What is reflection

What is reflection

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  IntroductiontoReflection Aamir Ali B.ED (1.5Year) The Islamia University of Bahawalpur.
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  What isreflection? “…the waythat we learn from an experience in order to understand and develop practice” “We learn through critical reflection by putting ourselves into the experience & exploring personal & theoretical knowledge to understand it & view it in different ways”. Benefits to reflective practice include:  Increased learning from an experience or situation  Promotion of deep learning  Identification of personal and professional strengths and areas for improvement  Identification of educational needs  Acquisition of new knowledge and skills  Further understanding of own beliefs, attitudes and values  Encouragement of self-motivation and self-directed learning  Could act as a source of feedback  Possible improvements of personal and clinical confidence Limitations to reflective practice include:  Not all practitioners may understand the reflective process  May feel uncomfortable challenging and evaluating own practice  Could be time consuming  May have confusion as to which situations/experiences to reflect upon  May not be adequate to resolve clinical problems WhyReflect? Reflection can help us to feel more aware of and confident in ourselves generally, and in our teaching role. It can help us to:  Make the best use of the knowledge available.  Be conscious of our potential for bias & discrimination.  Challenge & develop the existing professional knowledge base  Maximise our own opportunities for learning.  Recognise what we do well so that we can apply these skills in other situations  Improve professional judgment  Learn from successes and mistakes to enhance development  Plan for future situations and therefore respond more positively to change  Meet our legal requirement to undertake CPD
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  What is ReflectivePractice? Reflective Practice is a concept which has been extensively used in education for some time, and is also adopted by other professionals such as healthcare workers. As with reflection, there are several models of Reflective Practice which vary from writer to writer, and organisation to organisation. Some of the key ideas are presented here, but we do not suggest any one is better than any other. Use the content and ideas which you think will work best for you! Definitions of Reflective Practice Reflective practice is viewed as a means by which practitioners can develop a greater level of self-awareness about the nature and impact of their performance, an awareness that creates opportunities for professional growth and development. Schon puts it in a nicely simple way A dialogue of thinking and doing through which I become more skilful. (Schön 1987) Reflective practice’ is a term often used in education pedagogy. It is a continuous process from a personal perspective that considers critical incidents within your life’s experiences. Reflective practice involves thoughtfully considering one’s own experiences in applying theory to practice. In teacher education it refers to the process of trainees studying their known teaching methods and determining what works best for the students. All lecturers need to reflect on their experiences in the classroom and adapt their strategies accordingly. Pollard and Tann (1993) laid out a set of six characteristics of reflective practice. They argued that the reflective practitioner:  has an active concern with aims and consequences, as well as means and technical efficiency  requires competence in methods of classroom enquiry (gathering data, analysis, evaluation) to support the development of teaching competence  requires attitudes of open-mindedness, responsibility and wholeheartedness  is based on teacher judgement which is informed partly by self-reflection and partly by insights from educational disciplines  is enhanced through collaboration and dialogue with colleagues Whatever you are reflecting on, the following points are important: Reflection is an exploration and explanation of events – not just a description. Reflection often involves revealing anxieties, errors and weaknesses, as well as strengths and successes. It is usually necessary to select just the most significant parts of the event or idea on which you’re reflecting. Don’t try to tell the whole story, or you will end up only describing rather than reflecting. It is often useful to reflect forward to the future – when you might do something differently as a result of reflecting – as well as reflecting back on the past.
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  What is involvedin reflection? Reflection is part of learning and thinking. We reflect in order to learn something, or we learn as a result of reflecting, and the term ‘reflective learning’ emphasises the intention to learn from current or prior experience” Reflection is a type of thinking aimed at achieving better understanding and leading to new learning. All of the following are important aspects of the reflective process: Making sense of experience We don’t always learn from experiences on their own.. Through reflection, we can analyse experience, actively attempting to ‘make sense’ or find the meaning in it. This should lead to learning. ‘Standing back’ It can be hard to reflect when we are caught up in an activity. Reflection provides a way of ‘standing back’ from the emotions and quick judgments made at the time, in order to develop a clearer view or perspective. Repetition Reflection involves ‘going over’ something, often several times, in order to explore what happened from different points of view. Deeper honesty Reflection is associated with ‘striving after truth’. Through reflection, we can acknowledge things that we find difficult to admit at the time: feelings or thoughts we might have chosen to ignore at the time, particularly if we felt unsure or worried about what others might think. ‘Weighing up’ Reflection involves being even-handed, or balanced in judgement. This means taking everything into account, not just the most obvious. Clarity Reflection can bring greater clarity, like seeing events reflected in a mirror. This can help at any stage of planning, carrying out and reviewing activities. Understanding Reflection is about learning and understanding on a deeper level. This includes gaining valuable insights that cannot be just ‘taught’. Making judgements Reflection involves an element of drawing conclusions in order to move on, change or develop an approach, strategy or activity.
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  ReflectionProcess: Description What happened? Givea concise, factual account Provide relevant details, aims of exercise and what actually happened. Aim to put the reader in the picture. Feelings Identify and examine reactions, feelings and thoughts at the time. It is important, although often difficult, to be honest about these. How can you explain your feelings? What was affecting them? Did they change? Why? How did they affect your actions and thoughts at the time? Looking back, has your understanding of your feelings changed your view of the situation? Evaluation Look at the judgements you made at the time about how things were going. What was positive? Negative? What made you think this? Try to stand back from the experience to gain a sense of how it went. What made you think something was good or bad? Examine your own judgements and what contributed to them. How do you feel about them now? Analysis In this section of the reflection, you need to examine the experience in depth, and start to theorise about key aspects. Try to identify an overarching issue, or key aspect of the experience that affected it profoundly, which needs to be examined for the future. For example, an aspect of communication or time management might have played a central part in the outcome. How was it flawed this time? In what way? Why? How should it work in this situation? What ideas or theories are you aware of which look at this? Does theory
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  about this aspecthelp you make more sense of what happened? Could you use theory to improve this aspect in the future? In this section, you need to fully examine and make sense of factors affecting the situation, and exploring ways to change and develop these. Conclusion Sum up the key things learned through the reflective process, the main factors affecting the situation, and what to improve. This section might include naming specific skills that need developing, or aspects of organisation to improve. You might identify new knowledge or training which is needed. Action plan This should be a practical section: What could you do differently next time and how could you prepare for this? What areas need developing or planning? What resources do you need, and where would they be found? What steps will be taken first? Thesignificanceof ‘reflection’ forteachers Reflection is a very important practice for teachers as it relates to whether teachers can continue to move forward, and whether teachers can improve teaching practice so as to become good teachers. But in the end, reflection ‘is in our own best interests”. Brookfield (1995) gives us six reasons in answering the importance of ‘reflection’ for teachers: 1. It helps us take informedactions For example, when are questioned as to why we are doing something, we can show how our action springs form certain assumptions we hold about teaching and learning, and then make a convincing case for their accuracy by laying out the evidence that undergirds them. This is true for those teachers who constantly reflect their teaching beliefs / assumptions and practice. Such teachers can have their teaching beliefs / assumptions and practice firmly grounded in a clearly understood rationale. They can justify their teaching beliefs / assumptions and practice when needed. 2. It helps us develop a rationale for practice. Brookfield (1995) provides us such explanation: A rational for practice serves as a methodological and ethical touchstone. It provides a foundational reference point—a set of continually tested beliefs that we can consult as a guide to how we should act in unpredictable situations. 3. It helps us avoid ‘traps of demoralization and self-laceration As teachers often encounter various problems in classroom teaching, for example, despite our best effort, students show resistance in learning or become uncooperative / disruptive in the classrooms, or when dropout happens, quite often ‘we tend to accept the blame for problems that are not of our own making’. Another
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  situation is, ‘Webecome depressed when ways of behaving toward students and colleagues that we think are democratic and respectful are interpreted as aloof or manipulative.’ But chances are that it is due to social, emotional, cultural, and economic pressures entirely beyond our control. If we are critically reflective, we can avoid all these ‘traps of demoralization and self-laceration’. 4. It grounds us emotionally. Teachers can be caught in emotional roller coaster where every action either confirms our brilliance or underscores our failure. Either we withdraw from the classroom or we are forced to suppress the emotional content of our daily experiences. If we have the habit of critical reflection, it can ground us emotionally. 5. It enlivens our classroom. Critically reflective teachers are more likely to have classes that are challenging, interesting, and stimulating for students as they ‘turn the classroom into a laboratory for purposeful experimentation’ 6. It increases democratic trust. If we adopt a reflective practice, we will know that something about the effects we are having on students. A teacher who takes students seriously and treats them as adults shows that she / he can be trusted. D. Sehon as Reflective Practioner Donald Schön's 1983 book The Reflective Practitioner introduced concepts such as reflection-on-action and reflection-in-action which explain how professionals meet the challenges of their work with a kind of improvisation that is improved through practice. However, the concepts underlying reflective practice are much older. Schön built on Dewey’s work and linked reflection more solidly to professional development and professional practice. Schön claimed that by using reflection, practitioners can make explicit, hidden (tacit) knowledge. This knowledge is the theory that underpins what practitioners do often by instinct. Further, this new understanding can help practitioners improve their practice and become increasingly expert at what they do. Schön identified two types of reflection: reflection on action, which is undertaken retrospectively, and reflection in action, which is essentially ‘thinking on your feet’. He also proposed that by repeatedly carrying out the process of ‘reflecting on action’ can help practitioners to build upon previous experiences and scenarios. This leads to the creation an extensive repertoire of rehearsed interventions. When new or unexpected situations occur in practice, this repertoire enables the expert practitioner to respond rapidly and instinctively in an appropriate manner. Major techniques of Reflection
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  Reflective journals Keeping areflective journal – sometimes also called a learning journal – is a way to reflect through documenting ideas, feelings, observations and visions. It can be done on paper or on a computer. Keeping a reflective journal can help you to  focus your thoughts and develop your ideas  develop your voice and gain confidence  experiment with ideas and ask questions  organize your thinking through exploring and mapping complex issues  develop your conceptual and analytical skills  reflect upon and make sense of experiences and the processes behind them  express your feelings and emotional responses  become aware of your actions and strategies  develop your writing style and skills, and explore different styles of writing  Develop a conversation with others. When keeping a reflective journal, these tips may be useful:  write for yourself, and write every day  be informal, using language you are comfortable with  write by hand if you prefer  write in your own language  be relaxed and comfortable  try sitting in different places and positions  use diagrams and drawings  record not just events but reflection on process  ask questions and challenge assumptions  connect personal and professional experiences to concepts and theories. Peer groups and Co-operative Inquiry A group of peers who meet on a regular basis to learn and reflect together can be a powerful supporting element of individual reflective practice. The group, which decides together how to use and organize its time, may discuss work-related issues, share learning journal excerpts or try out a form of collective reflective practice. Co-operative Inquiry is a reflective practice method for groups which was initially developed by John Heron to support the reflective practice of participatory researchers. Heron, a pioneer in the development of participatory methods in the social sciences, describes the theory and practice of the method in his 1996 book, Co- operative Inquiry: research into the human condition. It involves a group working through a structured, four-stage cycle of action and reflection, through which group member’s move towards developing new ways of acting. Methods from research and other fields Reflective practice, reflexivity and first person inquiry are used in research to explore issues of power and positionality and to make the role and assumptions of researchers more explicit and integral to their analysis. There are many approaches to this, which
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  include methods fromqualitative ethnographic and anthropological research, participatory and action research, and feminist research. Issues in becoming a reflective Practioner Difficulties with learning to teach Learning from your experience in schools is central to your ITE (Initial Teacher Education) and your subsequent professional development. During your course, your school placements will develop your practical skills and knowledge and provide you with opportunities to demonstrate your learning. Time in school is likely to make up the vast majority of your course time so how do you make sure you are learning effectively while you are there? To help you understand how to learn effectively, it is worthwhile considering some of the complexities of workplace learning in order to frame our discussion of how reflective practice can support you. Complexities of workplace learning Working in any specific educational context is likely to highlight differences of opinion. These may be the result of differences between:  members of staff about what strategies they employ or the beliefs they hold  the pedagogy of different teachers and the pedagogy promoted by your ITE course leaders  ideas you have read about in journals or books and what you see happening in the school  your own beliefs, views and assumptions and those of other people. Critical Thinking and its Application Primary Sources A primary source provides direct or firsthand evidence about an event, object, person, or work of art. Primary sources provide the original materials on which other research is based and enable students and other researchers to get as close as possible to what actually happened during a particular event or time period. Examples of primary sources:  Autobiographies and memoirs  Diaries, personal letters, and correspondence  Interviews, surveys, and fieldwork Secondary Sources Secondary sources describe, discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze, evaluate, summarize, and process primary sources. A secondary source is generally one or more steps removed from the event or time period and are written or produced after
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  the fact withthe benefit of hindsight. Secondary sources often lack the freshness and immediacy of the original material. Examples of secondary sources:  Bibliographies  Biographical works  Reference books, including dictionaries, encyclopedias, and atlases 8 Characteristics of Academic Writing Academic writing has eight characteristics: complexity, formality, precision, objectivity, explicitness, accuracy, hedging and responsibility. They should all be taken into consideration when writing an academic text, but the one that is predominant also dictates the style of that writing. No concession should be made from these eight features and they should be kept in mind at all times by anyone attempting to be an academic writer. 1. Complexity in Academic Writing Complexity in academic writing comes from the fact that the standard written form of the English language, which is compulsory to be used, is different than the language we speak daily. The vocabulary used by the written language is more varied than the one used in conversations. It also uses more complicated words that are not normally used when talking with someone face to face. The grammatical aspect of the written language is also different because we don’t normally use in speaking so many subordinate clauses and passives. The phrases in the written language are noun-based and those in speaking language are verb- based. This also makes academic writing different from face to face communication or other types of writing. 2. Formality in AcademicWriting In close connection with complexity is formality. Under no circumstances will academic writing make use of colloquial expression that we consider natural in daily dialogues we have with friend or colleagues. The degree of formality should thus be pretty high. 3. Precision or Words in Academic Writing Academic writing should be very precise. Factual information, figures or charts, should all be provided and nothing written there should leave room to interpretation. 4. Academic Writing Objectivity Another important characteristic is objectivity. Academic writing is not about the reader or the writer and it shouldn’t contain referrals to any of these. It should focus
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  on the maintheme and offer information about it, without the writer getting involved in a personal manner. This is why nouns are more used than verbs or adverbs. 5. Academic Writing in Explicit Form The author of an academic writing is responsible for make it explicit and for making clear how different parts of the text are connected between them and why are they relevant for the central theme. There are certain words that can be used in order to emphasis this connection and they are called signaling words. 6. Accuracy of Academic Writing An accurate use of vocabulary is a must in a text that wants to be academic. Extra attention should be paid when using words with a specific meaning and the writer should know that there is a clear distinction between phonetics and phonemics. This distinction is not so important when it comes to the general use of English language. 7. Hedge Some academic writers choose to use a technique called hedge. This has to do with the way that writer decides to approach a certain subject and with how strong the claims he makes are. 8. Responsibility in Academic Writing Last, but not least, academic writing should be treated with responsibility. Everything stated should be accompanied by proofs and justifications and no assumptions are allowed. Sources should also be mentioned.