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**Welcome to Strategies for Online Teaching & Learning Wiki!**

 * = Ted Lysiak ||
 * = Ted Lysiak ||

Journaling

 * Each Module will contain a Journal Reflection in the class Wiki.
 * Find the Module to the left and click on the link
 * Click the "Edit" button in the upper right corner of the page to begin putting your entry into the wik

Guidelines for Writing Your Reflections
Dewey's definition of reflection as “the reconstruction or reorganization of experience” requires a bending back of the mind in order to focus on a past experience. It is a form of thorough inquiry that asks questions of the experience in order to better understand it. By examining the past experience in a considered and focused way, one could learn and grow. Reflect about the experience and your experiences as an educator. Research shows keeping reflecting on practice is a valuable aid to professional growth. There is power in the process of PERSONALIZED REFLECTION. These reflections should also be the format for your reflecting in your Field Experience, so this is good practice for that! When you are reflecting consider these questions: (a) What happened in your classes, job, or school? What did you learn through reading the assigned reading? (b) What do you now know or what can you now do that you didn't know or were not yet able to do before? What did you know or what could you do before that was confirmed? How does this make you feel? Are you concerned about any of the things you observed or experienced? (c) Based on your experiences, what will you do in the future to make use of your learnings. For example, will you, in some way, behave differently? Will you do further readings? Are there things you will observe more closely or in a different way? You will use a three‐part format: 1. Description. Briefly describe your experiences (class activities, reading assignment, your school or job experiences). Do this in a descriptive rather than a judgmental way (merely record events without editorializing or agreeing or disagreeing). 2. Impact. Tell what you have learned (or confirm what you had already believed, or how what you have learned differs from what you believed). How do you feel about what you learned? 3. Intent. Make a statement about what you intend to do as a result of your learnings and feelings. BE SPECIFIC! Phrase this in a personal and positive way ("what I will do is . . ." rather than "what I won't do is . . ."). Good reflection has three elements: recollection, analysis and interpretation, and proposed action. Put another way, reflection involves description, impact, and intent. Description simply involves recalling your experiences such as class activities, textbook readings, and school involvement. These experiences provide the basis for the impact and intent sections. You can write the description in paragraph form or simply list all the experiences related to the topic under consideration. The experiences named in the description are considered and analyzed in the impact portion of your response. You comment on what you learned from each experience (or combination of experiences), what was confirmed or disproved, and how you feel about what you have learned. A way to examine the impact an event has had on you is proposed by Surbeck et al. (1991). You can respond through reaction, elaboration, and contemplation. When merely reacting, you comment on your feelings (positive or negative) towards a class activity, reading, or school experience. You might, for example, react with a personal concern about an event or with delighted surprise. When elaborating, you compare your reactions with other classes, classrooms, or experiences. You may for instance, refer to a general principle, a theory, or a moral or philosophical position. When contemplating, you can focus on constructive personal insights or on problems or difficulties. You might focus on education and schooling issues, teaching methods, future goals, attitudes or views. Another focus might be on social issues, ethical matters or moral concerns. The most important aspect of your reflection likely is the intent. It involves interpreting the impact and building the bridge to action. Intent involves planning. It is what you intend to do as a result of what you have learned. Your intent should include how and when you will do what you want to do. Without a good intent, description and impact may go nowhere. As you gain more experience with reflecting on teaching, you will develop a framework for judging what should be added to your vision of yourself as a teacher. As you gain experience with reflective writing, the intent will become easier. Note: The process of reflection need not move in a rigid description, impact, and intent sequence. You may begin with any of the three components and even go back and forth from one to the other. In the end, however, all three should be written.

Need Help?

 * My Email : tlysiak@windstream.net
 * Call your instructor (216.534.7413)