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ENHANCING
REFLECTION.
AVOIDING: “I LEARNED A LOT.”
REBECA MASEDA.
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In couples. You have five minutes…

To make a poem with four lines, in which you have to include,
at least, these words:

Brick

Ilusion

Magic

Days
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Peculiar
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Reflect
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A new genre: reflections.

Student reflection is a fundamental part of portfolios.
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It helps students learn about the way they learn; it provides
them with strategies for better learning; it encourages them
to make meaning of the reasons why they learn what they
learn; it makes them participants of their own learning
progress.

It also helps us to understand how our students learn; which
tools/activities we give them that are useful; what does not
work (although we were sure it did work), etc.

Personal example from my class Span 310.
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What is reflection?
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But… how is it done?
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We find it very hard to write “reflection pieces” without any
kind of training or guidance (as we find hard to write poetry,
film critics, etc. if we have never done it).
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From very early we have to make “reflecting” a part of our
students’ habits. We need to help them become familiar with
reflecting on their own learning experiences.

Reflecting on steps.
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They have to reflect the achievement of the class/program
outcomes.
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Warming-up

We can start (1st years) with
simple charts and simple
prompts that stimulate reflection
on learning.

The language used in the
prompts is basic and refers to
concrete learning activities.

Students do not post the charts,
they just use them as a “startingpoint” for their reflections. They
post their reflections in a blog in
blackboard. Students can look at
other students’ interest,
strategies for overcoming
problems, etc.
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Prompts on reasons for
learning, target-setting,
and personal strengths
and weaknesses
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Questions:

First day: Why are you studying
Spanish? What do you expect to
achieve with this class? What do you
think is necessary to succeed in this
class?
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Mid-semester questions: : What is you
favorite part in the class? Why? What
are your strengths? What are your
weaknesses? What does help you
understand the concepts taught:
explanations, solo activities, group
activities, filling the gaps exercises,
sentences construction, questionanswer, role-play/ free conversation,
other.
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Final day: did you achieve…? What
helped you achieve…? What do you
need to review? …
+ Real example of basic reflection (SPAN 101) :
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Why do I study Spanish? Just a little history for everyone, the Philippines, my
homeland, was colonized by the Spaniards for 300 years, back then, only hijos of
privileged families were entitled to study in Spain, although, they were the same
ones that sparked the revolution against the Spaniards. So back then, scholars like
Jose Rizal and Juan Luna (who are some of our national heroes) wrote their novels
and journals in Spanish. Lastly, Don't you guys think that learning other languages
is WAY COOL!!
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With this class I wanted to be able to understand or at least grasp the meaning of
the writings of the scholars 'without translation'. Especially Dr. Rizal's "Mi Ultimo
Adios" that was his farewell letter before he was executed by a firing squad by the
Spanish army. I am still far from there, though.
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I think being able to speak Spanish on a daily basis or have someone to talk to that
can give you feedback on mistakes done would help in learning the language. Of
all the activities we did in class, I liked those that allowed us to practice orally...
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My strength in learning Spanish is just believing in myself (that I can conquer
anything:) I believe I can learn anything and I can be good at it! (Got an A+ in
Japanese 101 even though I have no background at all). But, I also encountered
some problems. I consider the small similarities in vocabulary of Filipino and
Spanish a weakness because it clashes with what I am learning and with what I
know.
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I think the class should be 2 hrs. (go ahead and raise your eyebrows at me... Hehe!
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How should our prompts be?
Mahoney and Schamber offer the following guidelines for developing
prompts that promote critical thinking:
- Prompts should be grounded in a particular learning objective, outcome or
competency.
- Prompts should be worded as open statements or questions requiring
more than a "yes" or "no" response.
- Prompts can be worded to elicit reflection in cognitive, affective, and/or
behavioral terms, depending on the purpose of that reflection.
- Prompts can be used to probe reasons and motivations for actions, to
identify steps or a series of actions involved in a process.
- Prompts can be used to identify and probe strengths and weaknesses,
benefits or drawbacks, etc.
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On reflecting about learning
Students get used to write about:
1)
“My general aims and reflections”: I am learning this
(language) because…. I want to be able to…
2)
Setting goals and thinking about learning: How well did I
achieve…, my next target…
3)
How I solve (communication) problems: Problem:…
Solution:…
4)
Methods I use to learn: What do I do and why it helps me..
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Getting more sophisticated
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As students progress, “guidance
questions” can become less
guided. Note: the questions have to
reflect the achievement of the class
outcomes.
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Students will use detailed
outcomes as guidance for their
reflection. Professors can discuss
with students their reflection
points.
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Am I (outcome points)? How can
your prove it? How hard is it? How
can you help yourself to achieve…?
What strategies have you
developed? …
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For certain questions, students
could have a diary (entries for
every lesson) where they record ….
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Example:
Outcome: Student is able to
satisfy the speaking
requirements of a broad
variety of everyday, school,
and work situations. Can
discuss concrete topics
relating to particular interests
and special fields of
competence. There is
emerging evidence of ability
to support opinions, explain in
detail, and hypothesize.
+ My significant intercultural experiences:
Span 432: Spanish Civilization
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Reflection pieces could:
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About encounters and contacts
with speakers of another
language in everyday situations,
while studying, working, and in
your spare time.
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About films, books and media.
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About the history and intellectual
life of Spanish culture.
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What have you learned about
Spanish culture that has make an
impact on you? How have these
experiences influenced your
attitude toward culture and
language?
1) not be graded but taken into account.
2) be part of class assignments. (for some
rubrics on how to “grade” reflection
pieces, go to the readings for today).
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Example of essay writing: Report on
meetings and experiences with Spanish
culture in your own land or abroad that
have contributed to broadening your
intercultural understanding of Spanish
language. Give a few relevant examples.
Think about: surprises, misunderstandings,
differences, and what was interesting,
difficult, enriching…
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Summary
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Reflection pieces are a
fundamental part of Eportfolios
(Folio thinking).
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They are valuable for students
and faculty (and others).
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We should start progressively
teaching students how to do
(write, video tape…) reflection
pieces by:
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1) providing guidance/prompts
of some short (charts, rubrics,
questions…).
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2) Discussing reflection with
students.
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3) offering the possibility of
peer-viewing, and discussion.
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They are considered part of a
class or portfolio, but they can
also be part of the class
assignments.
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Final reflection: given the
opportunity students, in
general, are more critical with
themselves than you! If you
want them to learn about
learning, do not tell them what
is wrong with the way they
perform. First, let them tell you
what they think is wrong. 90%
of the time, they KNOW.