Defining Critical Reflection

1
Defining Critical Reflection

• Reflective learning involves assessment or
  reassessment of assumptions. Reflective learning
  becomes transformative whenever assumptions, or
  premises are found to be distorting, or invalid.
  
• To the extent that adult education strives to
  foster reflective learning, its goal becomes one
  of either confirmation or transformation of ways
  of interpreting experience.
• Mezirow, J. (1998). On critical reflection. Adult
  Education Quarterly, (48)3, 185-197.

How does this excerpt mirror or differ from your
own definition of critical reflection? What
does the critical in critical reflection imply?
What is the value of critical reflection and
encouraging/enhancing our own and students
ability to critically reflect?
2
Designing for Critical Reflection

• Techniques for encouraging critical reflection
  include
• journals, scrapbooks, logs
• portfolios (dossiers, statements of philosophy)
• mentor/peer relationships
• peer/peer relationships
• conferences, seminars, etc.
• group discussions
• meta-learning

What strategies and techniques have you used to
successfully encourage critical reflection in
your course(s)? What obstacles have you
encountered? How have you overcome those
obstacles?
3
Assessing and Providing Feedback

• Scenario
• Two semesters ago, Professor Flow integrated a
  learning journal to help students in her course
  enhance their abilities to critically reflect on
  their learning. It was not a graded activity and
  very few students handed anything in.
• Last semester, she made the journals mandatory
  and assigned it 15 of the course mark. Everyone
  handed it in, but the level of reflection was
  very diverse and she was not sure how to grade
  the assignment. There were several student
  complaints about the grading.

What would you suggest to Professor Flow? What
examples have you seen that might help? How do
you assess student reflection in your course(s)?
4
Four Lenses of Critically Reflective Practice
Our own experiences as teachers and learners
Our students experiences of us as teachers
Theoretical and research literature
Dialogue amongst colleagues
Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a critically
reflective teacher. San Francisco Jossey-Bass.
How do you incorporate these lenses to explore
your own teaching? How might you bring into
focus these or other lenses to help you become
more reflective about your own teaching practice?