100AEE:

Core Skills Lectures

Reflective Writing & Practice

Acknowledgement:
This presentation was produced with the assistance and guidance from the Centre for Academic Writing at Coventry University, including the permission to reproduce parts of a reflective writing workshop presentation by Holly Vass.

Aims
To

raise students awareness of what constitutes reflective writing and the benefits of reflective practice. To introduce students to the requirements of a personal development plan and 100AEE assignment.

Scope
What

is reflection? Why reflect? Reflective writing Basic tips

What is meant by reflection?

[The] consideration of an experience, or of learning, so as to enhance understanding or inform action. [] It is thus part of what drives successful professional activity, enabling it to progress, grow, respond to new ideas and introduce innovation. (Fry, et al. 2009) Turning experience into learning (Boud, et al. 1985)

Why Reflect?

Effective learning is an active process. Enables the evaluation of learning. Highlights opportunities for improvement. Encourages Deep rather than Surface learning. Allows for a professional approach to personal development. Reinforces and contextualises learning and experiences.

Reflection Allows You To:

Make

connections between;

What you already know What you are learning Theory Practice What you are doing How and why you do it. How could you do it better.

Deep learning

Reflection Allows You To:

Identify weaknesses and gaps in your knowledge. Construct questions you have to fill those gaps. Understand what you have yet to learn. Avoid repeating mistakes. Identify successful processes to use again. Become a reflective professional

Gibbs(1988) Model
Description What happened? Action plan If it arose again what would you do? Feelings What were you thinking and feeling?

Conclusion What else could you have done? Analysis What sense can you make of the situation?

Evaluation What was good and bad about the experience?

Reflective Writing
Reflective writing is a type of assessment that goes by many names:

Journal or diary entries Portfolios (PDP) Narratives Reflections on practice or placements Blogs Peer reviews Self assessment

Reflective Writing
These

assignments ask you to evaluate and write your responses to an experience. may need to describe the experience, but this is not the reflection. is about making links between the experience, yourself and concepts or theories.

You

Reflection

Differences
Reflective Writing Personal You can use the first person Give personal feelings and views Bring in the subjective Academic Writing Objective You do not usually use the first person Construct an argument based on analysis and evidence Maintain an objective stance

Draw upon your own experience

State your main insights based on experience

Use information from a variety of sources

Present a balanced perspective

Similarities
Reflective Writing Personal Include a clear introduction Give your main insight Academic Writing Objective Include a clear introduction Give a clear thesis statement Divide the main body into sub-sections

Structure the main body to demonstrate the reflective process

Draw upon literature

Include a clear conclusion

Draw upon literature

Include a clear conclusion

Stages in Reflective Analysis

Good

reflective analysis can lead to good reflective writing. analysis can be organised into

Reflective

four steps:

Identify aspect to reflect on Start to reflect on the experience Analyse the experience Reflect forward

Step One: Identify Aspects to Reflect On

Focus on an experience or event Identify what was outstanding or meaningful, negative or positive?

A critical incident
Does not need to be a dramatic event An incident which has significance for you. Often an event which made you stop and think One that raised questions for you. An incident which had a significant impact on your personal and professional learning.

Critical Incidents May Include:

An aspect of your project or group work that went particularly well An aspect of your project or group work that proved difficult A piece of work that you found particularly demanding A piece of work which increased your awareness, or challenged your understanding. An incident involving conflict, hostility, aggression or criticism

Step Two: Start to Reflect on the Experience or Event

Ask yourself some questions about the experience or event from different perspectives.
Technical /academic components What worked and why? What problem-solving techniques did your team use? What didnt work and why? What theories were applied /tested/ evaluated? What was your evaluation of the overall product or report? 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? 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 colleagues learning? How did I feel during the project and why? How did it affect my behaviour?

Step Three: Analyse the Experience or Event

Conduct an evaluation / critical analysis

Give meaning to your findings in step 2. Could require further research to gain better understanding. How has your knowledge understanding been changed. Identify a changed conceptual perspective;
a different way of looking at the situation than before you started reflection on it

Step Four: Reflect Forward

Plan what you would do if you were ever in a similar situation

Identify what changes you would make if you faced the situation again.

Identify any areas you need to learn about to better deal with a similar situation.
You may be required to come up with an action plan.

Tips for effective reflection

Keep

notes just describe

Keep track of your thoughts, ideas, problems, and solutions regularly

Dont

Reflection contains some description, but is mainly an exploration and an explanation of events

Be

Honest

Good reflective writing involves revealing anxieties, errors and weaknesses, as well as strengths and successes.

Tips for effective reflection

Be

selective

Select the most significant parts of the experience or event. Including the whole story will result in a description rather than interpretation.

Learn

Reflective writing should apply learning to an experience, and then experience to learning. It is useful to reflect forward to the future as well as reflecting back on the past

About PDP
Personal Development Planning (PDP):

Enhances and supports your experience as a

student. By engaging in PDP you will be reviewing, building and reflecting on your personal and educational development. Encourages you to take a step back and reflect on what you have achieved in a structured way. It also involves clearly identifying your goals and planning the steps you need to take to accomplish them.

100AEE coursework
Each student on 100AEE is tasked with starting a Personal Development Portfolio
DEADLINE MONDAY 11th MARCH 2013, 16:00
Portfolio must be created and submitted using the submission link in Moodle. This will be available from the week before the deadline (Monday 4th March). Through the development process, students may have created their PDPs in various formats (ePortfolio, Blog, simple word document) so each individual will need to follow the relevant instructions for their format. Students are also asked to be mindful of the professional development requirements of their relevant accrediting body e.g., RAeS, IET, IMechE. Links to the guidance documents or websites for these institutions are on Moodle.

Aim
To

raise students awareness of what constitutes reflective writing and the benefits of reflective practice. To introduce students to the requirements of a personal development plan and 100AEE assignment.

ANY QUESTIONS ?

Further reading:
Book:
Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, Heather Fry, Steve Ketteridge, Stephanie Marshall. ISBN: 978-0-415-43464-5 (available in library) The Good Study Guide, Andrew Northedge. ISBN: 0 7492 5974 4 (available in library)

eLearning resources:
Centre for Academic writing https://students.coventry.ac.uk/CentreforAcademicWriting/Pages/Handouts.a spx Report writing http://www.coventry.ac.uk/swift/~csx067/rept_wrt/index.html