Developing The Reflective UWE Student - a collaborative enquiry Benchmarking the use of reflective practice in learning & teaching at UWE Rachel Wood (LAW) James Burch (ABE) Our own Pedagogical Challenges teaching reflective practice is neither obvious or easy. (Casey, 2014) it never quite works for them. (Wong, 2016) whilst it has been expedient to adopt Schns theories they have done so without sufficient understanding of their theoretical limitations and methodological errors; their cracks, boundaries and blurs (Webster, 2008) UWE Context Wide range of professional courses all with reflective practice
Education Engineering Radiography Accountancy Oncology Fine Art Marketing Games Technology Architecture Conservation Education Academic Skills Teaching Law Midwifery
Geography Leadership & Management Social Work Journalism Psychology Natural Sciences But all different approaches, intentions and intended outcomes Collaborative Group for the day Seventeen participants across all four Faculties: Claire Bennett Lynne Lawrence Sara Bird Ursula Lucas
James Burch Gillian Ottley Jackie Chelin Phaik Tan Stephen Hunt Mike Ricketts Janette Chianese Simon Scarle Gareth Edwards Amanda Webber Myra Evans Rachel Wood Wendy Fowles-Sweet
Process: a collaborative enquiry Iterative cycle of: INPUT : CONVERSATION : REFLECTION : REFRESHMENTS Four iterations of this cycle asking: WHAT WE DO? WHY WE DO IT? WHAT WORKS WHAT DOESNT WORK (particularly assessment)? WHAT WE DONT KNOW (& would like to do next) In order to develop a co-authored report to benchmark the use of reflective practice in learning & teaching at UWE Having a reflective capacity is essential for life-long learning. It affects ones personal/ professional/ work/ life, i.e. it affects all aspects of ones being. Phaik Tan, Accounting (FBL) What do we mean when we talk about reflection? Can we do more to sell reflective ability as a life Asking WHY alongside WHAT, HOW and WHEN;
skill, something that employers will value, as a skill learning from whats done and related impact to where individuals curate their own career progress help identify what to do and related implications and evaluate and learn as they go along, rather than both professionally and personally. relying upon others to do this for them? Wendy Fowles-Sweet, Engineering (FET) Sara Bird, Marketing (FBL) Taking forward the learning from an experience to improve skills and ultimately practice. Reflection can I guess my definition of reflection in these modules lead to increased self-awareness and increased
is for students to step outside their experiences receptiveness to change. Practitioners should feel inside and outside the classroom and look back on empowered to action change/ to improve practice how they are experiencing the input of knowledge Could also be potentially linked to improved personal and what this means for them as a practicing resilience? manager. Janette Chianese (HAS) Gareth Edwards, Business and Management (FBL) Why are we using reflection with students? Our students are doing a programme which
Perhaps above all, art academics see leads to professional qualification. Part of themselves as aiming to create a varied, the standard requires them to be a stimulating and open-ended learning reflective practitioner. environment, in which students develop their Claire Bennett, Radiography and Oncology (HAS) own self-directed work, which involves regular self-reflection, evidenced in a variety of ways. Students, their tutors and peers reflect The link between reflective writing employability most professional bodies expect or require an element of reflective together, regularly, on new work, issues and
ambitions, as these emerge and develop. Mike Ricketts, Fine Art (ACE) practice and writing as an integral aspect of Traditionally leadership development has been their professional practice. wrapped up in personal development and hence Stephen Hunt, (Library Services) the link to reflection and reflective practice. Gareth Edwards (FBL) Beyond immediate professional requirements It can be useful, yet tricky in journalism education to embody the true meaning of reflection. Our BA journalism is accredited by the Broadcast Journalism Training Council which stipulates a long list of requirements and skills that students have to achieve. Whilst these skills are useful in preparing students to do the job there are no requirements for reflection on this practice. This can sometimes jar with the requirements of a degree, for the students
to be critical thinkers. We try very hard to embody both the training element of the degree and the academic critical thinking element and encourage students to see the overlaps. Myra Evans, Journalism (ACE) What are we doing? Extended reflective activity includes Learning logs Learning diaries/journals Portfolios (including PebblePad) Individual activities include including Reflection on a mock conversation with a patient Shut up and write sessions Reflection on a specific change/event Sometimes the whole artefact is assessed, sometimes it provides raw material for a shorter assessment piece. experience Post mortem industry style report on a
development project What are we doing? Reflecting with others.reflection as a collaborative activity Clinical debriefing sessions (HAS) Within the cycle of classroom learning (FBL) Contextual and critical discussion woven into studio work (ACE) Reflection as assessment Reflection supporting other forms of assessment The experience of working on group presentations (Business and Management) Work-based learning days critical reflection with practitioners (HAS) One to one dialogues with practitioner-tutors and visiting artists/art professionals (ACE) The process of producing academic work (Law and Business and Management))
How are we doing it? External stimuli (strangemaking) PROBLEMS OF: Discussion of images (HAS & FBL) Disciplinary bias Skills matrix review (FET/EDM) Discussion of experiential evidence (HAS) Deconstructing experiential learning (Law) Building on knowledge Session debrief, feedback as reflection (Library) the actual term reflection would have them running a mile (FET) Cultural bias Tick Box Reflection cobbled together at the end (FBL) time travel reflection (FET) Admission of vulnerability students are fearful of admitting failure or getting
One-to-one tutee/tutor discussion (HAS) something wrong and are less likely to admit in their Using a reflective model or using broader mark (ACE) reflective philosophy/theories (HAS) reflections when it happens in fear of getting a lower Conclusions Reflection as central to professional learning Reflection as a life skill Challenging and supporting art students to see how they behave in situations, reflect on their work and practice, and their how their behaviour affects others,
identities as artists, is fundamental to HElevel art education. (ACE) what they do well and areas they Threshold moments informed by reflection are can make improvements (HAS) central to this professional development. (FET) Reflective practice as a catalyst for learning helping students to work through barriers even I would like to know if there is a enabling them to mature. (FBL) core set of texts / journals, models, This is what distinguishes a practice-based etc that can give me a more solid degree from a pure training course. (ACE)
foundation to the subject Conclusions Any questions? References Boud, D. & Walker, D. 1998, "Promoting reflection in professional courses: The challenge of context", Studies in Higher Education, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 191-206. Casey, T. (2014), "Reflective practice in legal education: the stages of reflection", Clinical Law Review, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 317. Dewey, J. (2010), How we think, [Facsim.]. edn, BN, U.S. Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Oxford: Oxford Polytechnic Further Education Unit. Kolb, D.A. (2015), Experiential learning: experience as the source of learning and development, Second edn, Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, N. J. Macfarlane, B. & Gourlay, L. (2009), "The reflection game: enacting the penitent self", Teaching in Higher Education, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 455-459. Mezirow, J. (1990), Fostering critical reflection in adulthood: a guide to transformative and emancipatory learning, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA. Schn, D.A. (1987), Educating the reflective practitioner: toward a new design for teaching and learning in the professions, JosseyBass, San Francisco. Webster, H. (2008), Architectural Education after Schn: Cracks, Blurs, Boundaries and Beyond, Journal for Education in the Built Environment, 3:2 pp.63-74 Wong, A.C.K. (2016) Considering Reflection From the Student Perspective in Higher Education. SAGE Open. 6 (1), pp. 1-9
