CBL Reflection Guidelines
Reflection is the key to getting meaning from your service experience. What is reflection? It is a process by which community-based learners think critically about their experiences. Why is reflection important? Learning happens through a mix of theory and practice, thought and action, observation and interaction. Reflection connects theory with practice, and allows students to learn from themselves.
What should I write in my journal?
Here are some ingredients that should go into keeping a great journal:
- Journals should be snapshots filled with sights, sounds, concerns, insights, doubts, fears, and critical questions about issues, people, and, most important, about yourself. But, a journal is not simply a work log of tasks, events, times, and dates.
- Honesty is a most important ingredient to successful journals.
- Link the coursework to your experiences in very specific ways. What concepts, data, or theories from this course help you make meaning and sense out of your service learning experiences?
- Write an entry after each visit or contact. If you can't write a full entry, jot down thoughts, images, etc. You can come back to these notes later in order to expand on your experience. Procrastination or long delays between journaling is the kiss of reflective death.
The Three Levels of Reflection
Don't simply answer the questions listed below, but use them as a diving board to leap into a pool of thought and clarity.
The Microscope (Makes the small experience large)
Be descriptive and detailed about a particular event or experience. What happened? What have I learned in my coursework that informs my analysis of the situation? What have I learned about this organization, these people, or the community? Do I think my actions had any impact? What leads me to this conclusion? What more needs to be done?
The Binoculars (Makes what appears distant, appear closer)
What underlying or overarching issues influence the problem/situation that the organization is attempting to address? How is the issue/ organization I'm serving impacted by what is going on in the larger political/ economic/ social sphere? What could be done to change the situation for the better? What have I learned in my coursework that informs my analysis of the societal “big picture?”
The Mirror (A clear reflection of the self)
Who am I? What are my values? What have I learned about myself through this experience? How am I feeling about my experiences? Do I have more/less understanding or empathy than I did before doing this service learning? In what ways, if any, have my sense of self, my values, my sense of “community,” my self-confidence/self-esteem, or my career goals been impacted or altered by this experience? How have I challenged myself, my ideals, my philosophies, and the way I live? Are there any realizations, insights, or especially strong lessons learned or half-glimpsed?
A Simpler 4-Step Cycle Model of Reflection
- Observe it, experience it, and record it.
- Reflect on it. Use prior learning in your reflection. Record it.
- Develop a new understanding. Record it.
- Put your new understanding into action. Do it.
And the bottom line……
Criteria
For your journal to be acceptable, you must:
- Insightfully reflect upon what you have learned about yourself through this experience.
- Describe your experiences and discuss the most meaningful aspects of them, relative to your own learning.
- In accurate, useful, and appropriate ways, apply concepts, frameworks, theories, and other course materials you have been exposed to this semester as you make meaning of your service learning experiences. Explicit, specific references course materials such as readings, handouts, and media must be made.
- Use effective basic communication abilities in your journal.
Materials adapted from Alverno College's Service Learning Program
