Discuss the importance of reflection in relation to professional development

[Sophvw]

Hi,
I'm on the last unit for the Level 3 Early Years Educator course and one of the questions asks me to discuss the importance of reflection in relation to professional development. I have shared below my research and wandered what other people's thoughts were on the importance of reflection. Since starting my studies, I am constantly re-evaluating what I do and looking at ways to improve my practice. Which theory can anyone else relate to in particular?

Thanks

There are two main theories that have influenced people’s understanding of the process of reflection, in relation to professional development; Kolb’s learning cycle and Gibbs’ reflective cycle. These are outlined below.
Kolb’s Learning Cycle

Kolb suggested that there was a learning cycle, which could be used to help people reflect on their learning. The cycle includes four processes which Kolb suggested need to take place for effective learning.

There are two main theories that have influenced people’s understanding of the process of reflection, in relation to professional development; Kolb’s learning cycle and Gibbs’ reflective cycle. These are outlined below.

Kolb’s Learning Cycle

Kolb suggested that there was a learning cycle, which could be used to help people reflect on their learning. The cycle includes four processes which Kolb suggested need to take place for effective learning. Concrete experience – This is doing something. In an early years setting, this could be teaching a child how to use some scissors.
Reflective observation – This is reviewing and reflecting on the experience. Which elements of teaching the child were a success and which didn’t work so well?
Abstract conceptualisation – This is about developing new ideas. This might mean thinking of activities involving cutting that link to a child’s interests, cutting out pictures of things that interest them, that will lead to discussion.

Active experimentation – This is putting in to practice the new ideas. Carrying out the activity using the new ideas
The cycle means that once we have carried out our new ideas, we reflect on these once more and so the cycle continues.
In relation to professional development, it is thought that the cycle allows you to reflect on your practice, think of new ideas, put these in to practice and reflect on these; a process of continuous evaluation and reflection leading to improvements in practice.

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle
Gibbs adapted Kolb’s work to develop a more structured approach which could be used to help people reflect on their responses to certain situations, and come to conclusions about what they could do differently next time.

The cycle suggests that following an incident or situation that arises, you think about what happened and how you felt at the time. You then evaluate it, was it good or bad? Why? You then go on to analyse why it happened and what conclusions could be reached. An action plan is then drawn up.
In relation to professional development, Gibbs’ reflective cycle provides a structured approach for practitioners to reflect on how they react or manage a situation or incident. For example, a two year old child who continues to pour water on the floor after being asked to stop is shouted at by a practitioner and then cries. This incident can be reflected on using Gibbs’ reflective cycle. It provides steps to help us understand how this situation could have had a different, more positive outcome. How was the practitioner feeling at the time? Tired? Did this effect his / her response? The evaluation step asks the question if the response was the right one and if not the analysis allows us to understand why this could be and what we could do to improve this. The conclusion brings together the information about the incident in order to form an action plan to prevent this situation happening again. This could be gaining knowledge about the development of a child of this age and ways to manage unwanted behaviour, strategies to diffuse a situation such as this. The practitioner may also have to think about resting more to make sure he / she is not so tired while at work to ensure patience is not affected through tiredness.

[Ruthierhyme]

Hi a very warm welcome to the site. This all reads nicely. Will you have the opportunity to discuss reflective practice with colleagues on your course or in your setting during a staff meeting or on a training day? xx

[Sophvw]

Thank you :) I can discuss with colleagues in my setting but I am studying as distance learning so all my work is done at home. The question specifically asks to discuss on a forum. I have posted in a couple of forums but no replies yet! Not sure how to proceed, maybe my research will be enough. I will find out.

[Monicca35]

Hi, I'm happy I read your forum message. I think we might study in the same online college:) What a great explanation of the reflective cycles.

Both of the cycles are used in setting to evaluate and change the performed activities. I like Kolb's reflective observation where we think about how well activity went, what was a success and what could be changed. It helps to plan the future activities better. Sometimes it is enough to change the resources. Sometimes we might think of changing our own approach. It also can lead us to a conclusion that we might need a further professional development in some areas.

The Gibbs reflective cycle reminds me more ABC forms. His theory concentrates more on the reasons for the children's behaviour. The teachers have an opportunity to reflect how they handled the situation.

[sj010269]

Hi, I"m on the same question now and totally out of my comfort zone with going on an online forum to discuss. I agree since starting in education full stop I am constantly reflecting on my practice and what went wrong and why and what could I do next time. I actually think it's quite a natural process and not something you need to learn to do so I'm finding this question really hard to discuss in detail. I have also found Kolbs learning cycle and Gibbs reflective cycle. Does anybody else have any further to add or suggest. Sophvw you seemed to have written a very comprehensive answer......

[hayleyb82]

I am currently doing the same question for my Early Years Course. I would like to share my research.

Sometimes things don’t go as we planned them especially in child care, we cannot predict how children will react to activities we have planned or an environment we have spent along time setting up. How we reflect to these experiences can shape how we work with children going forward. Reflection is a great thing, reflecting on what happened- good and bad can help us to progress both professionally and personally. If we don’t look back and learn from what we have done, we cannot see our strengths and weakness , this allow use to implement any change to improve how we work with children.
As an early years practitioner I am constantly reflecting on my work with the children in my care. Each day working with children brings many challenges because you never know how children are going to react to an activity or an environment you have spent a lot of time planning and setting up. I leave my setting and I find myself reflecting on what I have done that day. I think about the activities that I have carried out and how I can make them better or change them for a different age group or child’s interests or needs. I also ask my colleagues to give me feedback on a regular on my activities, this gives me views from someone else’s perspective. My reflection and feedback from others is helpful for me to make any changes or improvements to my practice to make me a better practitioner which will benefit the children I care for and help support their learning and development.
My setting holds monthly team meeting where myself and my colleagues get an opportunity to share any honest and constructive feedback for each other and any ideas we may have for future activities or events. This have been beneficial to me because I get to learn from the people I work with and gain feedback on how I am doing on a practical level from people who know my role and have plenty of experience. I know that I will need to continue my learning going forward through additional training course and updating my knowledge because the sector of child care and education is continually changing as a result of the creation of new policies, procedures and guidelines through government or legal changes and professional requirements. I welcome new knowledge and experiences both professionally and personally as they will help me take care of the children at my setting and support their development.

When researching reflective practices I found some theoretical perspectives on the matter which help you go through the reflective process and improve you practice which ban benefit both you and the children in your care. Kolb proposed a learning cycle which can be used to help individuals to reflect on their learning and understand where they can make improvements. The cycle is make up of 4 processes:
Concrete experience- Doing something so in an early year setting this would be teaching children a game. Reflective observation- this is about the process of reflecting on the experience- teaching, so thinking about what worked well and what didn’t work so well. Abstract conceptualisation- the process of developing new ideas, ways to change the game to make it interesting to the children and meet the children’s needs. Active experimentation-the process of putting new ideas in to practice. All 4 processes need to be completed in order for effective learning to take place. So, individuals use the learning cycle to think about areas of their practice that need developing in order to implement changes and then review them again to make sure they are working.
Gibbs’ reflective cycle , this is an adaptation of Kolb’s learning cycle.
Description- What happened, Feelings- What the person what thinking and feeling when it happened, Evaluation- What was good and bad about the experience, Analysis- What sense can they make of the experience. Conclusion- What conclusions can be made, Action Plan- Putting new ideas in to practice.
He made a much more structured approach which individuals can use to after a situation has occurred to help them reflect on their actions and responses. It will help them to come to some conclusions about what they can do differently in the future to make it better.

[AgaTurko]

Hi, I too am on the same course and would like to share my findings with you.

I find that in and Early Years setting it is very important to participate in reflective practice and there are always ways in which we can improve especially when there are constantly changes in legislation and in the ways we should be working. Reflecting is an important part of our day to day working life because we can assess what has gone good and what can be improved.

I think that Kolb’s learning cycle is a very simple and easy cycle which is easy to follow and allows us to reflect on our work in a simple way. As there are only four sections of this cycle it is not too long. The first one being concrete experience. This means that we have to currently be experiencing something or in the past have had relevant experience. In the scenario of an early years setting this could be carrying out and activity with the children. The second stop is reflective observation, this is where we review or reflect on the experience. This is seeing which parts of the activities went well and worked out well and which could be improved on. The next step is abstract conceptualisation. This is where we conclude the observation and also think about what the experience has taught us. The final step is active experimentation where we plan and experiment with what we have learnt. This step could be carrying out the same activity again however doing it slightly different to see if the activity went better than before. This is then an ongoing cycle which then leads to concrete experience and so on and so forth.

I think this cycle is good as it allows us to think about the main points in a situations and allows us to think about ways in which we could improve. I find that this cycle is also good because once we try out our new ideas we can then evaluate and reflect on them to see if there is further improving which can be done in our work.

The other theoretical perspective on reflection in relation to professional development is Gibbs' reflective cycle. He adapted Kolb's cycle to produce a more structured approach which could be used after situations have arisen to help adults reflect on their responses. After a situation, which can either be positive or negative the adult is able to think about what happened and how they felt in this situation and evaluates it. They also analyse why the situation happened and what conclusions can be met from this situation. The final step of this process is an action plan being created.

The first steps of the cycle is the description of what happened. The next stage are the feelings that were involved and what was being thought at that given moment. The next stage is the evaluation - what was good or bad about the experience. Next is the analysis - what sense can you make of what happened. After that, is the conclusion - what can we conclude from this? The final step is the action plan - what are you going to do to change the way you work.

I think this cycle is a bit more details and allows us to reflect deeper about the situation and what can be improved. This cycle also allows to focus on ourselves as it encourages us to think about our own feelings and emotions that we felt at the given moment. This makes us more centred in the situation. Overall I prefer Kolb’s perspective because its more simple and easier to follow.

[evape01]

Hi,
Your research seems the same as mine in identifying two dominant theorists in terms of professional development, Kolb and Gibbs.

Kolb
Kolb’s Learning Styles Model, published in 1984, was used to develop his Experiential Learning Cycle. Kolb’s theory has a four-stage cycle of learning, and four separate learning styles. Much of this theory is focused on the learner’s internal cognitive processes.

Experiential Learning Cycle

1. Concrete Experience - This is where a new experience or situation is met, or an existing experience is reinterpreted.

2. Reflective Observation of the new experience- Any inconsistencies between experience and understanding are of particular importance when reflecting on the new experience.

3. Abstract Conceptualisation – The reflection in the previous stage produces a new idea, or a modifies an existing concept in a new direction.

4. Active Experimentation – This is where the learner applies the new or modified idea to the world around them to see what happens.

These four stages are cycled through in order, whereby a the person (1) has a concrete experience then (2) observes and reflects on the experience which leads to (3) the formation of a new concept which leads to conclusions that are then (4) tested out in future situations.

Kolb’s four learning styles outline the different ways in which a person learns. Knowing your own learning style allows you to focus your learning on that method. Everyone responds to each learning style to some extent, though one style is likely to be favoured over the others. These learning styles are often seen as a two-by-tow matrix whereby each learning style is a combination of two preferred styles, as follows:

Diverging (feeling and watching)
These people are able to look at things from different perspectives. They are sensitive. They prefer to watch rather than do, tending to gather information and use imagination to solve problems. They are best at viewing concrete situations from several different viewpoints. They are interested in people, tend to be imaginative and emotional, and tend to be strong in the arts. People with the diverging style prefer to work in groups, to listen with an open mind and to receive personal feedback.

Assimilating (watching and thinking)
The Assimilating learning preference involves a concise, logical approach. Ideas and concepts are more important than people. These people require good clear explanation rather than a practical opportunity. They excel at understanding wide-ranging information and organizing it in a clear, logical format. People with an assimilating learning style are less focused on people and more interested in ideas and abstract concepts. People with this style are more attracted to logically sound theories than approaches based on practical value. This learning style is important for effectiveness in information and science careers. In formal learning situations, people with this style prefer readings, lectures, exploring analytical models, and having time to think things through.

Converging (doing and thinking)
People with a converging learning style can solve problems and will use their learning to find solutions to practical issues. They prefer technical tasks and are less concerned with people and interpersonal aspects. They are best at finding practical uses for ideas and theories. They can solve problems and make decisions by finding solutions to questions and problems. People with a converging learning style are more attracted to technical tasks and problems than social or interpersonal issues. A converging learning style enables specialist and technology abilities. People with a converging style like to experiment with new ideas, to simulate, and to work with practical applications.

Accommodating (doing and feeling)
The Accommodating learning style is 'hands-on,' and relies on intuition rather than logic. These people use other people's analysis, and prefer to take a practical, experiential approach. They are attracted to new challenges and experiences, and to carrying out plans. They usually act on 'gut' instinct rather than logical analysis. People with an accommodating learning style will tend to rely on others for information than carry out their own analysis. This learning style is prevalent within the general population.


Gibbs
Many people find that they learn best from experience and Gibbs' Reflective Cycle supports this. However, without reflection on experiences, and without considering how they could do better next time, it is difficult to learn anything from the experience. This is where Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is useful. It can be used to help make sense of situations at work, to better understand what went well and what could be done better in the future.

Professor Graham Gibbs published his Reflective Cycle in his 1988 book "Learning by Doing." In this book he took Kolb’s work and developed a more structured approach to help a person reflect on their experiences. The cycle has 6 stages: Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan.

Description
In this stage you define the experience, using specific, relevant and concise language.

Feelings
In this stage you consider questions relating to how you felt before, during and after the experience. This stage is not analytical, it is descriptive based on personal feelings and thoughts.

Evaluation
In this stage you consider what went well during the experience, what did not go so well and how the experience ended, and was it completed. This stage is not analytical, it makes positive or negative judgements based on the delivery of the activity.

Analysis
During this stage the analysis occurs. As well as considering what went well or badly, you should consider why they went well or badly, and what could have been done to avoid any negative consequences or to improve any positive outcomes. In this stage you should also consider your contribution to the experience and assess how useful it was and why.

Conclusion
In this stage you should consider what could have been done differently, what may have got in the way of doing this differently, what was learned from the experience, about oneself and about one’s current level of knowledge.

Action Plan
In this stage you consider what areas can be improved, what preparation needs to be done in the future before delivering the experience, and what specific steps need to be taken to achieve any identified improvements.

[evape01]

I must say, having researched these, it wasn't exactly what I imagined professional development to be. I assumed this was the development that occurs from attending courses, from following a mentor at work, and from closely working with colleagues and external professionals. These theories model the practices I was asked to follow when delivering activities as part of my course and then reviewing how those activities went. I hadn't considered that I would need to continue to do this in the future with quite so much detail, but having researched these theories I now see it is not something limited to the coursework for my course, but something of value to continue doing as part of my continued work with the children.

[MESuddaby]

Hello,
I am doing the level 3 Early Years Educator course. I feel that reflection for professional development is an essential tool that needs to be used when working in the Early Years sector, as working with children is constantly changing and evolving. There are new ways of working with children developing, new legislations, new policies and procedures and new theories for the most effective way to support children's learning, development, emotional and physical well-being. Reflective practice allows settings and practitioners to evaluate and improve the quality of the provision for the children and their families, it provides an opportunity to implement new ideas and activities to enhance learning and development, it provides an opportunity to monitor and review practice so that the setting is providing a professional quality service. I would like to discuss and find out other people's views on the importance of reflection in relation to professional development. There are a few theorists that have informed people's understanding of the process of reflection, the most well known being Kolb and Gibbs but while doing research, I discovered another theorists named Phil Race. Race's experiential learning model describes four processes that interlink with one another, rather than going through each individual cycle. The four processes are wanting, doing, digesting and feedback.
Wanting: This is the process of having the desire and motivation to learn, which usually produces more effective learning.
Doing: This is the process of learning by doing. Learning effectively requires the need to actually do something. For example: When doing an activity with children, you will never know if the activity is successful or effective until you actually do the activity.
Digesting: This is the process of having time to reflect and think about the learning. For example: Reflecting on an activity that you have lead, how well did the activity go? Did the activity achieve the aim you set? What didn't go so well? What could you have done better? Was the environment enabling?
Feedback: There are two kinds of feedback, intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic feedback is the feedback that comes from internal reflection. For example: How do I personally feel and think the learning experience went? Extrinsic feedback is the external feedback that you receive from others external reflection such as, feedback from colleagues, parents or managers. For example: A colleague may give you feedback on how well you lead an activity or what could of made the activity more effective, a parent may give you feedback on how they feel you are supporting their child or a manager may give you feedback during a supervision/appraisal meeting to highlight your strengths and advise you on your weaknesses, so that you can begin to implement changes in the future. For effective learning to take place, both intrinsic and extrinsic feedback need to take place.
I can personally relate to Phil Race's experiential learning model of reflection for professional development as I am motivated and have a desire to support and encourage children's learning and development to the best of my ability. I am always researching and talking to more knowledgeable others to find new techniques, methods and activities to enhance children's learning and development in the most effective way (wanting). I will implement ideas and activities to see how effective they are, as you never know how something will go until you actually do it with the children (doing). I reflect upon ideas and practice to assess effectiveness for the children, myself and the setting (digesting). I always ask myself how I could do things better (intrinsic feedback). I always ask for feedback from my colleagues and manager, so that I am able to fully analyse my strengths and weaknesses, make informed decisions and improve my own professional development (extrinsic feedback).
All models of theoretical perspectives on reflection hold the same basic principles of having an experience, reflecting on the experience, analysing the lessons learned and implementing change, which I think shows the importance and the necessity for reflection to learn and develop professionally and personally.
Has anyone else read about Phil Race's experiential learning model and how does his theory relate to your own perspective on reflective practice for professional development?