Reflecting: journals and learning (b)logs

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What can reflection assess?

Reflective writing requires:

response to experiences, events or new information
recognition of thoughts and emotions
exploration and relating to what is already known / understood
gaining self-knowledge
clarity of communication
making meaning
action planning.

This means that we can measure the understanding that is represented within the writing as we would with any written account; the concepts used, the links to literature and theory etc. Also, we can measure that writing style itself; structure, clarity and presentation. Finally we can - a bit more contentiously - measure the degree of reflection.

As with all assessment methods, the key is constructive alignment to the learning outcomes; what are the expectations of the learner and how will the method enable them to demonstrate their achievement of these demands and to what level?

What alternative assessment methods can I choose?

< Back to Assessment Methods selector

Design

Below are some example designs to illustrate the types of information that we might need to give to learners.

Reflective journal on a group project

You will submit individual weekly journal entries [formative feedback will be given] and at the end of the semester you will also submit your full, aggregated collection of entries so that your final journal covers the entire semester. Your full collection may include some or all of your weekly entries, or you may choose to revise some or all of them based upon the feedback you have received. It is the final journal that will count for marks.

To get you started we list some of the things that you should be thinking about and could include in your journal.

In terms of the group work:

what did you learn during the group work
what did you contribute?
what did the others contribute?
how do you think that the group is getting along? how could things be improved?
how well is the group getting on with the project? how could things be improved?

In terms of your own work

how are you linking what you learn in the project to what you already know and understand?
- what do you think you understand better?
- what do you need to work on?
did you try something new?
- did it work?
- what did you learn from it?
did you change your thinking as a result of
- what you learned in the project work this week?
- what another member said?
did you have a light bulb moment?
have you gained any new approaches / views from the way others work?
- how will this change you?
in terms of your groups skills:
- what is working?
- what is not working
- what do you need to change?
  - how will you do this?
thinking of your academic skills:
- which are helping you in this project?
- what gaps are you noticing?
  - what will you do about the gaps?
how are you feeling about the project?

Impact beyond the project

what new research skills have you gained?
- how will these help you?
- which skills do you need to develop?
what new knowledge / understanding have you gained?
what new technological skills have you gained
- what technology skills do you need to work on?
  - how will you gain them
what comes next?

Reflective log

It is recommended you keep a reflective learning log and the entries will create your own progress report on what you are doing and learning. It should be written throughout the module and not all at once at the end of the module. It should be a mixture of log book [what you have done], diary [how you are feeling about what you are doing and learning] and should be directly linked to the content and learning outcomes for the module. It can be written any time, any place and will assist you in gaining a better understanding of yourself and how you learn.

Blogs

Your blog (weblog) is a web page where you can make regular additions [posts] over time, with the most recent displayed first. You can post hyperlinks, images, audio and video as well as text. Your blog will be shared with others in your group and they will be able comment on your posts [as you can on theirs].

The blog could run alongside another assessment task, such as a project or presentation. Blogs can help define individual contributions to group working and provide a record of the working process.

It is important to consider the fairness of the word count: 10 posts of 300 words each may well be harder to generate than a 3000 word essay, as each post requires specific reading and an original argument or point.

General guidance for learners: keys to success on reflective writing

be critical: just saying what you did is not enough. So what? is the questions that should guide your writing
keep it formal-ish: you can take a less formal approach in your journal than your usual essays, but this is still a scholarly and critical piece of work
be specific: you need to select the pertinent and significant and relate these to the experience / learning
needs evidence: the journal / log will make claims about your learning - these need to be backed up with evidence, links to the theory, views of others, what you already know and understand
needs a structure: links to the formal-ish point above - a structure will help you to keep on track and cover all of the bases; this is critical and thoughtful writing not a mind-dump.

Diversity & Inclusion Academic Integrity

Given the personal nature of these sort of documents there should be less opportunity for academic misconduct. In addition, regular feedback on the building of the log or journal can assist in checking ownership. (Click for further guidance on academic integrity.)

AI can mimic any sort of genre or style, so the rubric of reflective writing doesn't grant immunity. However, if students buy-in to the process of reflective practice/learning, and find benefit in doing so, they may be less inclined to spend time engineering prompts to coax AI tools into creating 'reflection'. AI tools which support the process of reflection, acting as individual coaches, asking the right questions, getting to know learners through their reflective writing might promote and enhance the experience of reflection.

Staff and student experience

Benefits Challenges

Writing a reflective account requires a different style of writing to essay-type assignments that students are more familiar with. One element students tend to struggle with is being critical and incorporating enough analysis and evaluation into their reflective report. Detailed guidance and, possibly, access to and discussion of good examples will assist with this.

Students often struggle with the balance of informality [writing a personal diary-type document] with the formality needed to maintain some degree of academic style / norm. Selecting the significant wheat from the superfluous chaff can be demanding. Providing a structure either through the assessment criteria or the sort of guidance questions included in the design [see example above] will assist.

Workload

Useful resources

Morris, N. J., Christie, H., & Barber, J. (2019). 'It's one of the first times I've felt fully engaged': developing student engagement using blogging as a form of assessment. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 43(3), 343–361.Link opens in a new window

Caldwell, H. and Heaton, R. (2016). The interdisciplinary use of blogs and online communities in teacher education. International Journal of Information and Learning Technology, 33 (3) 20564880.Link opens in a new window

Havemann, L and Sherman, S. (20170. Assessment, Feedback and Technology: Contexts and Case Studies in Bloomsbury. Bloomsbury Learning Environment, London [Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivatives 4.0 International License]Link opens in a new window

Reflection toolkit from the University of EdinburghLink opens in a new window

O’Rourke, M., & Doyon, A. (2024). Rethinking assessment strategies to improve authentic representations of learning: using blogs as a creative assessment alternative to develop professional skills. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education,21(1), 49–17.Link opens in a new window

Guidance on Assessing with Blogs from UNSWLink opens in a new window

Shanks, R. (2020). Using blog posts for peer to peer learning and summative assessment. A case study from the University of Aberdeen Link opens in a new window

Griffin-Jones, H., (2023) The power of reflective diaries as an evaluation tool. AdvanceHE. Accessed 15/03/25. Available from https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/news-and-views/power-reflective-diaries-evaluation-toolLink opens in a new window