Tutorial Unit 1
Reflection Brief
Reflection is a term describing a state of being that involves deep thought about the past, usually as it relates to the person who is reflecting on it. This state of being is commonly used as a tool for self-evaluation.
The Gibbs model, known as Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle (1988), is understood to be a six-stage framework designed to help individuals to structure learning from their own experiences, with particular emphasis on repetitive situations. It is designed to promote deep reflection by covering the six stages known as description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action plan. This is to ensure improvement of professional practice, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness.
In order to complete these six stages, you must describe what happened by setting the scene, providing the facts, and noting who was involved, completing stage 1. You must then describe what you were thinking and feeling, with emphasis on honest reflection of your emotional reactions, completing stage 2. You. must then evaluate what was good and bad about the experience, completing stage 3. You must then bring in outside theories and compare them with others, completing stage 4. You must then consider what else you could have done and what you’ve learned, completing stage 5. Finally, you must consider what you will do next time, completing the entire cycle.
https://reflection.ed.ac.uk/reflectors-toolkit/reflecting-on-experience/gibbs-reflective-cycle
https://my.cumbria.ac.uk/media/MyCumbria/Documents/ReflectiveCycleGibbs.pdf
https://www.hee.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/documents/Gibbs%20Reflection%20model.pdf
In my experience studying the course in Cardiff & Vale College, I’ve had several different subjects spanning English, Mathematics, Science, and the Social Sciences, with each subject led by different teachers.
I felt nervous but excited, and then at ease, growing more familiar day by day with the students, the teachers, and the subjects. Reactions to my work from the teachers have been generally positive, and reactions to me from the students have been friendly and welcoming.
In evaluating my experience studying at the college, I feel positive about how it’s gone, in terms of building friendships and furthering my educational goals.
My experience has been different from others in my class, due to a diverse mix of cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and age ranging from young adulthood to retirement age. This has given me the impression that learning is for everyone, regardless of where they’re coming from or where they are in their lives. In that respect, I feel included and validated in my experience.
In conclusion, I have had a positive experience at Cardiff & Vale College, and would recommend it to anyone who’s thinking about enrolling.
In terms of what I would do next time, I would hand in assignment work more quickly by managing my time rather than waiting until the last minute or handing in work late.
Kolb’s model of reflection, from 1984, is a four-stage, cyclical learning process based on experience. The four stages encompass concrete experience (which is doing), reflective observation (which is reviewing), abstract conceptualisation (which is learning and forming conclusions), and active experimentation (which is planning and testing). The point is to highlight that learning is an ongoing, experiential process in which reflecting on actions leads to newfound understanding, which in turn is then tested as new situations arise.
Key features of this model include its cyclical nature, in which learning is continuous and iterative, being designed for ongoing development rather than a single event; its applications, in which it is widely used in education and professional practice in order to transform experiences into knowledge; and learning styles, where by which Kolb suggested that individuals may prefer different stages of the cycle, leading to the four learning styles of diverging, assimilating, converging, and accommodating.
https://www.nicole-brown.co.uk/reflective-model-according-to-kolb/
https://libguides.hull.ac.uk/reflectivewriting/kolb
https://www.hee.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/documents/Kolb%20learning%20cycle.pdf
My concrete experience of being at Cardiff & Vale College involves attending the lessons, which span a variety of subjects, and completing the work assigned to me, while getting to know the teachers and the other students.
In terms of my reflection on the experience of studying at the college, I feel that I’ve made positive progress, from being unsure of myself, to furthering my educational goals and managing to get productive work done. I had no particular links to the skills required of me except for English, in which my writing experience helped me out. Other than that, I only had prior knowledge of English, Mathematics, and Science from my high school years and to some extent my initial college years.
My reflection is based on having been learning several subjects for the first time in several years, thereby having to regain my footing, as well as delving in subjects such as social science where I have no prior experience. Fortunately, with the support of my teachers and the students in my class, I have been able to get through the course so far without much difficulty, with only my assignment work where I was left to work on my own, being a major hurdle for me to overcome.
In terms of moving forward, I plan to continue studying, with emphasis on getting all my assignment work handed in on time, and putting more time into exam practice. Specifically, I will spend up to quarter of an hour every day outside of college working on assignments or exam practice, being able to measure my progress across each week, and making sure it’s achievable, realistic, and targeted.
If I recall correctly, I was unsure of what to expect when first starting the course in Autumn, feeling a mixture of nervousness and anticipation. I was unfamiliar with my timetable, and with the geography of the building, so it took some getting used to, with the reception office being a source of help in getting me started. After that unsure start, I would become more comfortable and at ease with my place in the course.
In terms of what happened to me on the course, I attempted to attend all my classes on time, though didn't always manage it, particularly in the mornings. I kept all my notes and assignments together, but without an idea of how they should be organised. My submission feedback has been useful in guiding my work in the right direction, giving me a sense of where I was doing well and what I could improve on.
The biggest challenge I faced was getting to know the various lessons, some of which I’d no experience with, while others I hadn’t formally studied in years. This was an issue of familiarity, which would become easier as the course progressed.
I feel that I have largely faced this challenge, however new hurdles are still arising with the assignments, causing me to put in a level of effort that I hadn’t initially been prepared for.
I feel that I have settled into the course by this stage, though there are still difficult elements which I have been caught off guard by, even well into the course. I feel now that I’m comfortable with the students and teachers, though the replacement maths teachers have taken some getting used to, and I am generally well settled into the course, with the caveat that I am less confident in how I will do with my exams, due to them being a new and challenging aspect of the course.
My least favourite part of the course has been the rushed mock exams where I’ve felt pressured for time and haven’t been able to complete them as a result. This prevented me from being able to do my best work, leaving me less than pleased with what I had managed to get done in the time limit.
My favourite part of the course has been the selected topic of our choice that we had to do an English presentation on, due to the freedom it gave me to be able to discuss subject matter that I was personally invested in and passionate about, enabling me to get some of my best writing done.
If there is an area that I’m worried, anxious or concerned about, then it is the exams, due to my doubt as to whether I’ll be able to pass them, particularly in maths due to my poor understanding of the subject at the level we’re currently working at, and not knowing where to begin practicing or if it will even be useful due to the sheer vastness and complexity of the subject.
If there has been a moment where I’ve felt proud of myself on the course, then I would say it’s having been able to deliver my English presentation, due to the difficulty of giving a spoken word presentation in front of a classroom.
I feel that I am on the right course, due to the range of subjects, the friendly students, and the supportive teachers. The fact that it opens pathways to future courses further ensures that it is the right course for me to be on.
I am looking forward to completing the course and hopefully passing all my exams.
There’s nothing else that immediately comes to mind when thinking about what to offer feedback on in terms of my feelings and experiences at the college, except for the lunch options, which are conveniently located for the sake of time, and have been instrumental in providing me the energy I need to get through the day.
The skills I need to develop in order to get the most out of the course, are intermediate to advanced understanding of mathematics, time management and frequent practice for future work such as exams and mock exams.
The half term before Christmas felt like things were steadily coming to a close, with the festive atmosphere starting to sink in as it neared its end. In terms of what I can remember, I’m pretty sure it went well, and that I was well settled into the course by that point.
I feel that the last half term went well enough that I don’t have any bad impressions or bad memories of it, and that it paved the way for me to continue on with the course. The parts that could’ve been improved have to do with the work where I was left unsupervised to get on with it by myself, resulting in missed deadlines. The rest went well due to the support from teachers and other students, who helped guide me through it.
My performance as a student was pretty good if my memory serves me correctly, due to having shown up for lessons and got on with the work.
My strengths as a student were writing down the notes in my lined books, and using the internet as an effective research tool, enabling me to have a solid basis from which to get work done. In particular, I was proud of the spoken word presentations I delivered in English and Social Science.
My weaknesses have to do with slowness in getting work completed, missing deadlines, having disorganised papers, and my limited theoretical understanding of complex subjects such as science and mathematics.
I’ve identified areas for improvement by reflecting on the course so far, looking through what I’ve studied subject by subject as a basis for comparison.
I’m working on these areas by being more reflective and self-aware, and dedicating time to getting work done that is otherwise incomplete.
I don’t know what I’m studying next year, but I would like to continue to the current course until it is completed, and then focus on honing in on a specialist subject of my choosing, which for me would be something in the arts, such as music.
I feel confident that my skills will be at the right level, due to the positive work I’ve got done on the course so far, and my interest in the arts, creativity, and the technical side of polishing up work, such as music production and post-production.
What I need to develop in order to move forward is my productivity and confidence, my sense of completion of the previous stage of where I’m at in my education, and my ambitions for the future.
The second Spring term in college has been a positive experience, building on the previous terms in terms of my progression and confidence in the course.
What has gone well about this last term is that I’m well adjusted and comfortable in my course, having had two previous terms to build on. The class discussions have always gone well, with many people offering interesting and thought-provoking contributions.
What went less well has to do with the shift in maths teachers from who we were familiar with, to teachers that we had no familiarity with, making for a period of adjustment.
This year, my strengths as a student have been my attention to what’s written on the board, my fast note-taking, my use of the internet as a research tool, and my descriptive writing. I have felt proud of the spoken word presentations I’ve delivered, combining the skills of research, writing, and speaking in front of people.
Skills I’ve improved over the year have been my comprehension of all the subjects studied and the theoretical implications accompanying them, and my analytical writing.
My weaknesses are getting distracted, not being able to complete work under time pressure, missing deadlines, not contributing as much to group discussions as other students, and reliance on analysis from the internet over my own comprehension of what I’ve learned in class for answering questions.
I’ve identified areas for improvement by reflecting my year studying and looking at where I’ve faltered and where I’ve succeeded. This has helped to give me an understanding of what my areas for improvement are.
I’m working on these areas by reflecting on them and thinking carefully about how to improve in regard to these shortcomings. This means slow and steady progress in the right direction, as much as I feel able to having reflected, most notably in terms of getting all the assignment work handed in before the deadlines .
My Plan A for the next academic year is still unsure at the moment, but I have ideas about what I would like to go on to do. I would like to finish the course I’m currently on, whether or not it ends this year or requires another year, and then move on to a course specialising in a subject that I feel passionate about and have some experience in. For me, something like music production or music composition would be good to fill this desire, or something else in the arts. As for the entry requirements, passing my current course would be a good start, and hopefully enough to grant me access into whatever I plan to study next.
I feel confident that I will have the skills necessary for the course that I will plan to do next year, due to my progress on the current course, and my outside interests that I’m pursuing at home.
My Plan B for the next academic year might be to study another course, or to quit studying entirely and to find myself a job while pursuing further goals independently of the education system. There will be no entry requirements necessary, with only my life experience to go on.
In order to get the most out of the access course, I need to develop my theoretical understanding of the more complex subjects such as mathematics, science, and the social sciences, to work on my organisational skills, and to dedicate a certain amount of time each day to studying and completing assignment work.