michael smith
PPEA2 (M2B822721) Reflective Essay Assessment Guidance Background “Reflective practice is the capacity to reflect on action so as to engage in a process of continuous learning, which is one of the defining characteristics of professional practice. Reflective practice is an important tool in professional learning settings where individuals learn from their own experience.” (SCoR, 2016) Engaging in reflective practice is associated with the improvement of the quality of care, stimulating personal and professional growth and closing the gap between theory and practice. The difference between routine thinking and reflective thinking is that the former is static whereas the latter involves a willingness to learn and change by purposefully going through events sometime after they have occurred. Reflection is the process of looking back on what has been done, pondering on it and learning lessons from what did or did not work. The relationship between you and your placement mentors/assessor should provide regular opportunities for you both to reflect on your performance; we can therefore assume that daily work‐based supervision and assessment both contribute to reflective practice. In order to support your essay it is suggested that you keep a reflective diary. This will enable you to jot down events and your feelings about them on a daily/weekly basis, and then provide you with evidence from which to complete the essay. Assignment Using Johns Model of Reflection construct an essay to demonstrate your reflections on your placement learning to date, specifically using your Staged Assessment experience as a critical incident. Word Count: Must not exceed 2000 words Submission Date: 12noon Mon 9 th Jan (Feedback due Mon 30 th Jan) Weighting: 40% of the module mark (100% of the Portfolio component mark) Content Your essay should use the following structure:‐ • Introduction: Offer the rationale for reflective practice in placement learning, and introduce the reflective model. • Main Body (Johns Model of Reflection) o Description of the Experience o Reflection o Influencing Factors o Could I Dealt with It Better o Learning • Conclusion/Action Plan: Offer an evaluation of your learning from this critical incident, and what you intend to action as a result of this. (What could I have done better? What do you need to do now? What is your plan to achieve this?) Referencing It is expected that your coursework will be referenced, to show evidence of literature review and appropriate subject matter. The Harvard method of referencing should be used, as per the current GCU guidance in the module handbook. Presentation Your coursework must adhere to the following points:‐ • Insert a completed GCU coursework title page • Use font type Arial or Calibri: size 12 and 1.5‐2 spaced • A list of references used should be included at the end of your coursework • Headings should be used; subheadings can also be used if appropriate • Any Figures or Tables should be presented and labelled appropriately, following normal convention • Ensure you do not exceed the stated word limit (the word count should include all content text and in‐text references, but exclude title page, figures/tables, reference lists, and any appendices) Marking Criteria You are expected to extract appropriate experiences of significance, which are relevant to the module learning outcomes; to include appropriate literature within your reflective cycle; to be able to contextualise with respect to your current & learning/practice. A rubric will be used to guide the allocation of marks. NB. DO NOT identify either the hospital, any member of staff or patient by name. This breaches the Data Protection Act 1998. You should anonymise the above stating for example hospital X, radiographer X, patient x. Failure to comply will incur a penalty of 10% Submission You must submit one electronic copy of all components, by 12:00 of the date of submission, via Turnitin. Please ensure that you are familiar with the GCU Similarity Checking policy (available on GCULearn). Multiple draft submissions are allowed; only final originality reports for any given assignment will be considered for marking purposes. Failure to meet the submission deadline without good cause will result in a mark of zero for the coursework element concerned; students should contact the module leader at their earliest convenience regarding an extension if they suspect they may not be able to meet the submission deadline.
