Do you consider yourself a reflective person?
If you would have asked me that question a few years ago, I would have said, "eh, not really." Perhaps it's the new year, perhaps it's my job, or perhaps I'm just getting more contemplative as I age. But as of lately, I find myself in constant state of reflection. It is an integral part of my life these days. Except for when I'm at the gym... I avoid my reflection at all costs at that place!
When I reflect on an experience, I engage in deep thought about what the experience was, what steps I took to get there, what actually occurred during the experience, what has happened since the experience, and what I gained from it. I often find myself reflecting too intensely to the point that I over-analyze every part of the experience. But over-analysis aside, I think the most important part of reflection is thinking about how that experience has shaped you as a human being, and how will it impact your actions moving forward.
John Dewey said it well when he stated, "We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience." Engaging in an experience itself is still a critical part of learning, but we gain the most when we truly engage in deep thought about said experience.
During a recent workshop I asked participants to engage in reflection multiple times throughout the day. I wanted the teachers to think about how they could use the information and strategies we discussed in their own teaching. After the first reflection break I quickly realized that only about half of the room was actually doing the reflection I had asked of them. At first I was a little upset that they didn't see the value in the process as I had, but after some deeper reflection ;) I began to think about whether or not everyone has been taught to be reflective, and if they have the tools needed to engage in deep reflective thought.
Personal growth occurs when we reflect, and isn't that essentially what we want for our students? I believe we need to be giving students time to reflect on their learning and we need to be explicit in teaching them how to reflect. There many ways to reflect on an experience. One doesn't have to write in a journal to engage in reflective thought. If we want students to truly learn and grow from their experiences, then we need to provide opportunities to engage in the reflective process.
And not only do our students need time to reflect, but so do you. So I urge you to take a little time and reflect on today's experiences and think about how they are shaping you as a person.
~R
