REFLECTIVE WRITING

AND CRITICAL
THINKING
Teaching & Learning Principles Unit-I
Imran Waheed Demonstrator (INS-KMU)
 Objectives
• By the end of this session the students will be able to:
• Discuss thinking process; to understand the process of
reflective observation.
• List and Compare types of thinking.
• Define critical thinking.
• Discuss the components of critical thinking
• Define reflection.
• Discuss types and process of reflections
• Analyze the role of critical thinking in reflective
practice.
• Explain the process of journal writing.
 Human Brain Thinking Process
• The thinking process was oriented by
DR.ELIYAHUGOLDRATT TOM.

• It is a mechanism that allows us to verbalize,

construct, analyze, and communicate cause and
effect relationships to propose feasible solutions
to the problems.
• "The world we have created is a product of our
thinking; it cannot be changed without changing
our thinking.“ Albert Einstein
 Human Brain Thinking Process
• Thinking exists as the top mental
activity demonstrated by Human.
• All human accomplishments and
advancement come from the results
of thought.
• Thought and activity are inseparable.
• All human normally perceives an action in
his mind before undertaking an activity.
• Cognition refers to the thought process.
 Types of Thinking
• It can be divided into several opposing categories;
• Concrete Thinking vs. Abstract Thinking
• Convergent Thinking vs. Divergent Thinking
• Creative Thinking vs. Analytical Thinking •
• Sequential (linear) Thinking vs. Holistic Thinking
 Conti…
Concrete Thinking vs. Abstract Thinking
• Concrete thinking refers to the thinking on the surface or are
visible allowing any individual to observe and understand
whereas abstract thinking requires much more analysis and
goes deeper.
• Concrete thinking will only consider the literal meaning while
abstract thinking goes deeper than the facts to consider
multiple or hidden meanings.
• Concrete thinking refers to the process of comprehending
and
applying factual knowledge.
• Abstract thinking goes beyond all the visible and present things
to find underlying purpose.
• Example:
A concrete thinker will look at the flag and only sees
specific colors, marking, or symbols that appear on the cloth. An
abstract thinker would see the flag as a symbol of a country or
organization. They may also see it as a symbol of liberty and
 Conti…
Convergent thinking vs. Divergent thinking
• Convergent thinking involves bringing facts and data
together from various sources and then applying logic
and knowledge to solve problems or to make
informed decisions or to find a single answer.
• Example;
Sherlock Holmes. puzzles
 .

fact
fact s fact
s s
answe
r
 Conti…
• Divergent thinking, involves breaking a topic apart to
explore its various component parts and then
generating new ideas and solutions.
• Thinking outwards instead of inward.
• A creative process of developing original and
unique ideas.
idea

idea stimulus idea

idea
 Conti…
Analytical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking
• Analytical thinking is about breaking information down
into its parts and examining those parts their relationship.
• It involves thinking in a logical, systematic order to analyze
data, solve problems, make decisions, and/or use
information.
• Creative thinking, refers to conceiving new and innovative
ideas by breaking from established thoughts, theories,
rules, and procedures.
• It is not about breaking things down or taking them apart, but
rather putting things together in new and imaginative
ways.
• Example:
An analytical thinker may look at a bicycle to determine
how it works or what is wrong with it. A creative thinker
may look at the same bicycle and think or an new way to
make it faster or a new way to use it.
 Conti…
Sequential Thinking vs. Holistic Thinking
• Sequential thinking is processing information in orderly
prescribed manner. It involves a step-by-step progression
where the first step needs to be completed before then second step
occurs.
If a = b, and b = c, then a = c
• Holistic thinking, means seeing the big picture and recognize
the interconnectedness of various components that form
larger systems.
Example:
When assembling a table, a sequential thinker would follow the
step-by-step directions. A holistic thinker would want to see or
mentally visualize how the table would look when it is
completed.
 Critical
Definition:
Thinking
A careful and goal-directed thinking that is used to
assess complicated situations, identify actual and
potential problems, and make decisions about an
action plan.
• Critical Thinking (CT) is considered a fundamental
cognitive process for knowledge development and
utilization; and it is applicable to problem solving
and decision making in any context whether it is
social, clinical, ethical, managerial, or political
(Simpson & Courtney,
2002)
 Key Components of Critical Thinking
• 1. The process of thinking is as significant as the outcome
• 2. Be attuned to your own beliefs, values, and prejudices
as
well as your personal experiences
• 3. Challenge assumptions
• 4. Consider the arguments
• 5. Consider alternatives
• 6. Consider the context
• 7. Know the sources of information
• 8. Assume a posture of reflective skepticism
 Nursing and Critical
Thinking
• The ability of critical thinking increases as the
work years increase, and the critical thinking
skills can be improved during nursing education.
• Be rapid and dynamic change in the health care
system, nurses in providing optimal patient care,
problem solving, ethical decision making,
determine priorities and trends in clinical decision
making and critical thinking skills you need to use
(Yıldırım 2010b)
 Reflection Definition:
• Reflection is an important human activity in which
people recapture their experience, think about it,
ponder over & evaluate it. It is working with
experience that is important in learning’.
OR
• “Reflection is an essential phase in the learning process
whereby people explore their experiences in a
conscious manner in order to acquire new
understandings and new behaviour patterns.”
(Professor Peter Jarvis ,1987).
• Reflective practice is "the capacity to reflect on
action so as to engage in a process of continuous
learning
What matter most is how you
see yourself.
 Critical Reflection
• Think about an experience or event that revealed an area of concern
(Boyed & Fales, 1983; Baker, 1996)
• E.g. nursing student making a clinical error
• Lack of knowledge about a disease
• Personal assumption or bias towards a patient
• Learn about yourself, your gaps in knowledge, assumptions and biases and
thought processes.
• Adopting to new knowledge through personal growth and change .
Reflection:
Informal & Formal
Informal Reflection
• Involves self- questioning • Develops our awareness of our own
assumptions(true without proof)
Formal Reflection
• Draws on research & theory
• Provides guidance & frameworks for practice.
 What is Reflective Learning?
• Reflective learning is a learned process that requires time
and practice.
• It is an active process involving thinking through the
issues yourself, asking questions and seeking out relevant
information to aid your understanding .
• Reflective learning works best when you think about what
you
are doing before, during and after your learning
experience.
• Reflective learning is not only about recognizing
something new, it is also to see reality in a new way.
• Reflection is an important skill to develop and requires you
to think about how you are personally relating to what is
 Process of Reflective Learning
What do I think about this\
issue/topic/experience?

- Explore my understanding, perceptions and ideas

- Question my assumptions
- Identify anything confusing or difficult to understand
- What more do I need to know to help my understanding

Develop and refine my Identify, locate and interpret

ideas and beliefs relevant information and
resources

How can I use this experience to improve my

learning, thinking and working?
e.g. What would I do differently next time?
 What should you write about?
• What do you think about issues discussed at the
learning event?
• What do you understand so far?
• How can you reach a better understanding?
• What do you need to know more about, and how can
you go about finding out more?
• What resources have helped you to understand and/or
been interesting to use?
 Cont...
• How do you feel about the way you have approached
the subject/topic so far?
• Have you changed your opinions or values during
process/experience?
• How can you improve your learning, thinking and
working in the future?
• Have you identified the next step for your
development?
 Models or Frameworks of Reflection
• Models OR frameworks for reflection, encourage a
structured process to guide the act of reflection.
There is no right model.
• Often it is appropriate to use one model of reflection
as a basis, but use prompt questions from other
models if they best fit your particular situation.
Common models
• Kolb’s
• Gibbs'
• Johns'
• Driscoll (by Borton)
David A. Kolb’s experiential cycle
(Kolb 1984)
Concrete
experience

Active
experimentation cycle Reflective
observation

Abstract
conceptualisation
 Gibbs' Model
• Graham Gibbs developed his reflective cycle
(Gibbs 1988) based upon each stage of David
A. Kolb’s experiential cycle (Kolb 1984).
• Full structured analysis of a situation
• Most commonly used model by health
care professionals
 Johns' Model
• Christopher Johns designed his model for structured
reflection (Johns 2006) through analyzing the
dialogue between practitioners and their supervisors .
• Johns used Barbara Carper’s patterns of knowing in his
model (Carper 1978) which includes the following:
• Aesthetics (the art of what we do)
• Personal (self awareness)
• Ethics (moral knowledge)
• Empirics (scientific knowledge)
 Driscoll (by Borton)
• Terry Borton’s (1970) 3 stem questions: 'were developed
by John Driscoll in 1994, 2000 and 2007.
• 1. What?
• 2. So What?
• 3. Now What?
This is a description of the event.
Trigger questions: What…
… is the purpose of returning to
this situation?
… what happened?
… did other people do who were
involved in this?
… did I see/do?
 Conti…
• Trigger questions:
So what…
What did I feel at the time of the event?
Is there any change in my feelings
now?
Is there anyone who can help me to reflect on my
practice? Were those feelings I had different from other
people?
Trigger questions: Now what…
Are the implications for me and others in clinical practice based on what I
have described and analyzed?
Is the main learning that I take from reflecting on my practice in this way?
Help do I need to help me 'action' the results of my reflections?
…aspect should be tackled first?
How can I modify my practice if a similar situation arises
 Layers of reflection - exercise
• Reflection involves describing, analyzing
and
• evaluating our thoughts, assumptions,
beliefs,
• theory base and actions.
 Simple example: layers of reflection
• I saw a health care member inserting ETT
• Level 1: Descriptive

• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had not seen
before.
• Level 2: Descriptive, some reflection

• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had not seen
before. It really sensitized me!
• Level 3: Descriptive, reflection and awareness/learning.

• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had not seen
before. It really sensitized me! I will learn and try it under
supervision.
• Level 4: Descriptive, reflection, learning and future action.
 Layers of Reflection
• I saw a health care member inserting ETT
• Level 1: Descriptive
• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had
not seen before.
• Level 2: Descriptive, some reflection
• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had
not seen before. It really sensitized me!
• Level 3: Descriptive, reflection and awareness/learning.
• I saw a health care member inserting ETT, which I had
not seen before. It really sensitized me! I will learn and try
it under supervision.
• Level 4: Descriptive, reflection, learning and future
 Reflective Practice
Description
• Layered with your reflection using emotions
– your awareness of yourself in the action.
• Layered again with what you learned from reflection
and awareness
• Layered again with how and what you learned
through your reflection has changed your
– Future learning, thinking, behaviour, ideas
 Gibb’s Reflective Model (1988)
• Gibbs' suggestions are often cited as Gibbs'
reflective cycle or Gibbs' model of reflection
(1988), and simplified into the following six
distinct stages:
• Description
• Feelings
• Evaluation
• Analysis
• Conclusion
• Action plan
Gibb’s Reflective Model Cont…..
Description:
• "What happened? Don't make judgments yet or try to draw conclusions; simply describe.

Feelings:
• "What were your reactions and feelings? Again don't move on to analyzing these yet."

Evaluation:
• "What was good or bad about the experience? Make value judgments.

Analysis:
• "What sense can you make of the situation? Bring in ideas from outside the experience to
help you.“
• "What was really going on?" • "Were different people's experiences similar or different in
important ways?"

Conclusions:
• "What can be concluded from these experiences and the analysis you have undertaken?
Personal Action Plans:
• "What are you going to do differently in this type of situation next time?"
• "What steps are you going to take on the basis of what you have learnt?"
 Gibbs' Model of Reflection
• Description
What happened?
• Feelings
What were your thinking and feelings?
• Evaluation
What was good and bad about experience?
• Analysis
What sense can you make of the situation?
• Conclusion
What else could you have done?
• Action plan
If it rose again what would you do?
 Process of Journal Writing

A journal is a continued series of writings made by a

person in response to their life experiences and events.
Diaries contain a description of daily events.
A journal may include those descriptions, but it also
contains reflections on what took place and expresses
emotions and understandings about them.
It doesn't matter what you call your writing, either a
diary or journal, as long as you see the distinction
between these two ways of writing.
 Learning journal

• A learning journal is a collection of notes, observations,

thoughts and other relevant materials built‐up over a
period of study time , learning and/or working
experience.
• Its purpose is to enhance your learning through the
process of writing and thinking about your
learning experiences.
• Your learning journal is personal to you and will reflect
your personality, preferences and experiences.
• Journal writing encourages learners to reflect on their
practices.
 Why use a learning journal?
• To provide a “live” picture of your growing understanding of
a subject experience.
• To demonstrate how your learning is developing.
• To keep a record of your thoughts and ideas throughout your
experiences.
• To help you identify your strengths, areas for improvement
and preferences in learning.
• A learning journal helps you to be reflective about your
learning, this means that your journal should not be a
purely descriptive account of what you did but an
opportunity to communicate your thinking process: how
and why you did what you did.
 How to Structure your learning
journal
Your learning journal may be:
• A learning log
• A fieldwork diary or personal development planner.
• A journal could be a notebook, an electronic
document or sometimes recorded verbally on tape.
• Choose a method that works best for you!
 Critical
Thinking
The intellectually disciplined process of actively
and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing,
synthesizing, and/or evaluating information
gathered from, or generated by, observation,
experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as
a guide to belief and action.
(Michael Scriven & Richard Paul, 1987)
 Critical Thinking in Nursing

A composite of attitudes, knowledge, and skills that

include “defining a problem, choosing information for
the solution, recognizing stated and unstated
assumptions, formulating and selecting relevant and
promising hypotheses, drawing conclusions, and
judging the validity of the inferences” (Hickman, 1993)
 Critical thinking in nursing
Rubenfeld (2000).
•Critical thinking in nursing is an essential component of
professional accountability and quality nursing care. Critical
thinkers in nursing exhibit these habits of the mind:
confidence, contextual perspective, creativity, flexibility,
inquisitiveness, intellectual integrity, intuition, open-
mindedness, perseverance, and reflection.
•Critical thinkers in nursing practice the cognitive skills of
analyzing, applying standards, discriminating, information
seeking, logical reasoning, predicting, and transforming
(knowledge. (p. 357)
 Nursing And Critical
Thinking
•The ability of critical thinking increases as the work years
increase, and the critical thinking skills can be improved
during nursing education.
•Be rapid and dynamic change in the health care system, nurses
in providing optimal patient care, problem solving, ethical
decision making, determine priorities and trends in clinical
decision making and critical thinking skills you need to use
(Yıldırım 2010b).
 References
• Coughlan, A (2007-08). Reflective
learning: keeping a reflective, learning
journal. DCU Student Learning Resources.
(p.1-4)
• https://www.dcu.ie/sites/default/files/studen
ts/Ref lectiv elearning.pdf Retrieved on
13/10/2020
• Özkahraman, Yildirim, B. An Overview of
Critical Thinking in Nursing and Education.
American International Journal of Contemporary
Research
• http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/
ref lectio n.html Retrieved on 13/10/2020
T h e o n l y t i m e y o u m u s t n ' t f a i l is
t h e l as t t i m e you try.
Charles K e t t e r i n g