The Art of Reflection

Summary

In 'The Art of Reflection' video, Megan Jenkins and Amy discuss the importance of reflection for personal and professional growth. They introduce the Gibbs reflective cycle, a six-stage model that guides individuals to describe experiences, assess feelings, evaluate actions, analyze outcomes, draw conclusions, and plan for future improvements. Amy shares her experience of a presentation mishap, illustrating how reflection can lead to better performance by identifying areas for improvement and planning ahead. The video emphasizes that reflection is a valuable lifelong skill, encouraging students to embrace it for continuous learning.

Takeaways

• 😀 Reflection is a vital skill for personal and professional development that can be applied throughout one's life.
• 🔍 The Oxford English Dictionary defines reflection as a process of serious thought or consideration.
• 🔑 The script introduces reflection in an employability context as looking at actions and considering them seriously to improve future outcomes.
• 🌟 The value of reflection is recognized globally and is integral to career development.
• 📚 Professor Gibbs' reflective cycle is recommended as a model to follow, consisting of six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action planning.
• 🎓 Amy's example illustrates how to apply the reflective cycle to a real-life situation, such as a university presentation.
• 📈 Reflection involves analyzing what went well and what could be improved, leading to concrete action plans for future events.
• 💡 It's essential to look beyond surface-level descriptions and delve into the reasons behind events during reflection.
• 🤔 Reflection can be uncomfortable, but it's a necessary process for learning and growth.
• 💼 The script encourages the use of a reflective template as a tool for ongoing self-improvement throughout one's university and professional career.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the video 'The Art of Reflection'?

The main focus of the video is to teach viewers how to become reflective practitioners, a skill that can be applied throughout their career and personal life.

Who are the speakers in the video?

The speakers are Megan Jenkins, Deputy Head of Careers and Employability, and Amy, a journalism graduate.

What is reflection according to the Oxford English Dictionary?

Reflection is described as a process of serious thought or consideration.

How does the video define reflection in the context of employability?

In the context of employability, reflection is defined as looking at one's actions and seriously considering them, and thinking about how past experiences can be used to improve future outcomes.

What is the recommended model for reflection as mentioned in the video?

The recommended model for reflection is Professor Gibbs' Reflective Cycle.

How many stages are there in Professor Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

There are six stages in Professor Gibbs' Reflective Cycle.

What are the six stages of Professor Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

The six stages are: 1) Description, 2) Feelings, 3) Evaluation, 4) Analysis, 5) Conclusion, and 6) Action Planning.

What was Amy's real-life example about?

Amy's example was about her experience giving a presentation in front of her class and professor, which did not go as planned due to her nervousness.

What went wrong during Amy's presentation?

Amy stumbled over her words, forgot her terminology, and her presentation slides moved too quickly, causing her to panic.

What did Amy conclude from her presentation experience?

Amy concluded that she needed to better manage her nerves and not panic, which would have led to a better performance.

What action plan did Amy decide to implement for future presentations?

Amy decided to practice out loud in front of her housemates and take a presentation skills course to improve her public speaking.

What is the final advice given to viewers about reflection?

The final advice is that reflection is not just description but requires personal account and thinking about what happened and why, and it's a process that shouldn't be avoided as it leads to learning from experience.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 Introduction to Reflective Practice

This paragraph introduces the concept of reflection as a vital skill for personal and professional development throughout one's career. Megan Jenkins and an unnamed journalism graduate emphasize the importance of becoming a reflective practitioner. Reflection is defined as a process of serious thought or consideration about one's actions, which can be enhanced by using Professor Gibbs' reflective cycle. This cycle consists of six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action planning. The paragraph uses a real-life example of a presentation gone wrong to illustrate the application of the reflective cycle, highlighting the need for improvement in managing nerves and the importance of practice.

05:05

📝 Reflective Practice in Action

The second paragraph serves as a conclusion to the video script, summarizing the key points about reflective practice. It encourages the audience to use reflection not just as a descriptive tool but as a means to deeply analyze and understand personal experiences. The paragraph acknowledges that reflection can be uncomfortable but stresses its necessity for learning and growth. It also mentions the availability of a reflective template for download, which can be a valuable resource for students to develop their reflective skills and integrate them into their portfolio for future use.

Keywords

💡Reflection

Reflection, in the context of the video, refers to the process of thoughtfully examining one's actions, experiences, and feelings to gain insights and improve future performance. It is a key skill for personal and professional development. The video emphasizes that reflection is not just looking back on what happened, but also considering how these experiences can be used to enhance future outcomes, as demonstrated by Amy's example of her presentation experience.

💡Reflective Practitioner

A reflective practitioner is an individual who actively engages in the process of reflection to improve their professional practice. The video suggests that becoming a reflective practitioner is a valuable lifelong skill that can be developed through the courses and degree programs. It is someone who uses reflection to learn from experiences and to enhance their performance, as encouraged throughout the video.

💡Employability

Employability in the video script refers to the qualities and skills that make a graduate more likely to secure and be successful in employment. Reflection is highlighted as a crucial employability skill because it enables individuals to learn from their experiences, adapt, and improve, which are all valuable in the professional world.

💡Gibbs Reflective Cycle

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle is a model introduced in the video as a structured way to facilitate reflection. It consists of six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action planning. The cycle is used to guide individuals through a comprehensive reflection process, as illustrated by Amy's narrative of her presentation experience.

💡Description

In the Gibbs Reflective Cycle, 'description' is the first stage where individuals recount what happened during an event or experience. The video script uses Amy's presentation as an example, where she describes the actual events that occurred, such as stumbling over words and forgetting terminology.

💡Evaluation

Evaluation, as part of the Gibbs cycle, involves assessing the quality of an experience, identifying what was good or bad. In the video, Amy evaluates her presentation, acknowledging that while she covered all material, her delivery was not as she had hoped due to her nerves.

💡Analysis

Analysis in the reflective cycle is about making sense of the situation, often by incorporating external ideas or theories. The video implies that during analysis, one should try to understand the reasons behind the events, such as Amy's nervousness affecting her presentation.

💡Action Planning

Action planning is the final stage of the Gibbs cycle, where individuals determine how they will act differently in future similar situations based on their reflections. Amy's plan to practice in front of others and take a presentation skills course exemplifies action planning in the video.

💡Portfolio

A portfolio, as mentioned in the video, is a collection of an individual's work and experiences that demonstrates their skills and achievements. The video suggests that reflection templates can be saved to a portfolio, indicating that reflection is not only a process but also a documented part of one's professional development.

💡Career Journey

The term 'career journey' in the video represents the path an individual takes throughout their professional life, including learning, working, and developing skills. Reflection is presented as a skill that can be developed and used throughout this journey to enhance personal and professional growth.

💡Feedback

Feedback in the video is the response or evaluation given by others, such as a professor, about an individual's performance. Amy's experience with her professor's comments on her presentation serves as an example of how feedback can be a catalyst for reflection and improvement.

Highlights

Introduction to the concept of reflection as a key skill for career development.

Definition of reflection as a process of serious thought or consideration.

The importance of reflection for personal and professional growth.

Gibbs reflective cycle as a recommended model for reflection.

Stage 1 of Gibbs cycle: Description of what happened.

Stage 2 of Gibbs cycle: Exploration of feelings and reactions.

Stage 3 of Gibbs cycle: Evaluation of the experience's positive and negative aspects.

Stage 4 of Gibbs cycle: Analysis of the situation with external ideas.

Stage 5 of Gibbs cycle: Drawing conclusions from the reflection.

Stage 6 of Gibbs cycle: Action planning for future improvement.

Amy's real-life example of a presentation gone wrong and its reflection.

The impact of nerves on Amy's presentation and her awareness of the issue.

Amy's realization that preparation alone is not sufficient for success.

Amy's plan to practice in front of others and take a presentation skills course.

Emphasis on reflection being a personal account of one's learning process.

Reflection as a challenging but necessary process for learning.

Availability of a reflective template for students to download and use.

Encouragement to use reflection throughout university and career journey.

Transcripts

hello and welcome to the art of reflection by Megan Jenkins Deputy Head

of Careers and Employability and Amy journalism graduate. Throughout your

career journey we want you to learn how to become a reflective practitioner and

you will develop this skill a lot as you work through these courses and as you

progress through your degree. Reflection is so important if you crack this now

this is an attribute you can take with you for your whole life both

professionally and personally. This video will show you the fundamentals of how to

develop this graduate attribute. So to begin with what is reflection? Well in

its simplest form it's looking in the mirror and thinking about what you see

but the Oxford English Dictionary describes it as a process of serious

thought or consideration. If you put these two together we have a good

explanation of what reflection means in an employability sense. Looking at your

actions and seriously considering these actions. The final third involves

thinking about how what has happened can be used to improve future outcomes of

events. The value of reflection is recognised worldwide. You'll use it in

some form or another throughout your whole career and as is often the case in

learning there have been several academic models that demonstrate this.

The model we recommend you use is Professor Gibbs reflective cycle. This

cycle has six stages. Stage 1 description what happened.

Stage 2 feelings what were your reactions and feelings. Stage 3

evaluation what was good or bad about the experience. Stage 4 analysis what

sense can you make of the situation and you can bring in ideas from outside the

experience to help you here. Stage 5 conclusion and then stage 6 is

action planning, what are you going to do differently in this type of situation

next time. So let's use Amy's real-life

example here to demonstrate. So for part of my uni course I had to do a 10 minute

presentation about a module we had studied. It was in front of the class and

in front of my professor and it didn't go as planned and I really messed it up.

I stumbled over my words, I forgot my terminology and my

presentation slides moved on too quickly for me to keep up with them. I

was terrified to speak in front of people who went to lectures with me every

day, in front of people who knew me and my professor he was marking the work for

my final grade. Now I knew I was messing up. I started to panic even more. I got

through it but it was a disaster. I'd worked so hard to put this presentation

together but in that 10 minutes it looked like I had made no effort.

I started off well but then I saw a friend of mine in the front row and it

really put me off. Other things that went well is that I had used the full

ten minutes and all the material I had covered was covered by others, so I knew

I was going along the right lines but on the downside the overall delivery wasn't

what I had hoped for, the panic I had felt had made my speech jumbled and my

thought patterns jumbled as well. My professor commented on this afterwards and

what he said wasn't the feedback I hoped I would get. My planning research and

preparation got me through but what had hindered me on their day were my nerves.

My conclusion is that if I had got a handle on my nerves and not panic so

much that I would have done a lot better. Next time I will put in as much effort

into my practice as I did with my planning. I will ask my housemates if I

can practice out loud in front of them so that I can get used to talking in

front of people, also I am going to do a presentation skills course in the SU.

Thanks Amy so that's an example of Gibbs cycle in practice. You should use the

same process to reflect on events as you proceed

through this online platform and throughout your whole university career.

So now it's over to you. Here are some points to remember. Reflection is

not just description you need to get inside the events and think about what

happened and why it happened, it's a personal account it's about you and what

you have learned. Reflection isn't always a comfortable process, in fact reflection

is really easy to avoid but don't avoid it, it's not experience

that makes you learn, it's thinking about the experience. In this module you'll

be able to download a reflective template to help you learn this skill

you can save this to your portfolio and use it throughout your career journey

good luck and happy reflecting