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This would be a good paragraph in which to include information about how he subject and the material impacted your life, whether it reinforced your current views or caused you to change your way of thinking. 2. Write a paragraph or two about the impact the lecturer, classroom/tutorial discussions or the textbook material had on you during the course. Describe emotions you felt you felt or changes you experienced in your personal life due to the topic or the subject. If your opinions on opinion and explain why you changed your stance.
If your opinions did not change, explain why. 3. Describe a moment during the class that was the most eye-opening for you. One example would be if during a lecture/tutorial the lecturer/tutor used a specific story or analogy to help explain the material that made the lesson really clear for you. Reflect on how you felt when you finally understood the lesson and how that lesson might have impacted the way you think. 4. Write a paragraph explaining how the information from the subject has impacted the way you will think, act and feel in the future long after the semester is over.
You may want to include how this subject has changed how you approach other subjects in your degree or life in general. 5. Give feedback in your paper and share your opinions and ideas about how the subject can be improved. Share what you liked about the subject and what material helped you learn the most. Finish the paper by writing a conclusion that summarizes the main points of the paper. This is Just one way of structuring reflective writing. Whichever approach to reflection you use try to bear in mind the following key points: * Reflection is an exploration and an explanation of events – not Just a description of them. Genuinely reflective writing often involves ‘revealing’ anxieties, errors and weaknesses, as well as detergents and successes. This is fine (in fact it’s often essential), as long as you show some understanding of possible causes, and explain how you plan to improve. * It is normally necessary to select Just the most significant parts of the event or idea on which you are reflecting. If you try to tell the whole story you will likely use up your words on description rather than interpretation. * It is often useful to ‘reflect forward’ to the future as well as ‘reflecting back on the past.
Vocabulary aid (adapted from University of Portsmouth, Dept for Curriculum and Quality Enhancement) The allowing are Just a few suggestions for words and phrases that might be useful in reflective writing. Obviously, using these words and phrases will not in itself make you a good reflective writer. 1. Description There is no suggestion of specific vocabulary for any descriptive elements of your reflective writing because the range of possible events, ideas or objects on which you may be reflecting on is so great. However, if you are describing an idea, for example a theory or model, it is usually best to use the present tense e. . ‘Buyer behavior theory recognizes… ‘ (not ‘recognized’). Events, of course, are nearly always described in the past tense. 2. Interpretation I {aspect(s){elements(s){experience(s){issue(s)lade(s) I Was (were) I For me, the [most] I {meaningful{significant{important{relevant{useful I learning I {arose from… {happened when… {resulted from… I Previously,}At the time,} At first}lineally,}Subsequently,}Later,} I I I {thought (did not think)… {felt (did not feel) … {knew (did not know)… {noticed (did not notice)… {questioned (did not question)… {realized (did not realism)…
There is a lot of theory behind reflection that can be very complex. Most of the theory relates to seeing reflection as part of the cycle of learning (Figure 1). Initially students focus on knowledge, comprehension and application of subject matter. These three levels of learning are the easiest especially if the application is in a limited context e. G. Worded problems from a text book. For higher levels of learning (application of knowledge in real world problems) you must be able to analyses, synthesis and evaluate as shown in Table 1. Reflection is a key part of moving into these higher levels of learning. Figure 1.
Leaning cycle and examples of each phase Table 1 Six levels of learning Increasing Difficulty I Process I Explanation I I Knowledge I Recognition and recall of information and facts – describing events I I Comprehension I Interprets, translates or summarizes given information – demonstrating understanding of events I I Application I Uses information in a situation different from original learning context- I I Analysis Separates wholes into parts until relationships are clear – breaks down I Synthesis I Combines elements to form new entity from the experiences original one – draws on experience and other evidence to suggest new insights I
Evaluation I Involves acts of decision making, or Judging based on criteria or rationale – makes Judgments about Why reflect – what are the benefits to the student? Learning is both an active and a reflective process. If you look at the learning cycle in Figure 1 you can see that reflection or thinking about what you have done and how and why you did it, form an integral part of learning. Because learning is often subconscious, we don’t realism that we have gained new knowledge or understanding analysis, problem solving, synthesis of opposing ideas, evaluation, identifying tatters and creating meaning.
Reflection will help you reach the higher levels of learning. Most students are focused on the lower levels of learning. “What do I have to know and demonstrate to pass the exam? ” This is a very short-sighted approach to your time at university. You will not be able to remember all the facts and knowledge you have learnt in subjects unless you can fully understand, analyses and evaluate them. As you progress through your degree you will continually need information and knowledge from other subjects and this knowledge will build on previous knowledge.
You must be able to attain the higher levels of learning in order to be successful in your degree and later in your professional life. Your learning and the need to learn will not stop with the end of your university degree. Most aspects of learning are common to all disciplines but sometimes there are different emphasizes on certain learning skills. For example, generally speaking at university more emphasis is placed on the understanding of the methodology and the processes of problem solving. In this context, reflection will help you to detach yourself from the facts and put them into a larger context.
Higher level courses at university as a business student bring a closer interaction between academic work and practical experience. Reflective practice here is critical in providing opportunities to identify areas for improvement and evaluation of the overall outcome including your decision making processes. Reflection can help bridge the gap between theory and practice and will enable you to understand your own thinking and learning. Another benefit is that it encourages you to look beyond your academic accomplishment and recognize the depth and range of other transferable skills.
University is more than learning about facts and cures, it is a life experience. You will not learn everything that you need in your professional life at university. Your learning will be life long, so take some time to think about what skills you bring with you to university and what you learn along the way. How do I ‘reflect’? Reflection does not mean that you sit in the lotus position, humming meditative chants. Reflection can be active and need not take away from your ‘study time’. It is an important tool that can be used in all your university and professional work.
Opportunities for reflection should occur before, during and after activities. That way you can take note of your learning starting point, assess your progress through the project and critically evaluate your learning at the end of the activity. Look critically at what you have done, what you’re team did and what the outcomes were. You need to ask yourself the why, how and what type of questions. Introducing Reflection But what exactly is it? An excellent description of reflection can be found in the Harry Potter novel ‘ The Goblet of Fire’.
In the paragraph below Tumbledown, the chief wizard and head teacher, is talking to Harry about having excess thoughts! Harry stared at the stone basin. The contents had returned to their original, silvery white state, swirling and rippling beneath his gaze. “What is it? ” Harry asked shakily. “This? It is called a Pensive,” said Tumbledown. “l sometimes find, and I am sure you know the feeling, that I simply have too many thoughts and memories crammed into my mind. ” “Err,” said Harry who couldn’t truthfully say that he had ever felt anything of the sort. “At these times” said Tumbledown, indicating the stone basin, “I use the Pensive.
One simply siphon the excess thoughts from one’s mind, pours them into a basin, ND examines them at one’s leisure. It becomes easier to spot patterns and links, you understand, when they are in this form. ‘ (Rolling 2000) During the semester and in your reflective writing we are asking you to think about the process you have been through, how these events affected your behavior, to think about what you have learnt, and to evaluate your performance. By writing these things down it will give you the opportunity to clarify your thoughts and to spot the patterns and links.
Reflective writing examples As an example, look at the following two critiques – one is a better example than the other! King (2002) Development of Student Skills In Reflective Writing, p 16, http:// www. SD. Away. Deed. AU/exceeded/publication/Terry_King. PDF ] 1. 1 woke up late because my alarm didn’t ring. My own fault, but there you are. By the time I had finished my breakfast (my usual bowl of cornflakes, and a cup of black coffee with three sugars), I had missed my bus (that’s the number AAA, picked up at the bus stop outside Halyards), which had left on time Oust for a change).
So I got to University, and by the time I had found the right room, I was over 30 minutes late for the PROPER Exam. Unfortunately, the invigilator wouldn’t let me take the exam cause it was “against University regulations”. Didn’t he realism how important it was for me to pass that exam? My overall grade depends on it, and now I stand to have a resist in September when I wanted to have my holiday in Pizza. | 2. 1 was over 30 minutes late for my exam, which meant I was not allowed to sit it.
This will have repercussions on my degree mark, and on my holiday plans. This is the first time I have actually missed an exam, but not the first time Eve actually been late to exams and important interviews. I have learned that:; I need to improve my time-keeping for o be better prepared reasons that I arrived late were:; My alarm clock didn’t ring because I forgot to reset its time after daylight saving on Saturday night (although I had reset all the other clocks in the house). I totally rely on the alarm clock ringing – I have no back-up system; I rely on my bus – a break down or it leaving early would also cause me to be late; I did not know in which room the exam was; if I had, I would still have been a few minutes late, but at least I could have sat the exam. Len order to improve the situation for next year, I plan to:; Have a process to check all the clocks in he house when the clocks are due to change; Make sure I have a back-up alarm system (using my digital watch) for all days when it’s important to get up early; On exam day, aim to catch the earlier bus its only 20 minutes earlier. Possibly consider missing breakfast, and buying a sandwich on the way from the bus to the exam room. I do believe that a good breakfast is important though! ; Make sure I know the correct room well in advance of the exam, by checking each room number when I first get the timetable. ‘ suspect I need to reflect more on my priorities – this degree is really very important to me. I