Introduction to Reflective Practice Part 2.

A key author in this field is Argyris who suggests that it is sensible to look beyond the obvious solutions to a problem. This kind of approach could be described as thinking outside the box. Argyris provides a framework that helps identify what the boxes are that might be limiting our ability to identify better solutions.

Argyris (1974) suggested that when people look at situations and see a problem, or a place where there is room for improvement, they often use personal experience to plan change within their usual framework by employing familiar or locally accepted strategies. Argyris proposed that this single loop learning approach may not be enough to achieve significant improvement in the workplace. He proposes that this is especially the case when the assumptions and beliefs on which the reflection and actions are based are out-dated.

 Double Loop Learning involves assessing and challenging the 'belief systems' and 'values' that govern action in the workplace. These are grouped under the phrase 'governing variables' or sometimes 'governing values'. 

During the year 2 BA LTR reflection in the work setting module students sometimes look back at the reflective models used in the year 1 reflection module and feel that governing variables are not addressed and that many of the models are likely to lead to single loop learning solutions. if you read the original publications about the models rather than just working from the images of the models you will find that a phase such as 'Review' is expected to be far deeper and more systematic than just having a think about what happened - factors that govern behaviour can be used to support analysis in many seemingly basic models.

Some models start with a step such as "Have an experience." That may be a purposeful action such as deciding to examine a workplace policy, procedure or to observe someone in practice. Students on the LTR reflective practice modules more usually examine a practice based experience that was not predetermined - they become alert to looking for 'significant events' during their working day or during study periods outside of work. The insider perspective of this approach is valuable but does require them to develop the ability to step back and examine their own behaviours and beliefs from an objective perspective. The recording of a significant event is the first part of the journey through a critical incident analysis and is the first meeting with a need to consider what is governing their understanding of reality. The significant event becomes a critical incident when it has been analysed through the application of critical thinking strategies.

Wherever describing reality is needed, be it in critical incident analysis, or any other kind of analysis of experiential learning / research that is concerned with real world phenomenon, there are governing factors to consider when attempting to describe and understand reality. Some of them are easily varied, some less so.

Many reflective models appropriate for work-based learning start with a step that describes what happened during a significant event, for example the first of Gibbs 6 steps. 

"What happened?" That might sound a fairly simple starting point but there are pitfalls when attempting to construct a description of reality and it should be remembered that a straightforward description risks being just a personal perspective - one individual personal belief about what happened. 

Korzybski's 1933 work Science and Sanity set out some useful principles:

 "A map is not the territory." 

 "A map does not represent all of the territory." 

This can be applied to language in the form:

"The word is not the object." 

This reminds us that a word does not contain all of the information about what it describes. Words can be misleading, people have differing perceptions about what is meant by a word. My wife and her mum both drink what to me is scalding hot tea. My mouth feels pain drinking tea at a temperature she can drink with ease yet her's is fine. Our perceptions of what is meant by 'hot' are at variance. My concept of 'hot' is only 'fairly warm' to her. 

The principles can  also be applied to personal constructions about experience, so when initially grappling with Gibbs first step: "What happened?" the resulting account might well be a map that represents only part of the territory so it is more about 'What I think happened.'  That is fine as a first step, personal perspectives are useful but should not be thought of, or presented as, absolute truths. 

In a busy classroom it is all too easy to develop an in the moment perception that is an incorrect map of what actually happened: 'That child is being noisy so is the cause of my class being disrupted.' The reality might be that the noisy child has been putting up with covert harassment from someone nearby and eventually reacted noisily; that could be exactly the outcome the covert harasser was trying to provoke. Making an incorrect judgement call in situations like that perpetuates bullying, can be very stressful for the victim and can result in them losing trust and respect for the teacher and disengaging from learning. This can be made much worse if, when identified, the victim tries to explain what actually happened and are told not to answer back.

When I ask students to apply reflective models to examine and improve their personal practice one aspect I am looking for is an awareness of the fragility of personal perspectives. The starting point is identifying a significant event either in the workplace or relating to your study. 

1. What do I think happened? Create a first draft personal account based on a 'let it flow via a stream of consciousness' approach with no concern about module word limits. Reflection on what you think happened and how you behaved should include reference to personal feelings and your initial perceptions of the feelings and behaviours of others.

2. What might really have happened? A refined description where personal beliefs and their influence are carefully considered. This may be difficult as the aim is to take a deep honest look inside yourself and uncover potential self deception with the aim of moving towards an unbiased account. 

3. What do others think happened? This might include individual consultation with others who were present as peripheral observers or actually involved in the event. Individual accounts are important in order to avoid gathering political responses adapted to suite others.

4. Collaborative debate. Dewey was in favour of collaborative reflection but this can be a difficult step. In some circumstances it might not be ethical or sensible to include. It can be valuable to bring together those who were involved and share an overview that provides the group with insight into the range of potential realities. These are then discussed with the aim of agreeing a most likely version of reality.

At this stage there may be an account that could be proposed as getting close to answering what actually happened. It will still be a map of reality rather than an absolute truth, however; it can be a good basis from which to proceed to identifying how to improve your behaviour should a similar situation arise again.

5. What else might have been be done? This step is an analysis of all potentially effective options as to how you might have improved how you behaved. Freed from all governing factors the reflective practitioner records a blue sky aspirational exploration of unbounded possibilities.

6. What else could have be done? Analysis of the findings from the previous step focuses on deciding what the reflective practitioner believes would be best to do out of all the possibilities that were uncovered. This is still a speculative potential action as the only governing variable is the personal belief about what could have been best for those involved in the original event.

7. What can actually be done now? This aims to make a decision on what is feasible to do within workplace boundaries. These boundaries include factors such as workplace policies, behaviour expectations, institutional visions and aims, accepted norms of behaviour and expected best practice. A solution that has been adapted to fit with factors that govern what can be done in the workplace is developed and articulated in an evidence based format that shows a careful and systematic analysis has been implemented. 

8. What needs to be changed? In an organisation that fits the criteria developed by Senge for being a 'learning organisation' those able to plan and implement higher level change will be actively seeking new ideas to improve the current system and will welcome input from all staff. Disruptive innovation solutions that go beyond the current boundaries that govern the workplace might also be welcome. A persuasive evidence based account extending on from step 7 findings can be useful in persuading others that change is to be embraced.

For BA LTR students on the 'Reflection in the work setting 2' module:

In all of your patches you need to evidence that you understand the nature and role of governing variables in systematic approaches to reflection that are dominantly focused on yourself in the workplace but can also encompass reflection on study related issues such as use of technologies, the online library, developing good literature skills and other relevant practices. The link to double loop learning is also very important and you can bring in triple loop learning as well. This takes the impact of reflection further than personal practice and involves concern with sharing outcomes / influencing change at the organisational level. 

Good understanding and use of the concepts of espoused theory / theory in use will be evident in most higher level work as will reference to the type 1 and 2 behaviour models. 

Good signposting is essential. Governing variables operate at one or several levels so we need to see comments such as: "This governing variable operates at the personal beliefs level. Having reflected on my beliefs I realise they are partly based on the norms of behaviour / expectations in the workplace..." 

it is also clear that the potential for variance of factors that govern behaviour does not always lie with the practitioner so you should also include reference to whether you are able to be an agent for change, whether you would need to persuade / involve others or whether change would have to come from outside of your workplace via something like change at the level of government policy. This is why I have included reference in the template to solutions in an ideal world and the solutions it is possible to implement in your real world situation. You might also feel that your ideas differ from those in the workplace - it is not always the need for change to be implemented from outside​ the workplace that limits your ability to implement it. You do not need to change any governing variables to pass this module to a high standard, what is important is identifying what and where change is needed,whether it can or can not be implemented and why this is the case. 

Please make sure that any work you ask for feedback on is in 'final draft' condition. This means spell checked and with syntax and writing style carefully refined, any figures and references should also be in line with final submission expectations. Feedback on work that is almost ready for submission is more valuable than feedback on work that is in an early draft state. If you do still have potential additions to make then a few notes in a different coloured text are fine - e.g. 'Paragraph on model 1 ands 2 behaviours to be inserted here.' 

Formative feedback is a way of  helping students​ to reach their full potential and you must make use of this opportunity as it will potentially help you gain a higher final classification.

The following video is a draft created by a year 2 student.

 This is my idea of 'serious fun'. The theory is evident in the concise narrative from the start, the opening grappling with what had been asked was a lovely way to highlight how easily it is to misconstrue reality, the "I now believe this is what happened" line also has the very important tentative voice that indicates understanding of the fragility of truth, and of semantics that I tried to convey re Korzybski. It also shows application of the first two steps in the model mentioned earlier on this page:

1. What do I think happened? 

2. What might really have happened?

 Even when much time and effort is used to get as close to the truth as possible it is still only a personal construction and as such is quite a fragile conceptualisation. The voice that is used was done very well, it is concise, and precise there is nothing sloppy or incoherent.  It is also a very impersonal voice so when Laurence listens back to it he is listening to an objective account rather than listening directly to his own natural voice. That can have quite deep psychological impact as far as reassessing the judgements that were made. It is a great example of 'less is more'  I asked students to reflect on their creative use of technologies. It is a first attempt at making a video, a choice of technology made by the student autonomously, so I like the way it is an exploration of using new software creatively while reflecting on that aspect of practice. The immersion in the critical incident that is achieved when creating media artifacts tends to be deep and sustained as generating media takes time and there is a wish to present something of good quality. 

Below is a framework I recommend you try for at least one of your Critical incident reports. You are welcome to devise your own framework for the other one - originality and synthesis of ideas to develop new systems tends to gain higher credits. A Flash resource that reminds you about reflection in action and then moves on to this framework can be accessed by following this link. Depending on your connection it could take a few moments to load. 

Argyris, C.,1982. Organizational Dynamics; The Executive Mind and Double Loop Learning. [Online] Accessed 08 July 2013 

Dick, B. and Dalmau, T., 2000. Argyris and Schön: some elements of their models. [Online ] Accessed 21 October 2014 

Tarrant, P., 2013. Reflective Practice and Professional Development. Sage.

Tripp, D.,1993. Critical Incidents in Teaching: Developing Professional Judgement London: Routledge.

Korzybski, A., 2003. Science and Sanity (5th ed.)

Reflective Practice and Professional Development Planning

One valuable application of reflective practice is the improvement of every day personal practice that arises from identifying, capturing and systematically examining unexpected significant events that happen on a daily basis. Systematic critical analysis of relatively small events can be a very effective approach to practitioner problem solving and personal improvement. On first encountering this approach to learning many undergraduate students feel they are already instinctive reflective beings but once they have critically reviewed literature and experimented with critical incident theory in the workplace they start to report that they are more alert in the workplace and notice that each day is full of significant events that could become critical incidents. These may be events such as noticing body language and tonal cues that indicate an explanation has not fully made sense to pupils or clients. Reflection in action can often be a good solution at such times and can provide a cue as to when deeper reflection after the event might be needed to uncover a better solution. These events are largely unpredicted and awareness of reflective practice heightens sensitivity and helps practitioners become aware of them.

 I have met people who say it is important to think in terms of solutions not problems, this aims to stop people feeling they are drowning in a sea of problems when they could see themselves as swimming towards solutions. I do feel that a changed perspective as to what a problem is can also be valuable. In addition to rectifying problems where there is an obvious weakness that needs to be addressed there is always the task of how to get better at something we are already very good at doing. Purposeful improvement of already competent behaviour can also be seen as problem solving. Problems are something to be hunted out and addressed where-ever they lie, noticing that problems exist should not be seen as an indication of lack of competence or failure. In some organisations a blame culture can develop where problems are identified and the solution is to blame others for them, this can lead to stagnation and resentment. In the worst case scenario problems are ignored and major failure can result.   A no blame culture with a positive attitude to problem solving is key to good professional practice and a thriving organisation. Identifying a problem is the start of finding a solution and that is a vector that leads towards success.

Many workplaces have an organisational system that involves most employees in professional development planning, this often an annual cycle or target setting and learning. This can be an effective system and could be seen as a 'Do-Review-Plan-Learn-Do' cycle that has resonances with reflective and action inquiry cycles.

Do - behaviour in existing practice.
Review - identifying aspects of existing practice where improvement is needed.
Plan - setting achievable and relevant targets and the means by which they can be met.
Learn - implementing strategies through which new learning can be achieved.
Do - implement the improved practice that arose from the new learning.

 Within this over-arching cycle there is the opportunity to apply reflective practice strategies to implement a critical approach within the Review, Plan or Learn stages - reflective practice for professional development can have cycles within cycles. In addition to your main PDP targets you may have many minor development areas that arise as unplanned needs that may take a few minutes, hours or days to fullfil. Reflection and action learning may be effective strategies to apply to these as well.

 A professional development plan will often set multiple targets so there is a branching at the planning stage. If sufficient depth of learning is to be achieved it is important not to set too many main PDP targets, as a rule of thumb three targets is a sensible aim in any one year.
           

Fig 1. Basic PDP strategy.

The review stage is where reflective practice is particularly relevant, in the diagram below I have added some ideas for steps in a systematic review process. There are others that could also be relevant to augment some steps such as 'How do I feel about that?' - 'What do others feel about that?'. Reflective models offer ideas for structuring analysis of real world events. Exploring the application of models you find in the literature is a valuable means of testing theory against practice. You are likely to find yourself uncovering other questions that are valuable to a specific context. One of the important overarching learning outcomes from BA LTR modules is learning about what kinds of questions are useful to solve problems. You might find the ones in my diagram useful, there are many others that could be asked. In many of our modules we ask you to apply models that appear in literature and are widely accepted as being valuable. In order to meet module learning outcomes it is important that you carry out these tasks. Students are encouraged to show their autonomy in managing their learning by devising their own approaches to problem solving. I have started building in an active experimentation phase to some modules - this enables you to consider adoption of existing models and to build your own structures based on the foundations you meet in literature. 

Fig. 2. PDP with detailed review cycle.

Looking in more detail at the structure, each learning cycle could also be broken down by showing approaches such as those discussed by Kolb, Piggott-Irvine and others that BA LTR students will read about in the course literature. Piggott-Irvine (2000) highlights the potential complexity in her Problem Resolving Action Research model. Reflection and action based cycles can prompt new vectors that are related but tangential to the planned core learning path. For the purposes of time and word limit bound undergraduate modules we advise students to focus mainly on the main cycles in their assignments in order to provide sufficient evidence of deep analysis. Tangential paths may well be very valuable in work practice and are something that is sensible to discuss concisely in the stitching section of a module to show transfer of learning strategies and wider adoption across practice but it is important to keep to main cycles in the core patches of modules.

It is not unusual for all or at least some PDP targets to be treated as having been met after one cycle and for a different set of new targets to be identified in the subsequent annual cycle. A conscientious employee may well continue development by remaining aware of the potential for on-going improvement. Learning is a long term process hence the term 'life-long learning'. Learning is a transferable process and can extend across different contexts in the workplace and into life beyond work hence the term 'life-wide learning'. The life wide aspect was very much brought home to me in a stitching piece by a mature student in one of the first cohorts of the BA Learning, Technology and Research course. Having applied reflection in action and on action to good effect in her workplace she was also very please to be able to say she has transfered the skills to home life and was now winning all arguments between herself and her husband. Other students have mentioned using reflection to help plan decisions about where to go and what to do on holiday, how to manage financial decisions by reflecting on needs and then prioritising spending.

Online Community

Wenger discussed the concept of Communities of Practice (COP), he acknowledges that the term represents behaviour that has been part of how humanity organises itself for a long time, the concept is not new but he does provide some very useful illustrations of how communities work and the contexts they work in. He also provides a concise and well articulated statement that summarises the concept well:

"Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly. "
  Wenger (2006)

This short video provides an excellent example of how rhythm and movement bond an African group, it conveys a sense of community participation, shows the passion for what they do, how rhythm is integral to who they are, how interaction with rhythm fills their lives and that there are many skills to be learned and challenges to be overcome to achieve their shared passion.  



There are many other practices that this community share but the making of rhythm is the key element that fille their being, it is embedded deep in their culture, awareness of rhythm is evident in every footstep they take, in almost every move they make. 

The Ultraversity project considered Wenger's perceptions at the design stage and it became a core element of the learning design. The notion of 'Community of Inquiry' (COI) has similar concepts to COP and was also incorporated:

An educational community of inquiry is a group of individuals who collaboratively engage in purposeful critical discourse and reflection to construct personal meaning and confirm mutual understanding.
Garrison, Anderson and Archer (2000)

The COI concept map provides an excellent insight into the potential structure of a COI.

In this model there are three core 'presences':

• Teaching presence is linked to design and facilitation of the community.
• Social presence; the ability of learners to project their personality into the community.
• Cognitive presence; the ability of members to construct meaning through communication.

The two concepts are combined in our approach and the aim of course tutors is to Facilitate the development of vibrant Communities of Practitioner Inquirers. The common passions of community members (students and staff) include:

• Improving personal practice in the workplace.
• Becoming adept at Professional Development Planning (PDP) and achieving PDP targets.
• Identifying problems, applying systematic processes to arrive at viable and effective solutions.
• Using technologies creatively to achieve high standards in communication of information to others.
• Becoming agents of change, inspiring others in the workplace to aspire to high standards of operation.
• Developing into critically reflective practitioners unafraid to challenge orthodoxy or authority.
• Aspiring to a brighter future.

The processes used to achieve these aims include, but are not limited to:

• Personalisation of learning - learners take a significant level of responsibility for designing their own interpretation of how they will meet learning outcomes.
• Negotiation of learning - Individual Learning Plans are reviewed by course facilitators and appropriate tasks are negotiated.
• Identifying gaps in knowledge and how these can be bridged or filled.
• Examine theory - apply theory to personal practice - re-examine theory in the light of experience. This can be summarised as; Reflection - Inquiry - Reflection.
• Carry out small-scale action based research projects in the workplace.
• Analysing the quality of experience of stakeholders impacted by the individual's actions.
• Sharing, caring and offering support through critical feedback in the spirit of friendship.

Making learning delightful is not always an easy task but it is one that is worth aspiring too. Designing tasks that are easy may lead to learners achieving, but there can be an empty or anticlimactic feeling as there was little sense of overcoming challenge, of personal development or of developing expertise. It is through overcoming challenge that we tend to feel higher levels of satisfaction or even elation. If a challenge is perceived as being 'beyond attainment' this can lead to despair or frustration. If the challenge is not beyond attainment it is important for tutors to identify the governing values that are holding a student back and offer the encouragement and support needed to alter perspectives and improve motivation. 

If a learning task is well designed it will inspire a learner to aspire to excellence, it will imbue the learner with a perception that there are achievable steps towards expertise and that the journey will be worthwhile. The concept of 'Optimal Learning' suggests that learners engaged in well designed tasks will become willingly immersed in the experience and feel a sense of 'flow'; a state in which it is often reported that time has no meaning. Studies carried out by Csikszentmihalyi into Optimal Learning found that:


"...the phenomenology of enjoyment 

has eight major components. When people reflect on how it feels 

when their experience is most positive, they mention at least one, 

and often all, of the following:

1. We confront tasks we have a chance of completing;
2. We must be able to concentrate on what we are doing;
3. The task has clear goals;
4. The task provides immediate feedback;
5. One acts with deep, but effortless involvement, that
removes from awareness the worries and frustrations
of everyday life;
6. One exercises a sense of control over their actions;
7. Concern for the self disappears, yet, paradoxically
the sense of self emerges stronger after the flow
experience is over; and
8. The sense of duration of time is altered.
The combination of all these elements causes a sense of deep
enjoyment that is so rewarding people feel that expending a great
deal of energy is worthwhile simply to be able to feel it."
Csikszentmihalyi (1990)

Below is an extract from a discussion post by a student who in 2005 had been lacking in confidence with her relationship with technology. It seems clear to me that, at the outset of the module she was doing, the challenge was evident, that tasks she was set were appropriate, motivating and perceived as achievable:

"Technology 
Let battle commence!
Although I am becoming less afraid, I still regard technology as a bit of a “Me vs. It” scenario. Battle plans are drawn up, in the shape of:

• What do I hope to achieve?
• Is it achievable?
•  Can I do it?

Tentatively I approach my enemy. Cautiously I set to work. With every step forward I take, there are now fewer I take back, although not yet my friend technology is becoming less frightening and more intriguing to me."

Having worked her way through a Reflective Practice module, in which she was required to use technology to generate creative approaches to sharing information, she emerged more confident and articulating a sense of achievement:


"Now here I stand in March 2006 on the summit of my own personal “Reflective Mountain” and look at me now!
My confidence has grown and I now have belief in my ability as both a teaching assistant and a student.
This lady who once stated “ I feel like I am climbing Mount Everest in flip-flops” (previous module) can now categorically state that the flip-flops are off and the hiking boots and backpack are on. 
As I complete the descent I know that this will not be the last time I climb this mountain. I will undoubtedly return many times, and each time the view will be different, no less challenging, but just as beautiful."


Vygotski's notion of the Zone of Proximal Development (Vygotski, 1978) is often discussed in relation to learning in schools, however; it can also be useful to consider in relation to adult learning. The approaches used in mentored learning and facilitated learning are examples of where the learner can be provided with scaffolding to help them bridge the gap between existing and new knowledge. A weakness with the theory, in my opinion, is the concept that there is an upper limit to what is ultimately achievable, this is a difficult limit to define. When Piaget's developmental stages are taken as absolute in defining what a child of a certain age might be able to achieve this can limit perceptions of what else might be achieved. Thankfully in more recent years these stages are less influential in teaching practice, although it seems to be a fundamental aspect of humans that they are very much capable of designing their own limiting perceptions of what they might, or might not, be capable of achieving. Raising awareness of limits students place on themselves can help them develop the perceptions and motivation to face challenges in a positive way. When reflecting on part of her message: 

• What do I hope to achieve?
• Is it achievable?
• Can I do it?

this student described how she had not quite had the confidence to say "I can do it" and that she felt that, in an academic world, she should not say 'I can' until she had evidence that she could. The message sits in the nexus between doubt and confidence and shows some understanding of the need to be credibile by constructing statements that are appropriately tentative.

The Ultraversity project developed an approach where students are provided with contextualised assessment criteria and where there is constructive alignment between these and negotiated learning tasks. Fundamental to the community learning process is collaborative learning. In our online communities this involves students supporting each other through constructive and critical discussions, offering existing knowledge to scaffold others, sharing and reflecting on personal experiences, discussing and debating ideas for the good of the whole community and highlighting where improvement to work in progress could be made and where better alignment between task and assessment criteria is needed. In line with the COP and COI concepts, course facilitators (tutors) share the same passions about learning and improvement aspirations as students, they are open about identifying and addressing their own strengths and weaknesses and about aspiring for excellence. They are part of the collaborative learning process, learning with and from students, facilitated learning places no value on the old style concept of teachers as gatekeepers of knowledge; the aim is to become catalysts of learning. Social interaction provides students with insight into who the person inside the teacher is and this in turn helps students project their own personality into the community.

The place of community for students was traditionally on campus - being on site they had the cues of physical spaces to reinforce this feeling of belonging to academia. For online students the learning places are sometimes referred to as being "virtual". I have always felt this to be a misnomer as the experience of belonging to and working in an online environment is very real, although the actual physical existence of the community spaces and interactions is via electron flow, much of which is hosted in machines that may be thousands of miles from the users, it is still a physical phenomenon that is as real as bricks and mortar. When I first started teaching online it was often done in closed communities made with bespoke or proprietary software as shown in this 2007 diagram:

There has been considerable evolution in the range of software used and in the scope of communities that students belong to since that diagram was constructed but it is clear that the role of 'in house purpose built' software was rapidly abandoned. This was a decision made in part due to cost of software development but also related to the rapid expansion of proprietary and open source provision that was becoming increasingly useable and reliable. In 2012 the core community activity is located in the closed University supplied VLE but students now supplement this with interactions in a wider range of open community places such as Facebook, Youtube and Twitter. The location and kinds of community interaction currently available to students will be covered in a future blog post.

References

Csikszentmihalyi, M., 1990. FLOW: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper and Row [Online] http://www.psy-flow.com/sites/psy-flow/files/docs/flow.pdf

Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., and Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3), 87-105. [Online] Accessed 13 08 2012 via: http://communitiesofinquiry.com

Piaget, J., 1977. Intellectual evolution from adolescence to adulthood (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1977)

Vygotsky, L. S., 1978. Mind in society: The development of higher psychological proceses. Chapter 6 Interaction between learning and development (79-91). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Wenger, E., McDermott, R. and Snyder, W., 2006. Cultivating communities of practice: a guide to managing knowledge. Harvard Business School Press, 2002. More information available online at http://www.ewenger.com/theory/

An introduction to Reflective Practice.

An introduction to Reflective Practice.

An introductory overview created for students on the Anglia Ruskin BA (Hons.)  Learning, Technology and Research course.

Dewey (1933) identified the three characteristics or attitudes of people who are reflective as; 'open-mindedness', 'responsibility' and 'wholeheartedness'. At a basic level models of reflection exist to provide guidance to help us look back with an open mind and re-examine significant events that have happened and to turn them into learning experiences. When we do this with a purposeful and systematic approach we turn a 'significant event' into a 'critical incident'. A good source on critical incident theory is Tripp (1993).

In essence, reflection help us to:

Look at an event - Understand it - Learn from it

When first encountering the concept students sometimes say something along the lines of: "Reflection is like looking in a mirror." Reflective practice is more than that; a mirror shows only what is there on the surface in the here and now, it shows us an image of what we are used to looking at, albeit a laterally reversed version of current reality. A mirror does not help us examine the past, critique what happened and conjecture about what might happen in the future. The concept of 'going through the looking glass' is perhaps better than looking into one but that lead Alice into a very strange world, whereas good reflective practice takes us into a detailed retrospective of the real world, we are deeply concerned with accurately capturing what we did, reflecting on how it impacted on ourselves and on others and aspiring to gain deep learning from critical analysis and forward thinking. 

 Although academic authors might disagree on occasion, and sometimes moan about each others ideas, most of them seem to view systematic reflection as a beneficial behaviour. Many students, when they are first introduced to reflective practice, identify this as a natural or instinctive process I agree most people seem to naturally reflect. When you start to explore literature such as Schon and the concept of 'reflection in action' and 'reflection on action' your awareness of the natural process is being raised and your ability to apply it to good effect can be improved considerably.

An instinctive approach to reflection can appear to be unstructured although there is often an emergent structure even if we take a fairly open approach such as mulling something over in our minds or writing everything about an event down in a stream of consciousness. It is not unusual for questions to emerge and for us to examine them over and over - elements such as: What happened - what really happened? Oh why did I do that / why did X do that? I wish Y had not happened. What did I want to happen? What else could I have done? 

Reflective practice models offer a set of prompts or questions that help us bring structure to  our thoughts. Structured critical reflection may involve deconstructing events systematically, taking them apart in detail, thinking about specific aspects of action or potential consequences, examining events from a range of perspectives, constructing new understanding, developing new approaches that could help improve a situation or help us be better prepared the next time we meet a similar event. Reading some academic papers can lead to a perception of reflection being a complex and convoluted approach to learning but if you can tunnel through academic language the basic principles and strategies are deceptively simple. They provide a step by step journey through a logical process often in the form of a cycle. In my experience, and judging by the feedback from my students, reflective practice can be very effective means of problem solving and it can transform workplace practice; it is an essential tool.

Schon identifies two kinds of reflection:
1. Reflection-in-action - this is reflecting on the hoof, where you reflect on your actions during an event: "This isn't going well; what can I do now to improve things?" Or: "This is going well; how can I maintain the momentum?" You no longer stumble blindly on following what may be a well thought out plan with little heed to what is going on around you you are hawk like; sharp eyed, monitoring your actions and how others are responding to them. You make on the hoof informed improvements, you respond to changing situations, adapt your approach, optimise your interactions with others or with the physical world around you - all this comes from being aware that you can benefit from taking care about what you do and remembering to regularly spend a few seconds on reflective thinking while in action. 

If you think about just the act of simple conversation we adeptly adapt explanations, cutting them short or expanding them as we monitor how well we are being understood. When listening to others we use non-verbal utterances, facial expression, gesture or other 'body language' clues to affirm understanding or show we are uncertain or disagree with what is said to us. Most people are fairly adept intuitive reflectors on that level but to be really effective practitioners in the workplace we may need to look deeper. Schon raises our awareness of when we can reflect. Time is limited for reflections in action, we may be brave and say to an audience "Just a moment let me think about that..." but often there are only a few seconds available and we try to squish reflection in unnoticed so others do not perceive us as less than expert or lacking in conviction or confidence. 

When a fire alarm goes off there is an option to just run aimlessly or to reflect as we are acting, constantly assessing the situation and revising our actions to attempt to act in a way that is most likely to lead to survival. I was on a ferry last week wondering what would happen if there were a disaster - fair enough I knew where my nearest muster point was but would I have blindly followed the instructions to head that way had most of the smoke been between me and that nearest point of safety - I think I would reflect in action and run the other way hoping to find a safer alternative. That might not be the best action - that is where the limitations kick in we have to act on limited information in a very short time-frame and the reflections are consequently potentially flawed or at the least 'not the best action' but may also be better than responding blindly. Schon is aware that reflection in action has limitations - it also has value too, if you have planned to do a presentation in your work setting, do you stick blindly to your plan running through the presentation as if it were a TV program, or do you keep an eye on the audience, engage with them asking questions to check they are following your presentation and understanding it. Do you dare to adapt your approach on the hoof? If you do the latter you need to reflect in the moment and respond by identifying what they have missed and providing additional explanations to ensure they do understand, on the hoof improvements may not be perfect but are likely to be better than just going on and on churning out your planned dialogue having lost the audience and not noticed.

2. Reflection-on-action - this is retrospective reflection, you reflect on actions that have already occurred. This is usually, but not always, done fairly soon after the event. 

Things that didn't go well; what what went wrong; what can I do next time to improve things?
Things that went well; what were the factors that lead to success; how can I use this knowledge to repeat success in the future?

You recall incidents and chew the cud, ruminating in depth on how you can improve your practice. You may mull something over spontaneously while travelling or resting or you may put specific time aside and formally structure your reflections. Schon does not provide a cyclical model but maybe the value is in the raising of our awareness that reflecting both in and after an event has value. Imagine you were in the presentation scenario I outlined, if the audience did not understand the planned presentation and you needed to reflect in action to modify it - you have a good clue that you need to reconsider at some length why they did not understand the well thought out presentation. You can then apply a model like Gibbs or Borton etc to structure the 'on action' reflections after the event when you have time to reflect in detail.

Schon tries to stop us going blindly forward, he prompts us towards heightened awareness of our own practice, to respond to changing or unpredicted circumstances on the hoof or 'in action' and to engage in post-event analysis - 'on action' reflection. As Practitioners interested in exploring reflective practice in real world situations a practical exploration of structured approaches may augment what you do naturally. Whether you find it more effective to use a given model to structure post-event reflections or to just spend time thinking about what happened in an unstructured way is a key question that will only be answered when you try the strategies out for yourself.

Critical Incidents
Tripp (1993) discusses critical incident analysis as a good approach to reflection. A critical incident can be described as an event that offers a significant opportunity for learning and to which you have applied a critical thinking strategy. They may be small events but they can turn out to be big little things once reflected on in depth. When I was training to be a Primary school teacher I was exploring reflective practice and an incident I used might illustrate the concept well. 


I had a well thought out lesson plan that aimed to explain the concept of fractions, it involved me drawing images of pizzas and birthday cakes on a white board and turned out not to be that well delivered. Some of the class understood and some did not. I tried to think on the hoof what was wrong but couldn't see it and time ran out. Later I reflected at length on what happened, I imagined the scene again and again and eventually realised that I had been standing in front of the pizza obscuring it from part of the class. Bingo a revelation via reflection. I kept on thinking; the model I was using prompted me to consider the feelings of those involved. Eventually another light bulb moment - not one of the children had the confidence to say "Hey Mr Tindal I can't see." That was the big one, the spin off from the main mistake of blocking their view. Next day I made friends with the children told them "Who couldn't see the pizzas? If I do something daft like that again just shout out, let me know." 


So that was a critical incident, a little big thing that, after examination through structured reflection, changed my teaching practice forever. 


You might try and record an event where you are aware of reflecting in action, then also apply retrospective reflection to the same event, this would provide a comparison of the effectiveness of reflection in action and reflection on action and assist in analysing the value of Schon's thoughts.

Thoughts on capturing Critical incidents:

The first step in rigorous and unbiased reflection on a critical incident is to capture what happened as accurately as possible. We can't go back and turn on a video camera, sometimes we don't realise until after an event just how significant it was. It is important to create a record as soon as possible, after an event has occurred and before time provides a mist between us and what really happened that we can not fully penetrate. The police have done a lot of research into recall and it well known that if there is a lot of intervening time before a witness provides a statement it is more likely to be lacking in detail or inaccurate. Were there others present at the time who you can discuss the events with? They might have a different perspective or might recall small details that help you remember events more clearly. If not write down what you think happened then spend some time imagining you are back in the event and see what else you can recall; was your original account correct? You need to dig deep and look with honest eyes if you are to explore the 'truth' of the situation. 

In a discussion a few years ago in Anglia University, Richard Winter, who originated the Patchwork Text approach to assessment, talked about the use of genre as a means of freeing the creative voice, of letting students step outside the usual restricted forms of writing to gain wider perspectives on their practice and the events they experience.

Using an alternative genre to the standard written approach to recording thoughts might help you reflect from a new perspective; for example a poem might help you uncover and convey emotions, if you need an objective and concise perspective then a newspaper or news report might provide a good framework, if physical space was important an animation or photo-story might help show details that would be hard to convey through text. Consider how you might use technology to convey an event. Many students on BA LTR and BA LTT have produces small videos or comic strips about events and reported that the immersion in the creative experience helped with both recall and reflective problem solving.

A strategy that is also useful for overcoming writing blocks is focused stream of consciousness writing or talking. Although this can generate a lot of text it is an acknowledged method for uncovering deep insights and can be a good starting point. In a nutshell you just start talking or writing about a given theme or experience and, giving little heed to grammar or structure, just capture any old words that convey your reflective thoughts. For example as part of your application of a reflective model you might have to reflect on and convey how a critical incident made you feel - you could start by creating a stream of writing in the style of a news reporter/poet/play writer etc - don't stop until you have got it all out. Consider what you have as your raw data; analyse, hone and reduce it, use photos, cartoons, drawings etc. to enhance how you convey your reflections.

Models for structured reflection
These provide a framework to structure your reflections, there are a wide range of models, far more than are mentioned here. Search for more and try exploring some by applying them to real world critical incidents.

Greenaway outlined three simple steps to help learn from experience:
1. DO - have an experience
2. REVIEW - review what happened and what can be learned
3. PLAN - plan a way to approach the next round of experience

Borton translates this as; 'What- So what - Now what'.

Kolb suggested that experience alone does not provide a sufficient learning experience in many situations, "there are many examples where experience alone is not sufficient for meeting particular learning goals.  In such situations, it seems to work better if the raw experience is packaged together with facilitated exercises which involve thinking, discussing, or creatively processing cognitions and emotions related to the raw experience".

Kolb also suggests structure is useful in reflection:  the first step is Concrete Experience, followed by Reflective Observation, then the formation of Abstract Conceptualizations, he then suggests conducting Active Experimentation, this implements new solutions that are again subject to reflection to consider their viability.

Gibbs identified a series of 6 steps to aid reflective practice, these elements make up a cycle that can be applied over and over.
Description - what happened ?
Feelings - what were you thinking and feeling ?
Evaluation - what was good and bad about the experience ?
Analysis - what sense can you make of the situation ?
Conclusion - what else could you have done ?
Action plan - what will you do next time ?
Gibbs takes in to account the realm of feelings and emotions which played a part in a particular event. Other models do not specifically exclude examining feelings but some are less concerned with prompting this element.

What other models can you find?  Which model are you going to try out first?

Introduction to Reflective Practice Part 2.  This extends the systematic strategy to encompass espoused theory and theory in use as well as consideration of governing variables those factors that we might not initially be aware of but that govern behaviour and the ability to implement change.

Reflective practice is a useful tool in Professional Development Planning, this post provides an initial insight into how that is utilised on the BA Learning, Technology and Research course. http://ii-learning.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/reflection-and-professional-development.html

References: 

1. Bolton, G. 2010. Reflective Practice: Writing and Professional Development. Sage publications. (click here for google book preview)

2. Boud, D., Keoh, R., Walker, D. 1994. Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning. Routledge Falmer (click here for Google book preview)

3. Clifford, J., and Thorpe, S. 2007. Workplace Learning & Development: Delivering competitive advantage for your organization. Ch 3. (Click here for a link to Google book extracts)

4. Gibbs, G. 1988. Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further 

Education Unit, Oxford Brookes University. 

5. Kolb, D. A. 1984. Experiential Learning, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.: Prentice Hall. 256 pages. 

6. Kolb, A. and Kolb D. A. 2001. Experiential Learning Theory Bibliography 1971-2001, Boston. http://trgmcber.haygroup.com/Products/learning/bibliography.htm
7. Johns, C. 2009. Becoming a reflective practitioner. 3rd ed. Singapore: Wiley 

8. Pollard, A. 2005. Reflective Teaching. Continuum.(Click here for extracts from Google book)

9. Schon, D. 1995. The Reflective Practitioner: How professionals think in action. 3rd ed. Hants: Arena. 

10. Tripp, D. 1993. Critical Incidents in Teaching: Developing Professional Judgment .Routledge. (click here for a Google book preview)