“We do not learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience.” – John Dewey (1933)
We come into this world according to one theory without prior experience, according to another with innate inclinations. If we follow the idea of Tabula Rasa, we are blank sheets of paper on which we write and draw our own experiences. But according to the Chinese metaphysics of BaZi, each of us from birth is endowed with special combinations of energies that manifest in us throughout life, and we can follow the endowed talents and correct the shortcomings. So one person can be with the energy of a quiet stream flowing through the fields, and the other a fearless strong metal like a sword. These two energies develop in the child naturally distinguishing them from each other.
Later, the experience that a small child receives makes an indelible impression on him. From happy, loving and educated parents, a child will be different from one who grew up in an orphanage where there was child abuse. If we superimpose this first experience of growing up in a family on our two different energies, then we will get radically different little personalities.
Further, when a teenager enters a certain social environment (environment outside the family), it also fills him with experience and certain patterns of behaviour. These are the foundations that shape us as future receptive and inquisitive beings.
Now comes the question of education. Every developed country has norms and standards of learning. To create a good level of educated society in some countries, it is mandatory to learn sine and cosine, and in some societies being able to read and write is already fine. In addition, the most advanced offer modern developments in the field of education. Where not only the desires and aspirations of the child/teenager are considered, but also the physiological characteristics of perception and cognition. Such an approach in education makes it possible to mitigate the problems that could arise at the previous stages of development and maturation of each individual.
At the same time, it is important to understand that our character (the type of energy inherent in us from birth) and our children's experiences (bad and good) will always remain with us. This is something that is inalienable from our consciousness, but something that can be corrected if one wants and understands how.
Next, when a person consciously and willingly chooses the subject of study, this greatly simplifies the process of cognition. He has an interest which, according to psychological research, is the main of the seven vivid feelings that motivate a person to act and generate active brane behaviour.
In accordance with modern developments of biologists, neurologists, and neurophysiologists, any of our actions are dictated by a combination of the following: our state of hormones, what we ate for breakfast, what culture our ancestors came from, and all that.
Do We Have Free Will? | Robert Sapolsky & Andrew Huberman [online] At https://youtu.be/RI3JCq9-bbM (Accessed 15.08.2023)
Therefore, the examples of reflective cognition practice given below are only part of a large complex system related to how we perceive information, analyse it and apply it. Such practices have something in common, for example, it is always the analysis of experience, asking questions and applying the acquired experience in action.
For example,
John Dewey (1859–1952)
“Dewey suggested that individuals learn and grow as a result of experiences and interactions with the world. … According to Dewey:
· Interactions and communications focused on enhancing and deepening shared meanings increase the potential for learning and development.
· Shared activities are an important context for learning and development. Dewey valued real-life contexts and problems as educative experiences.
· Students learn best when their interests are engaged.
· Learning always begins with a student’s emotional response, which spurs further inquiry. Dewey advocated for what he called ‘aesthetic’ experiences: dramatic, compelling, unifying or transforming experiences in which students feel enlivened and absorbed.
· Students should be engaged in active learning and inquiry. Rather than teach students to accept any seemingly valid explanations, education ought to give students opportunities to discover information and ideas by their effort in a teacher-structured environment, and to put knowledge to functional use by defining and solving problems, and determining the validity and worth of ideas and theories. As noted above, this does not preclude explicit instruction where appropriate.
· Inquiry involves students in reflecting intelligently on their experiences in order to adapt their habits of action. Experience should involve what Dewey called ‘transaction’: an active phase, in which the student does something, as well as a phase of ‘undergoing’, where the student receives or observes the effect that their action has had.
· Education is a key way of developing skills for democratic activity. Dewey was positive about the value of recognising and appreciating differences as a vehicle through which students can expand their experiences, and open up to new ways of thinking rather than closing off to their own beliefs and habits.”
The Education Hub 2021 Dewey’s educational philosophy [online] At https://theeducationhub.org.nz/deweys-educational-philosophy/#:~:text=Dewey's%20theory%20has%20had%20an,ideas%20of%20teaching%20as%20inquiry.(Accessed 15.08.2023)
John Dewey’s Philosophy of Education: Key Concepts [online] At: https://youtu.be/KRgNg--JXog(Accessed 15.08.2023)
Donald Schön (1930-1997)
Open Library DONALD SCHON [online] At: https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/reflectivepracticeinearlyyears/chapter/3-3-donald-schon/ (Accessed 15.08.2023)
Schön “regards reflection as having two aspects: reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action.
Reflection-in-action refers to the quick thinking and reaction that occur as you are doing, for example in the classroom you may be teaching a topic which you can see the pupils are not understanding. Your reflection-in-action allows you to see this, consider why it is happening, and respond by doing it differently. This could involve reframing your explanation or approaching the topic from a different perspective.
Reflection-on-action is what occurs outside the classroom when you consider the situation again. You may think more deeply about why the pupils did not understand, what caused the situation, what options were open to you, why you chose one option and not another. Your responses will depend on your existing level of knowledge and experience, your understanding of theories and your values.”The Open University, Learning to teach: becoming a reflective practitioner 2.1 Defining reflective practice [online] At: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/education-development/learning-teach-becoming-reflective-practitioner/content-section-2.1 (Accessed 15.08.2023)
Graham Gibbs
Four Week MBA, Was ist der Reflexionszyklus von Gibbs? [online] At: https://fourweekmba.com/de/Gibbs-Reflexionszyklus/ (Accessed 15.08.2023)
“Gibb’s cycle (1998) contains six stages:
1. Experience
2. Feelings
3. Evaluation
4. Analysis
5. Conclusion
6. Action plan
As with other models, Gibb’s begins with an outline of the experience being reflected on. It then encourages us to focus on our feelings about the experience, both during it and after. The next step involves evaluating the experience – what was good or bad about it from our point of view? We can then use this evaluation to analyze the situation and try to make sense of it. This analysis will result in a conclusion about what other actions (if any) we could have taken to reach a different outcome. The final stage involves building an action plan of steps which we can take the next time we find ourselves in a similar situation.” Open Library, Gibb’s Reflective Cycle [online] At: https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/reflectivepracticeinearlyyears/chapter/3-5-gibbs-reflective-cycle/ (Accessed 15.08.2023)
David A Kolb (1939)
«Kolb’s model (1984) is based on theories about how people learn, this model centres on the concept of developing understanding through actual experiences and contains four key stages:
1. Concrete experience
2. Reflective observation
3. Abstract conceptualization
4. Active experimentation
The model argues that we start with an experience – either a repeat of something that has happened before or something completely new to us. The next stage involves us reflecting on the experience and noting anything about it which we haven’t come across before. We then start to develop new ideas as a result, for example when something unexpected has happened we try to work out why this might be. The final stage involves us applying our new ideas to different situations. This demonstrates learning as a direct result of our experiences and reflections.» Open Library, Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle [online] At: https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/reflectivepracticeinearlyyears/chapter/3-5-gibbs-reflective-cycle/ (Accessed 15.08.2023)
An important conclusion is that action for the sake of action does not bring development. Umberto Eco even singled out such action as one of the 14 signs of fascism. Therefore, if a person faces a task in development, then a natural process will be a reflection on the past, present, and future events.
Bibliography and references
1. Plymouth, Critical Reflection,Thinking and Writing: Social Work [online] At: https://youtu.be/BLkiXisxAyk (Accessed 15.08.2023)
2. A Brief History Of Reflective Practice [online] At: https://youtu.be/W_r1EVzecNI (Accessed 15.08.2023)
3. Understanding Reflective Practice [online] At: https://youtu.be/iBmtH0Qx0YU (Accessed 15.08.2023)
4. Wikipedia Reflective practice [online] At: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reflective_practice (Accessed 15.08.2023)
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