Plan Ahead to Think Again

During my years working as an educational leader in China, I learned that one way to better understand a word in your native language is to reference how the word is defined in another language. The word reflection, for example, is 反思 (fan si) in Mandarin, a term that combines the ideas of looking back and thinking again. For me, the visual that comes to mind of a person turning back and thinking again is more impactful than what surfaces when I only think of the word reflection in English. With the imagery of 反思, I can visualize a person pausing, looking back to their original position, and revisiting their previous ideas to consider if what they thought before still holds up against all that they have now learned.

Yet, for many teachers, having time for student reflection feels more like a luxury, given our packed curricula and busy instructional schedules. Taking time to look back seems antithetical to forward progress. As a result, reflection is often used only occasionally, rather than as an ongoing part of the learning process. 

Teachers may have students set learning goals early in the school year and then reflect on their progress toward the goals later in the year. Or after sporting events or other co-curricular experiences, students may engage in reflective thinking about their performance, identifying ways to sharpen their skills for the next big challenge. While opportunities such as these for learners to pause, look back, and think again are likely fruitful, there are a few strategic steps learning leaders can take to make reflection more meaningful for their students schoolwide. 

Here are three areas to consider when planning for stronger reflective practices across the school year.

1. Align Reflection Topics with Core Values and Outcomes

Beyond mastering academic standards, schools typically have broader outcomes and core values that they hope their students achieve from their time on campus. Words like innovation and collaboration often appear high on lists of traits that schools aim to nurture in their students. Aligning students’ reflection experiences with the intended learner outcomes reinforces the relevance of these broad and often overlooked learner traits.

What could looking back and thinking again about core values look like in a practical sense? Below are a few common big learner goals and sample reflection stems that can support them. 

Aligning reflection experiences with core values reinforces that who students are becoming is as important as what they are learning. And when students connect the core values with their actions, they see their agency in driving their growth and future choices.

2. Make a Reflection Plan 

Even the most important school initiatives can go by the wayside without a solid implementation plan. Ensuring that meaningful reflection happens consistently requires a framework that clearly outlines schoolwide expectations. To do this, leaders can consider 3 Fs: function, frequency, and form. 

• Function communicates the purpose and role that reflective practices play in students’ learning journeys. Function helps answer questions for teachers and students about why reflection is important and how reflective practices deepen learning. 

• Frequency is all about how often and how long students engage in reflective experiences. Reflection can occur at many levels and intervals, from daily, two-minute ideas jotted on sticky notes to robust end-of-year class reflection discussions. Reflection practices can also be cyclical, including opportunities for students to pause and think before, during, and after a learning experience about where they are in relation to their learning goals.

• Form describes what meaningful reflection looks like across the school year. Whether through digital portfolios, structured journaling, or peer discussions, defining the form ensures that the reflective approaches align with students’ developmental characteristics and teachers’ reflection goals. And when time is scarce, the form must be frictionless for teachers. 

3. Train and Reflect on Reflection

At the risk of sounding meta, any meaningful focus on student reflection must include teachers reflecting on those very experiences. Leaders can nurture a schoolwide culture of reflection by training faculty about what robust student reflection actually looks like, using professional development sessions and faculty meetings to share protocols and model the reflection process firsthand. 

But training is only the first step. Teachers also need systematic ways to plan and track these experiences across the school year without feeling like they are giving up precious planning or instructional time. Professional learning community (PLC) meetings can be utilized as collaborative opportunities for teachers to design, review, and adjust their students’ reflective practices. PLC agenda templates can also be leveraged to ensure that space for reflection is regularly incorporated into the team’s work.

Reflection as a Means of Learning

Taking strategic steps helps shift reflection from just an occasional classroom activity to a core component of the learning process. While a crowded curriculum always tempts us to keep rushing forward, true growth requires us to look back and think again. Fans of the American educational philosopher John Dewey will remember his suggestion that “we do not learn from experience; we learn from reflecting on experience.” If reflection is the link between doing and learning, and learning is the central aim of schools, then reflection is paramount.