How About Classroom Reflective Practice?

A couple of years ago I signed up for HALO Psychology newsletter. Recently Dr. Hayley Lewis wrote a piece on the importance of taking time to think and reflect. While focused on adults (leadership) and coaching, all I could think about were educational applications and reminders as I read Why Leaders Should Engage In Reflective Practice.

One reminder was how effective (and appreciated) reflective time for educators was during professional learning opportunities, professional learning communities and even staff meetings. It is always amazing what a difference even five minutes can make for when time is dedicated to thinking and reflecting. I am also pleasantly surprised that guidance given for the thinking and reflecting part, even a simple question (or 2), reaps benefits when people share.

While some people dedicate personal time to reflect on a regular, even daily, basis, there are those of us who do not. And as educators, when do we allow (plan) for learners to have that time to think and reflect on a regular basis? Dr. Lewis defines reflective practice as “intentionally and regularly taking the time to think about you – your feelings, emotions, thoughts; the decisions you make, how you behave, your relationships and more.” Can you imagine what might happen in a classroom if a teacher took/planned/allowed time to teach and let learners engage in practices like this? This reminded me of how often during and after professional learning sessions, educators thanked us for time to think, reflect and process what they were hearing, doing or being reminded of.

Some educators have worked to incorporate this “think about you” time into the daily or weekly activities. I have often told educators that the seamless incorporation of formative strategies, when assessment blurs with instruction, changes one’s way of being in the classroom. It relates to Lewis’ ideas because much of what happens in a classroom is about humans “being” rather than (or in addition to) humans “doing.” This practice of regular reflection can help learners in so many ways. If one looks at Dr. Lewis’ definition, identifying and processing emotions can be a skill that is learned and developed. Oh, and some might identify it as an aspect of social emotional learning (SEL). The habit of developing emotional consciousness isn’t a bad thing.

As educators reflecting on a challenge, a success or a decision can be supportive, enlightening and help one change their practice moving forward. It helps change the teacher’s way of being in their class and school. Lewis, known for her sketchnotes, has created one about how self-reflective practices boost resilience. The interesting connection I made to this graphic was that the age of the reflector would not matter in terms of the usefulness of these practices, which include self-awareness, identifying trigger, re-appraising stressor, evaluation, and future focus.

Another connection to learners for me was that time dedicated to reflection provides an opportunity to challenge our perspective or interpretation of the given topic of reflection. Making reflective time the “Think” of the Think-Pair-Share or Think-Square-Share provides both the safety of personal reflection and a sounding board of peers for sharing personal insights. When you implemented these strategies in your class, what process did you ask learners to use for their thinking? Having a guide or direction for thinking is part of learning to reflect.

The simplicity of the Henley8 questions Lewis shares outlines a process educators can easily teach, adapt based on available topic or time and make it part of the class routines. The value of coaching questions, which the Henley8 are, is that they are open ended, flexible and prompt thinking. In addition to teaching and adapting the Henley8, you may want to look at adapting a template Lewis created for use with her leadership clients. I imagine this being a useful Friday reflection and goal setting tool for leaners of every age.

Dr. Lewis provides many other useful tools and ideas in this article. All of them can be adapted to learners of any age. All have the power to change the teacher’s and leaners’ way of being in the classroom. I appreciated the reminder that the quality of what I do depends on the quality of my thinking.

I challenge you to consider:

1) When and where do you allow yourself time for thinking and reflection?

2) When you practice these behaviors, what kind of process do you use?

3) As an educator, when do your learners have time to practice thinking and reflection?

4) What tools have you taught your learners to use when they practice?

5) How effective do you find your reflective practice? How effective is your learners’ practice? How do you know?

6) What is one new or different thing you will do to enhance your reflective practice? Your learners’ reflective practice?

Embrace the possibilities!