Incorporating creative reflection activities
Abstract
Reflection is an essential component of effective service-learning projects, creating in the student a greater sense of empowerment and connection to others. However, reflection is often relegated to a single essay at the close of a service-learning project. This practice suggests further ways of incorporating reflection into service-learning projects, by inviting student participation in the planning of reflection activities, and by offering forms of expression other than the traditional written essay, such as photo collage, poetry or peer interviews. Excerpted from section four of the Corporation for National and Community Service's Making an Impact on Out-Of-School Time by the National Institute on Out-of-School Time.Issue
According to the website at the National Service-Learning Clearinghouse the definition of service-learning includes integrating meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities. Consequently, ensuring that reflection is built into the experience is the responsibility of educators.
Action
Participating in a service-learning activity does not guarantee a beneficial learning experience. Service-learning can expose participants to new concepts, procedures, events, people, experiences, and places, but without processing the experience, no learning will occur. James and Pamela Toole, directors of the Compass Institute in Minnesota, state, "If students are going to learn from service, it will not be instant or effortless. They will be required to organize and construct their own understanding from the rich content embedded within these experiences." In order to help youth process and internalize what they are learning from the service, reflection should be more than looking back and recounting an experience. By incorporating critical analysis of social issues or other contexts of service, reflection can help increase participants' self-awareness, sense of empowerment to create change and connection to others. Such reflection can also prevent youth from using their unprocessed experiences to affirm and rationalize their prejudices or judgments.
Tips for effective reflection:
- Include reflection in all aspects of project planning, implementation and evaluation. Reflection can be much more than a discussion or writing assignment about what everyone learned that occurs at the end of the project.
- Include youth in the planning of reflection activities. Youth can plan the types of reflection activities to use at various stages of the project, as well as what aspects to reflect on. Ask youth: What are we planning to learn? How can we share what we are learning? How will we be able to tell when we've succeeded with our project?
- Use reflection activities that suit the particular interests of the youth involved and be creative. Reflection can involve students interviewing each other, creating photo collages, drawing, writing in journals, creating poetry and youth-led discussions.
- Engage participants in reflection before, during and after the service experience. Before the experience participants can take inventory of their existing attitudes toward a particular project, so it has a personal frame of reference. By reflecting during the experience, participants can ask questions, tackle problems and discuss ideas to clarify their learning from the service. After a service experience, participants need to evaluate, assess and contextualize their experiences.
- Reflection should appeal to the different ways people learn, based on Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences which states that people learn in different ways based on their different natural areas of intelligence. Some people express themselves best and learn best through writing, others through speaking and others through art. Reflection can take various forms such as writing exercises, discussions, art projects, dramatic performances, public presentations or multi-media endeavors. Participants will excel if allowed to choose a form of reflection that builds on their individual strengths and communication styles.
Citation
Making an Impact on Out-of-School Time. National Institute on Out of School Time, at Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, The Corporation for National and Community Service, June 2000.
Naughton, Sandra. Offering Structured Opportunities for Reflection (developed in partnership with the National Institute on Out-of-School Time). 2000.
Sandra Naughton was a National Service Fellow from 1999 to 2000.
Posted On
February 27, 2001For More Information
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