Need assignment by using documents

Conclusion

Keep the Introduction and Conclusion short; they are not the focus of the paper

The aims of using Gibbs’ reflective cycle:

• to challenge your assumptions

• to explore different/new ideas and approaches towards doing or thinking about things

• to promote self-improvement

(by identifying strengths and weaknesses and taking action to address them)

• to link practice and theory

(by combining doing or observing with thinking or applying knowledge)

Using analysis in Gibbs’ model

In theory, the reflective process follows the 6 steps of the model so that each step informs the next. Students often confuse the Evaluation, Analysis and Conclusion stages. These parts seem to ask similar questions, so you must do your best to avoid a lot of repetition. Analytical writing is required in the Analysis stage. The other 5 steps are made up of statements of description, statements of value (whether something was good or bad), statements of summation or statements of justification (why something was done). Most sections may have 1-2 references to literature, but the analysis section has extensive citation and referencing.

Using a word count

It may be useful to use a word count for each step of the cycle in order to avoid overwriting. Use the table below as a general guide. Remember to adjust the word count if you need to include an Introduction and Conclusion as part of your assignment.

				Approximate number of words for each stage of the reflection:
Steps			%	1,000 word reflection:	1,500 word reflection:	2,000 word reflection:	2,500 word reflection:
1	Description	20%*		200*	300*	400*	500*
2	Feeling	10-20%		150	225	300	375
3	Evaluation	20%		200	300	400	500
4	Analysis	30%		300	450	600	750
5	Conclusion	5-10%		75	112	150	187
6	Action Plan	5-10%		75	112	150	187

*try to keep the Description step as short as possible; it carries the fewest marks in terms of assessment

Including references in your reflective writing

You have been asked to include references in reflection, so you can use research (recent studies), policy documents (from relevant bodies) or theory (from academic sources) to support your reflections. This means most sections should have 1-2 references/citations. You use references:

• to show why something is done in a certain way (e.g. by referring to a policy guideline)

• to explain what brought about certain feelings or reactions (e.g. by quoting a theory)

• to explain what went well or what went badly (e.g. a policy guideline, a piece of research or a theory could be used to explain why a certain action had a positive or a negative outcome)

• to discuss what could have been done differently (e.g. policy, research or theory could be used to support your reflection that doing things differently could have had a better outcome)

• to justify why you plan to do something (e.g. a research paper might be used to show the value of developing a specific skill or of acquiring relevant knowledge)

A template for using Gibbs’ model

Use the questions and guidelines in the template below to help you write each stage of the model.

In this model, you are using an example of your personal experience that demonstrates the concepts

in the article that you have read. For example, if the article is about Double Loop Learning, you will think

of an example from your life where you used OR DID NOT USE double loop learning and follow the steps

below to tell us about it.

Use the headings from each section to organize your writing. (Remember to start with the introduction and

end with a final conclusion, as discussed on p. 1 of this handout). You do not have to answer all the

questions. Select those that are relevant to your experience.

Introduction - As outlined on Page 1 of this handout

Description
Using specific and relevant detail, give a concise description of your experience (i.e. what you are reflecting on). It should show us an experience that demonstrates the main concept in the article. (NOT taken from the article)
this part is descriptive, it describes a personal experience (no references here): MAXIMUM 20% of writing

Feelings
Answer any of the following questions that you think are relevant to the experience: How did you feel and what did you think prior to the experience? How did you feel and what did you think during the experience? How did you react during the experience? How did you feel and what did you think after the experience? Compare to events/concepts in the paper: how are they the same? Different?
this part is not analytical, it is descriptive, it describes personal feelings, thoughts and actions (reactions)

Evaluation
Answer any of the following questions that you think are relevant to the experience: What went well during the experience (what worked)? What went badly during the experience (what didn’t work)? How did the experience end? Was the experience complete (was there a resolution) or incomplete? Connect to events/concepts in the paper - add 1-2 reference citations here
this part makes positive and/or negative judgements about an experience
if a lot of different things happened during the experience, focus on one or two, try to choose the things that are most important, most relevant or most representative of the experience

Taken from © 2016 Peter Lia: Learning Support Tutor [email protected] adapted for MGMT 601