Reflective Practice
In this task, I will be looking at the different learning styles. Individuals enter the learning cycle at different stages. We have to first have knowledge of something in order to experience it, but in order to experience it, you have to have noticed it. At what point does an experience start to be something you notice?
After reading through reader 2, I felt really enthusiastic to find out what sort of learner I am. David Kolb developed the idea of a ‘cycle of learning’, in which every individual has their own entry point. By looking in to this cycle, you can then discover your learning style.
Kolb suggests that there are four key parts to the learning experience, which have no beginning or end - a cycle. Each individual will experience each of these steps, but not necessarily in the same order. The steps include :
● Active experimentation
(Planning/ Trying out what you have learnt)
● Concrete experience
(Doing/ Having an experience)
● Reflective observation
(Reviewing/ Reflecting on an experience)
● Abstract concepualisation
(Concluding/ Learning from the experience)
In order to do this, I have tried to think of an experience I can use as an example, and then decide at which point in the cycle, did I actually realise I was learning something. I have decided to use my blogging experience as an example.
Having never created a blog before starting on BAPP, I was slightly apprehensive about being thrown in the deep end and having to just ‘do one’. I did not want to ask for help as I knew I wanted to be able to say I did it all on my own. Information on how to set up our blog was provided for us, so I read the instructions and followed them. At this point in the cycle, I think I had entered at ‘Concrete experience’ as I was trying out what I had learnt from the instructions but I certainly wasn’t aware of the experience I was having at this stage. Only after the blog was set up could I reflect on what I had created (Reflective observation). At this point, I believe I was beginning to realise that I was learning something new and digest what I had just done and how I did it. The next stage of my learning, was to process what I had just done by going over it in my head (Abstract concepualisation). There were lots of new icons to click on, and as someone who was not particularly computer savvy, the only experience I had was what I had just done. So there was nothing else for it, but to dive straight in and give them a go (Active experimentation). I think this is the point in the cycle that I was able to identify I had had an experience.
I feel that this is true of me because although I like to plan, I usually only start understanding what I am doing, as I am doing it. So, it seems my learning style is ‘Active experimentation’.
I was particularly impressed with the theory of John Dewey. Dewey spoke about ways of learning and how the quality of the education being delivered. He said that for a person to gain a good education, the delivery should be engaging and therefore reflect on the consciousness of the experience. In my professional practice, I see example of Dewey’s theory, daily. If a pupil finds a lesson boring, they do not fully engage and therefore do not learn. Teachers are encouraged to allow pupils to be interactive with both the teacher and fellow pupils. They are encouraged to let the pupils act being molecules in an atom, or draw slices in a cake to resemble fractions or visit a historical battlefield. Dewey said he felt that ‘interaction with the arts led to a unique and valuable experience’, which we can see is evident in my examples of acting (molecules) etc. It is much more likely that a pupil will remember something so visual rather than just being told it.
In my work, we often try to help the pupils understand whether they are visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learners. This philosophy comes from Howard Gardner and again, helps people to find out which style of learning, best suits them. This is a somewhat new way of teaching, as many (outdated) teachers would not tolerate that pupils have different learning styles.Personally, I am a visual learner. I know this because I retain information by writing it down, drawing pictures or watching someone else do it. Knowing Garnder’s theory of different learning styles, helps me in my professional practice. I carry around visual ,lamenated words such as ‘what’, ‘where’ and ‘why’ to place in front of pupils who are visual learners rather than repeatedly asking them questions which isn’t necessarily stimulating their brains as the visual words do. We use pebbles, magnets and string for kinaesthetic pupils to learn how to spell difficult words as the ‘hands on’ approach best suits them.
I am interested in the work of Donald Schon, who invented the theory of ‘Reflection in action’ and ‘Reflection on action’. Schon suggests that to reflect on something you are doing ‘in’ action, requests a person to respond to what is happening, as it happens. On first reading this, I thought it sounded rather difficult, as I am sure that the majority of people reflect ‘on’ action, after the fact. To be able to reflect -in -action, would surely cause a dancer to stop dancing, or a teacher to have to stop teaching, mid flow? Looking a little deeper though, I realise that I do reflect - in -action every day. Emotions can sometimes run high within my professional practice and if I were not to reflect at that very moment, I could quite possibly make an unwise move. My natural reaction may be to say or do something that is not appropriate in a professional environment and by reflecting -in-action, I chose another means. In a situation like this, if I were only ever to reflect-on-action, it may well be too late. When I was acting and dancing, this was a particularly useful skill, which could often cover up mistakes such as missed steps or muddled lines!
Since starting Task 2, I have been experimenting with Schon’s ‘reflection on action’. Previously, I feel that I discouraged myself from reflecting after a day at work, thinking that there was no point on dwelling over what has already happened, be it good or bad. I think my problem was that I didn’t have the correct tools to help me reflect. As an emotional person, I can quickly become overwhelmed and stressed. Since writing in my journal, I am taking the time to reflect on the day and learn from it. I feel more aware of certain situations I get myself in and now have the knowledge to be able to avoid or encourage them. I will continue to use my journal to access further knowledge about myself and how I can better myself both personally and professionally.
VAK questionnaire Discover which learning style best suits you
If you are not sure of your VAK (Gardner) learning style, try out the questionnaire, above. It's the one we use in my school.
