Before this practice and before I did any reading on this, I would have said that I was a good reflective practitioner. I always thought of my teaching and my students learning, both in real time (reflection in action) and after the fact (reflection on action), what went wrong, went right, what alterations were needed and how would I achieve these. From there I was able to make the changes to my plans and my delivery. This was an ongoing cycle as what worked for one child/group wouldn't for the next. Reflection for me was everyday, every lesson, every night.
I read 2 articles on this; Finlay's Reflecting on Reflective Practice and Grushka, Hinde-McLeod and Reynolds' Reflecting upon reflection. They were 2 interesting articles that I took a few things from. Firstly Zeichner and Listons' (Finlay, 2008) 5 levels of reflection made me question or reflect on my own philosophy. I feel I definitely do number 1: Rapid reflection, and 2: Repair. Over my time as a teacher I have done number 3: Review, but only during my registration years with my mentor teacher and for my own practice. This part definitely doesn't come naturally. As for researching (systematic and sustained thinking) and retheorizing and reformulating (critically examining practice and theories), I can honestly say that I do not do this.
Grushka, Hinde-McLeod and Reynolds' (2005) was another interesting read. I really connected with the 3 levels of reflection, Reflection for action, Reflection in action, and Reflection on action. It was more in my talk, simple step by step guide of what each action represented from a technical, practical and critical standpoint. I could look up and down this and tick off most of the technical and practical elements but once again the critical part is lacking.
Where do I go from here?
Personally I would love to be able to put myself out there more. To have more in depth discussion with peers and colleagues, to share my stories (my success and failures), to become better at the critical part and to become a more confident and competent reflective practitioner. For me as a learner it has always been easier for me to see things done right and go from there, to just do me and be in my little bubble. This is my first step in this journey, doing blogs, and having any thoughts or ideas out for anyone to see and critique is not a natural thing. After reading a few blogs here, it is not as daunting as my mind makes it and it is time to take the advice I give my kids everyday. Do not be afraid to make mistakes, do not be afraid to be wrong, always try your hardest, learn from everything that happens and everyone you meet. To be honest, half the time I still do not know if I am doing things right but lets just go from here.
References
Finlay, L. (2009). Reflecting on reflective practice. PBPL. Retrieved from
Grushka, K., Hinde-McLeod, J. and Reynolds, R. (2005) Reflecting upon reflection: theory and practice in one Australian university teacher education program. Reflective Practice
Very cool reflection :-) I also tend to hibernate in my own little bubble and just do what needs to be done. I was also scared to open up and blog about myself with total strangers but have gotten used to it and I am more open now about my flaws in my practice then I was before. Thanks for your honesty about the different levels of reflection and how you feel about blogging. Keep it up!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment. Even now I still second guess myself when writing these Blogs. Always the same questions, what will people think? Will I sound like an idiot? Is it wrong? Do I not know what I am talking about? etc. I realise I have to take the advice I give my kids everyday. Do not be afraid to be wrong, do not be afraid to make mistakes, be willing to try new things and learn from everything that life gives you.
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