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A LEARNING LOG – HOW TO WRITE A GOOD ONE?
by Dr H Clarkeburn
A good learning log entry is one which incorporates the following aspects of reflective practice:
• Observing the operations of one's own mind with a view to discovering deeper truths
about oneself.
• Characterised by careful reasoned thinking – referencing personal experiences on
theories and a more generic experiences of others.
• Adopts a critical stance – it is not giving back just what is, but what might be – an
improvement on the original.
• Analyses or evaluates one or more personal experience(s), and attempts to generalise
from that thinking and turn those experiences to tentative theories and understanding of the
world.
As a guide to writing your exam question, learning entries of the following kind are likely to link
with a similar exam question mark. Note, it will be impossible to write a good exam answer from
poor learning log entries:
High Distinction (HD)
A highly introspective piece of reflective writing which does not only understand personal stance
in a wider context, but successfully draws from the personal to critical theoretical views and
analysis.
Distinction (D)
Reflective writing which explores personal stance with a critical focus and makes genuine efforts
to generalise from personal to a wider world view or to improve the current state of affairs.
Credit (C)
Using one of the reflective writing elements by exploring personal feelings without any attempt of
criticism or generalisation.
Pass (P)
The entry uses none of the reflective practice criteria, but rather provides a summary of the
reading or talks about the issue in a purely factual sense.
Fail (F)
Not completing the log, writing about things that are not part of the course, using the log as a
place to air discriminatory, slandering or extreme views.
How to write good learning log entries
Dr H Clarkeburn, March 2005
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SAMPLE ENTRIES
PASS – LEVEL
10.3.2005
What was the learning event
Reading “Good Decisions” (Clarkeburn, 2003), in the reader
What did you learn
That there are different ways to approach ethical problems and it is not all about right and wrong
What does this learning mean to you?
There are three different methods and they are all different. One measures goodness by results,
that is called consequentalism and some measure goodness of decisions by the way they are
done, like Rule ethics. All the different methods are called consequentalism, rule ethics, and
virtue ethics. They all represent different ethical theories and the text provides certain steps if you
want to make decisions using that particular method. Some of the methods are very laborious to
use and some are easy. In the consequentalist approaches for example, you draw a decisionmaking grid and try to balance good and bad of all those involved, which could be a lot of people,
and you try to find out which option you have is the best one to choose from. Your grid could get
really big, which would mean a lot of work and not a lot of fun.
What will you do next?
I will go to the lecture to find out if I understood the theories correctly and to the tutorial to get
some practice.
CREDIT -LEVEL
10.3.2005
What was the learning event
Reading “Good Decisions” (Clarkeburn, 2003), in the reader
What did you learn
That there are different ways to approach ethical problems and they are based on very different
values.
What does this learning mean to you?
It felt really weird reading the paper, as I had always thought of ethics as a set of values rather
than methods of approaching decisions. At first I felt really frustrated as the text was not what I
had expected, but I did get into it and I found myself really enjoying it in the end. I tried to think of
what methods I use and came to the conclusion that I strongly emphasise relationships in my
consequentalist decision-making. I really value people and relationships, and I am always trying
make sure everyone is well and feeling good, even if that means sacrificing something for myself.
I have always thought that this meant I was not really principled so it was good to read that my
way of making decisions is acceptable as well. Now I feel a lot more confident in making
decisions the way I do and possibly more able to explain to other why I make the type of
decisions I make.
What will you do next?
I will try to see in the future if this is really the way I make decisions, as it could turn out that it is
just the way I would like to make decisions.
DISTINCTION -LEVEL
10.3.2005
What was the learning event
Reading “Good Decisions” (Clarkeburn, 2003), in the reader
What did you learn?
That there are different ways to approach ethical problems and they are based on very different
How to write good learning log entries
Dr H Clarkeburn, March 2005
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values, which cannot be justified by using these theories.
What does this learning mean to you?
It was fascinating to gain this insight into ethical decision-making. I had not seen it in this light
before and now that I have, I feel I can understand both my own thinking a bit better and maybe
make sense of others as well. I think my own decision-making problems stem from the fact that I
am torn between being a rule ethicist, wanting there to be clear rules and prioritising relationships
in my consequentalist decision-making, i.e. wanting the best for others. When these are in
conflict, I often find myself withdrawing from the decision-making, allowing others to make the
decision for me. Now that I realise where the problem lies, I can try to solve it my putting my need
for clear rules into perspective and allowing myself to care for others rather than seeing that as
being an immoral person who cannot uphold her principles.
What will I do next?
I will make a mental note every time I find myself in a decision-making dilemma and stop and ask
myself if I am just holding onto principles for the sake of them, or because I genuinely believe
they are right.
HIGH DISTINCTION -LEVEL
10.3.2005
What was the learning event
Reading “Good Decisions” (Clarkeburn, 2003), in the reader
What did you learn?
That there are different ways to approach ethical problems and they are based on very different
values, which cannot be justified by using these theories.
What does this learning mean to you?
I have two core values, upholding harmony between people and doing the right thing, and this
makes my decision-making difficult. I think I am not alone though, most people probably have
similar problems and the reason why we cannot agree on some ethical issues is based on the
fact that we approach them from different perspectives, rather than that we disagree on the
fundamental values we have. If we share these values, our decision will depend on how we
define caring for others and what things are the right things in different situations. I would also
assume there might be a gender difference, with women being more likely to prioritise well-being
of others and men finding it more important to uphold the rules. This could explain why it is
sometimes so hard to discuss these questions and armed with this new insight to different
theories I think it could be made easier.
What will I do next?
Next time I face an ethical dilemma with someone, I will try to identify what methods they are
using to make the decision and see if that extra insight would help us solve the problem quicker.
How to write good learning log entries
Dr H Clarkeburn, March 2005