|
The importance of reflecting on what you are
doing, as part of the learning process, has
been emphasized by many investigators. Reflective Observation is the second stage (in
the usual representation) of the Lewin/Kolb
learning cycle.
Donald Schon (1983), suggested that the capacity to reflect on action so as to engage in
a process of continuous learning was one of the defining characteristics of professional
practice. He argued that the model of professional
training which he termed "Technical
Rationality"of charging students up with knowledge in
training schools so that they could discharge when
they entered the world of practice, perhaps more
aptly termed a `battery' modelhas never been a particularly good description of how
professionals `think in action', and is quite inappropriate
to practice in a fast-changing world.
The cultivation of the capacity to reflect in action (while doing something) and on action
(after you have done it) has become an important
feature of professional training programs in many
disciplines. Indeed, it can be argued that `real' reflective practice needs another person as
mentor or professional supervisor, who can ask appropriate questions to ensure that the
reflection goes somewhere, and does not get bogged down
in self-justification, self-indulgence or self-pity.
The quality and depth of the reflection, however, is not specified within this
formulation; and it is interesting that two different traditions
of professional development emphasize seemingly contradictory aspects. Reynolds (1965)
and, particularly, Dreyfus (1986), discuss how developing practitioners come gradually to take
for granted aspects of their practice which
initially preoccupied them, and move on to be
concerned about (reflect upon) wider matters. This taking
for granted on the one hand and reflection on the other hand offers a view of how reflection
on action deepens in the course of a career. |
