class reflection assignment

• Skip to primary navigation
• Skip to main content
• Skip to primary sidebar
• Skip to footer

Don't Miss a Post! Subscribe

• Guest Posts

• Educational AI
• Edtech Tools
• Edtech Apps
• Teacher Resources
• Special Education
• Edtech for Kids
• Buying Guides for Teachers

Educators Technology

Innovative EdTech for teachers, educators, parents, and students

80 Learning Reflection Questions for Students

By Med Kharbach, PhD | Last Update: May 6, 2024

Reflection questions are an important way to boost students’ engagement and enhance their learning. By encouraging learners to ponder their experiences, understandings, and feelings about what they’ve learned, we open a gateway to deeper comprehension and personal growth.

This process not only solidifies their grasp on the material but also cultivates critical thinking and self-awareness. Throughout this post, I’ll share the insights and techniques I’ve gained from my years in the classroom, with a focus on the power and purpose of reflection questions in fostering deep learning.

What are Reflection Questions?

Before we define reflective questions, let’s first discuss what reflection is. Citing ASCD, Purdue defines reflection as “a process where students describe their learning, how it changed, and how it might relate to future learning experiences”.

Based on this definition, reflection questions, are tools that prompt introspection and critical thinking. They empower students to questions their acquired knowledge and transform their experiences into meaningful understandings and personal growth. But this isn’t just based on my personal experience – research supports the idea that reflection plays a critical role in the learning process.

Studies show that when students pause to reflect on their learning journey—assessing their understanding, evaluating their performance, setting future goals, and analyzing their group work—it leads to increased self-awareness , responsibility for learning, and improved academic performance.

Over the years, I’ve integrated these reflection techniques into my teaching practice and have witnessed first-hand the profound impact they can have. It’s always a joy to see my students evolve from passive recipients of information to active, engaged learners who take ownership of their educational journey.

In this post, we’ll dive deeper into how teachers can incorporate reflection questions into their teaching strategies , the best times to use these questions, and a list of reflection question examples for different scenarios. So whether you’re a fellow teacher looking for inspiration or an interested parent wanting to support your child’s learning, read on.

Importance of Reflection Questions in Learning

Reflection is an integral part of the learning process, and its importance for students cannot be overstated. It acts as a bridge between experiences and learning, transforming information into meaningful knowledge.

However, as Bailey and Rehman reported in the Harvard Business Review, to reap the benefits of reflection, one needs to make the act of reflecting a habit. You need to incorporate it in your daily practice and use both forms reflection in action (while being engaged in doing the action) and reflection on action (after the action has taken place).

The following are some of the benefits of integrating reflection questions in learning:

1. Boosts Self-Awareness

Reflection encourages students to think deeply about their own learning process. It prompts them to ask themselves questions about what they’ve learned, how they’ve learned it, and what it means to them.

This practice cultivates self-awareness, making students more conscious of their learning strengths, weaknesses, styles, and preferences. As students better understand their unique learning journey, they become more equipped to tailor their learning strategies in ways that work best for them.

2. Fosters Responsibility for Learning

When students reflect on their learning, they are actively involved in the process of their own education. This involvement fosters a sense of ownership and r esponsibility . It transforms students from passive recipients of knowledge to active participants in their learning journey. They start to recognize that the onus of learning lies with them, making them more committed and proactive learners.

3. Promotes Personal Growth

Reflection is not only about academic growth; it’s also about personal and professional development . When students reflect, they evaluate their actions, decisions, and behaviors, along with their learning.

This helps them identify not only what they need to learn but also what they need to do differently. They gain insights into their personal growth, such as improving their time management, being more collaborative, or handling stress better. This promotes the development of life skills that are crucial for their future.

4. Enhances Critical Thinking

Reflection also enhances critical thinking skills. When students reflect, they analyze their learning experiences, break them down, compare them, and draw conclusions. This practice of critical analysis helps them embrace a questioning attitude and therefore fosters the development of their critical thinking abilities.

5. Facilitates Continuous Improvement

Reflection is a self-regulatory practice that helps students identify areas of improvement. By reflecting on what worked, what didn’t, and why, students can pinpoint the areas they need to focus on. This paves the way for continuous improvement , helping them to become lifelong learners.

Tips to Incorporate reflection questions in your teaching

As teachers and educators, you can use reflection questions to deepen student understanding and promote active engagement with the learning material. Here are few tips to help you integrate reflection questions in your teaching:

1. Incorporating Reflection Questions into Lessons

• Introduce at the End of a Lesson: One of the most common times to use reflection questions is at the end of a lesson. This helps students to review and consolidate the key concepts they have just learned. For example, you might ask, “What was the most important thing you learned today?” or “What questions do you still have about the topic?”
• Use in Class Discussions: You can also incorporate reflection questions into your classroom discussions to foster a deeper understanding of the topics at hand. These questions can push students to think beyond the surface level and engage with the material in a more meaningful way.
• Incorporate in Assignments: Reflection questions can be included as part of homework assignments or projects. For instance, after a group project, you could ask, “How did your team work together?” or “What role did you play in the group, and how did it contribute to the final outcome?”

2. Choosing the Right Time to Use Reflection Questions

• After Lessons: As mentioned above, reflection questions can be highly effective when used immediately after a lesson. This is when the information is still fresh in students’ minds, and they can easily connect the concepts they’ve learned.
• End of the School Day: At the end of the school day, reflection questions can help students recall what they’ve learned across different subjects. This can help in connecting concepts across disciplines and promote broader understanding.
• After a Project or Unit: When a project, assignment, or unit is completed, reflection questions can help students consider their performance, what they learned, what challenges they faced, and how they overcame those challenges. It’s an opportunity for them to recognize their growth over time and understand how they can improve in the future.
• During Parent-Teacher Conferences: Reflection questions can also be useful during parent-teacher conferences. Teachers can share these reflections with parents to provide them with insights into their child’s learning process, strengths, and areas of improvement.

Keep in mind that the goal of these questions is not to judge or grade students but to promote introspection, self-awareness, and active participation in their own learning journey. The responses to reflection questions should be valued for the thought process they reveal and the learning they represent, not just the final answer.

Reflection Questions for Understanding Concepts

These reflection questions aim to prompt students to think deeply about the content of the lesson, ensuring they truly grasp the material rather than just memorizing facts. Effective reflection requires an environment where students feel comfortable expressing their thoughts, doubts, and feelings, so it’s important to create a supportive and non-judgmental classroom culture.

Below are ten examples of reflection questions that can help students evaluate their understanding of key concepts or lessons:

• What was the most important thing you learned in today’s lesson?
• Can you summarize the main idea or theme of the lesson in your own words?
• Was there anything you found confusing or difficult to understand? If so, what?
• How does this concept relate to what we learned previously? Can you draw connections?
• How would you explain this concept to a friend who missed the lesson?
• What were the key points or steps in today’s lesson that helped you understand the concept?
• If you could ask the teacher one question about today’s lesson, what would it be?
• Can you provide an example of how this concept applies in real life?
• Did today’s lesson change your perspective or understanding about the topic? If so, how?
• What strategies or methods did you find helpful in understanding today’s lesson?

Reflection Questions for Self-Assessment

These questions encourage students to look inward and evaluate their performance, behaviors, and strategies. They provide valuable insights that can guide students in setting goals for improvement and taking responsibility for their learning. The goal of these questions is not to make students feel criticized, but to empower them to become more proactive, effective learners.

Here are ten examples of self-assessment reflection questions:

• What was the most challenging part of the lesson/project for you, and how did you overcome that challenge?
• What are some strengths you utilized in today’s lesson/project?
• Are there any areas you think you could have done better in? What are they?
• Did you meet your learning goals for today’s lesson/project? Why or why not?
• What is something you’re proud of in your work today?
• What learning strategies did you use today, and how effective were they?
• If you were to do this lesson/project again, what would you do differently?
• What steps did you take to stay organized and manage your time effectively during the lesson/project?
• How well did you collaborate with others (if applicable) in today’s lesson/project?
• On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your effort on this lesson/project, and why?

Reflection Questions for Group Work and Collaboration

These questions prompt students to reflect on their collaborative skills, from communication and decision-making to conflict resolution and leadership. The insights gained can guide students to improve their future collaborative efforts, enhancing not only their learning but also their teamwork skills, which are vital for their future careers.

Here are ten reflection questions designed to help students evaluate their performance and experience within a group setting:

• What role did you play in your group, and how did it contribute to the project’s outcome?
• What were the strengths of your group? How did these strengths contribute to the completion of the project?
• Were there any challenges your group faced? How were they resolved?
• What did you learn from your group members during this project?
• If you could change one thing about the way your group worked together, what would it be and why?
• How did your group make decisions? Was this method effective?
• What was the most valuable contribution you made to the group project?
• What is one thing you would do differently in future group work?
• Did everyone in your group contribute equally? If not, how did this impact the group dynamics and the final product?
• What skills did you use during group work, and how can you further improve these skills for future collaboration?

Reflection Questions for Goal Setting

• Based on your recent performance, what is one learning goal you would like to set for the next lesson/unit/project?
• What specific steps will you take to achieve this goal?
• What resources or support do you think you will need to reach your goal?
• How will you know when you have achieved this goal? What will success look like?
• What is one thing you could improve in the next lesson/unit/project?
• What skills would you like to improve or develop in the next term?
• What learning strategies do you plan to use in future lessons to help you understand the material better?
• How do you plan to improve your collaboration with others (if applicable) in future projects or group tasks?
• How can you better manage your time or stay organized in future lessons/projects?
• How can you apply what you’ve learned in this lesson/unit/project to future lessons or real-world situations?

Reflection Questions for Students After a Project

• What part of this project did you enjoy the most, and why?
• What challenges did you face during this project, and how did you overcome them?
• If you were to do this project again, what would you do differently?
• What skills did you utilize for this project?
• How does this project connect to what you’ve previously learned?

Reflection Questions for Students About Behavior

• How do you feel your behavior affects your learning?
• Can you identify a time when your behavior positively impacted others?
• How can you improve your behavior in the next term?
• What triggers certain behaviors, and how can you manage these triggers?
• How do you plan to exhibit positive behavior in the future?

Reflection Questions for Students After Watching a Video

• What is the main message or idea of the video?
• How does the content of the video relate to what we’re learning?
• What part of the video stood out to you the most, and why?
• What questions do you have after watching the video?
• Can you apply the lessons from the video to real-world scenarios?

Reflection Questions for Students at the End of the Year

• What is the most significant thing you’ve learned this year?
• Which areas have you seen the most growth in?
• What was the most challenging part of the year for you, and how did you overcome it?
• What are your learning goals for the next school year?
• How have you changed as a learner over this school year?

Reflection Questions for Students After a Test

• How well do you feel you prepared for the test?
• What part of the test did you find most challenging and why?
• Based on your performance, what areas do you need to focus on for future tests?
• How did you handle the stress or pressure of the test?
• What will you do differently to prepare for the next test?

Reflection Questions for Students After a Unit

• What was the most important concept you learned in this unit?
• How can you apply the knowledge from this unit to other subjects or real-life situations?
• Were there any concepts in this unit you found confusing or difficult?
• How does this unit connect to the overall course objectives?
• What strategies helped you learn the material in this unit?

Reflection Questions for Students After Reading

• What is the main idea or theme of the text?
• How do the characters or events in the text relate to your own experiences?
• What questions do you have after reading the text?
• How has this reading changed your perspective on the topic?
• What part of the text resonated with you the most, and why?

Reflection Questions for Students After a Semester

• What are three significant things you’ve learned this semester?
• What strategies did you use to stay organized and manage your time effectively?
• How have you grown personally and academically this semester?
• What challenges did you face this semester, and how did you overcome them?
• What are your goals for the next semester?

Final thoughts

Circling back to the heart of this post, reflection questions are undeniably a potent catalyst for meaningful learning. They are more than just queries thrown at the end of a lesson; they are introspective prompts that nudge learners to weave together the tapestry of their educational journey with threads of self-awareness, critical analysis, and personal growth. It’s through these questions that students can reflect on their academic canvas and begin to paint a picture of who they are and who they aspire to be in this ever-evolving world of knowledge.

References and Further Readings

Sources cited in the post:

• Driving Continuous Improvement through Reflective Practice, stireducation.org
• Practice-based and Reflective Learning, https://libguides.reading.ac.uk/
• Don’t underestimate the Power of Self-reflection, https://hbr.org/
• Reflective Practice, https://le.unimelb.edu.au/
• Reflection in Learning, https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1210944.pdf
• The purpose of Reflection, https://www.cla.purdue.edu/
• Self-reflection and Academic Performance: Is There A Relationship, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
• Reflection and Self-awareness, https://academic.oup.com/

Further Readings

A. Books on reflective learning

• Brockbank, A., & McGill, I. (2007). “ Facilitating Reflective Learning in Higher Education “. McGraw-Hill Education.
• Dewey, J. (1933). “ How We Think “.
• Moon, J. A. (2013). Reflection in Learning and Professional Development .
• Schön, D. A. (1983). “ The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action “. Basic Books.
• Gibbs, G. (1988). “ Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods “. FEU.
• Boud, D., Keogh, R., & Walker, D. (1985). “Promoting Reflection in Learning: A Model”. In Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning . Kogan Page.
• Kolb, D. A. (1984). “ Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development “. Prentice-Hall.
• Rolheiser, C., Bower, B., & Stevahn, L. (2000). “ The Portfolio Organizer: Succeeding with Portfolios in Your Classroom “. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

B. Peer-reviewed journal articles

• Rusche, S. N., & Jason, K. (2011). “You Have to Absorb Yourself in It”: Using Inquiry and Reflection to Promote Student Learning and Self-knowledge. Teaching Sociology, 39(4), 338–353. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41308965
• Ciardiello, A. V. (1993). Training Students to Ask Reflective Questions. The Clearing House, 66(5), 312–314. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30188906
• Lee, Y., & Kinzie, M. B. (2012). Teacher question and student response with regard to cognition and language use. Instructional Science, 40(6), 857–874. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43575388
• Gunderson, A. (2017). The Well-Crafted Question: Inspiring Students To Connect, Create And Think Critically. American Music Teacher, 66(5), 14–18. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26387562
• Grossman, R. (2009). STRUCTURES FOR FACILITATING STUDENT REFLECTION. College Teaching, 57(1), 15–22. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25763356
• Holden, R., Lawless, A., & Rae, J. (2016). From reflective learning to reflective practice: assessing transfer. Studies in Higher Education, 43(7), pages 1172-1183. Jacobs, Steven MN, MA Ed, RN. Reflective learning, reflective practice. Nursing 46(5):p 62-64, May 2016. | DOI: 10.1097/01.NURSE.0000482278.79660.f2
• Thompson, G, Pilgrim, A., Oliver, K. (2006). Self-assessment and Reflective Learning for First-year University Geography Students: A Simple Guide or Simply Misguided?. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, Pages 403-420. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098260500290959
• Kember, D., McKay, J., Sinclair, K., & Kam, F. Y. (2008). “A Four-Category Scheme for Coding and Assessing the Level of Reflection in Written Work”. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education.

Join our mailing list

Never miss an EdTech beat! Subscribe now for exclusive insights and resources .

Meet Med Kharbach, PhD

Dr. Med Kharbach is an influential voice in the global educational technology landscape, with an extensive background in educational studies and a decade-long experience as a K-12 teacher. Holding a Ph.D. from Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada, he brings a unique perspective to the educational world by integrating his profound academic knowledge with his hands-on teaching experience. Dr. Kharbach's academic pursuits encompass curriculum studies, discourse analysis, language learning/teaching, language and identity, emerging literacies, educational technology, and research methodologies. His work has been presented at numerous national and international conferences and published in various esteemed academic journals.

Join our email list for exclusive EdTech content.

• Grades 6-12
• School Leaders

Have you signed up for our new Humor & Advice newsletter? ✨

45 Awesome Must-Use Questions to Encourage Student Reflection and Growth

Reflection questions for before, during, and after a project or lesson.

Teaching our students the importance of reflecting upon their knowledge, work, effort, and learning is super important, but it’s not always that easy. 

Reflection questions allow students to think about their thinking.

This kind of questioning allows students to better understand how they are working or learning so they can make changes and adjustments from there. Reflection takes time, and often students think that once their work is complete, they should be finished. Often, the younger the student, the more difficult it can be to get them to reflect on what they’ve done. 

Here are a few of our favorite reflection questions to use in your instruction. Adjust or edit these questions to meet your students’ needs. 

Before students begin their work: 

• What do I know about this topic or subject?
• What would I like to learn about this topic or subject?
• Where will I find the information I need for this assignment? 
• What kinds of research do I need to do?
• Do I fully understand the question or prompt? 
• How can I break down the assignment into smaller parts? 
• Did I give myself ample time to really think about this assignment and brainstorm possible solutions? 
• Who can help me get what I need to complete this work? 
• What tools or supplies should I use for this assignment?
• How will I be assessed for this project? 
• Do I understand all parts of the rubric or scoring guide?
• What are my goals for this assignment? 
• What do I need to do in order to meet those goals?
• How will this assignment be turned in to my teacher? 
• Do I know the due date for this project, and am I able to meet it? 

[contextly_auto_sidebar]

While students are working:

• What have I learned so far?
• What else do I need to know in order to finish this task? 
• Can I make a few predictions about what will happen next?
• How well am I using my time?
• Am I answering all parts of the questions completely? 
• Which parts of this assignment are easy for me?
• Which parts of this assignment are challenging for me?
• Does my work reflect my effort thus far? 
• Am I putting forth my best effort in my work?
• Are the sources I am using reliable?
• Am I citing my sources properly?
• How close am I to achieving my original goals with this assignment?
• Are the goals I set before I began this assignment still reasonable? Do I need to readjust them?
• If possible, can I ask my teacher or a classmate for feedback on my current progress on this assignment?
• Am I learning interesting information as I work on this project? 

After students finish their work or assignment:

• What new information have I learned from this assignment? 
• What surprised me about what I learned?
• How quickly was I able to finish this work?
• Where were my roadblocks? 
• How did I move through roadblocks or challenges?
• Is my work adapted for the correct, appropriate audience?
• How closely did I follow the parameters of the assignment?
• Using the grade rubric, how would I score my own work?
• What would the teacher say about my work? 
• If given the opportunity, one thing I would change about this assignment is …
• How does my work compare to what my classmates did on this assignment? 
• Does my work truly reflect my effort?
• Have I achieved the goal I set for myself with this assignment? 
• What would I do differently next time, if given the chance?
• Am I proud of my work? 

Do you want a short one-page printable of all of these questions to guide your instruction? 

Grab the printable version here.

What other questions would you add to this list? Come and share in our  WeAreTeachers Chat group on Facebook.

Plus, check out our big list of critical thinking questions and growth mindset posters.

You Might Also Like

10 Books to Read When You Feel Stuck in Your Job

C'mon baby, light that fire! Continue Reading

Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. 5335 Gate Parkway, Jacksonville, FL 32256

• PRO Courses Guides New Tech Help Pro Expert Videos About wikiHow Pro Upgrade Sign In
• EDIT Edit this Article
• EXPLORE Tech Help Pro About Us Random Article Quizzes Request a New Article Community Dashboard This Or That Game Happiness Hub Popular Categories Arts and Entertainment Artwork Books Movies Computers and Electronics Computers Phone Skills Technology Hacks Health Men's Health Mental Health Women's Health Relationships Dating Love Relationship Issues Hobbies and Crafts Crafts Drawing Games Education & Communication Communication Skills Personal Development Studying Personal Care and Style Fashion Hair Care Personal Hygiene Youth Personal Care School Stuff Dating All Categories Arts and Entertainment Finance and Business Home and Garden Relationship Quizzes Cars & Other Vehicles Food and Entertaining Personal Care and Style Sports and Fitness Computers and Electronics Health Pets and Animals Travel Education & Communication Hobbies and Crafts Philosophy and Religion Work World Family Life Holidays and Traditions Relationships Youth
• Browse Articles
• Learn Something New
• Quizzes Hot
• Happiness Hub
• This Or That Game
• Train Your Brain
• Explore More
• Support wikiHow
• About wikiHow
• Log in / Sign up
• Education and Communications
• College University and Postgraduate
• Academic Writing

How to Write a Reflection Paper: An Easy-to-Follow Guide

Last Updated: June 6, 2024 Fact Checked

Sample Outline and Paper

Brainstorming, organizing a reflection paper, as you write, expert q&a.

This article was co-authored by Alicia Cook . Alicia Cook is a Professional Writer based in Newark, New Jersey. With over 12 years of experience, Alicia specializes in poetry and uses her platform to advocate for families affected by addiction and to fight for breaking the stigma against addiction and mental illness. She holds a BA in English and Journalism from Georgian Court University and an MBA from Saint Peter’s University. Alicia is a bestselling poet with Andrews McMeel Publishing and her work has been featured in numerous media outlets including the NY Post, CNN, USA Today, the HuffPost, the LA Times, American Songwriter Magazine, and Bustle. She was named by Teen Vogue as one of the 10 social media poets to know and her poetry mixtape, “Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately” was a finalist in the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 3,837,934 times.

Reflection papers allow you to communicate with your instructor about how a specific article, lesson, lecture, or experience shapes your understanding of class-related material. Reflection papers are personal and subjective [1] X Research source , but they must still maintain a somewhat academic tone and must still be thoroughly and cohesively organized. Here's what you need to know about writing an effective reflection.

How to Start a Reflection Paper

To write a reflection paper, first write an introduction that outlines your expectations and thesis. Then, state your conclusions in the body paragraphs, explaining your findings with concrete details. Finally, conclude with a summary of your experience.

• These sentences should be both descriptive yet straight to the point.

• For lectures or readings, you can write down specific quotations or summarize passages.
• For experiences, make a note of specific portions of your experience. You could even write a small summary or story of an event that happened during the experience that stands out. Images, sounds, or other sensory portions of your experience work, as well.

• In the first column, list the main points or key experiences. These points can include anything that the author or speaker treated with importance as well as any specific details you found to be important. Divide each point into its own separate row.
• In the second column, list your personal response to the points you brought up in the first column. Mention how your subjective values, experiences, and beliefs influence your response.
• In the third and last column, describe how much of your personal response to share in your reflection paper.

• Does the reading, lecture, or experience challenge you socially, culturally, emotionally, or theologically? If so, where and how? Why does it bother you or catch your attention?
• Has the reading, lecture, or experience changed your way of thinking? Did it conflict with beliefs you held previously, and what evidence did it provide you with in order to change your thought process on the topic?
• Does the reading, lecture, or experience leave you with any questions? Were these questions ones you had previously or ones you developed only after finishing?
• Did the author, speaker, or those involved in the experience fail to address any important issues? Could a certain fact or idea have dramatically changed the impact or conclusion of the reading, lecture, or experience?
• How do the issues or ideas brought up in this reading, lecture, or experience mesh with past experiences or readings? Do the ideas contradict or support each other?

• Verify whether or not your instructor specified a word count for the paper instead of merely following this average.
• If your instructor demands a word count outside of this range, meet your instructor's requirements.

• For a reading or lecture, indicate what you expected based on the title, abstract, or introduction.
• For an experience, indicate what you expected based on prior knowledge provided by similar experiences or information from others.

• This is essentially a brief explanation of whether or not your expectations were met.
• A thesis provides focus and cohesion for your reflection paper.
• You could structure a reflection thesis along the following lines: “From this reading/experience, I learned...”

• Your conclusions must be explained. You should provide details on how you arrived at those conclusions using logic and concrete details.
• The focus of the paper is not a summary of the text, but you still need to draw concrete, specific details from the text or experience in order to provide context for your conclusions.
• Write a separate paragraph for each conclusion or idea you developed.
• Each paragraph should have its own topic sentence. This topic sentence should clearly identify your major points, conclusions, or understandings.

• The conclusions or understandings explained in your body paragraphs should support your overall conclusion. One or two may conflict, but the majority should support your final conclusion.

• If you feel uncomfortable about a personal issue that affects the conclusions you reached, it is wisest not to include personal details about it.
• If a certain issue is unavoidable but you feel uncomfortable revealing your personal experiences or feelings regarding it, write about the issue in more general terms. Identify the issue itself and indicate concerns you have professionally or academically.

• Avoid dragging someone else down in your writing. If a particular person made the experience you are reflecting on difficult, unpleasant, or uncomfortable, you must still maintain a level of detachment as you describe that person's influence. Instead of stating something like, “Bob was such a rude jerk,” say something more along the lines of, “One man was abrupt and spoke harshly, making me feel as though I was not welcome there.” Describe the actions, not the person, and frame those actions within the context of how they influenced your conclusions.
• A reflection paper is one of the few pieces of academic writing in which you can get away with using the first person pronoun “I.” That said, you should still relate your subjective feelings and opinions using specific evidence to explain them. [8] X Research source
• Avoid slang and always use correct spelling and grammar. Internet abbreviations like “LOL” or “OMG” are fine to use personally among friends and family, but this is still an academic paper, so you need to treat it with the grammatical respect it deserves. Do not treat it as a personal journal entry.
• Check and double-check your spelling and grammar after you finish your paper.

• Keep your sentences focused. Avoid squeezing multiple ideas into one sentence.
• Avoid sentence fragments. Make sure that each sentence has a subject and a verb.
• Vary your sentence length. Include both simple sentences with a single subject and verb and complex sentences with multiple clauses. Doing so makes your paper sound more conversational and natural, and prevents the writing from becoming too wooden. [9] X Research source

• Common transitional phrases include "for example," "for instance," "as a result," "an opposite view is," and "a different perspective is."

• For instance, if reflecting on a piece of literary criticism, you could mention how your beliefs and ideas about the literary theory addressed in the article relate to what your instructor taught you about it or how it applies to prose and poetry read in class.
• As another example, if reflecting on a new social experience for a sociology class, you could relate that experience to specific ideas or social patterns discussed in class.

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.csuohio.edu/writing-center/reflection-papers
• ↑ https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/assignments/reflectionpaper
• ↑ Alicia Cook. Professional Writer. Expert Interview. 11 December 2020.
• ↑ https://www.trentu.ca/academicskills/how-guides/how-write-university/how-approach-any-assignment/how-write-reflection-paper
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/thesis-statements/
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/conclusions/
• ↑ https://www.anu.edu.au/students/academic-skills/writing-assessment/reflective-writing/reflective-essays
• ↑ https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/scholarlyvoice/sentencestructure

About This Article

To write a reflection paper, start with an introduction where you state any expectations you had for the reading, lesson, or experience you're reflecting on. At the end of your intro, include a thesis statement that explains how your views have changed. In the body of your essay, explain the conclusions you reached after the reading, lesson, or experience and discuss how you arrived at them. Finally, finish your paper with a succinct conclusion that explains what you've learned. To learn how to brainstorm for your paper, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

• Send fan mail to authors

Reader Success Stories

Stella Cheboi

Jul 22, 2016

Did this article help you?

Luz Gisela Perez

Nov 19, 2017

Apr 27, 2016

Debra Cust Bramble

Mar 20, 2016

Courtney Fulmer

May 22, 2020

Featured Articles

Trending Articles

Watch Articles

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Info
• Not Selling Info

Get all the best how-tos!

Sign up for wikiHow's weekly email newsletter

Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Assignments

• Annotated Bibliography
• Analyzing a Scholarly Journal Article
• Group Presentations
• Dealing with Nervousness
• Using Visual Aids
• Grading Someone Else's Paper
• Types of Structured Group Activities
• Group Project Survival Skills
• Leading a Class Discussion
• Multiple Book Review Essay
• Reviewing Collected Works
• Writing a Case Analysis Paper
• Writing a Case Study
• About Informed Consent
• Writing Field Notes
• Writing a Policy Memo
• Writing a Reflective Paper
• Writing a Research Proposal
• Generative AI and Writing
• Acknowledgments

Reflective writing is a process of identifying, questioning, and critically evaluating course-based learning opportunities, integrated with your own observations, experiences, impressions, beliefs, assumptions, or biases, and which describes how this process stimulated new or creative understanding about the content of the course.

A reflective paper describes and explains in an introspective, first person narrative, your reactions and feelings about either a specific element of the class [e.g., a required reading; a film shown in class] or more generally how you experienced learning throughout the course. Reflective writing assignments can be in the form of a single paper, essays, portfolios, journals, diaries, or blogs. In some cases, your professor may include a reflective writing assignment as a way to obtain student feedback that helps improve the course, either in the moment or for when the class is taught again.

How to Write a Reflection Paper . Academic Skills, Trent University; Writing a Reflection Paper . Writing Center, Lewis University; Critical Reflection . Writing and Communication Centre, University of Waterloo; Tsingos-Lucas et al. "Using Reflective Writing as a Predictor of Academic Success in Different Assessment Formats." American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education 81 (2017): Article 8.

Benefits of Reflective Writing Assignments

As the term implies, a reflective paper involves looking inward at oneself in contemplating and bringing meaning to the relationship between course content and the acquisition of new knowledge . Educational research [Bolton, 2010; Ryan, 2011; Tsingos-Lucas et al., 2017] demonstrates that assigning reflective writing tasks enhances learning because it challenges students to confront their own assumptions, biases, and belief systems around what is being taught in class and, in so doing, stimulate student’s decisions, actions, attitudes, and understanding about themselves as learners and in relation to having mastery over their learning. Reflection assignments are also an opportunity to write in a first person narrative about elements of the course, such as the required readings, separate from the exegetic and analytical prose of academic research papers.

Reflection writing often serves multiple purposes simultaneously. In no particular order, here are some of reasons why professors assign reflection papers:

• Enhances learning from previous knowledge and experience in order to improve future decision-making and reasoning in practice . Reflective writing in the applied social sciences enhances decision-making skills and academic performance in ways that can inform professional practice. The act of reflective writing creates self-awareness and understanding of others. This is particularly important in clinical and service-oriented professional settings.
• Allows students to make sense of classroom content and overall learning experiences in relation to oneself, others, and the conditions that shaped the content and classroom experiences . Reflective writing places you within the course content in ways that can deepen your understanding of the material. Because reflective thinking can help reveal hidden biases, it can help you critically interrogate moments when you do not like or agree with discussions, readings, or other aspects of the course.
• Increases awareness of one’s cognitive abilities and the evidence for these attributes . Reflective writing can break down personal doubts about yourself as a learner and highlight specific abilities that may have been hidden or suppressed due to prior assumptions about the strength of your academic abilities [e.g., reading comprehension; problem-solving skills]. Reflective writing, therefore, can have a positive affective [i.e., emotional] impact on your sense of self-worth.
• Applying theoretical knowledge and frameworks to real experiences . Reflective writing can help build a bridge of relevancy between theoretical knowledge and the real world. In so doing, this form of writing can lead to a better understanding of underlying theories and their analytical properties applied to professional practice.
• Reveals shortcomings that the reader will identify . Evidence suggests that reflective writing can uncover your own shortcomings as a learner, thereby, creating opportunities to anticipate the responses of your professor may have about the quality of your coursework. This can be particularly productive if the reflective paper is written before final submission of an assignment.
• Helps students identify their tacit [a.k.a., implicit] knowledge and possible gaps in that knowledge . Tacit knowledge refers to ways of knowing rooted in lived experience, insight, and intuition rather than formal, codified, categorical, or explicit knowledge. In so doing, reflective writing can stimulate students to question their beliefs about a research problem or an element of the course content beyond positivist modes of understanding and representation.
• Encourages students to actively monitor their learning processes over a period of time . On-going reflective writing in journals or blogs, for example, can help you maintain or adapt learning strategies in other contexts. The regular, purposeful act of reflection can facilitate continuous deep thinking about the course content as it evolves and changes throughout the term. This, in turn, can increase your overall confidence as a learner.
• Relates a student’s personal experience to a wider perspective . Reflection papers can help you see the big picture associated with the content of a course by forcing you to think about the connections between scholarly content and your lived experiences outside of school. It can provide a macro-level understanding of one’s own experiences in relation to the specifics of what is being taught.
• If reflective writing is shared, students can exchange stories about their learning experiences, thereby, creating an opportunity to reevaluate their original assumptions or perspectives . In most cases, reflective writing is only viewed by your professor in order to ensure candid feedback from students. However, occasionally, reflective writing is shared and openly discussed in class. During these discussions, new or different perspectives and alternative approaches to solving problems can be generated that would otherwise be hidden. Sharing student's reflections can also reveal collective patterns of thought and emotions about a particular element of the course.

Bolton, Gillie. Reflective Practice: Writing and Professional Development . London: Sage, 2010; Chang, Bo. "Reflection in Learning." Online Learning 23 (2019), 95-110; Cavilla, Derek. "The Effects of Student Reflection on Academic Performance and Motivation." Sage Open 7 (July-September 2017): 1–13; Culbert, Patrick. “Better Teaching? You Can Write On It “ Liberal Education (February 2022); McCabe, Gavin and Tobias Thejll-Madsen. The Reflection Toolkit . University of Edinburgh; The Purpose of Reflection . Introductory Composition at Purdue University; Practice-based and Reflective Learning . Study Advice Study Guides, University of Reading; Ryan, Mary. "Improving Reflective Writing in Higher Education: A Social Semiotic Perspective." Teaching in Higher Education 16 (2011): 99-111; Tsingos-Lucas et al. "Using Reflective Writing as a Predictor of Academic Success in Different Assessment Formats." American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education 81 (2017): Article 8; What Benefits Might Reflective Writing Have for My Students? Writing Across the Curriculum Clearinghouse; Rykkje, Linda. "The Tacit Care Knowledge in Reflective Writing: A Practical Wisdom." International Practice Development Journal 7 (September 2017): Article 5; Using Reflective Writing to Deepen Student Learning . Center for Writing, University of Minnesota.

How to Approach Writing a Reflection Paper

Thinking About Reflective Thinking

Educational theorists have developed numerous models of reflective thinking that your professor may use to frame a reflective writing assignment. These models can help you systematically interpret your learning experiences, thereby ensuring that you ask the right questions and have a clear understanding of what should be covered. A model can also represent the overall structure of a reflective paper. Each model establishes a different approach to reflection and will require you to think about your writing differently. If you are unclear how to fit your writing within a particular reflective model, seek clarification from your professor. There are generally two types of reflective writing assignments, each approached in slightly different ways.

1.  Reflective Thinking about Course Readings

This type of reflective writing focuses on thoughtfully thinking about the course readings that underpin how most students acquire new knowledge and understanding about the subject of a course. Reflecting on course readings is often assigned in freshmen-level, interdisciplinary courses where the required readings examine topics viewed from multiple perspectives and, as such, provide different ways of analyzing a topic, issue, event, or phenomenon. The purpose of reflective thinking about course readings in the social and behavioral sciences is to elicit your opinions, beliefs, and feelings about the research and its significance. This type of writing can provide an opportunity to break down key assumptions you may have and, in so doing, reveal potential biases in how you interpret the scholarship.

If you are assigned to reflect on course readings, consider the following methods of analysis as prompts that can help you get started :

• Examine carefully the main introductory elements of the reading, including the purpose of the study, the theoretical framework being used to test assumptions, and the research questions being addressed. Think about what ideas stood out to you. Why did they? Were these ideas new to you or familiar in some way based on your own lived experiences or prior knowledge?
• Develop your ideas around the readings by asking yourself, what do I know about this topic? Where does my existing knowledge about this topic come from? What are the observations or experiences in my life that influence my understanding of the topic? Do I agree or disagree with the main arguments, recommended course of actions, or conclusions made by the author(s)? Why do I feel this way and what is the basis of these feelings?
• Make connections between the text and your own beliefs, opinions, or feelings by considering questions like, how do the readings reinforce my existing ideas or assumptions? How the readings challenge these ideas or assumptions? How does this text help me to better understand this topic or research in ways that motivate me to learn more about this area of study?

2.  Reflective Thinking about Course Experiences

This type of reflective writing asks you to critically reflect on locating yourself at the conceptual intersection of theory and practice. The purpose of experiential reflection is to evaluate theories or disciplinary-based analytical models based on your introspective assessment of the relationship between hypothetical thinking and practical reality; it offers a way to consider how your own knowledge and skills fit within professional practice. This type of writing also provides an opportunity to evaluate your decisions and actions, as well as how you managed your subsequent successes and failures, within a specific theoretical framework. As a result, abstract concepts can crystallize and become more relevant to you when considered within your own experiences. This can help you formulate plans for self-improvement as you learn.

If you are assigned to reflect on your experiences, consider the following questions as prompts to help you get started :

• Contextualize your reflection in relation to the overarching purpose of the course by asking yourself, what did you hope to learn from this course? What were the learning objectives for the course and how did I fit within each of them? How did these goals relate to the main themes or concepts of the course?
• Analyze how you experienced the course by asking yourself, what did I learn from this experience? What did I learn about myself? About working in this area of research and study? About how the course relates to my place in society? What assumptions about the course were supported or refuted?
• Think introspectively about the ways you experienced learning during the course by asking yourself, did your learning experiences align with the goals or concepts of the course? Why or why do you not feel this way? What was successful and why do you believe this? What would you do differently and why is this important? How will you prepare for a future experience in this area of study?

NOTE: If you are assigned to write a journal or other type of on-going reflection exercise, a helpful approach is to reflect on your reflections by re-reading what you have already written. In other words, review your previous entries as a way to contextualize your feelings, opinions, or beliefs regarding your overall learning experiences. Over time, this can also help reveal hidden patterns or themes related to how you processed your learning experiences. Consider concluding your reflective journal with a summary of how you felt about your learning experiences at critical junctures throughout the course, then use these to write about how you grew as a student learner and how the act of reflecting helped you gain new understanding about the subject of the course and its content.

ANOTHER NOTE: Regardless of whether you write a reflection paper or a journal, do not focus your writing on the past. The act of reflection is intended to think introspectively about previous learning experiences. However, reflective thinking should document the ways in which you progressed in obtaining new insights and understandings about your growth as a learner that can be carried forward in subsequent coursework or in future professional practice. Your writing should reflect a furtherance of increasing personal autonomy and confidence gained from understanding more about yourself as a learner.

Structure and Writing Style

There are no strict academic rules for writing a reflective paper. Reflective writing may be assigned in any class taught in the social and behavioral sciences and, therefore, requirements for the assignment can vary depending on disciplinary-based models of inquiry and learning. The organization of content can also depend on what your professor wants you to write about or based on the type of reflective model used to frame the writing assignment. Despite these possible variations, below is a basic approach to organizing and writing a good reflective paper, followed by a list of problems to avoid.

Pre-flection

In most cases, it's helpful to begin by thinking about your learning experiences and outline what you want to focus on before you begin to write the paper. This can help you organize your thoughts around what was most important to you and what experiences [good or bad] had the most impact on your learning. As described by the University of Waterloo Writing and Communication Centre, preparing to write a reflective paper involves a process of self-analysis that can help organize your thoughts around significant moments of in-class knowledge discovery.

• Using a thesis statement as a guide, note what experiences or course content stood out to you , then place these within the context of your observations, reactions, feelings, and opinions. This will help you develop a rough outline of key moments during the course that reflect your growth as a learner. To identify these moments, pose these questions to yourself: What happened? What was my reaction? What were my expectations and how were they different from what transpired? What did I learn?
• Critically think about your learning experiences and the course content . This will help you develop a deeper, more nuanced understanding about why these moments were significant or relevant to you. Use the ideas you formulated during the first stage of reflecting to help you think through these moments from both an academic and personal perspective. From an academic perspective, contemplate how the experience enhanced your understanding of a concept, theory, or skill. Ask yourself, did the experience confirm my previous understanding or challenge it in some way. As a result, did this highlight strengths or gaps in your current knowledge? From a personal perspective, think introspectively about why these experiences mattered, if previous expectations or assumptions were confirmed or refuted, and if this surprised, confused, or unnerved you in some way.
• Analyze how these experiences and your reactions to them will shape your future thinking and behavior . Reflection implies looking back, but the most important act of reflective writing is considering how beliefs, assumptions, opinions, and feelings were transformed in ways that better prepare you as a learner in the future. Note how this reflective analysis can lead to actions you will take as a result of your experiences, what you will do differently, and how you will apply what you learned in other courses or in professional practice.

Basic Structure and Writing Style

Reflective Background and Context

The first part of your reflection paper should briefly provide background and context in relation to the content or experiences that stood out to you. Highlight the settings, summarize the key readings, or narrate the experiences in relation to the course objectives. Provide background that sets the stage for your reflection. You do not need to go into great detail, but you should provide enough information for the reader to understand what sources of learning you are writing about [e.g., course readings, field experience, guest lecture, class discussions] and why they were important. This section should end with an explanatory thesis statement that expresses the central ideas of your paper and what you want the readers to know, believe, or understand after they finish reading your paper.

Reflective Interpretation

Drawing from your reflective analysis, this is where you can be personal, critical, and creative in expressing how you felt about the course content and learning experiences and how they influenced or altered your feelings, beliefs, assumptions, or biases about the subject of the course. This section is also where you explore the meaning of these experiences in the context of the course and how you gained an awareness of the connections between these moments and your own prior knowledge.

Guided by your thesis statement, a helpful approach is to interpret your learning throughout the course with a series of specific examples drawn from the course content and your learning experiences. These examples should be arranged in sequential order that illustrate your growth as a learner. Reflecting on each example can be done by: 1)  introducing a theme or moment that was meaningful to you, 2) describing your previous position about the learning moment and what you thought about it, 3) explaining how your perspective was challenged and/or changed and why, and 4) introspectively stating your current or new feelings, opinions, or beliefs about that experience in class.

It is important to include specific examples drawn from the course and placed within the context of your assumptions, thoughts, opinions, and feelings. A reflective narrative without specific examples does not provide an effective way for the reader to understand the relationship between the course content and how you grew as a learner.

Reflective Conclusions

The conclusion of your reflective paper should provide a summary of your thoughts, feelings, or opinions regarding what you learned about yourself as a result of taking the course. Here are several ways you can frame your conclusions based on the examples you interpreted and reflected on what they meant to you. Each example would need to be tied to the basic theme [thesis statement] of your reflective background section.

• Your reflective conclusions can be described in relation to any expectations you had before taking the class [e.g., “I expected the readings to not be relevant to my own experiences growing up in a rural community, but the research actually helped me see that the challenges of developing my identity as a child of immigrants was not that unusual...”].
• Your reflective conclusions can explain how what you learned about yourself will change your actions in the future [e.g., “During a discussion in class about the challenges of helping homeless people, I realized that many of these people hate living on the street but lack the ability to see a way out. This made me realize that I wanted to take more classes in psychology...”].
• Your reflective conclusions can describe major insights you experienced a critical junctures during the course and how these moments enhanced how you see yourself as a student learner [e.g., "The guest speaker from the Head Start program made me realize why I wanted to pursue a career in elementary education..."].
• Your reflective conclusions can reconfigure or reframe how you will approach professional practice and your understanding of your future career aspirations [e.g.,, "The course changed my perceptions about seeking a career in business finance because it made me realize I want to be more engaged in customer service..."]
• Your reflective conclusions can explore any learning you derived from the act of reflecting itself [e.g., “Reflecting on the course readings that described how minority students perceive campus activities helped me identify my own biases about the benefits of those activities in acclimating to campus life...”].

NOTE: The length of a reflective paper in the social sciences is usually less than a traditional research paper. However, don’t assume that writing a reflective paper is easier than writing a research paper. A well-conceived critical reflection paper often requires as much time and effort as a research paper because you must purposeful engage in thinking about your learning in ways that you may not be comfortable with or used to. This is particular true while preparing to write because reflective papers are not as structured as a traditional research paper and, therefore, you have to think deliberately about how you want to organize the paper and what elements of the course you want to reflect upon.

ANOTHER NOTE: Do not limit yourself to using only text in reflecting on your learning. If you believe it would be helpful, consider using creative modes of thought or expression such as, illustrations, photographs, or material objects that reflects an experience related to the subject of the course that was important to you [e.g., like a ticket stub to a renowned speaker on campus]. Whatever non-textual element you include, be sure to describe the object's relevance to your personal relationship to the course content.

Problems to Avoid

A reflective paper is not a “mind dump” . Reflective papers document your personal and emotional experiences and, therefore, they do not conform to rigid structures, or schema, to organize information. However, the paper should not be a disjointed, stream-of-consciousness narrative. Reflective papers are still academic pieces of writing that require organized thought, that use academic language and tone , and that apply intellectually-driven critical thinking to the course content and your learning experiences and their significance.

A reflective paper is not a research paper . If you are asked to reflect on a course reading, the reflection will obviously include some description of the research. However, the goal of reflective writing is not to present extraneous ideas to the reader or to "educate" them about the course. The goal is to share a story about your relationship with the learning objectives of the course. Therefore, unlike research papers, you are expected to write from a first person point of view which includes an introspective examination of your own opinions, feelings, and personal assumptions.

A reflection paper is not a book review . Descriptions of the course readings using your own words is not a reflective paper. Reflective writing should focus on how you understood the implications of and were challenged by the course in relation to your own lived experiences or personal assumptions, combined with explanations of how you grew as a student learner based on this internal dialogue. Remember that you are the central object of the paper, not the research materials.

A reflective paper is not an all-inclusive meditation. Do not try to cover everything. The scope of your paper should be well-defined and limited to your specific opinions, feelings, and beliefs about what you determine to be the most significant content of the course and in relation to the learning that took place. Reflections should be detailed enough to covey what you think is important, but your thoughts should be expressed concisely and coherently [as is true for any academic writing assignment].

Critical Reflection . Writing and Communication Centre, University of Waterloo; Critical Reflection: Journals, Opinions, & Reactions . University Writing Center, Texas A&M University; Connor-Greene, Patricia A. “Making Connections: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Journal Writing in Enhancing Student Learning.” Teaching of Psychology 27 (2000): 44-46; Good vs. Bad Reflection Papers , Franklin University; Dyment, Janet E. and Timothy S. O’Connell. "The Quality of Reflection in Student Journals: A Review of Limiting and Enabling Factors." Innovative Higher Education 35 (2010): 233-244: How to Write a Reflection Paper . Academic Skills, Trent University; Amelia TaraJane House. Reflection Paper . Cordia Harrington Center for Excellence, University of Arkansas; Ramlal, Alana, and Désirée S. Augustin. “Engaging Students in Reflective Writing: An Action Research Project.” Educational Action Research 28 (2020): 518-533; Writing a Reflection Paper . Writing Center, Lewis University; McGuire, Lisa, Kathy Lay, and Jon Peters. “Pedagogy of Reflective Writing in Professional Education.” Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (2009): 93-107; Critical Reflection . Writing and Communication Centre, University of Waterloo; How Do I Write Reflectively? Academic Skills Toolkit, University of New South Wales Sydney; Reflective Writing . Skills@Library. University of Leeds; Walling, Anne, Johanna Shapiro, and Terry Ast. “What Makes a Good Reflective Paper?” Family Medicine 45 (2013): 7-12; Williams, Kate, Mary Woolliams, and Jane Spiro. Reflective Writing . 2nd edition. London: Red Globe Press, 2020; Yeh, Hui-Chin, Shih-hsien Yang, Jo Shan Fu, and Yen-Chen Shih. “Developing College Students’ Critical Thinking through Reflective Writing.” Higher Education Research and Development (2022): 1-16.

Writing Tip

Focus on Reflecting, Not on Describing

Minimal time and effort should be spent describing the course content you are asked to reflect upon. The purpose of a reflection assignment is to introspectively contemplate your reactions to and feeling about an element of the course. D eflecting the focus away from your own feelings by concentrating on describing the course content can happen particularly if "talking about yourself" [i.e., reflecting] makes you uncomfortable or it is intimidating. However, the intent of reflective writing is to overcome these inhibitions so as to maximize the benefits of introspectively assessing your learning experiences. Keep in mind that, if it is relevant, your feelings of discomfort could be a part of how you critically reflect on any challenges you had during the course [e.g., you realize this discomfort inhibited your willingness to ask questions during class, it fed into your propensity to procrastinate, or it made it difficult participating in groups].

Writing a Reflection Paper . Writing Center, Lewis University; Reflection Paper . Cordia Harrington Center for Excellence, University of Arkansas.

Another Writing Tip

Helpful Videos about Reflective Writing

These two short videos succinctly describe how to approach a reflective writing assignment. They are produced by the Academic Skills department at the University of Melbourne and the Skills Team of the University of Hull, respectively.

• << Previous: Writing a Policy Memo
• Next: Writing a Research Proposal >>
• Last Updated: Jun 3, 2024 9:44 AM
• URL: https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/assignments

• Peterborough

How to Write a Reflection Paper

Why reflective writing, experiential reflection, reading reflection.

• A note on mechanics

Reflection offers you the opportunity to consider how your personal experiences and observations shape your thinking and your acceptance of new ideas.  Professors often ask students to write reading reflections.  They do this to encourage you to explore your own ideas about a text, to express your opinion rather than summarize the opinions of others.  Reflective writing can help you to improve your analytical skills because it requires you to express what you think, and more significantly, how and why you think that way.  In addition, reflective analysis asks you to acknowledge that your thoughts are shaped by your assumptions and preconceived ideas; in doing so, you can appreciate the ideas of others, notice how their assumptions and preconceived ideas may have shaped their thoughts, and perhaps recognize how your ideas support or oppose what you read.

Types of Reflective Writing

Popular in professional programs, like business, nursing, social work, forensics and education, reflection is an important part of making connections between theory and practice.  When you are asked to reflect upon experience in a placement, you do not only describe your experience, but you evaluate it based on ideas from class.  You can assess a theory or approach based on your observations and practice and evaluate your own knowledge and skills within your professional field.   This opportunity to take the time to think about your choices, your actions, your successes and your failures is best done within a specific framework, like course themes or work placement objectives.  Abstract concepts can become concrete and real to you when considered within your own experiences, and reflection on your experiences allows you to make plans for improvement.

To encourage thoughtful and balanced assessment of readings, many interdisciplinary courses may ask you to submit a reading reflection.  Often instructors will indicate to students what they expect of a reflection, but the general purpose is to elicit your informed opinions about ideas presented in the text and to consider how they affect your interpretation.   Reading reflections offer an opportunity to recognize – and perhaps break down – your assumptions which may be challenged by the text(s). 

Approaches to Reflective Inquiry

You may wonder how your professors assess your reflective writing.  What are they looking for? How can my experiences or ideas be right or wrong?  Your instructors expect you to critically engage with concepts from your course by making connections between your observations, experiences, and opinions.   They expect you to explain and analyse these concepts from your own point of view, eliciting original ideas and encouraging active interest in the course material.

It can be difficult to know where to begin when writing a critical reflection.  First, know that – like any other academic piece of writing – a reflection requires a narrow focus and strong analysis.  The best approach for identifying a focus and for reflective analysis is interrogation.   The following offers suggestions for your line of inquiry when developing a reflective response.

It is best to discuss your experiences in a work placement or practicum within the context of personal or organizational goals; doing so provides important insights and perspective for your own growth in the profession. For reflective writing, it is important to balance reporting or descriptive writing with critical reflection and analysis.

Consider these questions:

• Contextualize your reflection:  What are your learning goals? What are the objectives of the organization?  How do these goals fit with the themes or concepts from the course?
• Provide important information: What is the name of the host organization? What is their mission? Who do they serve? What was your role? What did you do?
• Analytical Reflection: What did you learn from this experience? About yourself? About working in the field? About society?
• Lessons from reflection: Did your experience fit with the goals or concepts of the course or organization?  Why or why not? What are your lessons for the future? What was successful? Why? What would you do differently? Why? How will you prepare for a future experience in the field?

Consider the purpose of reflection: to demonstrate your learning in the course.  It is important to actively and directly connect concepts from class to your personal or experiential reflection.  The following example shows how a student’s observations from a classroom can be analysed using a theoretical concept and how the experience can help a student to evaluate this concept.

For Example My observations from the classroom demonstrate that the hierarchical structure of Bloom’s Taxonomy is problematic, a concept also explored by Paul (1993).  The students often combined activities like application and synthesis or analysis and evaluation to build their knowledge and comprehension of unfamiliar concepts.  This challenges my understanding of traditional teaching methods where knowledge is the basis for inquiry.  Perhaps higher-order learning strategies like inquiry and evaluation can also be the basis for knowledge and comprehension, which are classified as lower-order skills in Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Critical reflection requires thoughtful and persistent inquiry.  Although basic questions like “what is the thesis?” and “what is the evidence?” are important to demonstrate your understanding, you need to interrogate your own assumptions and knowledge to deepen your analysis and focus your assessment of the text.

Assess the text(s):

• What is the main point? How is it developed? Identify the purpose, impact and/or theoretical framework of the text.
• What ideas stood out to me? Why? Were they new or in opposition to existing scholarship?

Develop your ideas:

• What do I know about this topic? Where does my existing knowledge come from? What are the observations or experiences that shape my understanding?
• Do I agree or disagree with this argument?  Why?

Make connections:

• How does this text reinforce my existing ideas or assumptions? How does this text challenge my existing ideas or assumptions?
• How does this text help me to better understand this topic or explore this field of study/discipline?

A Note on Mechanics

As with all written assignments or reports, it is important to have a clear focus for your writing.  You do not need to discuss every experience or element of your placement.  Pick a few that you can explore within the context of your learning.  For reflective responses, identify the main arguments or important elements of the text to develop a stronger analysis which integrates relevant ideas from course materials.

Furthermore, your writing must be organized.  Introduce your topic and the point you plan to make about your experience and learning.  Develop your point through body paragraph(s), and conclude your paper by exploring the meaning you derive from your reflection. You may find the questions listed above can help you to develop an outline before you write your paper.

You should maintain a formal tone, but it is acceptable to write in the first person and to use personal pronouns.  Note, however, that it is important that you maintain confidentiality and anonymity of clients, patients or students from work or volunteer placements by using pseudonyms and masking identifying factors. 

The value of reflection: Critical reflection is a meaningful exercise which can require as much time and work as traditional essays and reports because it asks students to be purposeful and engaged participants, readers, and thinkers.

• Jump to menu
• Student Home
• Accept your offer
• How to enrol
• Student ID card
• Set up your IT
• Orientation Week
• Fees & payment
• Academic calendar
• Special consideration
• Transcripts
• The Nucleus: Student Hub
• Referencing
• Essay writing
• Learning abroad & exchange
• Professional development & UNSW Advantage
• Employability
• Financial assistance
• International students
• Equitable learning
• Postgraduate research
• Health Service
• Events & activities
• Emergencies
• Volunteering
• Clubs and societies
• Accommodation
• Health services
• Sport and gym
• Arc student organisation
• Security on campus
• Maps of campus
• Careers portal
• Change password

Examples of Reflective Writing

Types of reflective writing assignments.

A journal  requires you to write weekly entries throughout a semester. May require you to base your reflection on course content.

A learning diary is similar to a journal, but may require group participation. The diary then becomes a place for you to communicate in writing with other group members.

A logbook is often used in disciplines based on experimental work, such as science. You note down or 'log' what you have done. A log gives you an accurate record of a process and helps you reflect on past actions and make better decisions for future actions.

A reflective note is often used in law. A reflective note encourages you to think about your personal reaction to a legal issue raised in a course.

An essay diary  can take the form of an annotated bibliography (where you examine sources of evidence you might include in your essay) and a critique (where you reflect on your own writing and research processes).

a peer review  usually involves students showing their work to their peers for feedback.

A self-assessment task  requires you to comment on your own work.

Some examples of reflective writing

Social science fieldwork report (methods section).

Engineering Design Report

Learning Journal (weekly reflection)

Brookfield, S 1987, Developing critical thinkers: challenging adults to explore alternative ways of thinking and acting , Open University Press, Milton Keynes.

Mezirow, J 1990, Fostering critical reflection in adulthood: a guide to transformative and emancipatory learning , Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.

Schön, DA 1987, Educating the reflective practitioner , Jossey-Bass. San Francisco.

We thank the students who permitted us to feature examples of their writing.

Prepared by Academic Skills, UNSW. This guide may be distributed or adapted for educational purposes. Full and proper acknowledgement is required. 

Essay and assignment writing guide

• Essay writing basics
• Essay and assignment planning
• Answering assignment questions
• Editing checklist
• Writing a critical review
• Annotated bibliography
• How do I write reflectively?
• Examples of reflective writing
• ^ More support

• MyU : For Students, Faculty, and Staff

Writing Across the Curriculum

• Research & Assessment
• Writing Plans
• WEC Liaisons
• Academic Units
• Engage with WEC
• Teaching Resources
• Teaching Consultations
• Faculty Writing Resources

Designing and Assessing Reflective Writing Assignments

Many instructors know the benefits of reflective writing for promoting students’ conceptual understanding, encouraging student agency, and helping students transfer what they have learned to new contexts. At the same time, grading students' reflections can be challenging: when students report their personal, subjective reflections, doesn’t it make all grading subjective? How can we grade reflective work fairly? This month’s blog post discusses how instructors can design meaningful reflective assignments that maximize student learning and metacognition but allow for effective and efficient grading.

Elements of reflective writing assignments

Reflective assignments enable students to consider their thoughts, skills, and attitudes as they relate to a concrete context or experience. For a student in theater, it may be a reflection on attending a professional performance, while in engineering, it could include a reflection on a job shadowing experience or internship. In general, reflective assignments have three parts:

• An experience or encounter
• Post-experience sense-making
• Aligning the experience with future intentions

One popular model describes these as ERA components (experience, reflection, action), while Gary Rolfe and associates described critical reflection as answering the questions “What? So what? Now what?” Additional models of reflection include the Kolb Learning Cycle , the Gibbs Reflective Cycle , and Brookfield’s four lenses model for educational reflection.

Regardless of the model of reflection used, unpacking the multiple stages of the process of reflection and making those elements of the assignment explicit can help improve the quality of student responses.

Components of effective responses

Description: Most reflective assignments will ask the student to begin with a concrete illustration of an experience, event, or encounter. To help students describe the context of their learning, you can remind students of the classic journalistic questions: Who, what, when, where, and why. Ask students to attend to salient details, including unfamiliar or unexpected ones.

Reaction: After the experience, students can address their multiple responses to what they’ve observed. This reaction component can include some or all of the following components or ask some or all of these questions:

• Affective reaction: What thoughts, feelings, and ideas emerged immediately from the encounter or experience? What thoughts, feelings, and ideas came up later as you had time to process them?
• Consolidating: What new learning did you come away with? What ideas you had were confirmed, and what ideas you have had may have changed?
• Sense-making: How have you come to understand what was unfamiliar or strange? How can you follow up or gain additional information?

Action: The final step of the reflection is to apply the lessons learned from the experience into the context of future action. Future action can be addressed by writing about one or more of the following concepts:

• Connection: How do you relate what happened in the encounter to your previous ideas, beliefs, and attitudes?
• Prediction: What will these lessons mean to you in specific future contexts (in class, outside of class, in your envisioned professional future)?
• Preparation: What’s next for you, and how might your new learning apply in future contexts and situations?

Establishing standards of performance

When assessing description , instructors can differentiate between the degree of detail and the focus and clarity of description. Weaker descriptions will simply recount the events of an experience in sequence (this, and then this, and then this), while stronger descriptions will emphasize details and features related to the learning context or course content.

Similarly, the reaction component of the assessment can focus on the level of detail and engagement. Instructors should assure students that they are not assessing their feelings, thoughts, or reactions but the degree to which students’ written reflection suggests that learning has occurred in the context of the experience. Students may be tempted to write conversion narratives (“I was ignorant of X, but now I understand X”), but the best use of reflection will emphasize how previously held ideas have been both confirmed and challenged, as well as what specific new information has become clear.

To assess the action component of a reflection, instructors can attend to the language students use to make connections to future learning and contexts. Ideally, students should be able to connect their reflection to what they have already learned to the future contexts in which it will be meaningful or useful.

Bring discussion of reflection into class

When students are provided clear expectations for their reflective assignments and see multiple effective examples of student work, they will perform well on reflection assignments. What’s more, students' reflections will improve as they receive feedback on the quality of their earlier efforts. While this may result in scores that skew to the higher end, these scores accurately reflect the quality of student learning. Should your course include high-stakes assessments to differentiate student performance, it can be easier to use other assessments (exams, quizzes, or other writing assignments) to achieve a more typical distribution.

Meet with the Teaching with Writing Team

Visit the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and follow us on Twitter @UMNWriting. You can schedule a phone, email, in-person, or zoom through our online consultation form . Our Teaching with Writing Program website offers teaching resources to faculty members and instructors across the University of Minnesota system.

Bassiot, Barbara. The Reflective Practice Guide: An interdisciplinary approach to critical reflection . London: Routledge, 2016.

Dreifuerst, Kristina T. Using debriefing for meaningful learning to foster development of clinical reasoning in simulation. Journal of Nursing Education. 2012 Jun;51(6):326-33. doi: 10.3928/01484834-20120409-02 .  

Wald, Hedy S;  Borkan, Jeffrey M; Taylor, Julie Scott; Anthony, David; and Reis, Shmuel P.  Fostering and Evaluating Reflective Capacity in Medical Education: Developing the REFLECT Rubric for Assessing Reflective Writing, Academic Medicine: January 2012 - Volume 87 - Issue 1 - p 41-50. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0b013e31823b55fa

Assessing using reflective writing.

Thank you, Dan and the TWW team! I was so excited to see "reflective writing" as the subject of this edition's TWW blog post. This is helpful framing for assessing students' reflective writing! For assessing "action", another practice I use (stemming from Motivational Interviewing) is to look for details the writer shares for "how" and "when" action may happen; if this isn't fully developed in initial drafts, I may ask questions like "what do you sense is the first step?" and "when do you think your first opportunity to try this may be?". I've also used reflective writing as a formative assessment tool to get a sense of where students are at in balancing their sense of an experience with perspective-taking. One question I like to pose to students for quick reflective writing is: "What, if any, ideas or perspectives were new for you to consider from this discussion, text, etc.?"

• Log in to post comments

Fantastic ideas! I've…

Fantastic ideas! I've learned about motivational interviewing from colleagues in the health sciences, but I think it's a great place to explore additional strategies for formative feedback. Please feel free to post them here if you have resources to share.

Gibbs' Cycle

Thank you for sharing these insights and tips for designing and assessing reflective writing assignments. I love how this post highlights the importance of incorporating Gibbs' Reflective Cycle in reflective writing assignments. The emphasis on designing assignments that promote deeper reflection and self-awareness is key to ensuring students can fully benefit from this valuable learning tool. Also recommend to check out this post about reflective cycle: https://productive.fish/blog/gibbs-reflective-cycle/

• African American & African Studies
• Agronomy and Plant Genetics
• Animal Science
• Anthropology
• Applied Economics
• Art History
• Carlson School of Management
• Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
• Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering
• College of Biological Sciences
• Communication Studies
• Computer Science & Engineering
• Construction Management
• Curriculum and Instruction
• Dental Hygiene
• Apparel Design
• Graphic Design
• Product Design
• Retail Merchandising
• Earth Sciences
• Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management
• Family Social Science
• Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology
• Food Science and Nutrition
• Geography, Environment and Society
• German, Nordic, Slavic & Dutch
• Health Services Management
• Horticultural Science
• Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication
• Industrial and Systems Engineering
• Information Technology Infrastructure
• Mathematics
• Mechanical Engineering
• Medical Laboratory Sciences
• Mortuary Science
• Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development
• Political Science
• School of Architecture
• School of Kinesiology
• School of Public Health
• Spanish and Portuguese Studies
• Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences
• Theatre Arts & Dance
• Youth Studies
• New Enrollments for Departments and Programs
• Legacy Program for Continuing Units
• Writing in Your Course Context
• Syllabus Matters
• Mid-Semester Feedback Strategies
• Designing Effective Writing Assignments
• Writing Assignment Checklist
• Scaffolding and Sequencing Writing Assignments
• Informal, Exploratory Writing Activities
• 5-Minute Revision Workshops
• Reflective Memos
• Conducting In-Class Writing Activities: Notes on Procedures
• Now what? Responding to Informal Writing
• Teaching Writing with Quantitative Data
• Commenting on Student Writing
• Supporting Multilingual Learners
• Teaching with Effective Models of Writing
• Peer Response Protocols and Procedures
• Using Reflective Writing to Deepen Student Learning
• Conferencing with Student Writers
• Designing Inclusive Writing Assigments
• Addressing a Range of Writing Abilities in Your Courses
• Effective Grading Strategies
• Designing and Using Rubrics
• Running a Grade-Norming Session
• Working with Teaching Assistants
• Managing the Paper Load
• Teaching Writing with Sources
• Preventing Plagiarism
• Grammar Matters
• What is ChatGPT and how does it work?
• Incorporating ChatGPT into Classes with Writing Assignments: Policies, Syllabus Statements, and Recommendations
• Restricting ChatGPT Use in Classes with Writing Assignments: Policies, Syllabus Statements, and Recommendations
• What do we mean by "writing"?
• How can I teach writing effectively in an online course?
• What are the attributes of a "writing-intensive" course at the University of Minnesota?
• How can I talk with students about the use of artificial intelligence tools in their writing?
• How can I support inclusive participation on team-based writing projects?
• How can I design and assess reflective writing assignments?
• How can I use prewritten comments to give timely and thorough feedback on student writing?
• How can I use online discussion forums to support and engage students?
• How can I use and integrate the university libraries and academic librarians to support writing in my courses?
• How can I support students during the writing process?
• How can I use writing to help students develop self-regulated learning habits?
• Submit your own question
• Short Course: Teaching with Writing Online
• Five-Day Faculty Seminar
• Past Summer Hunker Participants
• Resources for Scholarly Writers
• Consultation Request
• Faculty Writing Groups
• Further Writing Resources

• Schools & departments

Introducing reflection as an assignment

Using reflective assignments can be a great way of synthesising learning and challenging the status quo. This page outlines some of the things to keep in mind when posing reflective assignments.

In higher education or professional develop initiatives it is very common to have some sort of assignment. These are typically written but can also take other forms. This page will go through the main considerations for posing reflective assignments.

The main points covered are:

• finding and communicating the purpose of your assignment
• being clear both to yourself and to reflector what you want in the assignment
• the difference between ‘reflection’ and ‘evidence of reflection’
• choosing your criteria
• providing students support and spending time practicing can be valuable as most students are new to reflection.

Back to alignment – find the purpose of the assignment and communicate it

It should be clear to participants or students what the purpose of the assignment is. Why are you asking them to do this particular assignment? You will have had to think about the value of it.

This value can be described in the guidelines of the reflective assignment where you communicate how it will help reflectors either evidence their learning or obtain learning outcomes. From the guidelines it should be clear to students what the value of completing and doing well on the assignment is.

Be clear what you are asking

When posing a reflective assignment it is very important that you know from the beginning exactly what you are asking. Reflective writing/responses can typically take on two distinct forms:

• reflection,
• evidence of reflection.

The distinction between the two is vital when deciding the type of assignment you want to pose. These are outlined below.

Reflection - the actual process of examining thoughts

If you want to see the detailed aspects of reflectors’ thought processes, and want to follow each step in their reasoning, concerns, and learnings, ask the reflectors to submit their actual reflections.

The benefits is that you ensure that reflectors go through the process themselves and you can directly assess the quality. As this is the actual process we want the reflectors to complete, asking for raw reflections is the easiest way to ensure or get evidence that the process is happening.

One challenge when posing this kind of assignment is that some people might find it too personal to share this intimate process – it can become self-disclosure. A personal reflective account can be uncomfortable to show to anyone, and even more so to someone who is in a position of authority.

Evidence of reflection

In contrast, ‘evidence of reflection’ is documenting the effects of reflection, but does not require documenting the process explicitly.

Hence, rather than writing the thoughts and feelings of a situation, the reflector will state the context and what learning they found in the experience. In the purest form, there is no need to document any challenging or self-disclosing feelings. It is more akin to describing the effects of a reflection and rationally, in contrast to emotionally, explaining why the learning is valuable.

The benefit of this is that reflectors are less likely to feel that they are self-disclosing. However, when we are looking at evidence of reflection rather than reflection itself, it is more difficult to assess the reflectors ability to actually reflect. Therefore, good evidence of reflection is when learning is explicitly stated and it is highlighted how the learning will be used in the future.

It is important to be aware that there is a risk, albeit minimal, that a reflector can produce good evidence of reflection, without having done any reflection. For example, a reflector may write that they learned to start assignments earlier and will do so in the future, without actually having engaged with reflection at all – they might just guess that ‘starting assignments earlier’ is a possible conclusion you want to see.

Most assignments are a balance of ‘reflection’ and ‘evidence of reflection’

In reality, very few assignments will be a either pure ‘reflection’ or ‘evidence of reflection’. The goal for you is to find the right balance. Once you know what you want, you should be clear to reflectors about what being successful in the assignment looks like.

The easiest way to demonstrate what good looks like is to provide the reflectors with clear guidelines and examples of the type of reflections you are looking for. You can either write examples yourself or have a look through the Reflectors’ Toolkit, where each of the models have at least one example. You will likely find an example there that can be helpful for you.

List of tools for reflection (in Reflectors’ Toolkit) (LINK)

Reflection is just like any other assignment – avoid vagueness

The need for clear assignment directions is essential in all areas of higher education, however having the discussion specifically for reflection is important. This is because when posing a reflective assignment it can feel easy to consider reflection as ‘special’ and separate from common ‘good academic practice’ and therefore that it does not require the same levels of direction as a general assignment. Reflection should be considered on equal terms with general academic practice and will often require more support as many reflectors are new to the concept.

One reason vague reflection assignments are easy to pose is that they do not seem to restrict the reflectors’ freedom about how to reflect. In contrast, if we provide them with clear requirements and directions it might seem that we do restrict reflection. There is an element of truth in that. If we require as written assignment using a specific model of reflection, we do take some freedom away from the reflectors, at least in how they present their reflections to us. In practice, they can easily produce a private reflection and restructure it according to your question and requirements.

If we do not give the reflectors the structure they need, one challenge is that a high proportion of them might produce reflections not meeting our ideas of sufficient or good.

Posing a reflective assignment saying ‘Reflect on your development and learning in the course in 1000 words’ might seem like a fair question to ask. But compare that to asking them to ‘write an academic essay about the concepts you learned in this course in 1000 words’ and it should be clear why guidelines are important. It is easy to imagine how students would struggle to prioritise and produce an essay with relevant content from the vague essay prompt. This is similar for a vaguely posed reflective assignment without accompanying clear guidelines. How are the reflectors going to guess what we expect from them?

Most people are new to structured reflection

In higher education, most people have an idea of what an essay is supposed to look like because we are taught essay writing from an early age in school. In contrast, most people have never done structured reflection before university, and then are not likely to be thoroughly instructed in how to do or present it. It follows that if we are vague in our instructions we may receive assignments of very varying qualities.

Thus, to be fair to the reflectors and to us as facilitators, be clear and have clear guidelines available. You can ask very broad reflective questions, but you should be ready to support the reflectors and both your criteria and rubrics (if you chose to assess) should be extremely robust.

Providing training/introductions to students is useful

As most people are new to reflection starting in university, when you introduce reflection it can helpful to: provide a thorough written guide of what reflection is, provide people with resources (for example the Reflectors’ Toolkit), and/or spend time in person introducing reflectors to structured reflection and what you expect from reflections.

Find your criteria and your rubric

Once you have a clear assignment, it is important you think about what you want to measure it against, i.e. the criteria. This discussion is also highlighted in the ‘Assessing reflection’ section of the Facilitators’ Toolkit with specific criteria as suggestions.

Moreover, if you decide to use summative assessment for the assignments, you will need to have a clear rubric (criteria broken down into levels of performance). It is good practice to publish both the criteria and rubric to the reflectors prior to assessing them.

To see at what point criteria and rubrics become essential, see ‘Should I assess?’

Assessing reflection (within the Facilitators’ Toolkit)

Should I assess? (within the Facilitators’ Toolkit)

Back to 'How do I introduce reflection?'

Powerful Endings and Reflection

by Jason | May 21, 2020 | Synchronous Teaching , Teaching remotely general tips , Technology tools , Uncategorized | 0 comments

By Jason Schreiner and Julie Mueller

A powerful way to end a course is to provide students an opportunity to reflect on the knowledge they’ve gained, the skills they’ve developed, and the learning processes they have experienced, including a possible transformation in how they understand the world or perceive themselves as learners or agents of change.

An ending moment of reflection also can help students see the silver lining of learning in a remote context that is often exhausting and stressful. That is, such a moment can help students recognize a variety of additional useful skills–and resiliency–they’ve developed while managing their remote learning, including skills that translate to their work lives and careers beyond the university. There are a variety of ways to build a powerful ending through reflection in your course: some that bring together threads woven through your entire course plan, some that you can try as additions to your existing plans.

There are many ways to cultivate powerful endings:

• Ideas from TEP
• Ideas from Faculty
• Insights from the UO Career Center

Watch a recording of our Powerful Endings workshop , and download workshop slides .

Reflection and Metacognition

A key purpose for designing moments of reflection in a course is to help students develop their metacognition and capacity for self-directed learning. Metacognition refers to the ability to “understand and monitor one’s own thoughts and the assumptions and implication of one’s activities” (Lin 2001, 23). Research summarized by Nilson (2013) indicates that students who engage in metacognition improve their performance on exams, written and designed products, and problem-solving ability. Moreover, metacognition helps students improve their sense of self-efficacy, independent agency, and motivation, which in turn allows them to become more self-directed and resilient in their learning. According to Ambrose and colleagues (2010, 191) self-directed learners have more capacity to:

• asses the demands of a task,
• evaluate their own knowledge and skills,
• plan their approach,
• monitor their progress, and
• adjust their strategies as needed.

Such processes provide a variety of avenues for instructors to include moments of reflection for students–not just at the end of a class but throughout the term. A bevy of possible strategies for including metacognition at various moments in your course is outlined on this TEP handout on metacognitive techniques , and in this article on promoting metacognition by Kimberly D. Tanner .

Powerful Endings: Ideas from TEP

Reflection at the end of a class can take a variety of forms that promote student metacognition and bring students’ learning experiences to a powerful conclusion.  Here we indicate a few ideas, including summaries of approaches shared by faculty at our Powerful Endings workshop.

A focus on experience and future applications

This approach engages students in reflecting on the depth of their learning experience and taking a long view, including how they will use what they learned in the future. Too often students get caught up in a big push to complete course requirements and do not pause to consider what stood out most for them in their learning or how they might use it moving forward. Yet taking a moment for such reflection can help students clarify the value of the class and affirm their growth as learners. Possible activities include:

• What was the most significant idea you learned in this class, or what was the most significant moment of your learning? Why?
• How has your perspective or understanding of [class subject] been changed, challenged, reinforced or deepened as a result of this idea or moment?
• What is one way you intend to use or apply your learning in your future endeavors?
• What have you learned about yourself as a result of having to learn remotely this term?
• What was the overall movement or journey of ideas in this class?
• What was the most significant idea or moment of learning for you along the way? Why?
• How do you intend to continue this movement or journey moving forward? That is, what is something you intend to use or apply in the future?
• How did you experience the process of learning during this class? Include one high point and one challenging moment (which might be the same).

A focus on content and skills

In this strategy, students take a more close-up view, summing up the content and skills they have learned over the course of the term and identifying themes running through multiple topics. This kind of stock-taking, especially recognizing the skills they are developing, is challenging for students to do when they are caught in the weeds of learning the details of the course. It can also help students identify weak areas that might need more attention before a final exam. Some possible exercises include:

• Before class, have each student write down “the five big ideas of this course”.
• Have small groups work together to come up with a consensus version of the five ideas. Use breakout rooms in Zoom for a synchronous class or the groups function in Canvas for an asynchronous one. Each group should post their list of ideas to a Canvas discussion board.
• Have the class read the discussion posts and have a brief discussion of things that they find particularly interesting or surprising. This could be done in Zoom or as comments to the Canvas discussion.
• Have an add-on discussion about skills they have developed, including ones not directly related to course content.
• Create concept maps. Ask students to construct concept maps that represent the full range of the course material. In doing this, they will have to make choices about what is important enough to include and think about how to organize the material to facilitate making connections between different topics. You might ask students to make separate maps for factual knowledge and skills developed in the course. Students could draw concept maps by hand, then scan or photograph them for submission or sharing in class, or they could make use of the many online concept map construction tools .

Powerful Endings: Ideas from Faculty

Four faculty panelists joined us to share how they are engaging students in reflection about their learning, especially during the challenges of remote learning amidst a pandemic. Below is a summary of key ideas they shared; you can get their full accounts in the video of the session .

Alison Gash, Political Science

• Self-reflection helps address how abnormal and uncertain remote learning is in the context of a pandemic. At the start of the term, my students identified three things we have discovered about themselves in the current situation that they didn’t know previously; three things they wish they could change about themselves; and three things they are doing for comfort and coping. They will do this same exercise at the end of the term and also note what they learned, where they are now, and what has been helpful for their learning in the remote environment.
• One coping mechanism many students are using is baking and cooking. This has helped them make connections with others, including sharing their creations with those in need in the community. We are compiling a recipe book with our favorite recipes and including short stories and self-reflections, along with art work, and all students will have a copy to commemorate this strange time, to remember how they adjusted, and to serve as source of strength as they move forward.
• I have also been hosting weekly check in meetings for students and former students, allowing them to connect and share, with occasional guests I bring to offer insights.  I will continue to offer these weekly connection times beyond this term, providing a forum for ongoing reflection and connection.

Tom Hahn, Architecture

• My students are completing their degree and will be entering the professional world after this term; they have much uncertainty about their prospects. We therefore have engaged often on how the current context is informing how design happens and gets communicated. At the beginning, students reflected on who they think they are, what they have learned thus far about professional design work, and what they are looking to learn during the last term. I will have them answer these same questions at the end of the term, including reflection on how they have changed and are different as a result of adapting their learning and professional preparation to a remote environment.
• Another strategy I’ve used is to note previous economic downturns I have experienced and to model how I adapted and shifted my practice.  We have then reflected on how development of remote work skills contributes positively to professional development, given that our field is increasingly global and involves remote connections.  Students have reflected on the technology tools they are learning, their approaches to telling their stories and making their work convincing, and the ways they are learning to work with grace and competence while under fire.
• In addition to weekly check in times during the term, we will end with a round table reflection session and use a white board to capture our learning experience and have some fun, too. I also began the term with a scavenger hunt – retrieving various architectural work virtually – and we’ll include a similar exercise in which students retrieve key moments of their learning this term and during their entire time at UO.

Nicola Barber, Biology

• The last time I taught my Science, Policy, and Biology class, I started incorporating more self-evaluation and metacognition as a means to increase self-efficacy for my students and to really empower their own agency in the course. I started asking them to reflect and use the rubrics that I provide and that we grade with to incorporate their own grading of everything they submit. I also incorporated a weekly reflection. At the end of every week, once all the weekly assignments are due, I ask them to reflect on their performance on all the pieces, including the learning objectives, which include both skills and content. I also ask them to reflect on what things have gone well this week, what they were proud of learning this week, and what challenges they were facing and how they are planning to overcome them.
• The weekly reflections build up to self-evaluative and self-reflective pieces on the final exam. Some of the prompts in the reflective pieces include: What are the things you learned? What did you learn about how you learn this quarter? What are you going to take from the course going forward? These parts of the exam are graded using rubrics that emphasize elements of writing, such as inclusion of a thesis statement, introduction and conclusion rather than the content, which allows students to write honestly.
• One of the things I’m bringing in this quarter is a prompt asking students to reflect on how they met the challenges of learning remotely, but also in a pandemic. What will they take forward with them as students or in their careers and what have they gained from this crazy quarter?

Damian Radcliffe, Journalism and Communications

• I am teaching three classes this term. In the Audio Storytelling and Podcasting course, students do weekly reflections and will finish the term by producing a three to four minute audio diary telling me about what they have learned during the course.
• The second class is Journalism in New York/New York Experience, which normally culminates in a trip to New York to visit and talk with journalism professionals. This term New York has been coming to us via Zoom, and students will sum up the experience by putting together a tip sheet based around either a speaker or a particular organization or a thematic area we have explored. The idea is to bring together all of the threads from class in terms of online reading, learning, guest speakers and so forth, with the goal being a publishable piece of work. We’re trying to get them placed in the trade press to show that these students have been thinking really deeply about their craft during the course of this term.
• Here is a link to Damian’s blog on Lessons learned: 9 takeaways from teaching online during COVID-19

View even more ideas from faculty at this Spotlight on Creative Instruction: Preparing Powerful Endings to Remote Courses

Powerful Endings: Insights from the UO Career Center Paul Timmins , Executive Director The National Association of Colleges and Employers has developed a  list of eight competencies that employers are seeking – and the UO education helps students develop each of them. Obviously, courses each help students build certain competencies, but it seems to me that this Spring term, by virtue of being remote, helped students develop some of them in very powerful ways; I’m going to focus on three competencies in particular. As I work with students preparing for interviews or who are working on graduate school applications, I coach them to reflect on  examples that will illustrate for prospective employers or graduate schools how they adapted and utilized the competencies they will need in the future. Three key competency areas include: Digital Technology – Used Zoom, Microsoft Teams. What other tools did your students use? They will be using these tools on the job. Some reflective questions that might help students think of examples: How did you use technology to improve the work that you did? What new etiquette or skills did you develop during the spring term? What barriers did the technology present, and how did you overcome them? Teamwork/collaboration – All work was done remote, and much communication was asynchronous Reflective questions: How did you build strong working relationships with students and faculty remotely? What conflicts arose and how did you deal with them? What successes did you achieve? Professionalism/Work Ethic – This was an unprecedented event for all of us and required new habits in order to work productively with others. Reflective questions: How did you need to adjust your time management skills to succeed this term? How did you demonstrate accountability to your classmates and professor in ways that were different than a normal “in-person” course? In what ways did you adjust your work this term with the interests of the larger community in mind? Students are going to be asked interview questions about the spring term, and about the summer for a long time. I want students to have an answer: How did they use the time? What did they learn?

Ambrose, S.A., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovette, M.C., and Norman, M.K. (2011). How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching . (San Francisco: Jossey Bass).

O’Hare, M. (2018, January 2). What To Do On the Last Day of Class. Retrieved from https://teaching.berkeley.edu/news/what-do-last-day-class .

Lin, X. (2001). “Designing metacognitive activities.” Educational Technology Research and Development , 49(2): 23-39.

Nilson, L. B. (2013). Creating Self-Regulated Learners: Strategies to Strengthen Self-Awareness and Learning Skills . (Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing).

Tanner, K. B. (2012). Promoting Student Metacognition. CBE Life Sciences Education 11: 113-120.

Submit a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Recent Comments

• Joanna Merson on UPDATED FOR SPRING: UO Remote ‘Starter’ Syllabus
• Carolyn Bergquist on UPDATED FOR SPRING: UO Remote ‘Starter’ Syllabus
• Lee Rumbarger on UPDATED FOR SPRING: UO Remote ‘Starter’ Syllabus
• The End of an Extraordinary Semester » Center for Teaching & Learning | Blog Archive | Boston University on Spotlight on Creative Instruction: Preparing Powerful Endings to Remote Courses 
• Anne Laskaya on Recent UO Survey on Academic Obstacles for Remote Learning

Post Categories

• Our Mission

7 Reflection Tips for Assessment, Empowerment, and Self-Awareness

How to model and guide students toward a more reflective approach to their projects, grades, actions, and reactions.

Reflecting takes many forms in the classroom, and it is an integral and indispensable part of education. Great teachers reflect on their daily practice and tweak their units, interactions, and attitudes, both at the end of a class and in the midst of their work.

In the same way, students need to reflect on their actions and their work in order to build their classroom community and increase their own knowledge and skills. If you want to integrate reflection into your teaching practice, here are seven tips that you can start implementing in your classroom now.

1. Reflect With Shout-Outs

In an English classroom in my building, the classes use TL (Team Love) shout-outs. At the end of class, kids are asked to shout out one positive thing someone else did. “TL to Carla for lending me a pencil!” or “TL to Kofi for explaining his quote really well” are surface observations, but they’re also kernels of reflection.

2. Reflect Through Writing

The most common form of reflection is a simple written response. Students can reflect on projects, grades, actions, and reactions. I use a reflection at the end of every quarter where I ask my students what grade they think they deserve and why, and then I give them their grade and ask them to respond, set goals, and offer any comments on the class.

I’m constantly amazed by how honest and accurate my students are. Most of them will predict within five points of their actual grade and be right on target with what they need to work on. Sometimes this practice also provides key insights, such as one student writing about having a hard time at home and how it was affecting her grade, or another student setting a goal to check off every item on his agenda each day before leaving school.

3. Model Reflective Learning With Pluses and Deltas

Pluses and deltas take the place of pros and cons. A pro and con chart points out strengths and weaknesses, giving equal weight to each. For young people, pointing out weaknesses can be devastating, especially if there are more cons than pros. Using pluses and deltas instead phrases the conversation in terms of things a student did well and things that need to change. It’s a subtle but pervasive shift that’s especially helpful when students offer feedback to their peers, and it’s a great tool for your students to model reflective learning.

Each week in my science class, a different student presents a Science Friday project. At the end, four peers offer one plus and one delta each. These comments highlight the positive and then suggest a change, making the feedback uplifting, direct, and actionable. “You didn’t speak well” is not a helpful comment. “You could speak louder next time because I missed some of your jokes” is better all around.

4. Reflect on Quizzes

Be specific, positive, and actionable when giving guidance on reflection.

In math, students might be asked to reflect on the results of a quiz. Simply saying, “Reflect on your work,” isn’t enough. Instead, you can say, “Choose three problems you got wrong. For each one, explain the mistake you made, redo the problem, and explain why your new solution is correct.” This focuses the students to reflect on one specific aspect and then gives them a specific format for the reflection. As the year goes by, less and less explanation is needed. If students recognize this format and begin to internalize it, they can use it as a baseline for what reflect means in the future.

5. Reflect on Behaviors

When a class runs particularly well, I will often end by asking for reflection on why everything went so smoothly. On the other hand, if I ask a student to step out of class, I ask them to write a reflection:

• What did you do that led to your leaving?
• Why did you do it?
• How can we work together to make sure that it doesn’t happen again?

6. Model Reflection for Your Students

Beyond just incorporating it into your classroom as a formative or summative assessment tool, you can use your personal reflecting to make your class more transparent and your process more accessible to students. Every day brings a chance to reflect on your own lessons as a teacher with your students. The end of a period is a great time to throw out some quick comments. I’ll often say things like:

• We didn’t get as far as I hoped we would today. Does anyone have any ideas why?
• Today was great! Can anyone tell me something wonderful that they saw someone else do?
• I made a mistake. Next time, I’m going to do this differently by _____.
• I feel like we had a really great class today! I admired how all of us _____.

If students hear you reflecting honestly about your own lesson and pointing out your own successes and things to change, they’ll be more willing to do the same.

7. Reflect on Your Teaching Practice

Of course, not everything needs to be shared with students. Each day in a classroom brings successes and failures of various sizes. Being honest with yourself about both is absolutely imperative.

No one will ever be a perfect teacher. From the first day to the last, we will all make mistakes. As we become more experienced educators, those mistakes will change, but they will never disappear. When I started teaching, my weakest skill was making my lessons accessible. My students often had difficulty engaging with the complexity of my classes. Now, I struggle with the opposite, challenging the high-flyers in my class while still allowing everyone to participate.

I only know this because I can look back over six years of lesson plans, saved assignments, notes to myself, and journals that I’ve written. I write to myself at least weekly, and often go back for inspiration. Some of my colleagues write daily journals. Some use blogs, Twitter, or Facebook, and others just talk a lot about their classes. Yet we all take note of our own pluses and deltas, using those to better inform our teaching.

University Park Campus School

Per pupil expenditures, free / reduced lunch, demographics:.

This blog post is part of our Schools That Work series, which features key practices from University Park Campus School .

• Quick Classroom Tools
• Visual Vocabulary

Activity Bank

• Inclusive Language Guide
• Teaching Tools
• Classroom & Behavior Management
• Classroom Partners
• Liberated Learning Environments
• Practical Tips & Accommodations
• Remote Teaching & Learning
• Getting Started
• Wrapping Up & Reflecting
• View All Resources
• What’s GIVE?
• Contributors
• GIVE Programs & Initiatives
• GIVE Partners
• Land Acknowledgement

Ongoing In-Class Reflection Strategies

Build in multiple opportunities and modes for reflection throughout the lesson to support student learning, engagement, and growth.

• Wrapping Up & Reflecting
• Practical Tips & Accommodations

Building opportunities for reflection throughout the lesson, and incorporating multiple modes of reflection, can support student learning, engagement, and growth. This document shares ways to think about, structure, and incorporate reflection into your lesson.

Quick Takeaways

Mix up the groupings for reflection. Invite students to reflect individually, in pairs, small groups, and as a class.

Use a “What? So what? Now what?” structure to encourage students to think about what they did, why they did it, and what they can do next.

Incorporate moments for quick reflection throughout every lesson, and times for more in-depth reflection periodically over the course of your entire class and residency.

When Do You Use Reflection?

There is no set time for reflection. You can use it at different times from lesson to lesson and activity to activity. Reflection offers students time to pause and consider what they have experienced, or learned, and to review and evaluate what happened. It can be helpful to use reflection

• at the end of each lesson;
• at the end of a project/residency;
• multiple times throughout a lesson;
• after something new has been introduced in the lesson;
• as a way to discuss an issue on a deeper level;
• when there is discussion around a difficult theme;
• when a challenging moment that impacts students and educators arises, either in the classroom specifically, or outside of the classroom;
• or any combination of the above!

Learning Cycle

Building in opportunities for reflection throughout the lesson, and incorporating multiple modes of reflection, can support student learning, engagement, and growth.

• There is an experience (in the form of an activity/lesson) in the classroom. Now you can question the students: “What happened? What did we do?”
• Reflect on the experience to review and evaluate what happened. For example, students ask themselves, “What did I experience?”
• Generalize and ask, “Why did this happen?”
• Apply through active experimentation. “Consider, what will you do? What will taking action look like?”

Reflection Models

Individual: Students can be given time to journal, draw, or meditate for the last five to 10 minutes of class, responding to reflection prompts.

Partner Share: Students pair up and share their thoughts on reflection prompts together. They can also be given the option to write their reflections and read these to each other.

Small Group Share: Break the class up into small groups and have them discuss the reflection prompts. If possible, have an educator join each group.

Large Group Share: If possible, sit in a circle and reflect as a group on the experience. Decide how you will identify who is talking. For example, ask students to raise their hands or pass a talking object.

Reflection at Home: Students can be asked to take a moment at home to reflect on the lesson. They can choose a modality (writing, drawing, dancing, preparing a monologue) that they feel comfortable sharing with the class during the next session. This may be a good model to use when your residency or class is coming to an end.

Remote Teaching and Learning Tip

You can create breakout rooms for small-group reflection on some digital platforms. It may be a good idea to plan out the breakout rooms (the amount or who’s in each room) in advance if you need to have supervision from a Classroom Professional in each breakout room, or need a Classroom Professional to make the breakout rooms.

Non-Verbal Reflection Methods

Thumbs up / thumbs down.

Ask a series of “Yes/No” or “True/False” questions. Each student will answer accordingly with a thumbs up indicating “True” or “Yes,” or thumbs down for “False” or “No.” Ask students to elaborate on their answers.

Four Corners

Get your students reflecting on their feet. Place answer signs in each corner of the room (e.g., “Yes,” “No,” “True,” “False,” “I’m not sure”). As you ask questions, students will move to the corner that matches their answers. Ask students to elaborate on their answers.

Tweet Your Reflection

Ask students to respond to a reflection question as if it were a 140-character tweet. Hashtags and @’s encouraged!

Instagram Reflection

Students can work on their own or as a group to create a tableau or tableaux sequence that responds to a specific prompt. Students should also be prepared to share a caption for their image with hashtags.

Each student gets a piece of paper. Students will have two to five minutes to respond to your reflection question(s) in writing or drawing. Then yell, “3, 2, 1 snowball!” and students will throw their snowballs across the room. Each student will pick up an anonymous snowball and read it aloud to the class.

Wordstorm or Graffiti Wall

Post chart paper up around the room and ask either an educator or student to scribe. Ask students to “popcorn” out responses and/or words. You can also post chart paper throughout the room with different questions/prompts and allow students to move freely around and write or draw their responses to the questions/prompts, directly on the papers or using Post-it notes.

Emotion Pose Sequence

Ask students to pick three words to describe how they feel after an activity. Then ask students to make poses to represent each emotion they chose, and string them together so that they become a dance or continuous gesture. Ask students to find a partner to share with. Students can teach one another their moves or make a new sequence combining their gestures.

Journal Your Reflection

Students can keep reflection journals and as a ritual following an activity, students can write or draw about their experience. You can keep this open-ended or use reflection prompts.

You can use a tool, such as Poll Everywhere, Padlet, Mentimeter, etc. to create an interactive, real-time generator of a word cloud for students.

Incorporating Reflection Throughout the Lesson

When reflection is incorporated throughout the lesson, you are able to constantly check in on students’ engagement and progress, particularly for students who are less verbal. You can integrate some of the models already mentioned above. Here are a few more ways to integrate reflection throughout the lesson.

• What did we just do?
• Did everyone understand?
• Take the time to address conflicting answers.

Collective Breath

• As a group, take one (or a set number, such as three) collective breath. This helps to reset the tone in the room.
• Now ask: “Are we ready to move on?”
• Ask students to respond to how they feel about what they just did by using emojis. Start by modeling for the class: Make an expression with your face/body that captures how you feel (e.g.,, surprised, happy, sad, angry, thumbs up/down, shrugging shoulders).
• Take some time for everyone to look around the room at the group’s reactions, and discuss what they see.

All of these models could and should be adapted to best fit the needs of your students and the tone of your lesson.

You can take advantage of your class chat as an ongoing reflection strategy, using emojis, one-word reflections, etc. Another possibility is to incorporate polls (interactive Google Forms/Zoom polls, third-party interactive forms like Padlet/Poll Everywhere, and more basic “show of hands”) to utilize the digital tools as part of your reflection strategies for a synchronous remote class. You can also bring in other nonverbal reflection responses using reaction buttons, thumbs up/down, etc.

Basic Structure for Reflection Questions

Ask some questions that provide time and space for your students to think about what they learned and experienced (both academically/artistically and socially/emotionally) during your lesson.

• “What happened during this lesson?” 
• “How did it make you feel?” 
• “What was hard?”
• “What was easy?” 
• “What did you like?”

Ask some questions that help your students think about why they did what they did.

• “What did this lesson teach us?” 
• “Why was it valuable/important?”

Close out this debrief with space to reflect on how what your students learned can be applied outside of school.

• “How can we use what we learned today outside of school?”

Important Notes

Encourage your students to speak from their own experience and perspective by using I-statements when speaking, and not making generalizations about what was happening to others. An example of an I-statement is: “I was feeling very bored during this lesson,” as opposed to: “This lesson was boring.”

You can also use the debrief to get input and suggestions from your students on the lesson overall.

Digging Deeper

During the course of the reflection, you may become aware of issues that need to be explored more deeply with your class. Here are some suggestions for digging deeper on issues.

• Ask open-ended questions: “How was that for you? How did you feel?”
• Focus on feelings: “What is everyone feeling right now?”
• Monitor verbal and nonverbal cues: “It seems like people aren’t paying attention here. What is going on?”
• Test out perceptions: “During this lesson, it seemed like people were getting frustrated. Is that true?”
• Share your feelings: “I am confused. How do other people feel?”
• Ask: “What did you or someone else do in the activity that surprised you?”

Reflections can be as short or in-depth as you need them to be. Define what you need for each lesson and how it will benefit the students for the duration of your time together.

Reflections can be an integral part of SEL (Social Emotional Learning) and Healing-Centered teaching . If a challenging situation arises, either inside the classroom or outside the classroom (for example, if there is an emergency in the school that disrupts the lesson), you might want to use a reflection activity to help everyone process the experience, while always being mindful of students’ level of comfort sharing their reflections.

A next step could be for you to integrate your students’ reflections into your curriculum development.

What modifications can be made to support students based on their reflections?

Integrating self-reflection as part of your teaching practice is also likely to benefit your students. Here are some GIVE resources to support you.

• Template: TA Self-Assessment | Short Form
• Template: TA Self-Assessment | Ongoing Residency
• Template: TA Self-assessment | Residency Wrap-Up

External Resources

Related Content

Audio Description for Dance

There are many aspects of dance performance to consider as well as opportunities when it comes to integrating audio…

What Is Audio Description?

A brief overview of the basic principles and types of audio description (often abbreviated and referred to as "AD")…

The GIVE Activity Bank is a resource bank of short arts education activities or tasks that already include supports…

50 Learning Reflection Questions For Students

Were you an active or a passive learner? Of what you learned today, what are you most comfortable with and what is still ‘iffy’?

Reflection Questions To Improve Learning

by Terry Heick

A few years ago, I wrote about Types of Learning Journals and reflection was a part of this thinking.

I’ve also shared a small collection of basic reflective questions in the past that could be used as a tweet or other social media post.

Now, for an updated post, I’ve collected many of these questions into a single post that you can sift through and hopefully find something you can use in your classroom tomorrow. Some are questions while others are question stems that can be used to guide reflection in specific lessons or scenarios where unique language or ideas are needed.

See also 12 Authentic Starting Points For Learning

Reflection Questions For Learning

1. What do you remember about what you learned today? Write down as many things as you can in 30/60/90 seconds.

2. Of what you remember, what seemed to be the most important ideas? Write down 3-5 things in bullet-point format.

3. What was your role in the learning process today? Did you find any new information? Interpret it? Attempt to ‘remember’ it? Complete a task? Listen? Watch? Skim? Try? Combine? Consider? Evaluate? Calculate? List? Describe? Problem solve? Recall? Create?

4. Were you an active or a passive learner? Did the learning activity allow (or force) you to be one or the other (active versus passive)?

5. What did you notice others doing during today’s lesson? Include other students, the teacher, etc. Infer cognitive behaviors (what they were doing ‘in their minds’) and listing physical and observable behaviors.

Metacognitive Questions For Learning

6. When were you at your best today?

7. What opportunities did you have today? Which were worthy of your attention, energy, or best thinking? Did you take them?

8. What did you assume about today’s learning before we started? How did that affect your learning (for better or for worse)?

9. What was your mindset before, during, and after the lesson?

10. What are you sure you understand about _____?

11. What do you think you might understand about _____?

12. What are you sure you misunderstand about _____? What is the most likely source of the confusion?

Nature Of Knowledge Reflective Questions

13. What do you suspect that you might misunderstand about ____?

14. What is the difference between misunderstanding and not yet knowing ?

15. What do you already know that you can use to think about or learn _____?

16. How do you know that you understand _____?

17. How do you know that you don’t understand ______?

18. How did you respond when struggled with today (if you did)?

19. What did you find most surprising about _____?

20. How did your understanding of _______ change today?

21. Of what you learned, how much of it was new, and how much of it have you seen before?

22. What about _____ makes you curious?

23. How is ____ similar to _____?

24. How does what you learned relate to what you already knew?

25. So? So What? What now? (Summarize what you learned, roughly explain its significance, and estimate what you might/could/should do next in response.)

Bonus: Consider the ‘form’ of learning you used . What other forms could have been used and what would effect might the use of those other forms have had on your learning? Think of sitting and listening versus standing and speaking. Think working alone versus working with others or watching a video versus reading a book versus listening to a podcast. How might the nature of what you learn (the topic or skill or concept being learned) dictate the ideal learning form?

Put another way, how does the learning content and/or goal affect the best learning methods?

Learning Reflection Questions For Students

Also, I previously created questions students can ask themselves before, during, and after learning to improve their thinking, retention, and metacognition. A few highlights from the ‘after learning’ (which qualify them as reflective questions for learning) include:

1. How did that go?

What did I clearly learn? What might I have learned or practiced or improved my understanding of that may not be obvious?

What was most interesting? Least? How can I learn new things if I’m not ‘interested in’ what I’m learning? What do others do in these cases to learn?

What was clear, what was confusing, and what was somewhere in the middle? What do I still need help with? Who can I talk to about the lesson to review key ideas or clarify misunderstandings?

2. What seems most important about what was learned?

What seems less important and what seems more important about what was learned? Or is this something where what was learned doesn’t have a clear hierarchy?

After the lesson, is what seems most important different from how things seemed before and during the lesson? How and why?

3. What should I do with what I’ve learned and how should I respond to what I didn’t learn?

What should I do with what I learned and know? What will I be able to do with this–both now and if and when I improve my understanding of it?

Who should I ‘tell’ or share this with? Who would care and/or benefit the most?

4. What might we learn tomorrow Based on what we learned today?

Where does what we’re learning seem to be ‘heading’? What happens next when we’ve learned things like this in the past?

What could I learn about this tomorrow with help? By myself? What might someone who knows this better than I do ‘learn next’?

5. How have I been changed by what I’ve learned?

How do I feel about this content? Interested? Enthusiastic? Curious? Bored? Indifferent?

How else could I learn this–maybe better? How might I think of this learning in 40 days? 40 weeks? 40 months? 40 years?

More Questions To Reflect On Learning

1. What is the most important concept, skill, or ‘thing’  you learned today, and why do you think it stands out to you?

2. How can you apply what you learned today to your everyday life or future studies? Provide a specific example.

3. What part of the lesson or activity did you find most challenging, and how did you overcome that challenge?

4. Describe a moment during the lesson or activity when you felt confused or unsure. How did you resolve that confusion?

5. How did today’s lesson connect to something you already knew? Did it change or enhance your understanding in any way?

6. What questions do you still have about the topic, and where might you find the answers?

7. In what ways did today’s lesson or activity help you understand a real-world issue or problem?

8. Reflect on your participation today. How did you contribute to the lesson or activity, and what could you do differently next time to improve?

9. What feedback would you give the teacher about this lesson or activity? What worked well for you, and what could be improved or make things clearer, interesting, etc.

Powerful Questions To Help Students Reflect On Their Learning

Founder & Director of TeachThought

Reflection & Goal Setting

Main navigation, history of the future.

In the first week of class, students will brainstorm what they want a final project or essay to accomplish by the end of the quarter.

The Reflexivity Memo

This writing activity asks students to understand their various positionalities as researchers/writers and to recognize how their embodied socialized practices shape their research questions and practices.

The Art of Reflection

Adapted from PWR 2's former final reflection assignment, this activity asks students to reflect on the activities they've completed for the class and align them with the course goals by creating a short oral pitch with visual/multimodal accompaniment.

Oral Reflection

This assignment asks students to create a 3-5 minute oral reflection of their learning experience in PWR 2.

• Skip to main content

Join All-Access Reading…Doors Are Open! Click Here

• All-Access Login
• Freebie Library
• Search this website

Teaching with Jennifer Findley

Upper Elementary Teaching Blog

End of Year Reflection Activity (Free!)

As the year winds down, I always love having my students reflect and share their thoughts about the year. In a similar way as my reading interest inventory questions , I take a slightly different approach to my students’ end of year reflection. This post will share the reflection questions and some different ways to implement them in your classroom to help your students reflect on the year (and set goals for the next year).

The free end of year reflection prompts shared on this post now include a digital version for use with Google Slides! See the section titled Digital End of Year Reflection Prompts for more details!

About the End of Year Reflection Questions

The free download (available near the end of this post) contains thirty end of year reflection questions in two formats: task card format and as a printable list. You can choose to use whichever format you want and whichever questions you want.

Here are some example reflection questions that are included:

• If you could go back in time and restart the school year, what would you do differently and why?
• What were your favorite parts of this school year?
• What one word would describe this school year? Explain why you chose the word.
• What was your favorite non-academic activity or event from this school year?
• What was the best day you had this year? What made it the best?
• What was the most interesting skill or topic you learned this year?
• What was something that was difficult for you at first but is now easy?
• What do you wish that you had studied or learned this year?
• What did you accomplish this year that you are most proud of?
• What was your favorite book you read in school this year?
• What essay or story did you write that you are most proud of?
• How prepared do you feel for next year?
• What is a goal you have for next school year?
• What one piece of advice would you give the students who will be in this grade next year?

Using the End of Year Reflection Questions

You have a lot of flexibility based on your schedule and your students in regards to how you want to use these end of the year reflection questions.

Here are some ideas:

1-2 Reflection Questions a Day – Allow your students to reflect on the year during the entire last month of school by projecting or reading one of the reflection questions one to times a day. You could have your students discuss their answers with groups or partners (they love this and it doubles as a brain break) or have them record their thoughts (recording sheet included in the download).

Scoot Activity – Take a class period and have the students “play” SCOOT with the reflection questions. To do this, simply place a card on each desk. Have the students rotate (at your signal) around the desks until they have answered all of the questions.

Around the Room – Tape the cards around the room and have the students work in pairs or triads to answer the questions. You can rotate the students at your signal or allow them to move around freely. If you allow them to move around freely, I recommend having a rule that no more than one pair/triad of students can be at a card at a time.

Center or Station – Use the task card version and place the questions at a center. Have the students answer the questions on the recording sheet or discuss their answers with their groups.

Digital End of Year Reflection Prompts

This free end of year reflection activity is now available in digital format with Google Slides. When you download the PDF (from the next section), you will find the links to access the digital end of year reflection prompts on the first page.

Here are some ideas for using these free digital end of year reflection prompts:

• Assign one prompt at a time.
• Assign several prompts at a time for completion within a specified time frame.
• Assign several prompts at a time but allow students to choose a specific number to complete from the total assigned.

Need help assigning Google Slides through Google Classroom? Click here!

Download the End of Year Reflection Questions Here

Click here or on the image below to download the end of the year reflection questions. I hope you and your students enjoy reflecting and reminiscing on the school year!

Need End of the Year Math and Literacy Activities?

Are you still needing academic resources to engage your students until the end of the year? Check out these end of the year activities (with digital activities) for math and literacy.

Shop This Post

End of Year Literacy Activities w/ Digital Activities

5th Grade End of the Year Math Activities w/ Digital Activities

4th Grade End of the Year Math Activities w/ Digital Activities

Want More End of the Year Activities?

Click on the links below to see more end of the year activities and printables, including more freebies!

End of the Year Literacy Activities and Ideas

End of the Year Math Activities and Ideas

FREE End of the Year Writing Prompts

End of Year Activities to Prepare Students for the Next Grade Level

Share the Knowledge!

Reader interactions.

May 11, 2019 at 11:39 am

Thank you!! Great Ideas

April 30, 2020 at 2:04 pm

Thank you. I am trying to find a way to have them work well with Office 365 since that is the platform our district uses.

May 11, 2020 at 3:35 pm

Hi Jennifer! Thank you for the end of year reflection slides activity! It appears someone has to sited the first/title slide. It doesn’t have the same cutesy feel as the others. Am I correct? Is there a way to get the original?

June 1, 2020 at 10:11 am

Thank you! These are perfect! Do you have a teacherspayteachers shop?

May 16, 2021 at 6:23 am

Hello Ms. Findley,

Thank you for sharing your end of the year slides. They are all great ideas.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.

TEACHING READING JUST GOT EASIER WITH ALL-ACCESS

Join All-Access Reading to get immediate access to the reading resources you need to:

• teach your reading skills 
• support and grow your readers
• engage your students
• prepare them for testing
• and so much more!

You may also love these freebies!

Math Posters

Reading Posters

Morphology Posters

Grammar Posters

Welcome Friends!

I’m Jennifer Findley: a teacher, mother, and avid reader. I believe that with the right resources, mindset, and strategies, all students can achieve at high levels and learn to love learning. My goal is to provide resources and strategies to inspire you and help make this belief a reality for your students.

Introduction

CDHE Nomination

AUCC Requirements

Course Description

Sample Policy Statements

Syllabus Sequencing Strategies

Sample Daily Syllabi

Lesson Plans

Reading Selection Recommendations

Assignments

Response Papers and Discussion Forums

Presentations

Discusssion, Group, WTL Questions

Variations, Misc.

Curbing Plagiarism

Additional Teaching & Course Design Resources

Guide Contributors

E238 Reflection Essay Assignment Example

This short essay assignment is similar to the text analysis assignment, but differs from it in that there are only four essays throughout the semester (and revisions) and it emphasizes interpretation much more.

Reflection Essay Requirements ECC238, T. Mitchell, Spring 2009

“To exist is to stand out, away from the background. You aren’t thinking or really existing unless you’re willing to risk even your own sanity in the judgment of your existence.” —Frank Herbert

Over the course of the semester, you’ll be expected to turn in four well-written reflection essays. Each of these essay will account for 15% of your semester grade (all four together determine 60% of your semester grade). The purpose of the reflection essays is to further your exploration of the assigned texts.

Try to show me that you have read the texts critically and thought deeply about what you have read. Focus on interpreting a specific aspect of the text rather than skimming the surface or giving general comments or opinions. A good starting point is to briefly identify how the work impacted you, then move on to a critical approach, theme, or analysis of basic elements (such as looking at how the text’s point of view, setting, voice, or other element influences the way you interpret the text). Develop the heck out of one interesting idea. The best essays are those that strive to discover something significant that the casual reader would not have noticed, and then support and explore effectively with quotes from the text.

General guidelines:

1) There will be six opportunities during the semester to write a reflection essay. The only essay I’m requiring everyone to write is the first one on short stories. After that, you’ll get to pick and choose which texts you respond to, as long as you complete four essays on time.

2) Reflection essays are due on or before the due date given on the syllabus . Essays turned in after that due date will not receive full credit. The later they are, the more points they’ll lose.

3) Essays will be graded on a ten point scale (i.e.: 10 = A+, 9 = A-, 8 = B-, etc...). In grading these, I consider “8” to be the grade for doing a good job and fulfilling assignment expectations . In order to earn a grade higher than an “8” you must exceed assignment expectations. A grade lower than an “8” means your reflection essay didn’t fulfill assignment expectations, or it was late. Consider putting more thought and care into your reflection essay, developing your points further, including more textual support, and revising your writing more before turning it in.

Please don’t hesitate to schedule a conference with me, or go to the Writing Center (Eddy 6) if you’re having difficulty writing the reflection essays.

4) You will have the opportunity to rewrite/replace one reflection essay. Rewrites are due two weeks after your reflection essay is handed back to you. I have higher expectations for rewrites. To replace an essay, simply turn in an additional essay on one of the other books (note: this must be submitted on time).

5) The topic and approach of your reflection essay is up to you. You’ll find suggestions and examples of the type of essay I’m expecting you to write on pages 1768-1797 of The Story and Its Writer (I highly recommend reading these examples if you wish to do well on this assignment) . Reflection Essays can be explication, analysis, or compare and contrast, as long as they’re interpreting some aspect of the assigned reading that you find interesting and significant. Your essay should shed light on what the story means and support all ideas with quotes from the text. I’ll try to give you ideas of different things you could write about in lecture, and class discussion will be another good source for ideas.

Assignment Expectations:

—Essays must be typed. Double-spaced. 12 point font. Around 2 pages (no more than 2.5 pages!) Revise several times to make your essay concise and brilliant.

—The reflection essays must interpret the text, rather than merely summarizing the text or giving unsupported opinions.

—You must support ideas with quotes from the text. Give a close textual analysis of complex quotes to show how you’re interpreting them. A good reflection essay will include at least three quotes (or more, depending upon how you’re using the quotes). Outside research is not required, but you may use it if you wish. I recommend keeping a narrow focus in your essay so you can support things adequately.

—Pay attention to grammar, punctuation, style, clarity, and spelling. Since the essays are short, I expect them to be very well-crafted and well-revised pieces of writing.

“At each moment our risk is our cure. Stop suffering now and sleep.” —Lee Upton

• Search Search Button

Gonzaga’s Jesuit, Catholic, Humanistic education will challenge and inspire you.

• Our Campus & Location
• In the Community
• Rankings & Recognition
• At a Glance
• Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
• Our Mission & Jesuit Values
• What Sets Us Apart
• President & Leadership
• News, Events & Stories
• Sustainability
• Offices & Services

Gonzaga offers 16 undergraduate degrees through 53 majors, 68 minors and 73 concentrations, 23 master’s degrees and 5 doctoral-level degrees.

• Undergraduate Programs
• Graduate Programs
• Online Graduate Programs
• Certificates
• Our Faculty
• College & Schools
• Global Engagement
• Centers & Institutes
• Research & Creative Activities
• Registrar's Office
• Academic Resources
• Regional Health Partnership

All the how-to's and why-you-should's for becoming a Zag.

• Undergraduate Admission
• Graduate Admission
• International Student Admission
• Financial Aid
• Admission Contacts
• Virtual Tour
• Request Info

Student Life

The Division of Student Affairs is committed to creating an academically rich environment and fostering a strong sense of community.

• Housing & Dining
• Community Engagement & Service
• Career Services
• Student Support
• Health & Well-Being
• Arts & Culture
• New Student & Family Programs
• University Ministry
• Student Affairs Division

The Gonzaga spirit, blended with hard work and dedication in athletic endeavors, yields success both on the field of play and in the classroom.

• GoZags.com Athletics Website
• Kermit M. Rudolf Fitness Center
• Cheerleading
• Spike the Bulldog
• Intramurals
• Fitness Classes
• Gonzaga Basketball
• Future Students
• Current Students
• Military & Veterans
• Parents & Families
• Faculty & Staff
• Our Community
• Basketball Fans

Gonzaga Home

Reflection assignments, format and criteria.

For your assigned reflection, please read the articles/webpages and watch the videos that are linked to your reflection topic.  The links associated with each topic are found below.  

After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection in the following format:

• Begin your reflection with a brief paragraph highlighting/summarizing the main theme(s) or the thesis of the article(s) or presentation(s). This paragraph should also share what about the provided material grabbed you. Try to keep this paragraph as brief as possible – maybe only one or two sentences on the main thesis/theme and one or two sentences on what was most interesting about the material.
• In the next few paragraphs, tell us why that part of the readings or presentations grabbed you. What were you thinking about as you read/watched it? Of course, it would be nice if you had positive thoughts, but that is not always going to be the case. If the readings or presentations frustrated or angered you, you can write about that. If you found yourself wishing the articles or presentations would talk about something else or present the material differently, write about that. As you read or watched, what experiences did you think about?
• In the final paragraph, what is your take away from the content you discussed? Will you do something different? Is there something from an article or presentation you will try to remember as you move forward? Maybe the readings or presentations reinforce something you are already doing? The last part of your reflection should summarize how the information in the article(s) or presentation(s) will be (or already are) a part of your life. It may be helpful to answer the question, “what will you do differently or think about differently based on this reflection?”

Reflections should demonstrate that the student critically engaged the provided materials. Reflections will be assessed on the following criteria:

• Accurate description of the theme/thesis of the provided materials.
• Robust discussion regarding the parts of the provided materials that were most interesting. 
• Identification of a new (or renewed) commitment to an action or way of thinking in response to the materials provided. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Resolution Center for Student Conduct and Conflict at [email protected] or 509-313-4009.

Prompts 

Benefits of failure.

Please read the following articles and view the following videos. After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above.

• Video: Being Vulnerable: Dan Stover at TEDxColumbus  - Warning: the speaker in this video addresses suicide.
• Article: How to Motivate Yourself in Times of Failure
• Video: Denzel Washington’s Life Changing Speech on Failure and Success

Please read the following articles and webpages.  After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above. 

• Article:  How Privilege Shaped the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Article:  Why Even Healthy Low-Income People Have Greater Health Risks Than Higher-Income People
• Article:  Motivating People from Privileged Groups to Support Social Justice
• Article:  Social Determinants of Health-Related Needs During COVID-19 Among Low-Income Households with Children
• Video:  What if gentrification was about healing communities instead of displacing them?

Community Impact & Restorative Justice

Please read the following articles and view the following videos. After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above. 

• Article: Our personal choices affect more than ourselves
• Video: Restorative Circles: Creating a Safe Environment for Students to Reflect
• Video: His Holiness Pope Francis at TED2017

Creating and Enforcing Personal Boundaries

•  Also review first video: "Setting Healthy Boundaries"
• Article: How to Set Boundaries: 5 Ways to Draw the Line Politely
• Article: How to Respect Other People's Boundaries
• Optional Worksheet: Boundary Exploration Worksheet

Cura Personalis

Please read the following articles, websites, and documents and view the following video.  After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above. 

• Article: Cura Personalis
• Video: The Eight Dimensions of Wellness
• Document: Assessing Your Life Balance
• Website: Wellness Toolbox - A helpful resource

Fire Safety

Please read the following articles and websites. After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above.

• Article: Keep Your Family Safe From Fire
• Collection of Materials from the National Fire Protection Association: Campus Housing
• Collection of Materials from the U.S. Fire Administration: Campus Fire Safety Outreach Materials

Forgiveness & Reconciliation

Please read the following article and website and view the following video. After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above.

• Article: Two Differences between Forgiveness and Reconciliation
• Video: How to Apologize
• Website: Making an Effective Apology

Integrity & Authenticity

Please read the following articles and view the following video. After engaging with the provided materials, please write a reflection following the format above.

• Article: 6 Steps to Leading a Life of Integrity
• Article: How to Live an Authentic Life: Two Key Practices
• Video: Clip from the Movie Fortune’s Truth (1993)

Theft & Vandalism

• Website: Sign Theft: A Surprisingly Dangerous Crime
• Article: Replacing Street Signs is Expensive
• Website: Washington Theft Laws

Guide on How to Write a Reflection Paper with Free Tips and Example

A reflection paper is a very common type of paper among college students. Almost any subject you enroll in requires you to express your opinion on certain matters. In this article, we will explain how to write a reflection paper and provide examples and useful tips to make the essay writing process easier.

Reflection papers should have an academic tone yet be personal and subjective. In this paper, you should analyze and reflect upon how an experience, academic task, article, or lecture shaped your perception and thoughts on a subject.

Here is what you need to know about writing an effective critical reflection paper. Stick around until the end of our guide to get some useful writing tips from the writing team at EssayPro — a research paper writing service

What Is a Reflection Paper

A reflection paper is a type of paper that requires you to write your opinion on a topic, supporting it with your observations and personal experiences. As opposed to presenting your reader with the views of other academics and writers, in this essay, you get an opportunity to write your point of view—and the best part is that there is no wrong answer. It is YOUR opinion, and it is your job to express your thoughts in a manner that will be understandable and clear for all readers that will read your paper. The topic range is endless. Here are some examples: whether or not you think aliens exist, your favorite TV show, or your opinion on the outcome of WWII. You can write about pretty much anything.

There are three types of reflection paper; depending on which one you end up with, the tone you write with can be slightly different. The first type is the educational reflective paper. Here your job is to write feedback about a book, movie, or seminar you attended—in a manner that teaches the reader about it. The second is the professional paper. Usually, it is written by people who study or work in education or psychology. For example, it can be a reflection of someone’s behavior. And the last is the personal type, which explores your thoughts and feelings about an individual subject.

However, reflection paper writing will stop eventually with one very important final paper to write - your resume. This is where you will need to reflect on your entire life leading up to that moment. To learn how to list education on resume perfectly, follow the link on our dissertation writing services .

Unlock the potential of your thoughts with EssayPro . Order a reflection paper and explore a range of other academic services tailored to your needs. Dive deep into your experiences, analyze them with expert guidance, and turn your insights into an impactful reflection paper.

Free Reflection Paper Example

Now that we went over all of the essentials about a reflection paper and how to approach it, we would like to show you some examples that will definitely help you with getting started on your paper.

Reflection Paper Format

Reflection papers typically do not follow any specific format. Since it is your opinion, professors usually let you handle them in any comfortable way. It is best to write your thoughts freely, without guideline constraints. If a personal reflection paper was assigned to you, the format of your paper might depend on the criteria set by your professor. College reflection papers (also known as reflection essays) can typically range from about 400-800 words in length.

Here’s how we can suggest you format your reflection paper:

Reflection Paper - How to Video Guide

Our experts have created a video guide on how to write a reflection paper step-by-step:

How to Start a Reflection Paper

The first thing to do when beginning to work on a reflection essay is to read your article thoroughly while taking notes. Whether you are reflecting on, for example, an activity, book/newspaper, or academic essay, you want to highlight key ideas and concepts.

You can start writing your reflection paper by summarizing the main concept of your notes to see if your essay includes all the information needed for your readers. It is helpful to add charts, diagrams, and lists to deliver your ideas to the audience in a better fashion.

After you have finished reading your article, it’s time to brainstorm. We’ve got a simple brainstorming technique for writing reflection papers. Just answer some of the basic questions below:

• How did the article affect you?
• How does this article catch the reader’s attention (or does it all)?
• Has the article changed your mind about something? If so, explain how.
• Has the article left you with any questions?
• Were there any unaddressed critical issues that didn’t appear in the article?
• Does the article relate to anything from your past reading experiences?
• Does the article agree with any of your past reading experiences?

Here are some reflection paper topic examples for you to keep in mind before preparing to write your own:

• How my views on rap music have changed over time
• My reflection and interpretation of Moby Dick by Herman Melville
• Why my theory about the size of the universe has changed over time
• How my observations for clinical psychological studies have developed in the last year

The result of your brainstorming should be a written outline of the contents of your future paper. Do not skip this step, as it will ensure that your essay will have a proper flow and appropriate organization.

Another good way to organize your ideas is to write them down in a 3-column chart or table.

Do you want your task look awesome?

If you would like your reflection paper to look professional, feel free to check out one of our articles on how to format MLA, APA or Chicago style

Writing a Reflection Paper Outline

Reflection paper should contain few key elements:

Introduction

Your introduction should specify what you’re reflecting upon. Make sure that your thesis informs your reader about your general position, or opinion, toward your subject.

• State what you are analyzing: a passage, a lecture, an academic article, an experience, etc...)
• Briefly summarize the work.
• Write a thesis statement stating how your subject has affected you.

One way you can start your thesis is to write:

Example: “After reading/experiencing (your chosen topic), I gained the knowledge of…”

Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs should examine your ideas and experiences in context to your topic. Make sure each new body paragraph starts with a topic sentence.

Your reflection may include quotes and passages if you are writing about a book or an academic paper. They give your reader a point of reference to fully understand your feedback. Feel free to describe what you saw, what you heard, and how you felt.

Example: “I saw many people participating in our weight experiment. The atmosphere felt nervous yet inspiring. I was amazed by the excitement of the event.”

As with any conclusion, you should summarize what you’ve learned from the experience. Next, tell the reader how your newfound knowledge has affected your understanding of the subject in general. Finally, describe the feeling and overall lesson you had from the reading or experience.

There are a few good ways to conclude a reflection paper:

• Tie all the ideas from your body paragraphs together, and generalize the major insights you’ve experienced.
• Restate your thesis and summarize the content of your paper.

We have a separate blog post dedicated to writing a great conclusion. Be sure to check it out for an in-depth look at how to make a good final impression on your reader.

Need a hand? Get help from our writers. Edit, proofread or buy essay .

How to Write a Reflection Paper: Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: create a main theme.

After you choose your topic, write a short summary about what you have learned about your experience with that topic. Then, let readers know how you feel about your case — and be honest. Chances are that your readers will likely be able to relate to your opinion or at least the way you form your perspective, which will help them better understand your reflection.

For example: After watching a TEDx episode on Wim Hof, I was able to reevaluate my preconceived notions about the negative effects of cold exposure.

Step 2: Brainstorm Ideas and Experiences You’ve Had Related to Your Topic

You can write down specific quotes, predispositions you have, things that influenced you, or anything memorable. Be personal and explain, in simple words, how you felt.

For example: • A lot of people think that even a small amount of carbohydrates will make people gain weight • A specific moment when I struggled with an excess weight where I avoided carbohydrates entirely • The consequences of my actions that gave rise to my research • The evidence and studies of nutritional science that claim carbohydrates alone are to blame for making people obese • My new experience with having a healthy diet with a well-balanced intake of nutrients • The influence of other people’s perceptions on the harm of carbohydrates, and the role their influence has had on me • New ideas I’ve created as a result of my shift in perspective

Step 3: Analyze How and Why These Ideas and Experiences Have Affected Your Interpretation of Your Theme

Pick an idea or experience you had from the last step, and analyze it further. Then, write your reasoning for agreeing or disagreeing with it.

For example, Idea: I was raised to think that carbohydrates make people gain weight.

Analysis: Most people think that if they eat any carbohydrates, such as bread, cereal, and sugar, they will gain weight. I believe in this misconception to such a great extent that I avoided carbohydrates entirely. As a result, my blood glucose levels were very low. I needed to do a lot of research to overcome my beliefs finally. Afterward, I adopted the philosophy of “everything in moderation” as a key to a healthy lifestyle.

For example: Idea: I was brought up to think that carbohydrates make people gain weight. Analysis: Most people think that if they eat any carbohydrates, such as bread, cereal, and sugar, they will gain weight. I believe in this misconception to such a great extent that I avoided carbohydrates entirely. As a result, my blood glucose levels were very low. I needed to do a lot of my own research to finally overcome my beliefs. After, I adopted the philosophy of “everything in moderation” as a key for having a healthy lifestyle.

Step 4: Make Connections Between Your Observations, Experiences, and Opinions

Try to connect your ideas and insights to form a cohesive picture for your theme. You can also try to recognize and break down your assumptions, which you may challenge in the future.

There are some subjects for reflection papers that are most commonly written about. They include:

• Book – Start by writing some information about the author’s biography and summarize the plot—without revealing the ending to keep your readers interested. Make sure to include the names of the characters, the main themes, and any issues mentioned in the book. Finally, express your thoughts and reflect on the book itself.
• Course – Including the course name and description is a good place to start. Then, you can write about the course flow, explain why you took this course, and tell readers what you learned from it. Since it is a reflection paper, express your opinion, supporting it with examples from the course.
• Project – The structure for a reflection paper about a project has identical guidelines to that of a course. One of the things you might want to add would be the pros and cons of the course. Also, mention some changes you might want to see, and evaluate how relevant the skills you acquired are to real life.
• Interview – First, introduce the person and briefly mention the discussion. Touch on the main points, controversies, and your opinion of that person.

Writing Tips

Everyone has their style of writing a reflective essay – and that's the beauty of it; you have plenty of leeway with this type of paper – but there are still a few tips everyone should incorporate.

Before you start your piece, read some examples of other papers; they will likely help you better understand what they are and how to approach yours. When picking your subject, try to write about something unusual and memorable — it is more likely to capture your readers' attention. Never write the whole essay at once. Space out the time slots when you work on your reflection paper to at least a day apart. This will allow your brain to generate new thoughts and reflections.

• Short and Sweet – Most reflection papers are between 250 and 750 words. Don't go off on tangents. Only include relevant information.
• Clear and Concise – Make your paper as clear and concise as possible. Use a strong thesis statement so your essay can follow it with the same strength.
• Maintain the Right Tone – Use a professional and academic tone—even though the writing is personal.
• Cite Your Sources – Try to cite authoritative sources and experts to back up your personal opinions.
• Proofreading – Not only should you proofread for spelling and grammatical errors, but you should proofread to focus on your organization as well. Answer the question presented in the introduction.

'If only someone could write my essay !' you may think. Ask for help our professional writers in case you need it.

Do You Need a Well-Written Reflection Paper?

Then send us your assignment requirements and we'll get it done in no time.

How To Write A Reflection Paper?

How to start a reflection paper, how long should a reflection paper be.

Daniel Parker

is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.