Reflective thinking/teaching An approach that a teacher can employ towards his/her lessons. This approach is not multi-disciplinary thus it is to be carefully analyzed prior to employing this approach in any activity.

1. Reflective Teaching

2. Origin
The concept "reflective
thought" was introduced by
John Dewey in 1910 in his
"How We Think", a work
designed for teachers.
Dewey's most basic assumption
was that learning improves to
the degree that it arises out of
the process of reflection.
As time went on, terminology
concerning reflection
proliferated, spawning a host of
synonyms, such as "critical
thinking," "problem solving,"
and " higher level thought."

3. Reflective Teaching
The processes of analyzing and making
judgments about what has happened.
Dewey (1933) suggests that reflective
thinking is an active, persistent, and
careful consideration of a belief or
supposed form of knowledge, of the
grounds that support that knowledge,
and the further conclusions to which
that knowledge leads.

4. Benefits
Reflective thinking helps learners develop
higher-order thinking skills by prompting
learners to
a) relate new knowledge to prior
understanding,
b) think in both abstract and conceptual
terms,
c) apply specific strategies in novel tasks, and
d) understand their own thinking and learning
strategies.

5. Guidelines for Its
Effective Use
1. Allocate sufficient time for reflection.
Time must be considered in planning
the learning activity.
2. Schedule a short briefing activity so as
to recapture the experience and think
about it.
3. The teacher serves as the facilitator
and guide in developing skills in
analyzing a past learning experience.

6. 4. Encourage the students to recount the
experience to others, thereby
strengthening the insights gained.
5. Attend to feelings especially the
positive and pleasant ones.
6. Evaluate the experience in the light of
the learner’s intent.
Guidelines for Effective
Use

7. Strategies
1) Self-analysis
A reflective student/teacher is able to keep
a record of his/her success or failure in
employing a strategy, problems and issues
confronted, and significance of learning
events that occurred.
A student/teacher engages himself/herself
in self-analysis when s/he reflects on why
s/he succeeded or failed at some task.

8. Strategies
2) Writing journals
A journal entry includes:
a) a description of the teaching/learning event,
b) outcomes of the event,
c) value or worthiness of the outcomes, and
d) causes of success or failures.
For a student, s/he is asked to enter into
his/her daily journal/diary his own self-
analysis.

9. Strategies
3) Portfolio
A portfolio is a very personal document
which includes frank, honest and on-the-spot
account of experiences. It includes a
student’s first hand observations and
personal knowledge that will be needed in
analyzing changes in values being developed.

10. Some Guide Questions for
STUDENTS
 Was I motivated enough to continue on?
 Am I learning from the activity? If so,
why? If not, why?
 Am I relating the lesson to my
knowledge and interests? How can I do
better?
 How good was my personal
management skills?

11. Some Guide Questions for
TEACHERS
 Did I motivate them enough to continue
on?
 Are the students learning from the
activity? If so, why? If not, why?
 Am I relating the lesson to their
knowledge and interests? How can I do
better?
 How good was my classroom
management skills?

12. Reflective Thinking
Process

13. Example
(Reflective Activity for Students)
In a juvenile literature subject, the
teacher wanted to test the student’s
knowledge about the story Jack and the
Beanstalk. He then started by asking a
question:
Teacher: What did Jack do when he got to
the giant's castle?
Student: Jack hid from the giant, found the
goose that lays the golden eggs, was
discovered by the giant, fled, reached the
bottom of the vine, and then chopped it
down. The giant, of course, tumbles down,
breaks his neck, and Jack lives happily ever
after with his mother and his newly found
wealth.

14. Teacher: Did Jack trespass illegally?
Students: Yes!
Teacher: Did Jack steal the goose that lays
golden eggs?
Students: Yes!
Teacher: Did Jack, then, refuse to give
back what did not belong to him?
Student: Yes!
Teacher: Then did Jack escape down the
bean vine and cause the giant to be killed?
Student: Yes!
Teacher: If Jack trespassed,
stole, and murdered the
giant, why is the giant the
villain of this story?

15. '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
generalizations or concepts can be
generated. And it is generalizations that
allow new situations to be tackled
effectively.'
Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and
Learning Methods London, UK: Further Education Unit.

17. Resources
• Corpuz, B. S. (2013). Principles of teaching 1 (3rd
ed. ed.). Quezon City: Lorimar Publishing, Inc.
• Sage Publisher. (2005, April 1). Retrieved July 16,
2015, from Sage Publication:
http://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm
-binaries/6681_taggart_ch_1.pdf
• Shermis, S. (1999, November). Reflective thought,
critical thinking. ERIC Digest .
• Zulueta, F. (2006). Principles and methods of
teaching. Mandaluyong City: National Book Store.