The Reflective Practitioner

The next Education Development and Discussion Group (EDDG) meetings will be on Tuesday 21st and Thursday 23rd April, at 12.15-1.15 pm in 810 .

The topic is ‘The Reflective Practitioner’. If you have discovered good links or resources on this topic, either send them to me or add them to this blog. I’ve included a summary of Brookfield’s 4 reflective lenses, but you can access a lot more information on Brookfield from the library or internet. I’ve also included a link to Johari’s window , another tool for reflection: http://www.noogenesis.com/game_theory/johari/johari_window.html.

Stephen Brookfield
The 4 Lenses

1. Our Autobiographies as Learners and Teachers
· Learners : reflecting on our experiences – puts us in the role of the ‘other’.
· May be thought of as emotional, subjective, individualistic or merely anecdotal but
· Have a powerful impact on us which others recognise and :
· Patterns and rhythms emerge that can be described as generic
· At times of uncertainty or difficulty we instinctively fall back on memories as learners to guide us.
· Emulate positive experiences, avoid repeating negative ones.

Our Students’ Eyes

· Can be surprising – are students interpreting our actions in the sense we intend? Are they learning what we think we are teaching?
· We can be surprised by the diversity of meanings students read into our words and actions e.g. our creative efforts, our jokes etc.
· Students can be reluctant to be honest – teachers may profess to welcome critical feedback, but actions vary when it is actually expressed.
· It can be risky for students to be openly critical – need to consider power relations.
· Anonymous opinions are generally best
· When you have demonstrated a willingness to respond to criticisms students may engage in a more public debate.
· Essential to see the learning environment from the learner’s perspective.

Our Colleagues’ Experiences

· Colleagues’ experiences provide a rich source for discussion – help make us feel less isolated.
· Provide opportunities to problem solve and
· Create new ways to deal with issues.
· Gaining different perspectives on problems helps increase our chances of finding an interpretation that fits with what is happening in a particular situation
· Observation provides a critical mirror reflecting back images of our actions that may take us by surprise.
· Critical reflection may begin alone, but when it is established with our colleagues , it checks out our assumptions and helps change structures of power.

Theoretical Literature
How does it help?

· Helps ‘name’ our practice by illuminating the general elements of what we think is our individual experience.
· Helps us realise that what we perceived as our personal failings are the inevitable consequence of certain social, economic, political processes.
· Stops us falling victim to the belief that we are responsible to everything that happens in our classrooms.
· Helps us understand students’ hostility – learning can bring about change and students can often be angry about this, rather than being angry at us.
· Can give us ideas of different ways to teach , helping us reflect, for example of our learning and teaching style e.g. Honey and Mumford.