Introduction - Reflective writing

My job role

I am a lecturer in the Built and Natural Environment based at the Faculty of Architecture, Computing, and the Environment (FACE), Mount Pleasant Campus, University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD). My role is specifically around teaching in the built environment and the natural environment.

My lecturing style and reflecting writing

Facilitation of reflectivity is vital in education (Pultorak, 1993; Hatton and Smith, 1995). Furthermore, reflective writing is associated with reflective thinking (Kennison and Misselwitz, 2002). In my lectures and tutorials, I specifically focus on the aspect of igniting and reflecting on innovative thinking (and subsequently, writing) of my students. I do this in a number of ways, for instance, during my lectures I would always ask students about their existing views about a concept or topic e.g. what the built environment and the natural environment are. If they are not actively participating or struggling to think and / or express (generally after they have run out of their thoughts and points), I shall put up some exemplary photos e.g. buildings, bridges, rivers, woodlands, etc. This will stir up their thinking (even further) and they start to mention more points. I capture students’ points on a white board and / or flipchart and then put the definition up of the built environment and natural environment from my PowerPoint slides. They feel a sense of creativity, gratification, and accomplishment when they learn that they all together almost defined the concept (I am lecturing on) by themselves. This also helps in keeping my lectures more like a workshop style rather than a conventional authoritative one way lecturing. I have learnt from my personal experience that a lecture can become a means of reflective thinking and writing more effectively via interactive style of lecturing.

My coursework design

My more than usual interactive lecturing style, assists my students on meeting one of the most crucial criteria (i.e. reflective writing) in the coursework assignments that I design for them. The reflective writing criterion is generally addressed under the headings analysis, synthesis, conclusions and recommendations in the coursework designed by me (which cover a range of elements listed in bullet points, below). However, the mark weight allocated to this criterion varies across learning levels from the first years (Level 4) through second years (Level 5) and third years (Level 6) to MSc (Level 7). Generally, the allocated mark weight at Level 4 is lowest and highest at Level 7.

Experts of education

In my understanding and belief, without analysis and synthesis be it on an experience, observation or even a case study, learning can not be consolidated, at least not to the point where a learner is able to apply the learnt to real-world situations. Gibbs (1988) nicely sums up the significance of reflective thinking and writing as follows: “It is not sufficient simply to have an experience in order to learn. Without reflecting upon this experience it may quickly be forgotten, or its learning potential lost. It is from the feelings and thoughts emerging from this reflection that generalisations or concepts can be generated. And it is generalisations that allow new situations to be tackled effectively.” Furthermore, Gibbs (1988) outlines the stages for a ‘Structured Debriefing’, which are based on Kolb’s (1984) Experiential Learning Cycle and which encourage deeper reflection and are accommodated varying degrees in the coursework designed by me:

·         Description: What is the stimulant for reflection? (incident, event, theoretical idea) What are you going to reflect on?

·         Feelings: What were your reactions and feelings?

·         Evaluation: What was good and bad about the experience? Make value judgments.

·         Analysis: What sense can you make of the situation? Bring in ideas from outside the experience to help you. What was really going on?

·         Conclusions (general): What can be concluded, in a general sense, from these experiences and the analyses you have undertaken?

·         Conclusions (specific): What can be concluded about your own specific, unique, personal situation or ways of working?

·         Personal Action plans: What are you going to do differently in this type of situation next time? What steps are you going to take on the basis of what you have learnt?

Evidence of my reflective teaching and learning

Last Friday (15 January 2016), I was marking presentations with my colleague for a module (titled, Project Design; Level 6) which is not taught by me but the colleague. It was a pleasure for me to see that the students applied quantitative risk assessment approaches in their presentation (at Level 6) while they were taught these by me at Level 5 in a different module (on Health and Safety). I discussed this aspect with my colleague and we agreed that it was a living and gratifying proof of my teaching, which employed reflective thinking and writing in my lectures and coursework design at Level 5, had effectively worked and demonstrated by students even at Level 6 (one year later in a practical project).

References

Gibbs, G, 1988, Learning by Doing. A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods, FEU.

Hatton, N. and Smith, D. 1995, Reflection in teacher Education, Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol. 11, pp. 33 – 49.

Kennison, Monica M. and Misselwitz, Shirley. 2002, Evaluating Reflective Writing for Appropriateness, Fairness, and Consistency. Nursing Education Perspectives: Vol. 23, No. 5, pp. 238 – 242.

Kolb, D. 1984, Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Prentice Hall, New Jersey, USA.

Pultorak, Edward G. 1993, Facilitating Reflective Thought in Novice Teachers, Journal of Teacher Education, Vol. 44, No. 4, pp. 288 – 295.