A little reflection goes along way

While the courses I have taken at Althouse as part of my teacher education program have been diverse, each of them has incorporated an element of reflection.

As a naturally reflective person (I have been blogging on and off about my life at a handful of other sites since early in my university years), I have enjoyed having the process formalized. Sometimes I hear my classmates remarking on "another reflection" and worry that they don't realize that even our chats in the hallway about things we liked or didn't like in a class are a form of reflection. Even taking the time to write up a caption to add to a photo we are tweeting is a sort of mini reflection. I have found myself thinking deeply about things while on a run or a long bike ride, or while driving home from a day of practicum. I prefer to write as a form of reflection, but reflection takes many forms.

One of reflection's most important benefits is that it gives us a chance to look at our strengths and weaknesses, and to think about what needs to happen to improve our teaching practice or ourselves, more generally. Sometimes, I can stray away from reflection because I know something is not yet perfect. This site is an example of such a thing. While I have poured my heart and soul into it and am proud of it, there are things about it that I have added to a growing list of improvements I'd like to make moving forward. However, checking in before we are "ready"--because, really, with something like our teaching or with a website that will can and should continue evolving over time--is absolutely essential, even if it takes quelling a perfectionistic self-voice.

In chart form first, followed by some commentary, here are my thoughts on this project:

This self-reflection is an honest attempt at assessing where I am at. As I mentioned, I am proud of the way my website has come together, and I am confident that the majority of my commentary is put together well and does not have grammar or spelling errors. I have met the requirements of the assignment, which I am happy to have had to do with a deadline. I have included the requirements in a creative manner, with some in my blog posts and others embedded directly on the site, which is functionally appropriate but perhaps not as easy for marking as someone who simply labelled each requirement as a separate tab and went on with their business. I did not cite my images or all links in APA formatting in my blog posts, because the format of a blog post does not usually require this. With a live link to the webpage I mentioned, I chose only to reference in APA format those academic sources which I included and whose work I referred to in quotation form. For images, I have included an image reference but again with a hyperlink and simple citation rather than full APA format. This is a conscious decision and something I have always done and felt comfortable with in blogging, however I would be happy to know if I need to change this practice and could easily re-cite the images and links I've included. Generally, I am proud of my work on this and think that my website is a well thought-out and executed portfolio where I will continue to showcase my work and reflections. That, perhaps, is vastly more important than whether my mark is one number or another.

Image: Unsplash

#reflection #selfassessment