Designing a Workshop on Reflective Practice

Reflecting on the Reflective Process

After examining the contents of Claire Sewell's reflective practice workshop (2017) I felt inspired to create a workshop on the topic so I began to reflect on how I could use this example to make my own workshop design.

I noted the simple yet most profound model presented early on, the ERA cycle from Bassot. The model is shown below:

For me reflection is not about the models but about the quality of reflection and the frequency. In reading this workshop outline I had an experience and I examined all of the activities and I saw the intent of each one. I then recalled what teacher professional development is like and how many of the participants simply go through the motions and never connect to the topic on a deeper level. Perhaps  this approach is appropriate and effective for Sewell or perhaps Sewell delivered this workshop and was critical of certain aspects of its design and delivery. As I contemplate action I am deciding whether to use this document exactly as it is or whether I should take a few of the standout points like the Bassot model above and build a workshop specifically for my colleagues.

 I propose to engage participants in group discussion and reflection before presenting any definitions and models.

Think about this prompt:

A teacher with 5 years of experience teaching a course at a particular school is better than a teacher in his/her first year.

Do you agree with this assumption? Why? (Participants will share with a partner and at tables, then share out)

As I create the next step I am reflecting on my own experience as a workshop facilitator and participant. I am trying to predict possible responses and how to shape them to direct students to think in a desired way.

If necessary I will state this:

An understanding of student behavior and their misconceptions is a key point but the teacher who has an awareness of these issues and does not act is not very effective as a reflective practitioner.

(Once again I will invite participants to share and explain in groups)

At this point I will transition to a more teacher/facilitator centered presentation. I will begin by sharing some reflective models and referencing some well known sources to define reflective practice and highlight its importance to all teachers at any stage of their career. I will make reference to John Dewey's seminal work .

According to Dewey (1933) reflection is an:

 “active, persistent and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it, and further conclusions to which it leads” ( p. 118).
 

Finally I will ask participants to share details of at least one experience they have had in the classroom  that led them to reflect on how students learn or think about an issue and if/how they have modified their instruction to help resolve it.

As an extension I will also ask participants whether it is better to highlight the key pitfalls of previous students before giving students an activity or whether we should allow our students to make errors first and then help as needed later.

Conclusion:

I will continue to reflect in how to design this reflective teaching workshop and to add more details to it as I progress through this course. I aim to have the final product ready by the end of module 6.

References:

Bassot, B. (2016). The reflective practice guide: an interdisciplinary approach to critical reflection. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

Dewey, J. (1933). How we think, a restatement of the relation of the reflective thinking to the educative process. Boston, MA: Heath.

Sewell, C. (2017). Reflective Practice Workshop. Presentation included as part of a course at University of the West Indies.

Digital tools for reflection in action, on action and for action.

The Context 

Last week I discussed the solution to a Chemistry problem in my classes and as we went about considering the steps I observed that most students were having problems in getting the answer. They claimed that a key piece of data was missing and that the question could not be solved. I paused and considered what was happening and why it was happening. Next, I asked a guiding question to help jog students memory about the so called missing number. Some of them immediately realized what they had forgotten and then jumped in to solve the question and gain a feeling of accomplishment.

Reflection in Action

As I read Benade (2015) I noted the references made to Schon (1983) about reflection in action and reflection on action. Reflection in action occurs while a lesson is being delivered and it refers to adjustments made by the teacher to cater to issues that might arise. In the example above I observed that students had forgotten a key piece of knowledge that had to be applied to solving a problem and while the lesson was in progress I asked guiding questions to help them recall the information. While this kind of reflection in action is useful it does not unearth all of the student misconceptions. Several digital tools can help to provide quick feedback with individual student data and the teacher can get specific details on students' perceptions. If these tools are used effectively then they can scaffold student understanding and foster student reflection. Some tools include Kahoot and LMS like moodle.

Reflection on Action

At the end of the lesson I searched for some similar questions to share with the students and I took a mental note of this issue to inform my future practice. I plan to make an instructional video to share this guidance. I made a similar video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_NyrZBJsNA

when I noticed that students were confounded by the terms amphoteric and amphiprotic. In this latter case Benade (2015) cites Schon (1993) and identifies that post lesson action is termed reflection on action. I believe that the power to create and share a video is a great tool to allow the teacher to act on  the findings of post lesson reflections with corrective action. 

Reflection for Action

Videos like the one cited above are also used to guide future students and I often share them with colleagues and students at other schools. The feedback I receive from this is then another scenario for reflection in action and for action as I examine way to improve the quality of the presentation. Below is an example of the feedback I received on YouTube.

REFERENCES:

Benade, L. (2015). The transformative educative prospects of flexible learning environments. Teachers Work, 12(1), 9–13. doi: 10.24135/teacherswork.v12i1.47

A Constructivist Slant to Reflective Practice

INTRODUCTION

Kinsella (2006) identifies a link between constructivism and Schon's theory of reflective practice. Kinsella suggests that this well known approach to reflection is strongly influenced by philosopher Nelson Goodman and also shaped by the work of Kelly, Piaget and von Glaserfeld. She also recommends that those interested in understanding Schon's work should examine constructivism as it relates to reflective practice. Kinsella also highlights the difficulty in pinning down a specific definition of constructivism and cites Noddings (1990) in laying out three widely accepted characteristics of the constructivist approach to learning.

+ all knowledge is constructed, at least in part, through a process of reflection

+ there exist cognitive structures that are activated in the process of construction and

+ cognitive structures are under continual development

                                                                                                                                             (p.279)

CONNECTIONS TO PRACTICE

 I recently facilitated a professional development workshop targeted at high school science teachers. At the foundation of my presentation was the need to allow students to explore the world around them, make observations, examine data and facts. These experiences would then lead them to ask questions and the answers to these questions should come from a structured process of scientific inquiry. An overview of my workshop is given here: Using Apps to Teach Real Science

I noted a very profound statement made by one of the participants:

'Learning does not happen through experiences but by the reflection which follows'

The statement resonated with me because it immediately connected to the perspective of Kinsella (2006) . While Kinsella examined how reflection is grounded in constructivism I was considering how constructvist approaches to learning would be incomplete without reflection by the learner.

I constructed this simple example:

A battery operated device is fitted with a new battery and its not working. The teacher has deliberately connected the battery the wrong way and asks students reasons for the problem. One student says that the battery is dead. The teacher then asks the students to remove the battery and test it. Tests reveal that the battery is working at full power. The teacher asks for more suggestions to solve the problem and then another student suggests reversing the connections.

This example fits in well with  Noddings (1990) given above and I propose that when learning occurs in this way it is more deep rooted and it is much better than being told how to install a battery by the teacher.

Kinsella (2006) cites Schon and sums it up succintly:

'constructive activity gives coherence to more or less indeterminate situations....individuals test their frames through a web of moves, consequences and implications'

CONCLUSION

My own reflection leads me to conclude that constructivist approaches to learning come with built in reflection and reflection is inherently connected to the idea of constructing one's own meaning of the world. In this way the disconnect between objectivism which is based on  unwavering facts (Schon cited in Keller 2006) and reflection is very evident.

REFERENCES 

Kinsella, E.A (2006). Constructivist underpinnings in Donald Schon's theory of reflective practice: Echoes of Nelson Goodman. Reflective Practice, 7(3), 277-286.

Some Thoughts on the Strengths and Limitations of Learning Style and Personality Tests

My course coordinator Dr. Marshall-Stuart posed several questions to me about my views on the the VARK and Big 5 mentioned in my last post. Here are her questions and my responses follow:

• What is your learning style?
• What about the test surprised you?
• Did your learning style surprise you?
• Do you find this to be accurate about your approach to learning?
• Explain how closely you think you are to the results that the test gave you. How can knowing this information be helpful to you and others in approaching learning at doctoral level?

Thanks for the questions Dr. DDMS. 

None of the questions you ask are difficult and answering them in the context of this course is fine but I want to engage my colleagues in a discussion about not confusing VARK and a preferred way of learning with learning and the ability to learn in any medium.

I want to share two links here:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4678182/

and

https://researched.org.uk/myth-busting-gardners-multiple-intelligences/

Lets tackle those questions now:

1. According to VARK I am a very visual and kinesthetic learner. I prefer to learn about Shakespeare by watching theatre and not by reading and I like models to explain everything in science. Having said that I learnt so much by listening to cricket commentary on radio as a schoolboy in the 1980's. I mastered time zones and Australian geography. I learnt to tell the difference in all the accents of the West Indian islands and so much more.I love watching live but now that radio commentary is a thing of the past I miss it. So in some ways I am very visual but in some instances I loved listening. In general I hate listening but I realised that if the speaker is capable of creating strong visual images in my mind then a speech can be engaging but VARK says I am very Visual and Kinesthetic. 

Now lets consider R/W. I have written and read my share of papers and did a good job at them so I can learn very well by reading and writing. I propose that successful academics must be strong in the VAR parts of VARK. I don't make a big deal of learning styles because if you want an Ed.D you certainly can't get it by watching videos and doing a dance for each concept. I believe that VARK has its place but we should not go overboard with it.

For question 2- Nothing about the test surprised me. I have taken many like it before.

For question 3- No not surprised by my learning style.

For question 4-As articulated above in question 1-No. VARK does not fit with my approach to learning it merely highlights what I would like learning to be if I could have it all my way. The reality is I simply cannot!

For the final question- I think both the VARK and Big 5 give some true information about how I would like my learning to be and about my personality. I honestly don't see it being very helpful in this Ed.D TLET because we have a set curriculum and we have to read, write papers and work in groups and if we aim to excel then we cannot say that we will wing it or take it easy in any one component. At best we can realize what will be easier and what will require more effort.

REFERENCES

 Bruyckere, P. D. (2020, February 3). Pedro De Bruyckere. Retrieved from https://researched.org.uk/myth-busting-gardners-multiple-intelligences/

 Newton, P. M. (2015). The Learning Styles Myth is Thriving in Higher Education. Frontiers in Psychology, 6. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01908