Reflective Writing

Introduction

At Bournemouth University, reflective writing may appear to be more overtly encouraged on some units within some courses compared with others. For example, students who are required to maintain a ‘reflective’ journal or submit a ‘reflective assignment’ will, from necessity, be more familiar with this particular style of learning and writing.

Nonetheless, because reflective writing is associated with higher levels of learning, it is expected that all university students should develop skills that help them to learn from the process of reflection. In particular, reflection is a very important component of PDP.

Developing reflective skills will help you gain a more honest perspective of yourself which, in turn, means clearer identification of your academic strengths and of those areas that require a little more work.

• Analysis of experiences enables further learning
• Critical thinking is encouraged so academic writing is improved
• Independent learning is facilitated
• Recognition of mistakes enhances professional competence

More importantly, you will be able to recognize what affects your learning and performance and thus how to progress. This involves two main processes:

Reflection in Action = recognizing when something new is happening which may cause a surprise. Components of this reflection may comprise:

• Recognition of the surprise
• Review of a problem
• Seeking extra information from tutor/literature/colleagues
• Re-appraisal of previous solutions

Reflection on Action = thinking about something that has happened in the past and reviewing the way in which you dealt with it. This could lead to:

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Self Promotion

Reflective writing often involves appraising our current skills and attributes in order to effect progression. However, some people find it difficult to promote their finer points to others. For example, consider how you felt when writing your personal statement for your UCAS documentation; or how long it took you to complete your application for a placement or a job. Depending on culture or personality, the idea of selling oneself can be contrary to usual values.

If you are in your first semester, construct a list of skills and attributes that you think you will need to maintain a successful university career

or

If you are considering a specific type of job, devise a list of traits and abilities that a successful applicant will need to develop

Next give an explanation of why EACH of these skills and traits are essential

Now write down all of your existing abilities and attributes that already match those on your first list and explain HOW you know you possess them i.e. what EVIDENCE do you have?

The thought of appearing vain or bigheaded is unattractive. Writing reflectively about your talents and abilities is different however. When writing an academic essay, you are expected to refer to theories, concepts and recognized authors to substantiate the views you express.

Similarly, a reflective piece of work about you should include evidence to justify the statements that you make.

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Stages of the Reflective Process

In some cases, reflection may help us gain more control over our thoughts, emotions, responses and behaviour and help us achieve a wider perspective on situations. In the next activity, you are asked to consider a situation you have been involved in directly or indirectly. This doesn’t have to have taken place within an educational context: it could be in the supermarket, at a club, in the sports centre….anywhere:

• Focus: recall an event/incident/encounter that you witnessed or were involved in and which has left you feeling worried, confused, upset or unsettled. This could be major or minor.
• Awareness: accurately describe the context, sequence of events and outcome. Describe negative feelings that you experienced in relation to the incident.
• Critical Analysis: examine both your positive & negative feelings especially those that you know are stopping you thinking in a rational and clear way. What happened and why did it happen? Should you have challenged /intervened and what difference might this have made? How did the situation affect you and how did you affect the situation? Was there an exercise of power relations?
• Interpretation: develop a new perspective on the situation. This may involve new values/attitudes or a different way of thinking about something.
• Innovation: devise other options to deal with similar future incidents.
• Commitment: take action to change something

Looking At Your Learning

In the previous activity, you were introduced to the idea that reflection involves a consideration of processes with a view to improvement. This theme should predominate in your reflection on learning. The following activities have been designed to help you raise your level of writing from a surface stage which may comprise mere description to that which typifies deep learning by development of reflective skills.

a) Think of something that you do well at and have been successful at doing. For example, it could be that you consistently achieve high grades in a particular topic; or perhaps people often ask you to cook for them; possibly you passed your driving test at the first attempt after relatively few lessons.

Write a few words explaining how you became proficient in the particular area you chose. For example, was there anything that specifically enhanced your learning?

Now write down a few words to account for how you know you're good at your chosen area. For example, do you compare yourself with other people? Has somebody told you you're good?

b) Previously, you were asked to acknowledge your success at something and rationalize this. Although this may seem a more positive thing to do than account for weaknesses, it can sometimes be the more difficult of the two tasks.

Now think of something that you don't do well: something that you would consider has been an unsuccessful learning experience.

Briefly write down why you think this learning experience went wrong for you. Next, write down, honestly, whether you could have done anything to improve this particular learning experience. If you want to avoid a similar situation in the future, is there anything you would do differently?

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Reflective Practice

The previous activities illustrate the various stages that we can educate ourselves to undertake in order to achieve rational academic writing. Although it is essential to describe something before you can discuss or analyse it, a reflection is not an account of factual information. Rather, it comprises your perceptions and expectations based on your experience of the evidence. Hopefully, it illustrates your personal and academic growth. Consider the following text:

I 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 the bus (that’s the number 9, picked up at the bus stop outside Halfords), which had left on time (just for a change). So I got to university and by the time I’d found the right room, I was over thirty minutes late for the theory exam. Unfortunately, the jobsworth invigilator wouldn’t let me take the exam because it was ‘against university regulations’. Didn’t he realize how important it was for me to pass that exam? My overall grade depends on it and now I have to re-sit in September when I wanted to have my holiday in Ibiza.

Reflection can involve three learning domains. Put yourself in the position of the student who wrote this account and reconsider the information by employing the 3R format of reflection:

• Reaction (affective domain, to feel). As you re-examine the evidence, how do you feel about the account? Could there be other perspectives?
• Relevance (cognitive domain, to think). How is the evidence meaningful to your understanding of what really happened? What have you learned from this experience? What changes might you make based on this experience?
• Responsibility (psychomotor domain, to do). How will the knowledge gained from this experience be used in the future? Give examples of possible applications in other areas of your learning .

Now consider the following revised text which could be the result of applying reflective skills:

I was over thirty 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 I’ve been late to exams and important interviews.

I have learned that:

a) I need to improve my time-keeping

b) The university has strict rules governing late exam arrivals

c) I need to be better prepared

The reasons I arrived late were:

a) My alarm clock didn’t ring because I forgot to set it

b) I totally rely on the alarm clock; I have no back-up

c) I rely on the bus

d) If I had known which room the exam was, I might have been a few minutes late but could still have sat the exam

In order to improve the situation next year, I plan to:

a) Have a process to check all the clocks in the house

b) Make sure I have a back up such as the alarm on my mobile phone

c) Catch an earlier bus on exam days

d) Ensure I know the correct room well in advance

e) Reflect further on my priorities

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Reflecting on the Views of Others

If you have undertaken all the previous activities, you should now have a good understanding of how well developed reflective skills can help develop a more in-depth and honest picture of the ways in which your values affect learning. However, it is often essential to also consider the values of others that may impinge on your learning. For example, when we critically analyse a piece of text, we have to consider the perspective from which it has been written and assess its objectivity. Similarly, if you are writing a reflective account of your contribution to a presentation or your activities at a work placement, you will need to reflect on the role of others. The following activity has been designed to encourage you to empathise with three very different people and reflect on their values and motivations.

The Incident

Ronnie is only 18 but a broken family life, care in a succession of foster homes and subsequent alcohol and drug abuse has left physical and psychological imprints which means that he is often assumed to be much older. Currently, he attends a rehabilitation programme and sells copies of The Big Issue outside a local supermarket; much to the irritation of John, the security attendant.

One day, Betty, a lady in her sixties, left the supermarket with her shopping and made her way across the car park. She totally ignored Ronnie, refusing as ever to engage in conversation or buy a copy of his magazine. As she began to unload her trolley, a small child seemingly appeared from nowhere, dashed past Betty and knocked her to the ground.

Ronnie, having seen everything, rushed over to help Betty up. However, when she saw Ronnie, she became hysterical, screaming and pushing him away. The noise alerted John who, seeing Betty on the floor surrounded by her shopping, with The Big Issue vendor leaning over, attacked Ronnie and beat him so severely that he required attention at the local hospital. John has been threatened with prosecution.

Activity

1) Ensuring that you justify the perspective taken, and using the first person singular (I), write this story from:

a) Ronnie’s perspective

b) Betty’s perspective

c) John’s perspective

Imagine you are the local newspaper reporter. You have interviewed all three participants. Whose story has had the greatest influence? Why? How will you write the story?

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Reflective Assessments: plans, journals & essay

Plans

By working through the previous activities you have reflected on the values that inform the judgments that each of us make and the decisions we reach. As suggested above, reflective writing is often related to change. At university, these changes are often recorded in a portfolio. For example, Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) Leaders who seek accreditation compile a portfolio that reflects their development throughout their tenure. This incorporates an action plan which might look like the one below.

This is a very basic plan that includes a notion of progression (change) and a degree of reflection on the development of skills. It would usually be accompanied by explanatory text.

At Bournemouth University, some schools ask for a more detailed action plan as part of the reflective work that accompanies a placement. In particular, some lecturers expect students to be able to reflect on the objectives that they set themselves throughout the length of a placement. Generally, these are referred to as SMART objectives.

SMART is an acronym:

S = Specific Objective
M= Measurable
A= Achievement
R= Relevance
T= Timescale

A goal setting action plan using SMART objectives might look like the one below which is used in the School of Services Management.

In this example, reflection is required within the actual planning as well as on completion of various stages.

Reflective Journals

The reflective diary or journal is for you so write about what YOU want

• Your feelings about learning experiences
• Lecturers, other students, employers, mentors
• Ambitions and progress
• Challenges to your learning
• Challenges at work
• Your decision making
• The decision making of others
• Situations where you learn the most
• Situations where you learn the least
• Linking theory to practice
• Worries and hopes

Reflective Assignments

Read the assignment briefing carefully and ensure that you know how and where marks will be allocated. In general, you should follow the same rules that you normally do to produce an academic essay. For example, structurally, there should still be an introduction, the main body and a conclusion. However, there are some other pointers that you need to be aware of:

• You will be used to writing in the third person but in reflective writing the first person is preferred*
• Practise writing in the first person but do not allow your work to become ‘chatty’
• Express your feelings in a clear, well thought out way
• Learn to write the analysis of your experiences in an articulate way that relates, where appropriate, to theory

* Webb,C. 1992 The Use of the First Person in Academic Writing: objectivity, language & gatekeeping Journal of Advanced Nursing 17(6) pp747-752

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And Finally

ACTION >> REFLECTION >> ACTION >> PROGRESSION >> REFLECTION

Try to develop the practice of continuous reflective practice:

• Reflect on critical incidents & events on a regular basis so that it becomes integral to your thinking
• Reflective thinking should be a continuous process in all areas of your life
• Develop self-awareness by taking time to consider & understand your own thoughts and actions
• Reflective thinking is a means of appraising the current level of your learning/practice and considering how it might be improved
• Develop new perspectives. This may involve reappraising values, attitudes & beliefs
• Address challenges to your learning by applying the above principles

Schon, D. A. (1983) The Reflective Practitioner London :Basic Books Inc

http://www.exeter.ac.uk/employability/ accessed 18/1/07
http://reach.ucf.edu/~ed_found/rw.html accessed 9/7/06
http://www.csd.uwa.edu.au/iced2002/publication/Terry_King.pdf (pdf 203 kb) accessed 18/1/07
http://cwis.livjm.ac.uk/lid/ltweb/ldu_14/annex1_03.htm accessed 3/11/06
http://www.gp-training.net/training/theory/reflect/reflect.htm accessed 18/1/07

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