Reflective thinking is an important part of learning in science. It involves thinking about what you have read, observed, and your own thoughts on a topic. Reflection is a personal response to experiences and new information that allows learning and thinking to take place. Reflective thinking helps you recognize connections between what you already know and what you are learning. Reflective writing is a way to explore your learning through response to experiences and new information, and gain self-knowledge through developing writing skills. There are different levels of reflection from basic recall to exemplary critical reflection that considers different contexts and explanations.

1. Reflection A great deal of your time in science will be spent thinking ; thinking about what people have said, what you have read, what you have observed, what you yourself are thinking and how your thinking has changed. Figure 1: The Thinking Process (adapted from Mezirow 1990, Schon 1987, Brookfield 1987)

2. Reflection Is a form of personal response to experiences, situations, events or new information. a 'processing' phase where thinking and learning take place .

3. Reflective Thinking Before you can begin to assess the words and ideas of others, you need to pause, identify and examine your own thoughts. Doing this involves revisiting your prior experience and knowledge of the topic you are exploring. It also involves considering how and why you think the way you do .

4. Reflective Thinking It helps you to recognize and clarify the important connections between what you already know and what you are learning . It is a way of helping you to become an active, aware and critical learner .

5. Reflective Writing Reflective writing is: your response to experiences, opinions, events, new information, thoughts and feeling a way of thinking to explore your learning an opportunity to gain self-knowledge a chance to develop and reinforce writing skills a way of making meaning out of what you study Reflective writing is not a summary of class activities

6. What Can I Write About? Your perceptions of the class and the content. Your experiences, ideas and observations and how they relate to the class or topic. What you found confusing, inspiring, difficult, interesting and why. Questions you have. Conclusions you have drawn. How you learned.

7. What Can I Write About? Alternative interpretations or different perspectives on what you have read or done in your class. Comparisons and connections between what you are learning and: your prior knowledge and experience; your prior assumptions and preconceptions; what you know from other classes. How new ideas challenge what you “already know”.

8. Writing Style You can be personal, hypothetical, critical and creative. You can comment based on your experience, integrating them with academic evidence. Reflective writing is an activity that includes description (what, when, who) and analysis (how, why, what if).

9. Writing Style Descriptive (outlining what something is or how something was done) Explanatory (explaining why or how it is like that) Expressive (I think, I feel, I believe). Use full sentences and complete paragraphs.

10. Levels Of Reflection Basic: A simple recall of events or a summary of class. There is no discussion beyond description. Developing: S ome evidence of reflection, occasional connection to prior knowledge or current event.Uses primarily descriptive language. Proficient: Demonstrates a ‘stepping back’ from events. There is consistent reflection showing various connections and awareness of learning process. Exemplary: In addition demonstrates critical reflection, an awareness that the same actions and events may be seen in different contexts with different explanations.

11. References Brookfield, S 1987, Developing critical thinkers: challenging adults to explore alternative ways of thinking and acting, Open University Press, Milton Keynes. Mezirow, J 1990, Fostering critical reflection in adulthood: a guide to transformative and emancipatory learning, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco. Schön, DA 1987, Educating the reflective practitioner, Jossey-Bass. San Francisco. Based on a guide prepared by The Learning Centre, The University of New South Wales © 2008. This guide may be distributed or adapted for educational purposes.