Why do I need to become a Reflective Practitioner?
During each day every individual will reflect on past, present or future issues they have or will be presented with. Reflection isn’t just thinking about something in particular it is a process of identifying issues, questioning opinions, synthesising information and applying learning (Australian Catholic University, 2016).
To become a reflective practitioner, the process of self awareness, critical analysis, synthesis and evaluation allow each individual to be honest with oneself, question underlying values and beliefs and explore strengths and weaknesses (ACU, 2016). Reflection is used in all areas whether it be in everyday life, in your academic career or your future profession.
An example of an active reflective practitioner is the production of a personal blog whether it be educational, home and lifestyles or art and entertainment. Creating a blog for the public allows for connected learning as part of a community, sharing strengths and weakness, interests and hobbies and personal reflection. With the acceptance of public commentary and posts, individuals are able to learn from others, gain more information from a wide range of materials and connect with like minded people throughout the blogging community.
For University, all students in my course were required to create a blog on Digital and Communication Technology. It is here where we as a cohort are able to document our research, findings and opinions, critically reflect on each idea, text or feedback, share with the wider community our thoughts and passions furthermore connecting us to each other through common interests and values through the factor of learning (Silvia Tolisano, 2014).
After reading this post you can all ask yourselves the question, why do I need to become a reflective practitioner? It is here where you begin to understand and appreciate the need to reflect on personal experiences, interests and values through critically evaluating all questions and information produced. A great piece of advice is to start your very own blog where social discussions and interactions with like minded individuals become an act of connecting with people within your community. By expressing yourself through images and text it creates the cycle of reflection highlighted through your own work combined with theirs.
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References:
Australian Catholic University (2016), COMM140: Reflective Thinking. Retrieved from https://leo.acu.edu.au/pluginfile.php/1771134/mod_book/chapter/57216/COMM104_ReflectiveThinking.pdf
Silvia Tolisano, (2014). Blogging for Learning: Mulling it Over. Retrieved from http://langwitches.org/blog/2014/11/23/blogging-for-learning-mulling-it-over/
Ashley's Blog 
Hi Ashley. Wow! What a fantastic blog post! It was super informative and such an interesting approach. I also did the topic of reflective practioners but I really liked your idea about using a blog to explore being an effective reflective practioner. Do you think this method would be something you would use in day-to-day life? I like your inclusion of the Tolisano article as it highlighted your key argument. It would be good to read more about how you would use it in a professional capacity given the restrictions you would encounter with confidentiality. Great job your article was very easy to read!
Emily
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Thank you Emily! Yeah i do hope to continue blogging as it is a great way to express your opinion about certain topics 🙂 I will look into using blogs in a professional capacity right away, thanks!
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