Reflecting on Reflection
Can reflection be taught? What practices further and deepen student reflection? These are the questions that haunt me, and I take them as a personal challenge.
In April 2012 I participated in a Connect to Learning Jam (writing collaborative) during which we explored ideas for strengthening reflection through social pedagogy, using ePortfolios in support of the process. Since I teach fully online, I decided to write about the way that I use the discussions that take place in the course learning management system (Blackboard) in conjunction with ePortfolios. See it at
Zooming in and Out: Reflection as Integrative Social Pedagogy
Connect to Learning provided us with the following resources in preparation for participating in the Jam and documenting our polished practices:
Social Pedagogies White Paper Excerpt
Background to the Social Pedagogy Jam
Reflection Practice Module Template.docx
Interested in learning more about the concept of "social pedagogy"? See a white paper written by Drs. Randy Bass and Heidi Elmendor, entitled "Designing for Difficulty: Social Pedagogies as a Framework for Course Design."
Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rb4motion
Are We Asking the Right Questions?
This recent article in the Boston Globe was about improving students' ability to ask "good" questions. In my discussion prompts I usually ask the learners to connect their ideas with the week's topic, readings, videos, other classmates' posts. I almost never prompt students to pool their questions. Maybe I should do more of this.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2012/05/19/just-ask/k9PATXFdpL6ZmkreSiRYGP/story.html
Are we asking the right questions? (PDF format)
Helping Students Think About Thinking
I recently read this article in Inside Higher Education about a faculty member's experience helping students reflect upon and articulate the capabilities they had gained in their coursework. Casey Wiley decided to work on this after realizing that students did a great job of incorporating their practicum and internship learning experiences into job application cover letters and resumes, but didn't integrate what they had learned in their "academic" courses.
Am I doing this with my students? Would ePortfolios help learners make these connections and see how their course-related growth could be leveraged in professional advancement? How can I be more intentional about this in my teaching?
Helping Students Think About Thinking (PDF format)