According to Cisero (2006) reflective writing is the process of writing about personal experiences, while either analysing or critiquing information, synthesizing information, or creating a product based on that information. Reflective writing has been argued to be critical in the process of understanding contextualising new information and meaningful interactions ( Elbow, 1993 ). Within tertiary education the process of reflective writing has been attributed to both helping students gain a deep level of understanding of their subjects and also promoting in-depth reflection outside their studies and into their broader lives.
Published in Chapter:
Building Interaction Online: Reflective Blog Journals to link University Learning to Real World Practice
Arianne J. Rourke (University of New South Wales, Australia) and Annabelle Lewer-Fletcher (University of New South Wales, Australia)
Copyright: © 2016
|Pages: 27
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-9582-5.ch005
Abstract
In higher education in recent years the educational value of blog journals for facilitating student engagement, reflection and learning has been emphasized (Chu, Kwan, & Warning, 2012; Ellison & Wu, 2008; Richardson, 2005; Yang, 2009). According to Williams and Jacobs (2004), blogs are seen as a ‘transformative educational tool', which assists in the development of ‘reflective and critical thinking skills' (Joshi & Chugh, 2009). This chapter critically analyzes the reflective and collaborative value of two different systems of blog journaling used by postgraduate student to reflect on their arts industry internships. Firstly Blogger (https://www.blogger.com), used between 2008 and 2012 and secondly, journal blogging in the Learning Management System (LMS) of Moodle (2014) are critiqued in terms their ability to promote student engagement, reflection, connection and collaboration. There is particular emphasis on how recent blog journals (2014) reflect how students' confidence, awareness and understandings evolve as they develop professional expertise.