Importance of Reflection in Education and Learning
Reflection is considered to be a necessity in the service learning community due to its positive impact on the augmentation of learning experiences for students (Hatcher, Bringle, & Muthiah, 2004). Reflection is also believed to be the core of the learning process and as a regular and systematic practice is considered to be an influential factor in professional training. Reflection is believed to facilitate the ability to develop concrete associations between theory and practice, which aids students to engage them in meaningful and educative learning (Eyler, 2000). Since reflection necessitates students to be engaged in lifelong learning through close and deep understanding of the impact of actions on personal and professional life, it is a holistic approach to learning and practice with the help of which, students develop the ability to be critical to the external knowledge they gain through learning as well as their own experiences in life.
Studies indicate that readers and students can comprehend the text more meaningfully of they can make a connection to it, which is why, reflection is considered to be a crucial aspect on learning programs (Fountas & Pinnell, 2001). Additionally, reflection enhances the learning process by facilitating the ability of students to draw upon, extend and develop deeper meanings to the context within which they are situated. This paper aims to conduct a reflective review of learning to illustrate the learning outcomes and processes through the course of studies related to childhood and youth. The paper aims to highlight the importance of reflection in personal development and learning processes of practitioners which has a positive effect on the outcomes and achievement of goals in the delivery of services to the affected children and youth. The paper is based on Kolb’s Learning cycle (1984) which facilitates the use of concrete experience to reflect upon the observation gained by the experience, which in turn would enable the learner to form abstract generalizations to experiment further when working in similar or distinct situations.
Reflection is defined as a continual and careful contemplation of any principle or information which has been gained and the data and experience which support these beliefs and experiences (Dewey, 1993). Reflection has also been defined as activities, rational and scholarly in nature, which engage individuals in explorative actions which further augment their knowledge and understanding. For instance, being associated with ‘The Children’s Society’ of UK has enabled me to strive to take action to support children who face fear of harm, which in turn has augmented my ability to understand and be sensitive to the various issues which these children are continually perplexed with. Poverty and discrimination are crucial issues which impact children and reflections through three years of studies have enlightened me that hope and confidence are the major determinants of success in such cases so that the affected children face the future with optimism. It is essential for practitioners to realize the importance of working support and appropriate timing when working with children who are young runaways or have faced neglect, abuse and isolation forcing them to run away from home. Working with these children necessitates not only theoretical learning practice, but also appropriate experiences for optimal service delivery and intervention. Through the process of reflection, it would be possible for the researcher to engage in active thinking rather than passive learning which would also enable the researcher to provide an opportunity to plan for future experiences based on previous instances (Reid, 1993).