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Improving Your Teaching Practice Through Systematic Reflection

Find time to reflect on your teaching practice year-round with these quick but powerful strategies, designed to drive improvement.

The teaching profession is unique in that every school year provides a clean slate—a fresh opportunity for students and teachers alike. But once it gets rolling, the full-steam-ahead nature of the school year doesn’t allow much time for teachers to pause, reflect, and collect new ideas. 

It seems that some of the best and most important teaching work actually occurs when we are not teaching, but instead reflecting on learning. Taking a systematic approach to reflection throughout the school year, and using tools to capture those reflections, can help us increase our capacity and accelerate our professional growth. 

Here are some effective ways to optimize your next school year by collecting, reflecting on, and organizing ideas throughout this school year. Your future self will thank you. 

A tool for reflection

I like to use a strategy called “Stop-Start-Continue” to guide my reflection on a unit, semester, or year. Credited to psychology professor Phil Daniels and adapted for various classroom uses by Jennifer Manly , it’s a reflection and feedback process consisting of three simple questions: What do I want to stop doing? What could I start doing? What should I continue doing or building on? 

Taking the time to identify things that went well, in addition to ineffective or unproductive approaches, creates space to better consider new ideas. Of course, there are many things teachers don’t get to make decisions about, but I’ve found that this strategy helps me see past those things to focus on all that I can do and change in my classroom. 

There’s no need to wait until the middle or end of the year to use this tool. In fact, it’s handy to use with students throughout the school year to take stock, make changes, and set goals. I pose these questions to my students and consider their responses alongside my own (What actions or activities should our class stop doing because they’re not having the intended outcome or are creating confusion or distraction? What could our class start doing to move closer to our goals? What effective activities or approaches should we continue?). 

Prioritize Documentation

As any veteran teacher or parent will tell you, you don’t remember half of what you think you will. It’s typically too much to try to hold all of these reflections in your mind, so record them somewhere. The place and format matters far less than the act of simply doing it. I keep a running digital document titled “For Next Year” and pin it to the top of my Drive, and I link slides to that document that show a compilation of students’ input from “Stop-Start-Continue.” 

Some of my colleagues use the comment function in their lesson plans to write notes to their future selves (e.g., “Do this again next year, but make it a gallery walk instead!”). The key is to set aside regular time for recording your reflections in a designated place so that once the new school year begins, you’ve got a strong starting point from which to plan. 

Start from strengths

Teachers are notoriously hard on ourselves. We can typically identify every mistake, missed opportunity, or botched response in every lesson we execute. Even though starting from strengths is often the best way to support growth and momentum, we can struggle to identify the successes in our practice. So this next point is key for effective, reflective practice: Notice when it goes right . 

Don’t reserve all reflective capacity for the days that don’t go as planned. It’s easy to notice errors but more challenging—and more impactful—to reflect on successes. Pause and notice when things go right, and attempt to capture why. Chances are, you set the stage for success through deliberate decisions that resulted in high levels of student learning. Determine what students responded to so positively. Increased physical movement? Expanded student choice? A particularly engaging topic, approach, or activity? 

Reflect beyond curriculum

When reflecting on successful lessons, we can sometimes focus too heavily on the content or curriculum, but we should also reflect on the pedagogical approaches that laid the foundation for a successful lesson to occur. For instance, we know that positive classroom cultures don’t just happen. Rather, it’s a series of intentional teacher moves, some tacit even to us, that create an environment in which students can learn at their highest levels. 

The most challenging task of the reflective practitioner is to make that tacit knowledge explicit. Data show us results and are a good place to start for determining what worked. But we shouldn’t stop there. When we aim to answer the question “What made this work?” or “Why was this effective?” we can identify and replicate successful practices. Simply looking at student achievement data isn’t the same as reflecting on the teaching that resulted in it. 

Collaborate if you can

As with everything in education, it’s better in collaboration. If you have the ability to join reflective forces with colleagues, you will almost certainly have more and better ideas for the next school year—or possibly the next semester or unit. Researchers Richard DuFour and colleagues wrote, “On highly effective collaborative teams, each individual member benefits from the talent and expertise of the other members to the point where the entire team is more effective, more productive, and more impactful than any individual teacher could ever hope to be by themselves” ( Learning by Doing ). Each individual team member benefits from the reflections of other members, increasing the capacity of the whole team. 

Plus, if we build into our collaborative time a systematic approach to reflecting on learning, it’s less likely that we’ll be in the position of building the plane while flying it the next year. Having already determined what works well and weeded out what doesn’t, we’re more free during the school year to adjust and respond to students’ specific needs. 

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Conceptualizing the complexity of reflective practice in education

Misrah mohamed.

1 Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching, University of West London, London, United Kingdom

Radzuwan Ab Rashid

2 Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Terengganu, Malaysia

Marwan Harb Alqaryouti

3 Department of English Language, Literature and Translation, Zarqa University, Zarqa, Jordan

In higher education, reflective practice has become a dynamic, participatory, and cyclical process that contributes to educators’ professional development and personal growth. While it is now a prominent part of educators, many still find it challenging to apply the concept for it carries diverse meaning for different people in different contexts. This article attempts to (re)conceptualize the complexity of reflective practice in an educational context. Scholars in this field have taken different approaches to reflective practice, but all these approaches consist of four main components in common: (i) reflecting; (ii) planning for future action; (iii) acting; and (iv) evaluating the outcomes. We extend the existing literature by proposing a model which integrates these four components with three key aspects of reflection: problem-solving, action orientation, and criticality. The novelty of this model lies within its alignment of the three key aspects with different levels of criticality in a comprehensive framework with detailed descriptors provided. The model and its descriptors are useful in guiding individuals who directly or indirectly involve in critical reflection, especially educators, in appraising their levels of criticality and consequently engage in a meaningful reflection.

Introduction

In the field of education, reflective practice has been recognized as an important aspect in continuing professional development. Through reflective practice, we can identify the factors, the consequences of and the assumptions that underlie our actions. In higher education, reflective practice has become a dynamic, participatory, and cyclical process ( Ai et al., 2017 ) that contributes to educators’ professional development and personal growth ( McAlpine et al., 2004 ; De Geest et al., 2011 ; Davies, 2012 ; Marshall, 2019 ). It enables professional judgment ( Day, 1999 ) and fosters professional competence through planning, implementing and improving performance by rethinking about strengths, weaknesses and specific learning needs ( Huda and Teh, 2018 ; Cirocki and Widodo, 2019 ; Zahid and Khanam, 2019 ; Seyed Abolghasem et al., 2020 ; Huynh, 2022 ). Without routinely engaging in reflective practice, it is unlikely that educators will comprehend the effects of their motivations, expectations and experiences upon their practice ( Lubbe and Botha, 2020 ). Thus, reflective practice becomes an important tool that helps educators to explore and articulate lived experiences, current experience, and newly created knowledge ( Osterman and Kottkamp, 2004 ). Educators are continually recommended to apply reflective practice in getting a better understanding of what they know and do as they develop their knowledge of practice ( Loughran, 2002 ; Lubbe and Botha, 2020 ). In fact, reflective practice is now a prominent part of training for trainee teachers (e.g., Shek et al., 2021 ; Childs and Hillier, 2022 ; Ruffinelli et al., 2022 ) because it can help future teachers review their own practices and develop relevant skills where necessary.

Despite the wide acceptance of the concept of reflective practice, the notion of ‘reflection’ in itself is still broad. Our review of literature reveals that reflection is a term that carries diverse meaning. For some, “it simply means thinking about something” or “just thinking” (e.g., Loughran, 2002 , p. 33), whereas for others, it is a well-defined practice with very specific purpose, meaning and action (e.g., Dewey, 1933 ; Schön, 1983 ; Grimmett and Erickson, 1988 ; Richardson, 1990 ; Loughran, 2002 ; Spalding et al., 2002 ; Paterson and Chapman, 2013 ). We found many interesting interpretations made along this continuum, but we believe the most appealing that rings true for most people is that reflection is useful and informing in the development and understanding of teaching and learning (e.g., Seitova, 2019 ; McGarr, 2021 ; Huynh, 2022 ). This, however, is not enough to signify the characteristics of reflection. Consequently, many teachers find it hard to understand the concept and engage in reflective practice for their professional development ( Bennett-Levy and Lee, 2014 ; Burt and Morgan, 2014 ; Haarhoff et al., 2015 ; Marshall, 2019 ; Huynh, 2022 ; Knassmüller, 2022 ; Kovacs and Corrie, 2022 ). For example, some teachers from higher arts education have considered reflective practice as antithetical to practical learning ( Guillaumier, 2016 ; Georgii-Hemming et al., 2020 ) as they often frame explicit reflection as assessed reflective writing, which is “disconnected from the embodied and non-verbal dimensions of making and reflecting on art” ( Treacy & Gaunt, 2021 , p. 488). The lack of understanding of the concept has created disengagement in reflection and reflective practice ( Aliakbari and Adibpour, 2018 ; Huynh, 2022 ; Knassmüller, 2022 ) which resulted in poor insight and performance in practice ( Davies, 2012 ). To overcome this, educators should foster their understanding of the reflective practice, so they not only can reap its benefits for their own learning, but also facilitate and maximize reflective skills within their students.

In this paper, we aim to provide an overview of the concepts of effective reflective practice and present the value of reflective practice that can help teachers to professionally develop. First, we situate our conceptual understanding of reflective practice by discussing key issues surrounding reflection and reflective practice. Second, we present the key aspects of effective reflective practice. Finally, based on our discussion of key aspects of effective reflective practice, we introduce a revised model of reflective practice that may serve as a guide for educators to professionally develop. Although the model is but one approach, we believe it holds promise for others grappling as we are with efforts to encourage reflective practices among educators who find reflection in and on their practices a complex concept.

Key issues in reflective practice

The concepts of “reflection,” “reflective thought,” and “reflective thinking” have been discussed since 1904, when John Dewey claimed that an individual with good ethical values would treat professional actions as experimental and reflect upon their actions and consequences. Dewey defined reflection as the “active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusions to which it tends” ( Dewey, 1904 , p. 10). His basic notion is that reflection is an active, deliberative cognitive process involving a sequence of interconnected ideas that include the underlying beliefs and knowledge of an individual.

Following Dewey’s original work and its subsequent interpretation, four key thought-provoking issues are worthy of discussion: reflective thinking versus reflective action; time of reflection; reflection and problem solving; and critical reflection. The first concern is whether reflection is a process limited to thinking about action or also bound up in action ( Grant and Zeichner, 1984 ; Noffke and Brennan, 1988 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ). There seems to be broad agreement that reflection is a form of thought process ( Ross, 1989 ; McNamara, 1990 ; Sparks-Langer et al., 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ) even though some do not lead to action. However, Dewey’s first mention of “reflective action” suggests he was concerned with the implementation of solutions after thinking through problems. Therefore, reflective practice, in our view, is bound up with the constant, careful consideration of practice in the light of knowledge and beliefs. The complete cycle of reflection should then lead to clear, modified action and this needs to be distinguished from routine action derived from impulse, tradition, or authority ( Noffke and Brennan, 1988 ; Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ).

The time frames within which reflection takes place, needs to be addressed—relatively immediate and short term, or rather more extended and systematic. Schön (1983) holds that professionals should learn to frame and reframe the problems they often face and after trying out various interpretations, modify their actions as a result. He proposes “reflection-in-action,” which requires conscious thinking and modification, simultaneously reflecting and doing almost immediately. Similar to this concept is “technical reflection,” involving thinking about competencies or skills and their effectiveness and occurs almost immediately after an implementation and can then lead to changes in subsequent action ( Cruickshank, 1985 ; Killen, 1989 ). While the notion of immediacy in reflective practice seems appropriate, some argue that the process should involve conscious detachment from an activity after a distinct period of contemplation ( Boud et al., 1985 ; Buchmann, 1990 ). This is because reflection demands contemplating rational and moral practices in order to make reasoned judgments about better ways to act. Reflective practice often involves looking back at actions from a distance, after they have taken place ( Schön, 1983 ; Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ; Smith and Lovat, 1991 ). While immediate and extended “versions” of reflections are both recognized, we suppose no one is better than another. However, we believe that being able to think consciously about what is happening and respond instantaneously makes for a higher level of reflective competence.

The third issue identified from our literature review is whether reflection by its very nature is problem orientated ( Calderhead, 1989 ; Adler, 1991 ). Reflection is widely agreed to be a thought process concerned with finding solutions to real problems ( Calderhead, 1989 ; Adler, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ; Loughran, 2002 ; Choy and Oo, 2012 ). However, it is unclear whether solving problems is an inherent characteristic of reflection. For example, Schön’s (1983) reflection-in-action involves thought processing simultaneously with a group event taking place, and reflection-on-action refers to a debriefing process after an event. Both aims to develop insights into what took place—the aims, the difficulties during the event or experience and better ways to act. While focusing on reacting to practical events, these practices do not often intend to find solutions to specific practical problems. Instead, reflective practitioners are invited to think about a new set of actions from if not wider, at least different perspectives.

The fourth issue in the literature revolves around “critical reflection.” Very often critical reflection is concerned with how individuals consciously consider their actions from within wider historical, cultural and political beliefs when framing practical problems for which to seek solutions ( Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ; Choy and Oo, 2012 ). It is a measure of a person’s acceptance of a particular ideology, its assumptions and epistemology, when critical reflection is developed within reflective practice ( McNamara, 1990 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ). It implies the individual locates any analysis of personal action within her/his wider socio-historical and political-cultural contexts ( Noffke and Brennan, 1988 ; Smith and Lovat, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ). While this makes sense, critical reflection in the literature appears to loosely refer to an individual’s constructive self-criticism of their actions to improve in future ( Calderhead, 1989 ), not a consideration of personal actions with both moral and ethical criteria ( Senge, 1990 ; Adler, 1991 ; Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ). Thus, we see a need to define critical reflection in line with the key characteristics of reflective practice.

Effective reflective practice

Reflecting on the issues discussed above, we conclude that for reflective practice to be effective, it requires three key aspects: problem-solving, critical reflection and action-orientation. However, these aspects of reflective practice have different levels of complexity and meaning.

Problem-solving

A problem is unlikely to be acted upon if it is not viewed as a problem. Thus, it is crucial to problematize things during reflection, to see concerns that require improvement. This is not a simple process as people’s ability to perceive things as problems is related to their previous experiences. For example, a senior teacher with years of teaching experience and a rapport with the students s/he teaches will be immediately aware of students experiencing difficulties with current teaching strategies. However, a junior teacher whose experience is restricted to a three-month placement and who has met students only a few times will be less aware. The differences in experience also influence the way people interpret problems. For example, the senior teacher may believe his/her teaching strategy is at fault if half the students cannot complete the given tasks. A junior teacher with only 2 weeks teaching experience may deduce that the students were not interested in the topic, and that is why they cannot complete the tasks given. This example illustrates the range of ways a problem can be perceived and the advantages of developing the ability to frame and reframe a problem ( Schön, 1983 ). Problems can also be perceived differently depending on one’s moral and cultural beliefs, and social, ethical and/or political values ( Aliakbari and Adibpour, 2018 ; Karnieli-Miller, 2020 ). This could be extended to other factors such as institutional, educational and political system ( Aliakbari and Adibpour, 2018 ).

Framing and reframing a problem through reflection can influence the practice of subsequent actions ( Loughran, 2002 ; Arms Almengor, 2018 ; Treacy and Gaunt, 2021 ). In the example above, the junior teacher attributes the problem to the students’ attitude, which gives her/him little to no incentive to address the situation. This is an ineffective reflective practice because it has little impact on the problem. Thus, we believe it is crucial for individuals to not only recognize problems but to examine their practices ( Loughran, 2002 ; Arms Almengor, 2018 ; Zahid and Khanam, 2019 ) through a different lens to their existing perspectives so solutions can be developed and acted upon. This requires critical reflection.

Critical reflection

We believe it is the critical aspect of reflection that makes reflective practice effective and more complex, formulated by various scholars as different stages of reflection. Zeichner and Liston (1987) proposed three stages of reflection similar to those described by Van Manen (1977) . They suggested the first stage was “technical reflection” on how far the means to achieve certain end goals were effective, without criticism or modification. In the second stage, “practical reflection,” both the means and the ends are examined, with the assumptions compared to the actual outcomes. This level of reflection recognizes that meanings are embedded in and negotiated through language, hence are not absolute. The final stage, “critical reflection,” combined with the previous two, considers both the moral and ethical criteria of the judgments about professional activity ( Senge, 1990 ; Adler, 1991 ; Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ).

While the three stages above capture the complexity of reflection, individuals will only reach an effective level of reflection when they are able to be self-critical in their judgments and reasoning and can expand their thinking based on new evidence. This aligns with Ross’ (1989) five stages of reflection (see Table 1 ). In her five stages of reflection, individuals do not arrive at the level of critical reflection until they get to stages 4 and 5, which require them to contextualize their knowledge and integrate the new evidence before making any judgments or modification ( Van Gyn, 1996 ).

Five stages of reflections ( Ross, 1989 ).

Action-orientation

We believe it is important that any reflections should be acted upon. Looking at the types and stages of reflection discussed earlier, there is a clear indication that reflective practice is a cyclical process ( Kolb, 1984 ; Richards and Lockhart, 2005 ; Taggart and Wilson, 2005 ; Clarke, 2008 ; Pollard et al., 2014 ; Babaei and Abednia, 2016 ; Ratminingsih et al., 2018 ; Oo and Habók, 2020 ). Richards and Lockhart (2005) suggest this cyclical process comprises planning, acting, observing, and reflecting. This is further developed by Hulsman et al. (2009) who believe that the cyclical process not only involves action and observation, but also analysis, presentation and feedback. In the education field, reflective practice is also considered cyclical ( Clarke, 2008 ; Pollard et al., 2014 ; Kennedy-Clark et al., 2018 ) because educators plan, observe, evaluate, and revise their teaching practice continuously ( Pollard et al., 2014 ). This process can be done through a constant systematic self-evaluation cycle ( Ratminingsih et al., 2018 ) which involves a written analysis or an open discussion with colleagues.

From the descriptions above, it seems that cyclical reflective practice entails identifying a problem, exploring its root cause, modifying action plans based on reasoning and evidence, executing and evaluating the new action and its results. Within this cyclical process, we consider action as a deliberate change is the key to effective reflective practice, especially in the field of education. Reflection that is action-oriented is an ongoing process which refers to how educators prepare and teach and the methods they employ. Educators move from one teaching stage to the next while gaining the knowledge through experience of the importance/relevance of the chosen methods in the classroom situation ( Oo and Habók, 2020 ).

While reflection is an invisible cognitive process, it is not altogether intuitive ( Plessner et al., 2011 ). Individuals, especially those lacking experience, may lack adequate intuition ( Greenhalgh, 2002 ). To achieve a certain level of reflection, they need guidance and this can be done with others either in groups ( Gibbs, 1988 ; Grant et al., 2017 ) or through one-on-one feedback ( Karnieli-Miller, 2020 ). The others, who can be peers or mentors, can help provide different perspectives in exploring alternative interpretations and behaviors. Having said this, reflecting with others may not always feasible as it often requires investment of time and energy from others ( Karnieli-Miller, 2020 ). Therefore, teachers must learn how to scaffold their own underlying values, attitudes, thoughts, and emotions, and critically challenge and evaluate assumptions of everyday practice on their own. With this in mind, we have created a cyclical process of reflective practice which may help in individual reflections. It captures the three key aspects of reflective practice discussed above. This model may help teachers having a range of experience enhance their competence through different focus and levels of reflection (see Figure 1 ).

Cyclical reflective practice model capturing problem-solving, action-oriented critical reflection.

The model illustrates the cyclical process with three stages: reflection, modification and action. At the reflection stage, a problem and the root of the problem is explored so it can be framed as it is/was and then reframed to identify a possible solution. This is followed by a modification for change based on the reasoning and evidence explored during the reflection stage. Finally, the action stage involves executing action (an event), followed by the reflection stage to begin another cycle and continue the process.

As presented earlier, it is crucial for individuals to be able to frame and reframe problems through a different lens to their existing perspectives so solutions can be developed and acted upon. Thus, the model above expands Tsangaridou and O’Sullivan’s (1994) framework by adding together the element of problematizing. The current revised framework highlights the four focuses of reflection; technical addresses the management or procedural aspects of teaching practice; situational addresses the context of teaching; sensitizing involves reflecting upon the social, moral, ethical or political concerns of teaching; and problematizing concerns the framing and reframing of the problem identified within the teaching context. Considering the different levels of critical reflection, we extend the four focuses of reflection to three different levels of critical reflection: descriptive involves reflection of the four focuses without reasoning or criticism; descriptive with rationale involves reflection of the four focuses with reasoning; and descriptive with rationale and evaluation involves reflection of the four focuses with both reasoning and criticism (see Table 2 ). Each of these levels requires different degrees of critical analysis and competence to extract information from actions and experiences. Overall, level three best captures effective critical reflection for each focus.

A framework of reflection.

This revised model that we proposed encompasses different levels of critical reflection and is action-oriented. There is also a clear link to problem-solving which requires framing and reframing problems to accurately identify them, which may influence the value and effectiveness of the actions that follow ( Loughran, 2002 ). Thus, this model may help people, especially those with lack experience to recognize the different aspects of reflection so they can make better assessments of and modifications to their procedures ( Ross, 1989 ; Van Gyn, 1996 ).

The meaning of reflection and reflective practice is not clear cut. However, we believe a reflective educator should cultivate a set of responses to how their teaching operates in practice. As Dewey (1933) suggested, educators must find time to reflect on their activity, knowledge, and experience so that they can develop and more effectively serve their community, nurturing each student’s learning. However, this does not always happen. Some educators do not reflect on their own practice because they find the concept of reflective practice difficult to put into practice for their professional development ( Jay and Johnson, 2002 ; Bennett-Levy and Lee, 2014 ; Burt and Morgan, 2014 ; Haarhoff et al., 2015 ; Marshall, 2019 ; Huynh, 2022 ).

Our review of the literature indicates that reflective practice is a complex process and some scholars argue that it should involve active thinking that is more bound up with action ( Grant and Zeichner, 1984 ; Noffke and Brennan, 1988 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ). Thus, the complete cycle of reflective practice needs to be distinguished from routine action which may stem from impulse, tradition, or authority ( Noffke and Brennan, 1988 ; Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ). In addition, some also argue that reflective practice involves the conscious detachment from an activity followed by deliberation ( Boud et al., 1985 ; Buchmann, 1990 ), and therefore reflective practice should not occur immediately after action. Although this is acceptable, we believe that instant reflection and modification for future action can be a good indicator of an individual’s level of reflective competence.

Reflective practice is an active process that requires individuals to make the tacit explicit. Thus, it is crucial to acknowledge that reflection is, by its very nature, problem-centered ( Calderhead, 1989 ; Adler, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ; Loughran, 2002 ; Choy and Oo, 2012 ). Only with this in mind can individuals frame and reframe their actions or experiences to discover specific solutions. Reflective practice is also complex, requiring critical appraisal and consideration of various aspects of thought processes. Individuals must play close attention to what they do, evaluate what works and what does not work on a personal, practical and professional level ( Gore and Zeichner, 1991 ; Hatton and Smith, 1995 ; Choy and Oo, 2012 ). However, some would consider critical reflection as no more than constructive self-criticism of one’s actions with a view to improve ( Calderhead, 1989 ). Consequently, scholars have taken different approaches to reflective practice in teaching areas that include critical thinking (e.g., Ross, 1989 ; Tsangaridou and O’Sullivan, 1994 ; Loughran, 2002 ). These approaches had four components in common: reflecting (observing actions, reviewing, recollecting), planning for future action (thinking and considering), acting (practice, experience, and learning), and evaluating (interpreting and assessing outcomes). We propose a model that embraces these four sub-areas and three key aspects of reflection: problem-solving, action orientation and critical reflection. We align these key aspects with level of criticality in a framework with detailed descriptors. It is hoped that these elements, combined together, demonstrate the complexities of reflection in a better, clearer way so that those struggling to adopt reflective practice will now be able to do so without much difficulty.

Author contributions

MM contributed to conception and written the first draft of the manuscript. RR contributed in the discussion of the topic. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Research on Teacher Thinking and Different Views of Reflective Practice in Teaching and Teacher Education

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In the last decade, the slogans of ‘reflective teaching’, ‘action research’, ‘researchbased’ and ‘inquiry-oriented’ teacher education have been embraced by both teacher educators and educational researchers throughout the world.1 On the one hand, teacher educators who represent a variety of conceptual and ideological orientations to schooling and teacher education, have, under the umbrella of reflective practice, tried to prepare teachers who are more thoughtful and analytic about their work in some fashion. On the other hand, educational researchers, including researchers identified with the research on teacher-thinking movement, have attempted to document and describe the processes of teacher reflection and associated actions, and the relationship between these processes and teacher development (e.g., La Boskey, 1990; Russell and Munby, 1991). Other researchers have focused on studying the social and individual conditions which influence the reflections of teachers (e.g., Ashcroft and Griffiths, 1989; Erickson and Mackinnon, 1991; Grimmett and Crehan, 1990; Wubbels and Korthagen, 1990; Richert, 1990).

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From Awareness to Action: A Complete Guide to Reflective Practice Cycles for Teachers

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Reflective practice is a process that helps educators explore their decision making and professional experiences. Reflecting on your teaching can give you valuable insight into your strengths and weaknesses.

It also helps you see the effect of different pedagogical approaches on students’ learning, allowing you to choose methods that are most effective for your students.

John Dewey advocated for reflection as a critical element of the learning process.

we do not learn from experience, but from reflecting on experience. Dewey, 1938

Reflective thinking is not a single event to tick off, nor an isolated experience. Reflection is most effective when it is a series of connected phases of thinking. These phases of thinking are often outlined in a cycle as we return to an initial starting point or the habit continues.

Reflective practice is:

learning through and from experience towards gaining new insights of self and practice Finlay, 2008

The cycle of reflection is an integral part of reflective practice, and it’s not always easy to know where to start. That’s why I’ve created a comprehensive guide that will walk you through all the steps involved in a range of reflective practice examples so that you can get started right away.

I have put together this guide to bring together a range of reflection models and approaches. In this guide, we will explore the following reflective thinking cycles and approaches:

• Gibbs Reflective Cycle
• Rolfe et al, Reflective Practice Model
• Four Lenses Approach by Brookfield
• Experiential Learning Reflection by David Kolb
• Retrospective, Introspective, Prospective Thinking
• ‘Reflection-in-action’ and ‘reflection-on-action’ by Schön
• Frequently Asked Questions about Reflective Practice

Summary and Conclusion

Although there are many different approaches and research methods, the fundamental principle of reviewing the teaching and learning experience is to improve the outcomes for the teacher and students.

In the Gibbs reflective practice cycle, there are multiple steps to help structure your reflection. It involves an examination of the facts, emotions and analysis of the details. The process concludes with a review of improvements and setting the next steps.

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle has six different stages:

1 – Description

What happened?

Outline the details of a lesson or event. Record the sequence of events, the context and any relevant information. Stick to the facts and low inference details, so you are not jumping to conclusions or making assumptions.

2 – Feelings

What were you thinking or feeling?

Record your thoughts, feelings and emotions. Reflect on how you felt before the event or lesson took place. How did this help with teaching? How did it affect your students? It is essential to connect with our emotions as they can affect our teaching and learning performance.

3 – Evaluation

What was good and bad about the experience?

Reflect on the positive elements of events, lessons or interactions with students. Try not to focus too much on negative points, as this may make you feel disheartened. If any critical moments during a lesson or event need further exploration, jot them down.

4 – Analysis

What sense can you make of the experience?

What is your interpretation of the episode or lesson? What questions do you have after reflecting on this experience? This step helps educators consider alternative perspectives to look for connections between different parts of their experiences. It also allows them to explore underlying motives that may influence their judgement.

5 – Conclusion

What do you need to improve on?

In this phase of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle, you consider what you have learned from the experience. What insights can be gained? How will this affect your next steps or plans? Review your notes and look for patterns and connections. What areas of your teaching practice require more attention? Which parts need to be improved upon in the future?

6 – Action Plan

How will you improve?

The final reflection in the cycle focuses on your next steps and shifting from thinking to action. Write down a range of small steps you can take to move closer to your goals. You might also record notes on what you need to learn or where further research would be beneficial. Make sure these changes are realistic and achievable in the short term so they don’t overwhelm you.

Benefits of the Gibbs Reflective Practice Cycle

• Individual steps make the process clearer and easier to begin.
• Separate steps allow you to focus on separate types of reflection.
• Splits up description from evaluation, which encourages a deeper reflection.
• Includes the importance for teachers to connect with the emotional experience.

Next up, we explore Rolfe’s reflective thinking model.

What, So What, Now What?

Rolfe et al Reflective Thinking Model

Three simple questions that pack a punch when explored together. Use this method when reflecting on a shared experience.

The precise split between what is observed and why it might be meaningful is powerful. It helps you not get lost in the swamp of interpretation, too soon at least!

The outline of the steps below is from Liberating Structures .

• If needed, describe the sequence of steps and show the Ladder of Inference (see below). If the group is 10–12 people or smaller, conduct the debrief with the whole group. Otherwise, break the group into small groups.
• First stage:  WHAT?  Individuals work 1 min. alone on “What happened? What did you notice, what facts or observations stood out?” then 2–7 min. in small group. 3–8 min. total.
• Salient facts from small groups are shared with the whole group and collected. 2–3 min.
• Second stage:  SO WHAT?  People work 1 min alone on “Why is that important? What patterns or conclusions are emerging? What hypotheses can I/we make?” then 2–7 min. in small group. 3–8 min. total.
• Salient patterns, hypotheses, and conclusions from small groups are shared with the whole group and collected. 2–5 min.
• Third stage:  NOW WHAT?  Participants work 1 min. alone on “Now what? What actions make sense?” then 2–7 min. in small group. 3–8 min. total.
• Actions are shared with the whole group, discussed, and collected. Additional insights are invited. 2–10 min.

Benefits of Rolfe et al’s Reflective Practice Model

• The obvious benefit is how simple this approach is. The three-part reflective practice model is easy to remember and apply.
• The first two questions help to split the low inference and evaluation phases of reflection.
• So What? Is a great short provocation to keep us connected to what is important.

In the next section, we explore the Four Lenses Approach by Brookfield.

The Four Lenses of Critical Reflection by Brookfield

One of my favourite ways to reflect on an experience is to use vantage points to help me get a broad sense of perspective. Stephen Brookfield outlines The Four Lenses of Critical Reflection . These lenses help educators understand the context of an experience.

Self Colleague Student Theory

Autobiographical lens

When we spend time in this perspective, we consider our own experiences. What were the conditions that led to this episode? How did I feel about it at the time, and how do I feel now? Consider your thoughts, feelings and emotions throughout the experience.

Colleague lens

Shift your thinking and perspective to consider the views of those around you. What would a colleague say about this experience? How have they reacted to it, and what lessons can be learnt from their point of view? Try to be as impartial and objective as possible.

Student lens

By considering the viewpoint of your students, you begin to see a whole new dimension. How would they describe this experience? What did they learn from it, and what advice could be given for improvement? This perspective can help educators understand their role in a lesson or event through a different lens.

Theoretical lens

Relate your understanding to the other approaches and lenses. What is the theoretical framework that explains this experience? What theory of learning or teaching can help to provide a relevant explanation? This perspective will draw upon your knowledge and understanding from training.

Each type of lens offers something unique for educators to consider, so try using all four lenses in one cycle of reflection. You might start by writing about an experience using your autobiographical lens, then move to your colleagues’ views. You can follow this with the students’ viewpoint and finish by drawing upon theoretical perspectives.

Benefits of Brookfield’s Four Lenses of Critical Reflection

• Provokes us to consider multiple perspectives.
• Enhances our understanding of the context and circumstances of an event.
• Promotes a sense of fairness when considering different points of view.
• Frames reflection beyond ourselves and our own experiences.
• Allows us to draw upon the knowledge and understanding we already possess.

David Kolb’s model of reflective practice involves four stages: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualisation and active experimentation.

The model is based on Kolb’s Learning Cycle, which suggests that we learn by engaging in an activity or ‘experience’. This experiential learning leads to certain feelings about our subject matter.

By reflecting upon these emotions and the emotions of others involved, educators can strengthen their understanding of the experience.

Concrete Experience

The concrete experience is what you did and felt at the time. What emotions were involved? How did others think about it? Was there conflict or tension in any way? By focusing on your own experiences, educators can use this reflection to explain their actions during an event. Record your observations, feelings and emotions during the time of this experience.

Reflective Observation

Reflective observation allows us to reflect upon our thinking processes during the actual encounter through questioning strategies like: “What was I trying to accomplish?” “How successful was my attempt?” This stage helps us understand how we took action and why we made certain decisions when faced with a challenge or problem. It also encourages critical learning from that particular episode by asking ‘what if?’ questions such as: “If I had known then what I know now..”

Abstract Conceptualisation

Abstract conceptualisation is the third stage of Kolb’s model, and it allows us to analyse our thinking processes. This phase helps you to develop new strategies to deal with similar situations in the future. Some questions that help at this stage are: “What would I do differently, if given the chance?” “How could this experience be improved on next time?”.

Active Experimentation

Active experimentation involves planning an alternative route forward based on what we have learned from past experiences. It provides educators with opportunities for growth by applying new knowledge acquired through the reflective thinking cycle in a real-life scenario. Experimenting with new ideas closes the reflection cycle, as the experiments become concrete experiences that start another process.

All four stages provide valuable professional knowledge of how we learn best which will help you become more confident in your ability as an educator.

Benefits of David Kolb’s model of reflective practice

• Orientated towards taking action and experimenting.
• Helps educators understand their own learning processes.
• Encourages self-reflection and an ability to explain our actions during challenging experiences.
• Challenges us to consider new ideas and alternative ways of thinking.

Retrospective, Introspective and Prospective Thinking

This three-part model of reflective practice is designed to help educators look back on their work. This reflection cycle considers the past, present and future of an educator’s work to shape effective strategies in the future.

It also helps teachers deliberately tune into their inner-self with Introspective thinking to become more self-aware.

Retrospective Thinking

This first stage of the cycle is retrospective thinking when we look back on what happened. What worked? What didn’t? Retrospective thinking focuses on learning from your experiences by looking at how you have done something previously or why a particular solution has been successful in the past.

Educators can use this information when faced with a similar issue in the future as it allows them to predict what is most likely to occur next time they meet that challenge again.

Introspective Thinking

Look Inward

In this second stage, introspective thinking allows us to look inwardly. Educators can use self-observation and reflection to understand their feelings about a particular situation by asking themselves questions such as: “How did I feel during that time?” Introspective questioning encourages educators to consider new ideas from the perspective of their inner-self and own beliefs.

Prospective Thinking

The final stage, prospective thinking is when we consider the future and how our current work impacts that outcome. Educators are encouraged to plan for change by considering different perspectives, which can help shape new learning experiences moving forwards. Proposing alternative strategies and change management through prospective thinking is particularly useful when educators face new challenges.

Benefits of Retrospective, Introspective and Prospective Thinking

• Supports our planning for change.
• Shifts our perspectives along a timeline.
• Look inward for inspiration when presented with a new problem.
• See the bigger picture of teaching practices to shape future strategies and goals.

Grab a month of prompts to kickstart your reflective practice

For more prompts and questions for these three thinking modes, download a copy of my month of reflective practice prompts and explore my Reflection Workbook.

Next up is Donald Schön’s model of reflective practice.

‘Reflection-in-action’ and ‘reflection-on-action’

Donald Schön’s model explores the difference between reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action. You can tell from these two phrases that the difference relates to the time the reflection occurs.

Reflection-in-action

Reflection-in-action is when you reflect during a task to help complete it. For teachers, this might occur during a lesson when you are trying to solve a problem with your students. You reflect-in-action by pausing and reflecting on what is happening, which helps you deal with an issue at hand.

For example, if a colleague asks you for your opinion about something and instead of just answering straight away, you spend some time reflecting on what could be said to give the best possible response.

That would be reflection-in-action because you are thinking carefully so that any action can have its desired effect without causing harm or offence.

Reflection-on-action

In contrast, reflection-on-action occurs after completing a task and helps us understand our actions better by looking at them from different perspectives.

Reflection-on-action occurs when you pause after completing your task or activity to make sense of it all. Educators might use this time after lesson planning, teaching sessions, planning for assessment or preparing resources to think about how they can do better next time.

Reflections that occur post-work help us understand if our actions were successful, why we made particular choices and consider alternative approaches moving forward.

Expanded Version of Schön’s model of reflective practice

My riff on this approach would be to substitute the word ‘action’ for ‘learning’. We are familiar with this model when considering assessment ‘for’, ‘of’ and ‘as’ learning. We might similarly use reflection.

Reflection-of-learning

Reflection-of-learning is when you reflect on your own practice. For example, if you are writing a new lesson plan for the next week of teaching sessions, you might sit down at the end of this session and think about what worked well in terms of structure or content.

Reflection-for-learning

Reflection-for-learning involves reflecting on your work before undertaking it. This often happens for new challenges and may include planning time to gather resources, create assessments or think of ways to implement a change in approach.

Reflection-as-learning

Finally, reflection-as-learning relates to the learning gains and growth from engaging with reflection. This is the process of learning about your learning by looking for patterns in your thoughts and identifying how reflection changes us.

Benefits of Schön’s model of reflective practice

• A simple two-part model that is easy to remember and engage with.
• Allows for more directed reflective practice.
• Encourages educators to reflect on their actions both during and after completing tasks or activities.

FAQ about reflective practice for teachers

Q: What is reflective practice?

A: Reflective practice means reflecting on our work to improve in the future. We take time to think deeply to understand our actions and our own practice behaviours better. It’s a self-reflective process that often takes place after some event or classroom practice decision has been made.

Q: What is reflective thinking?

A: Reflective thinking is an approach where one thinks deeply about past experiences or events to gain insight into what happened so you can make decisions moving forward. It’s based on cycles of thought that help individuals gain new perspectives through introspection and contemplation. This type of deep reflection usually occurs after some experience has occurred, such as attending class, watching a documentary or just having dinner with friends.

Q: Why are reflective thinking and consistent practice important?

A: Reflective practice helps educators grow and learn, which in turn benefits their students. It’s not enough to learn new things, but you need to implement them into your practice if you genuinely want lasting results. This means taking time to reflect on what you’ve learned and then making an effort to apply it.

Q: Who benefits the most from reflective practice?

A: Many groups can benefit from reflective practices because it helps them develop critical thinking skills. For instance, students trying to learn about themselves can use reflective practice when they’re in school. At work, employees often benefit from the process because it helps them see their strengths and weaknesses, making for more success overall.

Q: How can I incorporate reflective thinking into my classroom practices?

A: Reflectives cycles are beneficial when part of continuous learning and professional development. Reflect on something that has happened or plan for something that will happen. You can use these reflective cycles to evaluate your teaching skills and your own teaching methods and then make changes if need be. There are many reflective practices that you can choose from depending on your specific needs.

Q: How do I get started with reflective practice?

A: The first step to reflective practice is to reflect on experiences you’ve had both in and out of the classroom. This helps you gain more insight into who you are as an educator, which means it’s easier to make changes moving forward if necessary. You can also seek assistance from others, including your peers or mentors, so they support your reflection process. Reflecting alone isn’t easy, but it is beneficial for educators to grow their skills even further!

Reflective practice is a process that can be applied to nearly every aspect of your life, from work to school and even social activities. It’s an essential skill for any reflective practitioner and to develop critical thinking.

This article outlines reflective practice cycles in detail with examples of how educators can use each cycle successfully in their classrooms or schools.

• ‘Reflection-in-action’ and ‘reflection-on-action’ by Donald Schön

Reflective practice cycles are valuable because they help us learn, facilitating professional growth and learning gains.

For those who may not be sure where to start this journey toward greater reflection as an educator such as yourself, I have a Reflective Practice Workbook available in the online store .

I hope this article has been a valuable resource for your reflective practice, and I wish you luck on your journey toward greater self-reflection!

What are some ways you have used reflective teaching? Which of these processes do you plan to implement into your classroom practices in the future? Let me know what resonates by commenting below!

The comparative simple analysis of various reflective practices will provide early childhood educators with a series of connected phases of thinking. Intentional reflection will globally improve outcomes! Million thanks!!

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Reframing reflective practices: using dual-process theory and areas of awareness to conceptualize teacher reflection

• Original Paper
• Published: 02 June 2023
• Volume 3 , article number  96 , ( 2023 )

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• Lincoln S. Smith   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4837-9772 1  

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Teacher reflection continues to be ambiguous both conceptually and practically. This has resulted in a wide variety of definitions for what teacher reflection is, as well as an array of different approaches to what it looks like in practice. This paper offers a reframing of reflective practices aimed at addressing these ambiguities. I propose using dual-process theory and “five areas of awareness” of the teaching mind to make sense of the confusion that has confounded theoretical discussions of reflective practice to date. I argue that while different in form and focus, disparate approaches to teacher reflection seem to represent different perspectives on the same cognitive processes and ultimately share complementary, rather than contradictory purposes. First, I explore how dual-process theory can be used to put the different theories in constructive conversation with each other. Then, I use five areas of awareness of the teaching mind to surface what seems to be a shared purpose among these theories. Next, I use this reframing to address current criticisms of teacher reflection. Finally, I illustrate how this reframing can be used to differentiate non-reflective and reflective practices.

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Smith, L.S. Reframing reflective practices: using dual-process theory and areas of awareness to conceptualize teacher reflection. SN Soc Sci 3 , 96 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-023-00676-w

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4 Models of reflection – core concepts for reflective thinking

The theories behind reflective thinking and reflective practice are complex. Most are beyond the scope of this course, and there are many different models. However, an awareness of the similarities and differences between some of these should help you to become familiar with the core concepts, allow you to explore deeper level reflective questions, and provide a way to better structure your learning.

Boud’s triangular representation (Figure 2) can be viewed as perhaps the simplest model. This cyclic model represents the core notion that reflection leads to further learning. Although it captures the essentials (that experience and reflection lead to learning), the model does not guide us as to what reflection might consist of, or how the learning might translate back into experience. Aligning key reflective questions to this model would help (Figure 3).

This figure contains three boxes, with arrows linking each box. In the boxes are the words ‘Experience’, ‘Learning’ and ‘Reflection’.

This figure contains three triangles, with arrows linking each one. In the top triangle is the text ‘Experience - what? (Description of events)’. In the bottom-left triangle is the text ‘Learning - now what? (What has been learned? What is the impact of the learning?’. In the bottom-right triangle is the text ‘Reflection - so what? (Unpicking the events)’.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle (Figure 4) breaks this down into further stages. Gibbs’ model acknowledges that your personal feelings influence the situation and how you have begun to reflect on it. It builds on Boud’s model by breaking down reflection into evaluation of the events and analysis and there is a clear link between the learning that has happened from the experience and future practice. However, despite the further break down, it can be argued that this model could still result in fairly superficial reflection as it doesn’t refer to critical thinking or analysis. It doesn’t take into consideration assumptions that you may hold about the experience, the need to look objectively at different perspectives, and there doesn’t seem to be an explicit suggestion that the learning will result in a change of assumptions, perspectives or practice. You could legitimately respond to the question ‘what would you do or decide next time?’ by answering that you would do the same, but does that constitute deep level reflection?

This figure shows a number of boxes containing text, with arrows linking the boxes. From the top left (and going clockwise) the boxes display the following text: ‘Experience. What happened?’; ‘Feeling. What were you feeling?’; ‘Evaluation. What was good or bad about the situation?’; ‘Analysis. To make sense of the situation’; ‘Conclusion. What else could you have done?’; ‘Action plan. What would you do next time?’.

Atkins and Murphy (1993) address many of these criticisms with their own cyclical model (Figure 5). Their model can be seen to support a deeper level of reflection, which is not to say that the other models are not useful, but that it is important to remain alert to the need to avoid superficial responses, by explicitly identifying challenges and assumptions, imagining and exploring alternatives, and evaluating the relevance and impact, as well as identifying learning that has occurred as a result of the process.

This figure shows a number of boxes containing text, with arrows linking the boxes. From the top (and going clockwise) the boxes display the following text: ‘Awareness. Of discomfort, or action/experience’; ‘Describe the situation. Include saliant feelings, thoughts, events or features’; ‘Analyse feeling and knowledge. Identify and challenge assumptions - imagine and explore alternatives’; ‘Evaluate the relevance of knowledge. Does it help to explain/resolve the problem? How was your use of knowledge?’; ‘Identify any learning. Which has occurred?’

You will explore how these models can be applied to professional practice in Session 7.

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Reflective Thinking: How to Practice Reflective Thinking

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Engaging in reflective thinking can help you understand your own experiences to embrace new challenges and improve competencies. You can use reflective thinking to inform personal decisions and professional development.

Teachers’ Reflection and Level of Reflective Thinking on the Different Dimensions of their teaching practice

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