. Self-questioning, and the views and motives of others are also taken into account. Observation that learning has been gained.

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Fuller explanations can be found in Moon’s paper.

Applying the theory to improve practice

Exercise

• In pairs:• Look at your writing, considering Jenny Moon’s four

levels of reflection, which one of the descriptions most describes the reflective writing? Look at your first attempt, and then your second. Is there any difference in your level of reflective writing?Copyright - Barbara Sen

Exercise: In your pairs. Reflective discussion

• Help each other consider how you might improve your reflective writing and gain more from it.

• How can you demonstrate evidence of standing back from the event?

• How can you show deep reflection?• Is there evidence of self-questioning?• Have you considered the views and motives of others ? • Is there any evidence of learning?• How will that learning lead to change?

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MAKE NOTES FROM YOUR DISCUSSION

What is a pedagogic planner?

• A tool to help us reflect on different aspects of our teaching

• A practical tool for designing learning – in this case IBL

• A structured way of discussing and sharing IBL designs, facilitates collaborative teaching development

• Combine with previous experiences of teaching for inspiration and adaptation.

Using the pedagogic planner

• Look again at the teaching experience you reflected on

• Using the pedagogic planner, identify an aspect or aspects of design for IBL where improvements or changes could be made in your teaching. What could you do differently?

Reflective discussion

Now again in your pairs discuss the changes you could make• How could you improve the

experience for students?• How could you support the

students’ inquiry more effectively?• How could you make your

teaching more inquiry-based?

Becoming deeply reflective

• Descriptive writing often considers what happened from one point of view.

• Being more deeply reflective you start to consider other people’s perspectives; become more aware.

• What can be learned from the event?

• What is needed to develop, change or move on?

• Reflection is dynamic, drawing on the past, considering the present situation, looking to the future.

• How can any changes be achieved? What impact might those changes have?

• What have you/will you put in place to make the changes?

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Tools to support your reflective practice as teachers• Jenny Moon’s model of

reflection to increase the depth of your reflection

• IBL pedagogic planner to help reflect on different aspects of teaching through inquiry and aid in future planning

Further reading• Chapman, M. (2008) Reflective writing. In. (Watson, M.) Building your

portfolio: The CILIP guide. London: Facet.• Grant.M.J (2007) The role of reflection in the library and information

sector: a systematic review. HILJ, 24 (3) 155-166• Jacobs, H.L.M (2008) Perspectives on information literacy and reflective

pedagogical praxis. The Journal of Academic Librarianship. 34 (3) 256-262

• McKinney, P & Sen, B (2012) Reflection for learning: Understanding the value of reflective writing. Journal of Information Literacy. 6 (2) URL: jil.lboro.ac.uk/ojs/index.php/JIL/article/download/LLC-V6-I2.../1726

• Moon, J. (2007) Getting the measure of reflection. Journal of Radiotherapy. 6, 191-200.

• SchÖn (1983) The reflective practitioner. Basic Books New York.• Sen, B. (2010) Reflective writing: A management skill. Library

Management. (1/2) 79-93.Copyright - Barbara Sen