Revisiting On-Line Discussion as Practice for Reflective Thinking in Three Sequential Classes

In a previous study, the authors questioned the potential of an on-line environment for increasing productive reflection in three sequential education classes. Of their findings, the issue of consistency stood out as particularly perplexing, namely, why did students exhibit high level reflections sometimes, but not all the time, in an on-line environment? In this follow-up study, the authors question whether in-class reflections coupled with on-line prompts could yield consistently high level pre-service teacher reflections, as measured by individual and class progress over time. This study also examines perceived relationships between the length of a student\u27s reflection and its productivity, as well as a student\u27s depth of focus and productivity. Using the same scoring approach as our previous study, our discussion of the results examines the usefulness of on-line environments for promoting consistently high level pre-service teacher reflection

Building Resident Power and Capacity for Change

An "on the ground" reflection about what it takes for funders to work effective with low-income communities. This report is a set of reflections that began with conversations among fifty people who gathered in Chicago in September of 2008 for Grassroots Grantmakers first "on the ground" learning gathering, and extended over the following several months.The idea for this report came from an interest in doing more than generating proceedings or a report on a meeting.  Our interest was in promoting and supporting reflection about what it takes to work effective in the grassroots grantmaking domain, and in sharing those reflections as a spark for further conversations

How technology can facilitate students’ reflective practice

Reflective practice, engaging with experience, reflecting-in and reflecting-on action (Schön 1983) develops new understanding and leads to persona-l and professional development (e.g. Moon, 1999). Reflective practitioners are able to self-regulate and monitor their progress. Reflecting on what was learned can help students become more aware of their own thought processes (McCrindle and Christensen 1995), but reflecting on how it was learned, metacognition (Flavell 1978) offers far greater benefits. There exists mounting evidence for the benefits of metacognition in relation to enhanced performance and academic success (e.g. Coutinho 2007; Dunning et al. 2003). However, despite the costly time investment incurred by recording reflections in journals, reflections are more often retrieved from memory than from the written word. Thus the retrieved reflection is subject to the fallibility of human memory (e.g. Baddeley 1999, p.275): distortion, embellishment or forgetting. Furthermore, despite evidence demonstrating that when learners know reflections are to be read, graded or assessed by others, the incentive is to demonstrate knowledge and hide ignorance or doubt (Boud and Walker 1998), students’ reflections in HE are typically assessed. Dewey’s original purpose of reflection was to consider and strive to overcome weaknesses. In fact, Boud (1999) highlights the dichotomies between the nature of reflection and the nature of assessment, and questions the value and integrity of assessing reflective practice at all