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Gibbs (1998) model is based on a six-stage approach, leading from an experience through to conclusions and considerations for future teaching. While most of the core principles are similar to Kolb’s, Gibbs' model is broken down further to encourage the teacher to reflect on their own thoughts and feelings.
Gibbs' model is used to help you reflect after the experience, and is a useful model if you are new to reflecting on your own practice.
Firstly, the practitioner should summarise the experience. It needs to be a real account of what happened in their experience.
Then the practitioner is encouraged to explore their thoughts or feelings they had during the event and then explain their feelings and give examples that relate to their experience. The practitioner needs to be honest, even if they are negative. Once the feelings have been identified the practitioner can then implement strategies to overcome the barriers.
The evaluation section is where the practitioner can discuss what went well and then analyse their practice. This evaluation should consider both the practitioner’s learning and the students’ learning.
The analysis section is where they can now make sense of their experience. They need to consider what might have helped the learning and did not help so much. At this stage the practitioner may refer to any research to help make sense of the experience.
At the conclusion stage, the practitioner will pull all their ideas together and should now understand what they need to do to improve and have ideas on how to do this based on their research.
During this final stage, the action plan, the practitioner can sum up all the elements of the cycle. They can create a plan for their new learning experience. They can identify what they will keep the same, what they will develop and what they will do to improve their learning experience for themselves and for the learner.
The first 3 stages of Gibbs' model are concerned with what has happened. The final 3 stages relate to making sense of the experience and how the practitioner can improve in future learning and teaching.

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Make a list below of possible different topics for learning journal entries (both on and off the job). How do you know what to reflect on? Can you provide any top tips?

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In the link in the previous section, you were introduced to 3 models of reflections-Kolb, Gibbs and Brookfield. I want you to research each model and explain all the stages. You can add pictures, examples, videos, screen recordings etc to show how the reflective models could be used to structure your journals entries.

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Post your answers to the questions below. 

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Post your answers to the questions below. 

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What does reflective practice mean?

Why do you think reflective practice is important or trainers?

What is the research behind reflective practice?

Use the link to help you: Getting started with Reflective Practice (cambridge-community.org.uk)

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What is the research behind reflective practice?

Educational researchers have long promoted the importance of reflecting on practice to support student learning and staff development.

There are many different models of reflective practice. However, they all share the same basic aim: to get the best results from the learning, for both the teacher and students.
Each model of reflection aims to unpick learning to make links between the 'doing' and the 'thinking'.

Kolb's learning cycle
David Kolb, educational researcher, developed a four-stage reflective model. Kolb's Learning Cycle (1984) highlights reflective practice as a tool to gain conclusions and ideas from an experience. The aim is to take the learning into new experiences, completing the cycle. Kolb's cycle follows four stages.

First, practitioners have a concrete experience. This means experiencing something new for the first time in the classroom. The experience should be an active one, used to test out new ideas and teaching methods.
This is followed by...

Observation of the concrete experience, then reflecting on the experience. Here practitioners should consider the strengths of the experience and areas of development. Practitioners need to form an understanding of what helped students' learning and what hindered it.
This should lead to...

The formation of abstract concepts. The practitioner needs to make sense of what has happened. They should do this through making links between what they have done, what they already know and what they need to learn. The practitioner should draw on ideas from research and textbooks to help support development and understanding. They could also draw on support from other colleagues and their previous knowledge. Practitioners should modify their ideas or devise new approaches, based on what they have learnt from their observations and wider research.
The final stage of this cycle is when...

The practitioner considers how they are going to put what they have learnt into practice. The practitioner's abstract concepts are made concrete as they use these to test ideas in future situations, resulting in new experiences. The ideas from the observations and conceptualisations are made into active experimentation as they are implemented into future teaching. The cycle is then repeated on this new method.

Kolb's model aims to draw on the importance of using both our own everyday experiences and educational research to help us improve. It is not simply enough for you to reflect. This reflection must drive a change which is rooted in educational research.

Gibbs' reflective cycle

The theoretical approach of reflection as a cyclical model was further developed by Gibbs (1998). This model is based on a six-stage approach, leading from a description of the experience through to conclusions and considerations for future events. While most of the core principles are similar to Kolb's, Gibbs' model is broken down further to encourage the teacher to reflect on their own thoughts and feelings.

Gibbs' model is an effective tool to help you reflect after the experience, and is a useful model if you are new to reflection as it is broken down into clearly defined sections.

Description
In this section, the practitioner should clearly outline the experience. This needs to be a factual account of what happened in the classroom. It should not be analytical at this stage.

Feelings
This section encourages the practitioner to explore any thoughts or feelings they had at the time of the event. Here the practitioner should explain feelings and give examples which directly reference the teaching experience. It is important the practitioner is honest with how they feel, even if these feelings might be negative. Only once the feelings have been identified can the practitioner implement strategies to overcome these barriers.

Evaluation
The evaluation section gives the opportunity for the practitioner to discuss what went well and analyse practice. It is also important to consider areas needed for development and things that did not work out as initially planned. This evaluation should consider both the practitioner's learning and the students' learning.

Analysis
This section is where the practitioner makes sense of the experience. They consider what might have helped the learning or hindered it. It is in this stage that the practitioner refers to any relevant literature or research to help make sense of the experience. For example, if you felt the instructions you gave were not clear, you could consult educational research on how to communicate effectively.

Conclusion
At this stage, the practitioner draws all the ideas together. They should now understand what they need to improve on and have some ideas on how to do this based on their wider research.

Action plan
During this final stage, the practitioner sums up all previous elements of this cycle. They create a step-by-step plan for the new learning experience. The practitioner identifies what they will keep, what they will develop and what they will do differently. The action plan might also outline the next steps needed to overcome any barriers, for example enrolling on a course or observing another colleague.

In Gibbs' model the first three sections are concerned with what happened. The final three sections relate to making sense of the experience and how you, as the teacher, can improve on the situation.

'Reflection-in-action' and 'reflection-on-action'

Another approach to reflection is the work by Schön. Schön (1991) distinguishes between reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action.

Reflection-in-action is reflection during the 'doing' stage (that is, reflecting on the incident while it can still benefit the learning). This is carried out during the lesson rather than reflecting on how you would do things differently in the future. This is an extremely efficient method of reflection as it allows you to react and change an event at the time it happens. For example, in the classroom you may be teaching a topic which you can see the students are not understanding. Your reflection-in-action allows you to understand why this has happened and how to respond to overcome this situation.

Reflection-in-action allows you to deal with surprising incidents that may happen in a learning environment. It allows you to be responsible and resourceful, drawing on your own knowledge and allowing you to apply it to new experiences. It also allows for personalised learning as, rather than using preconceived ideas about what you should do in a particular situation, you decide what works best at that time for that unique experience and student.

Reflection-on-action, on the other hand, involves reflecting on how practice can be developed after the lesson has been taught. Schön recognises the importance of reflecting back 'in order to discover how our knowing-in-action may have contributed to an unexpected outcome' (Schön, 1983).

Reflection-on-action means you reflect after the event on how your knowledge of previous teaching may have directed you to the experience you had.

Reflection-on-action should encourage ideas on what you need to change for the future. You carry out reflection-on-action outside the classroom, where you consider the situation again. This requires deeper thought, for example, as to why the students did not understand the topic. It encourages you to consider causes and options, which should be informed by a wider network of understanding from research.

By following any of the above models of reflection, you will have a questioning approach to teaching. You will consider why things are as they are, and how they could be. You will consider the strengths and areas of development in your own practice, questioning why learning experiences might be this way and considering how to develop them. As a result, what you do in the classroom will be carefully planned, informed by research and previous experience, and focused, with logical reasons. All of these models stress the importance of repeating the cycle to make sure knowledge is secure and progression is continued.

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Getting started with Reflective Practice

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Educational researchers have long promoted the importance of reflecting on practice to support student learning and staff development. There are many different models of reflective practice. However, they all share the same basic aim: to get the best results from the learning, for both the teacher and students.Each model of reflection aims to unpick learning to make links between the 'doing' and the 'thinking'.

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Learn Amp: Learning Engagement Platform. Learning Re-invented. Driving engagement, increasing retention and improving performance through learning

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What are learning journals and why are they important? 

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What are learning journals and why are they important? 

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Learn Amp: Learning Engagement Platform. Learning Re-invented. Driving engagement, increasing retention and improving performance through learning

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Reflective practice is when someone can look back and reflect on their actions and learn from it to continue to progress and continue learning through this process.

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Reflective practice is the ability to reflect or evaluate on your own actions or practice, to make adjustments or changes if needed.

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Reflective practice involves evaluating your actions and experiences in order to improve. it can involve thinking critically about what you did well and what you could improve or learn more about.

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Reflective practice is important for trainers because it allows them to increase their self awareness, it can improve teaching practices, it can identify strengths and weakness in their practice, and shows engagement in their work practice.

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Reflective practice is important for trainers, so we can reflect on how we are supporting our learners, as every learner is different we may need to change something we are doing in our practice, to get the best for the learner.

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Reflective practice is the ability to reflect on your own actions so you can engage in a process of continuous learning

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It is important for trainers to engage in reflective practice to identify areas for improvement, and what techniques work for them. Trainers could use reflective practice to identify areas for progression, to develop their working style and ethos, and to enhance the overall delivery a trainer provides.

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Reflective practice is a great way to review your own progress. Whether positive or negative, noting down your reflection is best practice as you can utilise this information to help strengthen your development.

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A learning journal is a tool used to help learners to log their learning and engagement for their OTJ hours. They are important because it shows the learner is engaging with the programme, they are showcasing what they have learnt throughout their journey, it allows us as the trainer to provide feedback to the learner and to also give them advice and guidance for moving forward. The learning journal is also used to show the trainer and the IQA team that the learner has learnt and put in to practice their KSBs.

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Reflective practice is important to trainers as it enables them to become self aware of their own progress and development. It helps build on their confidence which equals to an improvement in their practice.

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Reflective practice is when someone reflects on their experience or actions practically in their working environment, this enables an individual to identity areas of improvement to become the best an individual can be. This can be done by focusing on your thoughts and ideas, ask questions, reflect on what worked well, what could be even if, and what didn't work, gathering feedback from others. Identifying this can support your professional practice by fostering a habit of continuous learning and adaptation.

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reflective practice is important as it lets us look at what we are doing well, what we can do better and look as ways to support our next steps. It helps us to improve our outcomes

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Reflective Practise is the ability to process actions and performance, to enable progression towards continuous progression and continuous learning.

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Reflection allows us to learn more about ourselves and how we learn, but it also helps us to improve our academic skills which we can then further support and teach learners.

We always need to be reflecting on our practice as trainers to ensure we are delivering quality training.

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Reflective practice in important for trainers I can identify opportunities to improve my professional skills and how we are supporting my learners. Changing my practice to each individual learner can enhance the learners experience so they can get the best out of the course as well as supporting any learning needs a learner may have.

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Task - so what did the learner do in the first instance and when did they do it.

Reflect - What did the learner learn and how will they use it in their practice.

Attach - It is good practice to attach evidence to support the learning.

Criteria link - select the criteria the learner feels it links to in terms of their KSBs.

Keep up regularly - ensuring that a learning journal entry is completed every time the learner learns something new to keep up their OTJ hours.

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What they are: A way to record off the job hours, complete timesheets and to show new learning. The learner can look back at their learning and the trainer can measure the learners progress.

Why they are important: The learner can be reflective of the KSB's and see how they have progressed, it will show their learning and will build confidence as they look back over hoe far they have progressed. Journals are also a way of tracking OTJ hours.

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Reflective Practise is important to us as trainers as the process allows us to reflect on our new experiences/situations and reflect on it using existing knowledge and what we have learnt. This helps to identify inconsistencies within experience and understanding, allowing us to have a clearer picture of our own next steps towards continuous professional development. This will enable me to build knowledge and learn new skills that will create a wider learner experience for my own learners.

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Learning journal are important as this show was learning you have had, what you are going to do with this learning, the impact that this learning will have on you and your role.

Learning journals enable us to see if learners KSB have developed and also maybe what they might still need support with.

Learning journals are also a way to support for progress review as we can use these to have discussion with learners, manager and find gap and set objectives.

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A learning journey is a tool used for learners to log all their learning and then reflect on this. A learning journey will or should show a variety of different ways a learner has gained new knowledge and how they have put this new learning into practice.

The trainer has access to these and it allows them to measure a learners progress. The trainer can recognise what they are doing well, and to provide constructive and developmental feedback on how and what they can improve on. The learner is able to reflect on the learning of their knowledge, skills and behaviours throughout their training, and will be able to see their progress.

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Track is a way of showing good learning journal entries

Task- What and when

Reflect-what I have learnt and how to use it moving forward

Attach evidence-anything to support your learning

Criteria link- links to KSB's and have you made progress

Keep up regularly

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Learning journals are created by learners to record the active learning they engage in each week. This allows them to have a clear timeline of all the learning activities they have completed, and to track and log their off the job hours. They can log activities such as their webinars, shadowing, staff meetings, one to one sessions, independent research, and assessment prep. The learning journal provides the learner with the opportunity to reflect on their learning activities and identify the what, how, why and 'so what' of each activity. This process promotes continuous reflective practice and embeds the process within the learners daily work practice. It is also a useful format to receive feedback from their trainers on how they can improve practice, KSBs, and English and maths skills. Learning journals encourage learners to fill out their monthly scorecards, which offers another opportunity to engage in reflective practice. They can link their learning journals to specific criteria within the apprenticeship standard, and the linked learning journals will serve as a reminder when completing scorecards of what active learning they have engaged in that month. Learning journals help inform the discussions had in progress reviews. They can also be used in EPA.

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A learning journal is a way for a learner to record and reflect on their learning. This gives me as a trainer an opportunity to provide developmental feedback on a learners progression. The journals are important to develop and monitor al earners progress, what the learning is dong well in and areas of development. These will link into a leaners KSBs to give that insight on how a learner is learning. It also supports a learners to achieve their off the job hours which is required for their course on what they have learned.

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Track = What the learner did, and when they did it.

Reflect = what they have learnt, how this applies to their practice, what they might do differently.

Attach = Any evidence to support the learning journal e.g work products, recordings etc.

Criteria link = Link it to the relevant KSBs.

Keep up regularly = add journals as soon as active learning has occurred to avoid falling behind.

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Learning Journals are created by learners on their personal onefile account. They are used by learners to record any OTJ learning, this is where learners will record and reflect on what they have learnt. They can also be used to capture functional skills, although this isn't counted as OTJ learning. Learning Journals are important as they link into the learners monthly score card, progress reviews, KSBS and are used at the EPA. Learning Journals are used to monitor individual progress.

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The TRACK method tool is used for learners to produce a good reflective learning journal

T is the task you completed and when you did it. Describing what the task entailed.

R is reflect. This is where you describe what you have learnt through the task and how you will use this new learning moving forward.

A stands for Attach evidence. Anything that will support what you are writing about in learning journal.

C stands for criteria link. Select the criteria that you feel your learning journal and reflection links to on your apprenticeship course.

K stands for Keeping it up. Regularly adding learning journals with new learning onto your onefile.

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Learning Journals are used by learners to record and reflect on their OTJ learning. They are used by trainers to monitor the learners individual progress, KSB's, functional skills and these are used towards their monthly review and progress reviews. The learning journal entries are a place where learners can actively record what their learning and this will help to identify strengths and area's where extra support and teaching may be needed.

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Learning Journals are created by learners on their personal onefile account. They are used by learners to record any OTJ learning, this is where learners will record and reflect on what they have learnt. They can also be used to capture functional skills, although this isn't counted as OTJ learning. Learning Journals are important as they link into the learners monthly score card, progress reviews, KSBS and are used at the EPA. Learning Journals are used to monitor individual progress.

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Reflective practice is an opportunity to think about your actions, it gives you the chance to think about what you could do to improve next time and build on the experiences that went right. It is the act of thinking about previous events to learn from them in the future. You can do reflective practice independently or you can use models to aid you with this. The model I like is the Gibb's Model, this a five step cycle which helps prompt you when thinking about reflective practice.

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What does reflective practice mean?

Reflective practice involves evaluating your actions and experiences in order to improve. it can involve thinking critically about what you did well and what you could improve or learn more about.

Why do you think reflective practice is important for trainers?

It is important for trainers to engage in reflective practice to identify areas for improvement, and what techniques work for them. Trainers could use reflective practice to identify areas for progression, to develop their working style and ethos, and to enhance the overall delivery a trainer provides.

What is the research behind reflective practice?

David Kolb's four stage reflective model aims to take learning from new experiences forward in a productive way. The cycle follows a pattern of 'concrete experiences', 'reflective observation', 'abstract conceptualisation', and 'active experimentation'. Gibbs and Schon also propose models of reflective practice. research suggests that by engaging in reflective practice, people can enhance learning and retention, increase self awareness, improve problem solving skills and become more adaptable.

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TRACK METHOD

T - Task- What the task was, where, when and how it was carried out.

R - Reflect- Reflect on what you have learnt and how you are going to implement this within your role/practise.

A- Attach Evidence

C- Criteria Link

K- Keep up regularly

This is the method that should be used by learners to ensure the learning journal entries that they are creating are reflecting their learning to show progression in their continuous professional development.

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You could use Gibbs Reflective cycle as a guide when writing a learning journal

1. Description – what happened, what was the task and when did it happen?

2. Feelings – what were you thinking and feeling?

3. Evaluation – So reflecting on the learning. what was good and bad about the experience?

4. Analysis – After reflecting on learning, have things become clearer in this particular area?

5. Conclusion – what else could you have done?

6. Action plan – How can I put this learning into practice

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One of the most famous cyclical models of reflection leading you through six stages exploring an experience: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan.

Below is further information on:

The model

Gibbs' reflective cycle

This model is a good way to work through an experience. This can be either a stand-alone experience or a situation you go through frequently, for example meetings with a team you have to collaborate with. Gibbs originally advocated its use in repeated situations, but the stages and principles apply equally well for single experiences too. If done with a stand-alone experience, the action plan may become more general and look at how you can apply your conclusions in the future.

For each of the stages of the model a number of helpful questions are outlined below. You don't have to answer all of them but they can guide you about what sort of things make sense to include in that stage. You might have other prompts that work better for you.

Description

Here you have a chance to describe the situation in detail. The main points to include here concern what happened. Your feelings and conclusions will come later.

Helpful questions:

Example of 'Description'

Feelings

Here you can explore any feelings or thoughts that you had during the experience and how they may have impacted the experience.

Helpful questions:

What were you feeling during the situation?

Example of 'Feelings'

Evaluation

Here you have a chance to evaluate what worked and what didn't work in the situation. Try to be as objective and honest as possible. To get the most out of your reflection focus on both the positive and the negative aspects of the situation, even if it was primarily one or the other.

Helpful questions:

What was good and bad about the experience?

Example of 'Evaluation'

Analysis

The analysis step is where you have a chance to make sense of what happened. Up until now you have focused on details around what happened in the situation. Now you have a chance to extract meaning from it. You want to target the different aspects that went well or poorly and ask yourself why. If you are looking to include academic literature, this is the natural place to include it.

Helpful questions:

Example of 'Analysis'

I think the reason that our initial division of work went well was because each person had a say in what part of the assignment they wanted to work on, and we divided according to people's self-identified strengths. I have experienced working this way before and discovered when I'm working by myself I enjoy working in areas that match my strengths. It seems natural to me that this is also the case in groups.

I think we thought that this approach would save us time when piecing together the sections in the end, and therefore we didn't think it through. In reality, it ended up costing us far more time than expected and we also had to stress and rush through the rewrite. I think the fact we hadn't planned how we were writing and structuring the sections led us to this situation.

I searched through some literature on group work and found two things that help me understand the situation. Belbin's (e.g. 2010) team roles suggests that each person has certain strengths and weaknesses they bring to a group. While we didn't think about our team members in the same way Belbin does, effective team work and work delegation seems to come from using people's different strengths, which we did.

Another theory that might help explain why we didn't predict the plan wouldn't work is 'Groupthink' (e.g. Janis, 1991). Groupthink is where people in a group won't raise different opinions to a dominant opinion or decision, because they don't want to seem like an outsider. I think if we had challenged our assumptions about our plan - by actually being critical, we would probably have foreseen that it wouldn't work. Some characteristics of groupthink that were in our group were: 'collective rationalisation' - we kept telling each other that it would work; and probably 'illusion of invulnerability' - we are all good students, so of course we couldn't do anything wrong.

I think being aware of groupthink in the future will be helpful in group work, when trying to make decisions.

Conclusions

In this section you can make conclusions about what happened. This is where you summarise your learning and highlight what changes to your actions could improve the outcome in the future. It should be a natural response to the previous sections.

Helpful questions:

What did I learn from this situation?

Example of a 'Conclusion'

Action plan

At this step you plan for what you would do differently in a similar or related situation in the future. It can also be extremely helpful to think about how you will help yourself to act differently - such that you don't only plan what you will do differently, but also how you will make sure it happens. Sometimes just the realisation is enough, but other times reminders might be helpful.

Helpful questions:

If I had to do the same thing again, what would I do differently?

Example of 'Action Plan'

Different depths of reflection

Depending on the context you are doing the reflection in, you might want use different levels of details. Here is the same scenario, which was used in the example above, however it is presented much more briefly.

Short example of Gibbs' reflective cycle:

Feelings:

Adapted from
Gibbs G (1988). Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit. Oxford Polytechnic: Oxford.

This article was published on

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One of the most famous cyclical models of reflection leading you through six stages exploring an experience: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan.

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Reflective practice is looking back on a task you have completed and reflecting on how it has gone, what went well and how you could improve next time.

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I believe that reflective practice is important when working as a trainer, it gives the learner the best possible learning experience as it requires us to consciously think about our actions. It gives use the opportunity to become self-aware and tailor our teaching style with different learners based on their needs. It provides the opportunity to identify our strengths and highlight where development is required. This helps us train to the best of our ability.

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As trainers we we want to make sure we are supporting our learners the best we can. By reflecting we can take measures to improve our practice and ways to support our learners more

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A journal ( Learning journal) is a great way to record and reflect any learning that the learner has achieved on your off the job hours; this can be shadowing, webinars, functional skills, attach evidence, internal training etc. Supporting learning journals with time sheets regular scorecard updates, allows the learner and the trainer to celebrate their wins but also gain an understanding where the learner needs to improve. With this data the trainer can support the learners progression by offering constructive and developmental feedback.

Learning journals are so important as they are a great revision tool and help embed their learning. This is crucial when they reach end point assessment.

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Reflective practice is about challenging what you already think and know, to check if you are correct, what could you change to make it better or different. "The beating heart of teaching" (Stockton, P, Getting started with reflective practice, Cambridge Assessment internal education, Getting started with Reflective Practice (cambridge-community.org.uk), 27/9/24)

Its important for trainers for you to develop new skills and learn through new experiences as a teacher to support your learners.

Theorists of the reflective practice are Kolb and Gibbs, who both have learning cycles and they believe learning is a constant cycle where we are always learning and using this learning to reflect on our practice.

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What is the research behind reflective practice?

Educational researchers have long promoted the importance of reflecting on practice to support student learning and staff development.

There are many different models of reflective practice. However, they all share the same basic aim: to get the best results from the learning, for both the teacher and students.
Each model of reflection aims to unpick learning to make links between the 'doing' and the 'thinking'.

Kolb's learning cycle
David Kolb, educational researcher, developed a four-stage reflective model. Kolb's Learning Cycle (1984) highlights reflective practice as a tool to gain conclusions and ideas from an experience. The aim is to take the learning into new experiences, completing the cycle. Kolb's cycle follows four stages.

First, practitioners have a concrete experience. This means experiencing something new for the first time in the classroom. The experience should be an active one, used to test out new ideas and teaching methods.
This is followed by...

Observation of the concrete experience, then reflecting on the experience. Here practitioners should consider the strengths of the experience and areas of development. Practitioners need to form an understanding of what helped students' learning and what hindered it.
This should lead to...

The formation of abstract concepts. The practitioner needs to make sense of what has happened. They should do this through making links between what they have done, what they already know and what they need to learn. The practitioner should draw on ideas from research and textbooks to help support development and understanding. They could also draw on support from other colleagues and their previous knowledge. Practitioners should modify their ideas or devise new approaches, based on what they have learnt from their observations and wider research.
The final stage of this cycle is when...

The practitioner considers how they are going to put what they have learnt into practice. The practitioner's abstract concepts are made concrete as they use these to test ideas in future situations, resulting in new experiences. The ideas from the observations and conceptualisations are made into active experimentation as they are implemented into future teaching. The cycle is then repeated on this new method.

Kolb's model aims to draw on the importance of using both our own everyday experiences and educational research to help us improve. It is not simply enough for you to reflect. This reflection must drive a change which is rooted in educational research.

Gibbs' reflective cycle

The theoretical approach of reflection as a cyclical model was further developed by Gibbs (1998). This model is based on a six-stage approach, leading from a description of the experience through to conclusions and considerations for future events. While most of the core principles are similar to Kolb's, Gibbs' model is broken down further to encourage the teacher to reflect on their own thoughts and feelings.

Gibbs' model is an effective tool to help you reflect after the experience, and is a useful model if you are new to reflection as it is broken down into clearly defined sections.

Description
In this section, the practitioner should clearly outline the experience. This needs to be a factual account of what happened in the classroom. It should not be analytical at this stage.

Feelings
This section encourages the practitioner to explore any thoughts or feelings they had at the time of the event. Here the practitioner should explain feelings and give examples which directly reference the teaching experience. It is important the practitioner is honest with how they feel, even if these feelings might be negative. Only once the feelings have been identified can the practitioner implement strategies to overcome these barriers.

Evaluation
The evaluation section gives the opportunity for the practitioner to discuss what went well and analyse practice. It is also important to consider areas needed for development and things that did not work out as initially planned. This evaluation should consider both the practitioner's learning and the students' learning.

Analysis
This section is where the practitioner makes sense of the experience. They consider what might have helped the learning or hindered it. It is in this stage that the practitioner refers to any relevant literature or research to help make sense of the experience. For example, if you felt the instructions you gave were not clear, you could consult educational research on how to communicate effectively.

Conclusion
At this stage, the practitioner draws all the ideas together. They should now understand what they need to improve on and have some ideas on how to do this based on their wider research.

Action plan
During this final stage, the practitioner sums up all previous elements of this cycle. They create a step-by-step plan for the new learning experience. The practitioner identifies what they will keep, what they will develop and what they will do differently. The action plan might also outline the next steps needed to overcome any barriers, for example enrolling on a course or observing another colleague.

In Gibbs' model the first three sections are concerned with what happened. The final three sections relate to making sense of the experience and how you, as the teacher, can improve on the situation.

'Reflection-in-action' and 'reflection-on-action'

Another approach to reflection is the work by Schön. Schön (1991) distinguishes between reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action.

Reflection-in-action is reflection during the 'doing' stage (that is, reflecting on the incident while it can still benefit the learning). This is carried out during the lesson rather than reflecting on how you would do things differently in the future. This is an extremely efficient method of reflection as it allows you to react and change an event at the time it happens. For example, in the classroom you may be teaching a topic which you can see the students are not understanding. Your reflection-in-action allows you to understand why this has happened and how to respond to overcome this situation.

Reflection-in-action allows you to deal with surprising incidents that may happen in a learning environment. It allows you to be responsible and resourceful, drawing on your own knowledge and allowing you to apply it to new experiences. It also allows for personalised learning as, rather than using preconceived ideas about what you should do in a particular situation, you decide what works best at that time for that unique experience and student.

Reflection-on-action, on the other hand, involves reflecting on how practice can be developed after the lesson has been taught. Schön recognises the importance of reflecting back 'in order to discover how our knowing-in-action may have contributed to an unexpected outcome' (Schön, 1983).

Reflection-on-action means you reflect after the event on how your knowledge of previous teaching may have directed you to the experience you had.

Reflection-on-action should encourage ideas on what you need to change for the future. You carry out reflection-on-action outside the classroom, where you consider the situation again. This requires deeper thought, for example, as to why the students did not understand the topic. It encourages you to consider causes and options, which should be informed by a wider network of understanding from research.

By following any of the above models of reflection, you will have a questioning approach to teaching. You will consider why things are as they are, and how they could be. You will consider the strengths and areas of development in your own practice, questioning why learning experiences might be this way and considering how to develop them. As a result, what you do in the classroom will be carefully planned, informed by research and previous experience, and focused, with logical reasons. All of these models stress the importance of repeating the cycle to make sure knowledge is secure and progression is continued.

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Getting started with Reflective Practice

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Educational researchers have long promoted the importance of reflecting on practice to support student learning and staff development. There are many different models of reflective practice. However, they all share the same basic aim: to get the best results from the learning, for both the teacher and students.Each model of reflection aims to unpick learning to make links between the 'doing' and the 'thinking'.

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Learning journals are a way to talk about a task you have completed and reflect on it. They enable learners to see how it will support their own practice and what they would do different next time

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Reflective practice is the ability to reflect on your own actions so you can engage in a process of continuous learning

Reflection allows us to learn more about ourselves and how we learn, but it also helps us to improve our academic skills which we can then further support and teach learners.

We always need to be reflecting on our practice as trainers to ensure we are delivering quality training.

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The Brookfield Model of Reflection is a tool that helps teachers discover the value of their lessons through critical self-reflection. Brookfield indicates that critically reflective teachers make excellent teachers that are able to convey their own voice to others in an authentic way

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Reflective practice is the ability to reflect on one's actions so as to engage in a process of continuous learning. Reflective Practice is where we reflect back on topics/tasks/experience's and evaluate what went well and what could be improved. This promotes experimenting and changing previous practise to enable improvement across these areas.

Reflective Practise is important for trainers to ensure that they are able to identify area's that require improvement and area's that work well. Reflecting on our own practise in turn will improve our own CPD and ensure that we are competent to support, train and guide our learners.

Research behind reflective practise:

Kolb’s learning theory is represented by a four-stage learning cycle in which the learner “touches all the bases”. Kolb's believes in order to create effective learning all four steps must be completed. Kolb's promotes reflective practise.

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David Kolb developed a four-stage reflective model which highlights reflective practice as a tool to conclude and gain information from an experience. It can turn the learning into new experiences to complete the reflective cycle.

Kolb's reflective theory cycle follows four stages.
First, practitioners have an experience. This means experiencing something new for the first time. The experience should be an active one to test new ideas and teaching.
This is then followed by observation. Observing the experience, then reflecting on the experience. Practitioners can consider the strengths and areas for improvement in their development. Practitioners can then form an understanding of what helped the learning of the experience and what didn't.
This would then lead to the the formation of abstract concepts. They will need to make sense of what has happened. They can do this through making links between what they have done, what they know and what they need to learn to improve. It is good practice to learn from what they already know and gain knowledge through research to help support their development and understanding. They could seek support from other colleagues and their knowledge. Practitioners can gain new ideas or create new approaches on what they have learnt from their observations and wider research.
Then, the practitioner should think of a way of how they are going to put what they have learnt into practice. The practitioner’s abstract concepts are then strengthened as they put into practice their ideas in the future, resulting in new experiences to reflect on. The observations and thoughts are then experimented as they implement new learning into their future teaching. The cycle is then repeated again to continue to learn and reflect on new practice.
Kolb’s model aims to show the importance of using both their own experiences and research to help to improve practice.

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Task-Complete a task

Reflect-Reflect on the task done

Attach-Attach any evidence

Criteria-Link any criteria

Keep them up=Keep them up and keep on track with then

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See answer 1 and 2

Kolb model of reflective practice was the learning cycle. Its a widely used learning cycle that supports reflective practice

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Brookfield's (1995) four lenses:

1. The autobiographical lens

By considering experiences with learners and methods of teaching, and analysing these experiences assumptions, biases and gaps in knowledge can be identified and addressed.

2. The student’s eyes

Trainers must understand the experiences and perspectives of their learners to deepen this reflective practice. This enables the practitioner to practice student centred, responsive teaching. These experiences can be gained through evaluations with students, focus groups, interviews, and anonymous surveys. The trainer may be able to identify any power imbalances within the learner - trainer dynamic, and address this to improve teaching and learning experiences. This process enables the trainer to ascertain the experiences of learners from a new perspective.

3. Colleagues’ experiences

Receiving advice and feedback from colleagues enhances the ability to engage in reflective practice and improvement. Working in partnership strengthens confidence, and shadowing and mentoring opens practitioners up to new ideas, working styles, and new areas for reflection.

4. The theoretical literature

By staying up to date with new research, and engaging with research by debating, presenting or publishing scholarly articles, practitioners are able to engage in continuous professional development, and update their knowledge and understanding as a processes of improving practice.

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Please see answer in questions 5

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Autobiographical lens:
Looking at your own life experiences and using these to to show that you can understand and share experiences and lessons with learners.

Students’ views:

Looking through the learners point of view and seeing from their angle

Colleagues’ views:
Feedback from others such as co-workers, advice and support will help you develop your reflective practice.

Theoretical lens:
Learning is ongoing, once you have qualified you are still learning and will be

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1-Reflective practice is a great way to review your own progress. Whether positive or negative, noting down your reflection is best practice as you can utilise this information to help strengthen your development.

2-Reflective practice is important to trainers as it enables them to become self aware of their own progress and development. It helps build on their confidence which equals to an improvement in their practice.

3- David Kolb developed a four stage reflective model called - Kolb's learning cycle (1984). This tool helps you understand the learning process through experience; feeling, watching, thinking and doing. From these 4 stages you can gain ideas and conclusions to help reflect on your practice.

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Brookfields had 4 stages of refelction

Autobiographical lens:

Thinking about situation in relation to yourself and own experiences

Thinking about how your own story may reflect on this and how it shapes your views

Learner view: You putting yourself in the shoes of your learner. Thinking about them and their reactions and how their own experiences may lead their own learning

Colleagues view: including the views of your fellow colleagues in helping your own reflections and give you ways to improve your own work

Theoretical lens: Making sense of your own experiences and reflecting on these. Gaining a better understanding to reflect and relate to the other three stages

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Kolb's Learning Cycle (1984)

Concrete experience

Experiencing something new, or interpreting a past experience differently.

Reflective observation

Reflecting on the experience in the context of their pre-existing knowledge and understanding. Paying attention to differences or gaps between their pre-existing understanding and the new experience.

Abstract conceptualisation

Learning from the experience and reflection. By reflecting on the experience, new ideas emerge and new insights adapt the pre-existing understanding of an abstract concept.

Active experimentation

These new ideas and understandings of concepts can then be applied to the real world. Experimenting with this new knowledge can solidify the learning, and gives way to new experiences for the cycle to begin again.

This model of the learning cycle is underpinned by Kolb's conceptualisation of four learning styles; diverging, assimilating, converging, and accommodating. By understanding the learning styles, one can utilise the learning cycle to fit their style.

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The 4 lenses of Brookfields reflective cycle are:

Autobiographical lens- self reflection. This is about your own reflecting not on current but past experiences. Brookfield believed that this can help how a trainer can engage with a learner.

The students (learners) lense

Focusing only on self-reflection is not enough to learn. Trainers need to understand and support Individuals so looking at it through their eyes will give a more in- depth insight into a situation, but may also help the trainer look at their own practice.

Colleagues' lense- Their perspectives when working together closely as peers. this would include feedback, advice, mentoring and teaching from colleagues. Taking their perception into account can help a learner/ trainer reflect on their own practice.

Theoretical lense The importance of lifelong improvement on learning through research and reading to continuously be reflecting on practice.

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Kolb's reflective model

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Gibbs (1998) model is based on a six-stage approach, leading from an experience through to conclusions and considerations for future teaching. While most of the core principles are similar to Kolb’s, Gibbs' model is broken down further to encourage the teacher to reflect on their own thoughts and feelings.
Gibbs' model is used to help you reflect after the experience, and is a useful model if you are new to reflecting on your own practice.
Firstly, the practitioner should summarise the experience. It needs to be a real account of what happened in their experience.
Then the practitioner is encouraged to explore their thoughts or feelings they had during the event and then explain their feelings and give examples that relate to their experience. The practitioner needs to be honest, even if they are negative. Once the feelings have been identified the practitioner can then implement strategies to overcome the barriers.
The evaluation section is where the practitioner can discuss what went well and then analyse their practice. This evaluation should consider both the practitioner’s learning and the students’ learning.
The analysis section is where they can now make sense of their experience. They need to consider what might have helped the learning and did not help so much. At this stage the practitioner may refer to any research to help make sense of the experience.
At the conclusion stage, the practitioner will pull all their ideas together and should now understand what they need to do to improve and have ideas on how to do this based on their research.
During this final stage, the action plan, the practitioner can sum up all the elements of the cycle. They can create a plan for their new learning experience. They can identify what they will keep the same, what they will develop and what they will do to improve their learning experience for themselves and for the learner.
The first 3 stages of Gibbs' model are concerned with what has happened. The final 3 stages relate to making sense of the experience and how the practitioner can improve in future learning and teaching.

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Stephen Brookfield has developed the four lenses in the Brookfield model of reflection. These can be used by teachers in the process of critical reflection. This concerns the following four lenses, or perspectives:

1.    The autobiographical lens

2.    The student’s eyes

3.    Colleagues’ experiences

4.    The theoretical literature

1. The autobiographical lens

This is the first lens of the Brookfield Model of Reflection and is also where a teacher can uncover pedagogical aspects that must be strengthened or adjusted.The autobiographical lens encourages teachers to reflect their own experiences with students. The experience will help to uncover assumptions about how people learn.

2. The student’s eyes

It is essential that teachers understand students’ experiences. This can be done through evaluations with students about teaching styles, test methods, focus groups or interviews. This will make their teaching more responsive. The student lens also reveals whether any existing teaching styles need to be changed, to promote a better and more impactful experience for the students.

3. Colleagues’ experiences

Excellent teachers will work with these processes and engage with colleagues regarding mentoring, advice, and feedback. This can be done within progress meetings, probation reviews, setting objectives, on the spot feedback and general conversation and communication. Sharing experiences between colleagues can help increase confidence as they realise that they are not alone. It helps to promote sharing experiences and methods.

4. The theoretical literatureThe fourth and final lens of the Brookfield Model of Reflection for critical reflection in education concerns the scholarly literature about higher education.

Teachers who explore, present or publish this literature have an advanced vocabulary and plenty of methods for their teaching practices. An engagement with both the scientific literature and colleagues supports teachers.

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Kolb’s Learning Cycle.

Kolb’s theory focuses on the learner's personal development and perspective. The learner is responsible for guiding their own learning progress.

Kolb’s learning style theory is demonstrated in a four-step learning cycle. The concept behind the four steps of the cycle is that all learners cover and touch all bases.  His learning theory works on two levels: a four-stage learning cycle across four separate learning styles.

Some terms used to explain the cycle are ‘Reflective Cycle and Experimental Cycle’. This is where effective learning is formed through continuous use of the cycle focusing on the Individuals experience, Reflection, experimentation and conceptualization.

Breaking down the cycle

1-      Concrete Experience – Building concrete experience within the area of learning.  This could be a new experience or an existing one.  It could also be, building upon experiences that you already have knowledge of but looking at the concept/situation in a new light.

2-      Reflective Observation – The process where the individual reflects on their experience of a new experience/situation and reflects on it using their existing knowledge. This helps to identify inconsistencies between their experience and understanding allowing them to have a clear picture of their own next steps towards continuous professional development.

3-      Abstract Conceptualization- The experience and reflection process combined then guide and lead individuals to demonstrate new idea’s and modify previous practise/knowledge. This is known as ‘learning from experience’.

4-     Active Experimentation- This is when the newly formed idea’s that have are put into place to experiment and observe the outcome of these to see what happens.

Kolb views learning as an integrated process and believes to create effective learning an individual must be able to demonstrate each stage of the cycle. He believes that using just one single form of the cycle is not effective as a learning procedure on its own.

Behind Kolb’s learning cycle he set out four learning styles which are based on his four-step learning cycle.

-          Diverging (thinking and watching)

-          Assimilating (thinking and watching)

-          Converging (doing and thinking)

-          Accommodating (doing and feeling)

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Kolb: Concrete Experience – This stage is where a learner might have a new experience or learning.

Reflective Observation – In this stage the learner then reflects on the new learning using their existing knowledge or are there any inconsistencies between experience and understanding.

Abstract Conceptualization – In this stage the learner will reflect on or come up a new ideas, or a modify an existing learning from their experiences.

Active Experimentation The learner applies their ideas to their role in the setting.

Gibbs

Gibbs Reflective Cycle (youtube.com)

This cycle has more steps than Kolb. This cycle is more about your feelings and thoughts of the new learning. It talks about using actions that are within your own control. This cycle encourages you to use a physical action plan to see the progress you are making, the action plan for us and our learners is using the learning journals and scorecards to physical see the progress made.

Brookfield

4 Lenses of Brookfield Model of reflection

This is not a cycle like Kolb and Gibbs and it is using many different ways to be reflective that it not all for you to do yourself. The stages are:

1. Autobiographical Lens- this is using self-reflection using past experience and current feelings or recording new learning.

2. Students Eyes-gaining the view of the learners

3. Colleagues experiences- you will gain new insight and views to improve your teaching or practice.

4. Theoretical lens- using reading and research to gain a better understanding to put into your teaching/practice.

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Gibbs reflective cycle

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Kolbs Reflective Cycle

Concrete experience

Doing the active/webinars or having the experience, such as changing nappy, planning an activity

Reflective observation

reflecting on the experience, did it go well, if not why

Abstract Conceptualisation

What did you learn for the experience

Active Experimentation

Try out what you have learnt or planned

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David Kolb developed a four-stage reflective model which highlights reflective practice as a tool to conclude and gain information from an experience. It can turn the learning into new experiences to complete the reflective cycle.

Kolb's reflective theory cycle follows four stages.
First, practitioners have an experience. This means experiencing something new for the first time. The experience should be an active one to test new ideas and teaching.
This is then followed by observation. Observing the experience, then reflecting on the experience. Practitioners can consider the strengths and areas for improvement in their development. Practitioners can then form an understanding of what helped the learning of the experience and what didn't.
This would then lead to the the formation of abstract concepts. They will need to make sense of what has happened. They can do this through making links between what they have done, what they know and what they need to learn to improve. It is good practice to learn from what they already know and gain knowledge through research to help support their development and understanding. They could seek support from other colleagues and their knowledge. Practitioners can gain new ideas or create new approaches on what they have learnt from their observations and wider research.
Then, the practitioner should think of a way of how they are going to put what they have learnt into practice. The practitioner’s abstract concepts are then strengthened as they put into practice their ideas in the future, resulting in new experiences to reflect on. The observations and thoughts are then experimented as they implement new learning into their future teaching. The cycle is then repeated again to continue to learn and reflect on new practice.
Kolb’s model aims to show the importance of using both their own experiences and research to help to improve practice.

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Kolbs learning cycle

4 stages

Concrete experience-feeling

Reflective observation-watching

Abstract Conceptualization-thinking

Active experimentation- doing

Reflect on how you are feeling and doing tasks. Watching the task, thinking how task went and doing next what needs to be done to improve

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Kolb's Learning Cycle Explained with Example

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Brookfield

4 Lenses of Brookfield Model of reflection

This is not a cycle like Kolb and Gibbs and it is using many different ways to be reflective that it not all for you to do yourself. The stages are:

1. Autobiographical Lens- this is using self-reflection using past experience and current feelings or recording new learning.

2. Students Eyes-gaining the view of the learners

3. Colleagues experiences- you will gain new insight and views to improve your teaching or practice.

4. Theoretical lens- using reading and research to gain a better understanding to put into your teaching/practice.

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Kolbs reflective cycle Consist of ·

The concrete learning experience (Feeling)This stage required you to experience something.

Reflective observation (Watching) This is the stage where you are to think and reflect on that experience or learning.

Abstract conceptualization (Thinking) This stage is about thinking about what you have learnt from that experience

Active experimentation (Doing) This is about how you are going to put this learning into practice.

These 4 steps are then broken down into dominant styles which are always a combination of 2 learning preferences. They are called preferences because Kolb explains that learners develop natural preferences to how they enter the learning cycle because of their experiences and demands of their environments.  These styles are:

·       Accommodating

·       Diverging

·       Converging

·       Assimilating

In terms of using this in practice, everybody should be able to take new knowledge away from a training session if the learning cycle has been considered from the trainer.

Learners will develop new knowledge, gain valuable insights and become not only more effective learners but more confident learners. This could lead to a more positive outlook and attitude to learning with more detailed and accurate work/assignments. If there is a more positive attitude to learning, this may encourage the learner to want to complete their work to a high standard and make them eager to complete it. It also may give them the confidence to want to further their learning more and enrol in further education.

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Kolb: Concrete Experience – This stage is where a learner might have a new experience or learning.

Reflective Observation – In this stage the learner then reflects on the new learning using their existing knowledge or are there any inconsistencies between experience and understanding.

Abstract Conceptualization – In this stage the learner will reflect on or come up a new ideas, or a modify an existing learning from their experiences.

Active Experimentation The learner applies their ideas to their role in the setting.

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Six stages

Description-Describing activity/task completed

Feelings-How you feel about the task?

Evaluation-How did task go? Did it meets aims you wanted it too?

Analysis-Analysing the task. what would you do differnet? What went well? What would you change? How could it be improved

Conclusions- Concluding activity

Action plan-Making an action plan for next time to re do task and make any necessary changes

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Observations

Professional Discussions

Child Hood illnesses

Vanessa George-serious case review

Star Hobson-serious case review

Arthur Labanjo-Hughes-serious case review

Baby P-serious case review

Breast ironing

Cultural capital

OFSTED

The 5R’s in safeguarding

Soham Murders-Bichard inquiry

LADO- safeguarding

MASH- safeguarding

Autism

ADHD

Aspergers

SENCO role

Social services role

Police role

Atypical development

Formative assessment

Summative assessment

Rate and sequence of development

How lockdown affected children’s development

Different transitions children WILL experience

Transitions children MAY experience

Reason you are a key worker

2 year check

Operation limelight

Mary Ainsworth

John Bowlby

Maria Montessori

Jean Piaget

Reggio Emillia

Breast milk Vs Formula

Healthy diet for children

All these are things learners could either research, complete themselves and reflect how it went and what they could do different and how they can link it to their own practice. What went well, how can it support in job role etc

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Gibbs Model of reflection

This has 6 stages of an experience

1st one is description- Tell us about the experience or activity

2nd one is Feelings- what was your emotions and thoughts about the feelings and experience

3rd one is Evaluation- what went well or what went badly

4th one is Analysis- to make sense of the experience

5th one is - Conclusion- what have you learnt from this and what would you do differently

6th one - Action plan - what are you going to do know.

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Exploring Critical Reflection and Transformative Learning in Adult Education