interesting stuff about reflection
just in case of use, and also for any feedback you may have, I'm attaching a recent handout that was created to try to aid students in just the position that John describes (thus, naturally, the idea of reflection that it presents is a vast simplification, albeit one that arose through consultation with teachers from many different disciplines requiring reflection-for-assessment here at UoP)
I tried also to create a 'better reflecting writing' extension handout - the draft (thus some misalignment with the first) is the second attachment to this message - and this one 'failed' the teacher test - colleagues from different subject areas had such varying ideas about what constitutes really 'good' reflection that it was clearly very unwise to try to generalise
because of the interesting posts, I'm now wondering whether I found that whilst getting general agreement about refleCTive thinking and writing was possible, getting general agreement about refleXive thinking and writing was not
thoughts welcome!
Martin Hampton
ASK
University of Portsmouth
>>> John Hilsdon <[log in to unmask]> 25/03/09 5:00 PM >>>
... and if Stevie, an educationalist, has experienced such problems on an MA, what must it be like for our undergrads ...? A few years ago I had so many nursing students coming to see me to ask how to 'do' critical reflection that I undertook a small research study in an attempt interpret what was going on. The main findings I came to were that a) there was widespread confusion among the students about what reflection 'really' is (much of which centred around issues of writing conventions such as the dreaded pronoun use) , and b) such unclarity or contradictoriness around the criteria for assessment of reflection that it was not uncommon for students to fabricate their reflections .. defeating somewhat (though perhaps not entirely) the object of undertaking a reflective task!
If anyone wants to read it, let me know - or you can find it in the Journal of Practice Teaching in Health and Social Work 6(1) pp 57-70 Hilsdon, J. 2006 "Re-Thinking Reflection."
John
From: learning development in higher education network [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Farrell, Stevie
Sent: 25 March 2009 12:38
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: reflexive v reflective
Hi Margaret
As a tutor and student I find your review very accurate and useful.
I've had many years now of successful writing in academic life and therefore until now, the idea that reflective writing could be so problematic was something I didn't think of as widespread. I have just been on the receiving end of an MA assignment that was 'reflective'. Having done this kind of assignment all through my PGCE I was therefore shocked to read that on this occasion, mine was too informal. Having managed the balance between academic/reflective very well in the past - and being part of a team who write and teach about reflective writing - I feel like I'm wandering in a conceptual maze regarding reflection....it seems, especially by this discussion, that reflection means many things to many people. I wonder then, how we students can match a criteria that isn't in the actual written details?
This is not intended as a insult or an attack on the lecturers concerned. I hold them in very high esteem and the course is an incredibly well structured and delivered one, with academic staff who really know their subjects and are very responsive to calls for support. It is rather, highlighting how concepts of reflective, reflexive etc are causing problems through their nature of being open to different perceptions.
My grade was very good, but I worked extremely hard, felt I'd guaged the quality of my work accurately, and did expect more. And more importantly, I know now that I have to find out what is meant by this term before I submit any further work. It's been an 'eye opener' for me.
Stevie
________________________________
From: learning development in higher education network on behalf of Margaret Herrington 634
Sent: Wed 25/03/2009 12:10
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: reflexive v reflective
Isn't it interesting how the confusing use of terminology in HE curricula usually lands on Learning Development or 'Support' staff doorsteps? These terms are not easily interchangeable. Reflective covers a multitude of interpretations in HE at the moment. Some staff still ask students to 'reflect' without any kind of clear contextual definition,rationale, scaffold or scope.I lost count of the numbers of students I saw for whom this loose use of terminology was the main problem they had with writing assignments
Reflexive, too, is rarely explained outside particular disciplines...and appears to be defined differently too.?
For me it is the explicit recognition of the presence and role of self ( with all that entails) in investigation and interpretation. As already noted this has particular value in research activities...not as a compensation for the absence of 'scientific method' but because interpretation of 'data' is governed by who is doing it- their histories and present stories. Researchers working reflexively recognise and acknowledge this. If readers of research are to make judgements about the new knowledge generated they need to know what has led to particular interpretations. Though especially important in qualitative research it is also vital in quantitative work (how quantitative data is sought and handled is not simply a technical matter)
Also, having worked in teacher education, I think reflexivity is helpful to new teachers in interpreting what is happening within their practice. ...and this is where reflective practice pops up again. It is possible to find bits of reflexivity within reflective pieces!
Margaret
Dr M Herrington
Visiting Professor of Education
University of Wolverhampton
0116 2597361
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