1. Critical Reflection
Dr Linda Rush
Vice Dean (Teacher Education)

2. Learning Outcomes
 To critically explore the concept of reflection
and its application within learning and teaching
 To appraise reflective frameworks which
facilitate critical levels of reflection

3. Feelings about reflection
 What are your feelings about reflection ?

4. Concept Analysis
In pairs
 Mindmap the term “reflection”
 From the mindmap create categories or
emerging themes
 From the categories construct a sentence which
offers your definition of reflection

5. Definitions of Reflection
 The consensus is that reflection is a term
frequently used, but inadequately defined (Atkins
and Murphy 1993, Reid 1993, James and Clarke 1994, Lyons
1999)
 Difficulties are caused by a lack of clarity and
commonly understood terminology (Reid 1993,
Teekman 2000, Carroll et al 2000)
 How easy did you find it?

6. Working definition….?
 “A process of reviewing an experience of
practice in order to describe, analyse, evaluate
and so inform learning about practice” (Reid
1995:305)
 It is both “a loosely used concept, easily
assimilated into spontaneous everyday action”
(How many of you feel you do it already?) and
“a complex, difficult to explain and perplexing
phenomenon” (Fitzgerald & Chapman in Burns & Bulman
2000:3)

7. Where did it come from?
 Dewey (1933) – viewed reflective thinking and
reflection as an experiential learning technique.
 Defined reflection as :
An active persistent and careful consideration of
any belief or supposed form of knowledge, in the
light of the grounds that support it and the
further conclusion to which it tends
 Reflection or reflective thinking here is seen as
problem solving

8. Hatton and Smith (1995)
 View reflective thinking as ‘an active and
deliberative cognitive process, involving
sequences of interconnected ideas which take
account of underlying beliefs and knowledge.
 Reflective thinking generally addresses practical
problems, allowing for doubt and perplexity
before possible solutions are reached.’

9. Backbone philosophies’ of
reflection: Kolb & Schon

10. Are
definitions
important?

11. The issues?
 Reflection is not a “panacea” (Scanlon and
Chermonas 1997, Burns and Bulman 2000) but it is a way
of learning more about our work (Kember at al 2001)
 Research tends to be small scale
 Schon’s work is attractive because it “focuses on
practice and values experience” (Burns and Bulman
2000:1)
 Moral and ethical dimensions (Hargreaves 1997)

12. What can a reflective
strategy do?
 Alter the focus from routinely doing to the
development of an ability to look critically at
practice (Driscoll 1994)
 Raising consciousness
 Perspective transformation
 Framing and reframing (Glaze 2001) as an
innovative way of analysing problems
 Deconstruction and reconstruction (Ghaye and
Lilleyman 1997)
 Knowing where you are on your internal map
(Hunt 2001)

13. So, why can it be complex?
 Some people are more naturally reflective than
others, but reflection is a skill which can be
learnt, practised and refined … (L’Aiguille 1994)
 Verbal reflection is spontaneous, written
reflection requires some practice (Gannon et al
2001)
 Frameworks help to structure reflections,
challenge assumptions, transform perspectives

14. Critical reflection and
critical thinking
Brookfield (1987) key components of critical
thinking:-
 Identifying and challenging assumptions
 Imagining and exploring alternative ways of
thinking and acting
Atkins (2000 in Burns and Bulman p30)
 Take place during the critical analysis element of
a reflective framework

15. Reflective Frameworks
 Aid learning from experience
 Help to move from “tacit knowing, to more
conscious and explicit knowing” (Ghaye and
Lilleyman 1997:16)
 Movement away from “inertia”
 Adds “new and relevant” meaning to
professional practice
 Have significance for future action

16. Types of Frameworks
 Structured -Johns guided reflection (1995) Smyth
(1991)
 Hierarchical - Mezirow’s seven levels of reflection
(1981), Goodman’s three levels (1984)
 Iterative - cyclical, Gibbs (1988), Atkins and
Murphy (1994), Boud et al 1985)
 Synthetic - Louden (1991), Interests and Forms
(outcomes and characteristics)
 Holistic - Ghaye et al (1996) 5 types of reflection-
on-practice and 5 reflective cycles in a matrix

17. Using a reflective framework
in reflective writing
 Description - demonstrates clear understanding
of the relevant and important issues, well
structured and concise
 Feelings - beneath the surface.
 Demands “emotional intelligence”
 The ability to recognise and manage emotions in
yourself and others (Mortiboys 2002)

18. Critical Analysis
 Critical Analysis -Identify and illuminate existing
knowledge of relevance, challenge assumptions,
explore alternatives. Separate the whole into its
component parts

19. Synthesis
 “The integration of the new knowledge, feelings
or attitudes with previous knowledge, feelings or
attitudes. This is necessary in order to develop a
fresh insight or a new perspective on a situation
and learn from it” (Atkins 2002:46)
 Martin (1999) suggests contemporary staff need
to manage paradox and be constantly adaptive
 Evaluation: the ability to make a judgement
about the value of something, looking back…
but it is also future orientated

20. Reflection and teaching
 Scanlon and Chermonas (1997) suggest that to
teach reflectively, we must be reflective
ourselves
 Strategies?
 ALS (McGill and Beaty 1995)
 Reflective journals (Bolton 2001)
 Portfolio development
 Reflective conversations with peers (Richert 1990)

21. Problems with Reflection?
 “lack of motivation to complete what can be a
time consuming task”
 “uncertainty in what was expected”
 “making practice visible to others carries a
degree of risk of criticism and challenge that
may not have been experienced before”
(Stanley and Ramage 2004:95)

22. Reflection and teaching
 Scanlon and Chermonas (1997) suggest that to
teach reflectively, we must be reflective
ourselves
 Strategies?
 ALS (McGill and Beaty 1995)
 Reflective journals (Bolton 2001)
 Portfolio development
 Reflective conversations with peers (Richert 1990)

23. Now What? - Review
 The purpose of reflection is to learn and extend
personal practice and knowledge base (Hull and
Redfern 1996)
 What is your stance? Which reflective framework
suits your learning style?
 Engage with opportunities for observations (think
mirrors)
 Engage with the theory, be prepared to take on
new perspectives and insights.

24. A thought for the future…
 A fully functioning person is an ever changing
person….personal growth is marked by a degree
of disorganisation followed by reorganisation
which necessitates acceptance of self (based
on Rogers, and Martin 1999)