An individual reflective report reflective report on the group project work (1500 words +/- 10%)
This assignment is intended to support you:
Connect the experience of the group work with your own thoughts about how to work best in a group context
Structure your thinking about experiences in a way that helps you then gain insights about them
Practice writing in a reflective manner
Help you make new choices about how to act in the light of your reflections
Adopt a critical reflection approach to writing that will help you perform well in your degree programme
Develop a habit of reflection that you will be able to adopt in your business and academic practice into the future
Connect academic research with your own experiences in the group project
Enhance your writing skills.
You are asked to write an individual 1500 word (+/- 10%) reflective report based on a specific incident in your group work for Assignment 2. The structure for this report is based on the Gibbs Reflective Cycle (1988). Please note that the word counts given below are indicative. You make the final choice about how many words to allocate to each element.
Section 1 Introduction (around 100 words)
1.1.Description = Describe what actually happened in the incident. ( around 100 words)
1.2.Feelings= What were you thinking and feeling at the time of the incident? (around 100 words)
1.3.Evaluation= What was good and what was difficult about the incident? ( around 100 words)
1.4.Analysis= What sense can you make of the incident (drawing upon your own thoughts but also academic research and literature)? ( around 400 words)
1.5.Conclusion= What else could you have done? (around 200 words)
1.6.Action plan= if a similar situation occurred again what might you do differently? ( around 100 words)
Section 2 Concluding Reflections
2.1 What does the feedback you have received from your peers tell you about how you work and what you need to do to improve your skills? (around 200 words). Please include a summary of Teammates feedback as an Appendix.
2.2What have you learned about the process of reflecting on experience? (around 100 words)
2.3How can you build reflection into your academic practice from now on? (around 100 words)
3Appendices
You must include the two sets of formative peer feedback provided through the TEAMMATES system.
Note: In this report, you are asked to write in the first person (using I) rather than an academic style. Please also ensure you use the section numbers in your report to guide the person marking.
Submission is an anonymised paper via Turnitin only on Friday May 13th at 4pm. Please note that names of other students should not be included (you can use letters for example to replace names e.g. Student A).
Marking Criteria
Demonstrates independent reflective thinking
Writes about experience with accuracy and care
Ability to constructively use feedback from peers
Includes references to course concepts and other literature as appropriate.
Clarity of presentation and referencing
NOTE: Each of these aspects are weighted equally at 20%
Keeping a Learning Log
You are encouraged to develop your skills in reflective thinking and writing by maintaining a learning log which you complete weekly. How you structure your log is up to you but you may wish to use the Gibbs cycle as outlined above to act as a framework for your thinking and writing. Remember the more you practice the more it will become a habitual part of your learning process.
The following YouTube videos will also give you questions and guidance about what to include in your log:



You will note that having a clear structure which includes some description and much reflection is important for it to be of long-term value to you.
Resources to help you develop your skills in refection
Bolton, G. (2010) Reflective practice: Writing and professional development. London: Sage Publications Ltd.
This book is available through the university library. There is a range of good books on this topic
It is also highly recommended that you also study Chapter 12 (Critical Reflection) of the Palgrave Critical Thinking text. This gives another framework to consider in relation to the process of reflection:
Cottrell, S. (2011) Critical Thinking Skills: Developing effective analysis and argument. London: Palgrave Macmillan
Schn, D (1987) Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning By Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Further Education Unit, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford
There are plenty of different examples of reflective writing available as well as hints and tips. The most important thing is of course to make the process your own. Take ideas from others but do not forget to reflect then why you find some examples appealing and others less so!
http://www.psipsychologytutor.org/5267/example-of-critical-reflective-writing-health-management-journaling/
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1829515&show=abstract
http://mlq.sagepub.com/content/38/5/495.short
https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/baerick2/www/13ch-v1/miscinfo/reflect-w-sample.html
http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/medicine/reflective/7.xml