Demonstrate the ability to reflect on practiceEarlier, we used the term 'reflect on action'. This is the same concept as 'reflect on

practice'. Your practice is the actions that you take on a daily basis during your work.

According to the dictionary, practice is 'the actual application or use of an idea,

belief, or method, as opposed to theories relating to it.' It is also 'the customary,

habitual, or expected procedure or way of doing of something.'

Reflection on and in practice.

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Reflection on Practice Tools

Reflecting on practice does not have to be a complicated effort. It is not just a

mysterious 'thinking' exercise, like meditation, that everyone says they do, but

where you never get to see what that means. There are a variety of tools that you

can use to inform, assist, and record your reflections, and these are a few of the

possibilities:

Journals and daily record sheets

Keeping a journal is not just a teenage thing. Journals are a great tool that can help

you easily reflect on things that happen during your working day. Keeping it daily - as

much as possible - is a strong habit that will stand you in good stead throughout your

career, because it enables you to take a step back and really examine the way you

work.

It also provides you with evidence of your reflective practice, so you can use it in

supervision sessions to show your line manager that you are working reflectively,

and it is also useful as a memory recall if you are asked to explain an incident or

event.

Daily record sheets are similar; just an A4 sheet printed with four boxes headed with

'what happened, how did you feel, what should you have done differently, and what

would you do next time?' or similar headings that prompt reflective thought. The

organisation you work for may have a prompt sheet like this that it already uses, or

you could design a simple table on a Word document, and print it off blank for your

own use, or type it up so that you always have an electronic copy.

Peer assessment

Peer assessment sounds a bit daunting, but it is simply where you work in tandem

with another of your colleagues, and both of you make notes on each other's work,

using positive and constructive language. It is about looking for the strengths and

weaknesses in the other person, and helping to identify training gaps and to share

better methods of practice.

Again, this type of reflection is recorded, and the notes can be typed up so that you

have a personal record of your own reflective practice.

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Video

Observations of practice

It can be very helpful to ask another member of staff who works in the same or

similar job as yourself to observe you while you work. This method is different from

peer assessment because it is usually carried out by someone who is more

experienced or qualified than you. This method of reflective practice enables you to

identify training gaps, but can also act as a training session in itself, because the

other person can help you figure out new ways in which you can further develop

yourself and the way you work.

Again, your colleague's observations should be recorded, and again, there may be a

printed sheet that your organisation already uses for this purpose. Keeping the

information with your other reflective work is a good idea because it can show

evidence that you are interested in improving your own practice.

Feedback from manager

Supervision sessions are normally one-to-one regular meetings between you and

your line manager. Sometimes they obtain feedback from other members of staff

with whom you work, and sometimes they bring their own observations and

questions about the way you work.

Supervision is a great opportunity to find out from your manager about what worked,

what didn't work, what went wrong, and what you might be able to do in the future.

No-one is perfect, and everyone makes mistakes, but the ability to look back without

defensiveness at what happened and to learn lessons from it going forward, is a vital

characteristic for anyone working with children and young people.

Your manager will record supervision sessions on a printed sheet, and will give you

the opportunity to add things to the sheet or to correct his or her notes if you feel

they are not accurate.

Supervision sessions are also a great place to talk about training possibilities and

additional personal development opportunities.

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