Reflection On Learning

Reflection for practice in health care is predetermined skilled activity where individual evaluates and explains own ideas, feelings, behavior and intervention and provides clinical reason of its effectiveness. Reflection is a process of looking at own behavior and changing self rather than expecting others to change. While changing self, values and moral should be considered. However cultural background, workplace culture highly influences the values. For example: medical restrain: Medical restrain is restricting the movement of a patient with slight pain in order to prevent harming themselves and others. At the time when I used to work in an institution I have seen many cases of restrain. I

Reflection on practice has different meanings, in my view it means constructive criticism: being honest with myself, becoming aware of and understanding my own strengths, and being able to review activities and constantly test assumptions related to our work. These have been my approach to critical reflection throughout the year. This is supported by Brookfield, he says that "Critically reflective teaching happens when we identify and scrutinise the assumptions that undergird how we work” (Brookfield, 1995, pg. 11-13). This is further supported by Ghaye, T & Ghaye, k (Ghaye, 1998); he argued that many teachers have benefited from learning through reflection. Their teaching and understanding of what is possible and less possible, impacts of activities on children’s learning and its boundaries have risen as a result of reflection.

Reflection is thought by linking recent experience with early experience to promote more complex and interrelated mental models or patterns. The thinking involves looking for commonalities, differences, and interrelations beyond their superficial elements. The goal is to develop higher order thinking skills.

Critical reflection Planning to ensure students learning experiences are engaging and challenging is a complex and demanding process. Catering for diverse needs and abilities requires careful and detailed planning and I am grateful that I had the opportunity to experience and work in a Year One/Two composite class with a diverse range of learning needs. My placement class consisted of 24 students including two students diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), three students diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and three students for whom English is an additional language or dialect (EAL/D). There were a number of students with anxiety or behavioural issues and other students who needed to be extended into the next stage of learning.

So often in life does time pass by so fast that we forget to slow down and think about everything that we have done. Self-reflection is an essential part of who we are in that it allows us to learn more about ourselves and the experiences we have had in a deep, introspective way. In an academic sense, reflecting on a class or a few assignments grants us the opportunity to examine the impact that a specific thought or approach may have played on us as an individual. Whether it be something the professor may have said or a topic that altered our perspectives, we gain knowledge every time the class meets. Because of the importance of taking time to evaluate progress, I find this assignment to be incredibly helpful – especially since it is assigned near the halfway point of the semester.

According to Jasper (2013) reflective learning is “the process of internally examining and exploring an issue of concern, triggered by an experience, which creates and clarifies meaning in terms of self, and which results in a changed conceptual perspective”. Ibid, summarised reflective practice as having three core components; Things or experiences that happen to the individual; reflective processes that enable the person to learn and grow and action looking at the situation from a new perspective. It is only through self-enquiry, can individual learn to evolve as human beings, and form a homeostasis with their environment and society (Moon, 2006). The application of the reflective process, is more than just a tool or device, is about implementing an ontological approach to self-discovery and change (Rolfe et al. 2011). It occurs through analysis, interpretation and recombination of the information about the experience and actions are taken (Jasper, 2013).

Starting University can be quite the daunting experience. Moving to a new city, or on my part; an entirely different country, meeting new people, and adapting to the student lifestyle, your senses are constantly overloaded. With all these new impressions and responsibilities hanging on your shoulders, it is vital to take a step back once in a while, and reflect over where your life is heading. Doing this can play a key role in making the most out of your years as an undergraduate student. I will therefore with the support of Boud, Keogh and Walker’s (1985), as well as Kolb’s (1984) and Gibbs’ (1988) work on reflection, reflect over my own transition into Higher Education.

Healthcare reform has caused many new changes in how patients are cared for in today’s society. Healthcare is now centered on the patient actively participating in their plan of care. The focus of healthcare is to maintain a safe environment for patients and improve patient outcomes by following evidenced based practice procedures that help guide the nurse in delivering patient centered care.

Over the last couple of weeks, I have noticed a variety of pedagogical decisions my teacher uses. She teaches a lot of her lessons in a whole group setting. Furthermore, within the whole groups settings she teaches a lot of rules and content. For example, the students were reading “The Eye of the Storm”, which is about a storm chaser travelling to Florida to capture and document Hurricane Andrew. She questioned the students about what he does for a living. The students answered a storm chaser; however, the teacher then asked why he would choose a career that is potentially dangerous. One student said, “I think he chose this career because his job could tell us how dangerous the storm is, and he could compare this storm to future storms and

As a teacher, our responsibility is to plan effective lessons for our students to learn from. Although, the hardest part of being a teacher is grasping the student’s motivation to learn. Therefore, the educational philosophers Borich and Wong have different approaches to make us effective teachers motivate our students to learn new and exciting teachings. These different methods may include a wide range of how teachers run their classrooms, or what specific standards are being targeted, and maybe even how effective their planning techniques are. Not to mention, students may also expect positive expectations from the teacher and ways to help them succeed. On the other note, inviting students to learn may be easier than thought, in which may result in positive student behavior. Thus, my opinion of what Borich and Wong have to say about student learning is very beneficial to me so, that one day I may use their techniques in my very own classroom.

When students reflect upon their learning, they engage in a potentially transformative act of responding to, connecting with, and analyzing an experience, event, process, or product. Reflection is thus one way to bridge the separate thought and action: an opportunity for students to describe their internal processes, evaluate their challenges, and recognize their triumphs in ways that would otherwise remain unarticulated (Allan & Driscoll 2014). Being a reflective learner would therefore help me be more proactive in applying my existing knowledge to create new ideas and improve my understanding of course material. Reflective learning would also have a positive impact on my future career since I would be able to develop my learning and thinking abilities by building on the critical evaluation of my past learning experiences and applying them to my work. I believe this would make me self-aware and give me the ability to identify and address my strengths and weaknesses. I therefore agree with the argument by (Moon, 2002) that reflection improves the depth and relevance of individual learning (Moon, 2000 cited by Trehan, 2008). If I had no knowledge of effective learning skills, I would have been stressed out whenever I come across an academic, social or professional challenge which would have had a negative impact on my performance in the long run.

When I reflect on myself in this course I really think about how it opens up one’s mind and inner self. Who would have thought that a course in such a short period of time could make you really think about life and the decisions and choices we make on a daily basis, or the idea of something so simple as why we are the way we are? This course makes you change your perspective on how you view others but especially on how you view yourself. It is almost like an unexpected journey of finding yourself.

As I reflect on both scientifically based research and action research, I am truly amazed at how much I have learned. I knew what research was and how to use it but I didn’t really know how important they are until I took this course. I am the expert when it comes to my students and my classroom, so I need to be very involved in what and how things are taught. In order, to be involved I need to be the one in the for-front of the scientifically based research or action research. What I have learned from this course, to be the most powerful and something that I am going to take with me is “Action research is a professional development strategy that puts the teacher at the center of the professional development process.” (Gould, 2008, p. 5)

When I first walked into the classroom on Monday, October 25th, I was very nervous and anxious of how the MET meeting would occur. I did not know what to expect and what the outcomes would be. It was a very different learning experience than I have experienced before. I am used to learning the material in class and then being tested on that knowledge. However, this project went above and beyond. It made me realize that this is what it will be like next semester and the following semesters when I’m applying the information learned in class to my internships. Thus, made it an eye-opening experience for me.

This reflection reviews my time at Goodstart Early Learning in Kyneton and the four weeks I spent there during my first practicum round. The review will critically reflect my experience from this practicum, using readings and learnings my strengthens and weaknesses will be revealed. Strategies will also be implemented in what areas I need to focus on before my next practicum round.