Thesis (Ed. D.)--Boise State University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 144-151).

This thesis examines the development of reflective skills. Reflection has been recognised as a prime mode of creating knowledge for project managers. Reflection literature indicates that reflective skills do not develop naturally; guidance, encouragement and facilitation is usually required for managers to reach their highest learning potential. Among the tools suggested to aid this development are written project journals. While there has been research on some aspects of journals, there was little found on the design of reflective journals relevant to developing project management reflection skills. This study has examined the effect or influence of various designs of reflective journals on different facets of reflective learning. The research question was: ????Are there facets of reflection that can be influenced by journal design????? Evidence for the study was first gathered through literature then from journal content and interviews. Literature on reflective learning revealed the facets relevant to the study: definition of reflection, consequences, emotions, temporal factors and individual and organisational culture. Issues identified in journal literature that needed to be applied to the study of reflection development included the journal audience, assessment and format. Participants in the study were final year undergraduates and Masters students who worked on industry based projects over several months. They were requested to keep journals for the duration of the projects, to submit them for examination and then asked to offer feedback on the various journal designs on completion of the projects. The research was conducted over four years, through seven projects, with thirty students taking part. The journal design went through six modifications. The primary findings from the study were: the majority of participants followed the predicted development hierarchy of reflective development; development of reflective skills is dependent on individual and organisational culture; audience does have an impact on reporting of and reflection on concerns; and journal design can facilitate development of some levels of reflection but has no influence on the development of critical reflection. / Masters by research thesis

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Boise State University, 2009. / Title from t.p. of PDF file (viewed April 12, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 144-151).

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This research explores a poorly understood area of health systems: the nature of managerial decision-making in primary healthcare facilities, and the information that informs decision-making at this level. Located in the emerging field of Health Policy and System Research, this research draws on constructivist and participatory perspectives to understand the role of information and, more broadly, learning and knowledge in decisions that primary healthcare managers make, and the systemic factors influencing this. Using a multiple case study design with iterative cycles of in-depth data collection and analysis over a three year period, it examined the decision-making and information use in three cases of managerial responsibility in 17 primary healthcare facilities in a sub-district in Cape Town. The cases were: improving efficiency of service delivery, implementing programme priorities and managing leave of absence. Using multiple strategies for engaging primary healthcare facility managers, often as co-researchers of their own practice, the research sought to elicit both their explicit and tacit, experience-based knowledge on these phenomena. Key insights gained in the research are that firstly, operational health management at facility level is less linear and simple than policy-makers and planners often assume, and is, instead, characterised by considerable on-the-spot problem solving and people management to meet multiple agendas, which can be surprisingly complex. Secondly, contrary to prevailing views, managers do actively use information in decision-making, but require a wide range of information which is outside of the current, and indeed the globally-advocated, health information system (HIS). Thirdly, they not only use, but generate, information in their management routines and practices, and must learn from experience in order to adapt new interventions for successful implementation in their facilities and communities. This research thus makes explicit the value and use of informal information and knowledge in decision-making. It demonstrates, amongst others, a relationship of functional interdependence between the use of formal information in the HIS, and informal information and knowledge, suggesting that the latter has the potential to improve the use and utility of formal health information by making sense of it within the local context. Furthermore, building on the public policy literature on governance, this research develops a model to understand the multiple contextual influences on decision-making and information use, showing the central role of values and relationships across the health system. It proposes a causal mechanism for strengthening the use of information in decision-making. Finally, in giving priority to the informational needs of facility managers, this research offers a bottom-up perspective which argues for an integrated approach to health system strengthening which moves beyond atomised treatment of HIS strengthening. It suggests the need to re-think how to support facility managers by re-positioning the HIS relative to organisational learning, and leadership and management development.

Magister Educationis (Adult Learning and Global Change) - MEd(AL) / Scholars focusing on experiential learning argue that experience should be considered as critical for adult learning. This research paper frames experiential learning within a Constructivist framework. This paper focuses on an investigation into the ways that facilitators use the Continuous Learning Cycle, a model for learning based on Kolb's Learning Cycle, to facilitate learning through experience during the triad skills observation role-play in a workshop, which is part of an induction programme, for a retail bank. Indications are that facilitators use the Continuous Learning Cycle in limited ways, and therefore undermine the possibilities for optimal experiential learning; and that the Continuous Learning Cycle has limitations.

It is well established that good writing derives from writers who understand the writing process. However, while the National Curriculum of England explicitly states that teachers should incorporate important parts of the writing process, such as drafting, revising and proof-reading, in their teaching, the Swedish national curriculum does not. The aim of the study was to investigate how reflective learning affects Swedish students' writing skills in an ESL setting. More specifically, it investigates how the implementation of drafting and redrafting in a writing project affects the quality of texts as well as students’ perception of working reflectively. To be able to evaluate these variables, the students’ first and final drafts were analyzed in order to find out how much the students had improved and in which linguistic areas out of grammar, formality, cohesion and structure. The students were also asked to write a reflective text about their opinion of the writing project. The data was then categorized and later analyzed by using Kolb’s experiential learning cycle and the GLL model. The results showed an insignificant change regarding the students’ grades and quality of text. However, most students were positive about the working process. These results suggest that reflective learning could have many benefits for Swedish students’ writing skills and students seem to find the working process helpful. However, more research is needed in order to further evaluate the impact reflective learning can have on students’ writing skills.

Entering a new environment is challenging for everyone, including engineers. Despite national efforts to improve graduates' competencies, managers and other critical industry stakeholders consistently describe new hires as underprepared for practice. Nonetheless, as engineers move into their new organizations, they learn to participate in and contribute to their communities of practice. This period is the school-to-work transition, and the goal of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of the salient learning events that characterize individuals' trajectories from engineering student to engineering practitioner. Using a multi-case approach, this study leverages weekly journals and semi-structured interviews to explore the experiences of recent engineering graduates as they enter the workplace and learn to engage in professional practice. Journal entries probed newcomers' perceptions of challenges, accomplishments, and significant learning events during the first 12 weeks of their jobs. Interviews expanded on journal findings and elaborated on participants' experiences. Analysis entailed the development and application of two complementary workplace learning frameworks from Jacobs and Park (2009) and Chao et al. (1994) that describe both the setting and content of salient learning experiences. Cross-case analysis enabled exploration across participants to examine trends and patterns within participants' experiential trajectories. Findings point to several contributions and implications. First, the codebooks developed in this study were contextualized and operationalized for engineering workplaces, and have been refined to enhance descriptive precision and clarity. Second, journals provided thick, rich descriptions of events in ways that hold promise for future exploratory studies as well as formative assessment. Finally, results indicated that newcomer engineers engage in a wide range of learning environments throughout the school-to-work transition and describe learning along myriad socialization dimensions. In particular, workplace learning takes place in unstructured environments through routine tasks and along both technical and sociocultural dimensions. Given this learning, both industry and academic professionals should consider these dimensions as they design experiences and assess learning across organizations. Newcomer learning is challenging, but if we can gain a better understanding of how and what happens during it, we can more effectively develop efforts to enhance the transition—and therefore, practice—for future generations of engineers. / Ph. D. / Entering a new environment challenging for everyone, including engineers. Even though we know this to be true, engineers remain underprepared for the demands of modern practice. Still, engineering students do graduate and work in engineering jobs, and there is not necessarily evidence of engineers losing jobs on behalf of their reported lack of preparation. The school-to-work transition is thus a critical period for new engineers, and understanding the experiences that take place within it can help us improve the effectiveness of both engineers themselves and the organizations they enter. Given our relatively limited knowledge of this important juncture, then, the goal of this research is to explore the experiences and interactions of newcomers as they move from engineering student to engineering practitioner. To do so, I followed 12 recent mechanical engineering graduates from graduation into the first 12 weeks of their jobs. I combined weekly reflective journal entries with semi-structured interviews to capture participants’ salient learning events. I developed frameworks which characterize the environment and content of salient learning events and provide an overview of the kind of learning trajectory each participant underwent. I also compiled results across participants to explore differences, similarities, and other patterns in participant experiences. Overall, findings point to several contributions and implications. First, the codebooks developed in this study were refined to more specifically fit within engineering contexts and therefore provide more accurate descriptions of engineering learning. Second, reflective journaling holds promise for tapping into engineering learning that might be difficult to otherwise capture via traditional measurements or instrumentation. Finally, results indicate that newcomer engineers engage in a wide range of learning environments throughout the school-to-work transition and describe learning along myriad social and technical dimensions. Given this learning, both industry and academic professionals should consider these experiences as they design learning environments in the future. Newcomer learning is challenging, but if we can gain a better understanding of how and what happens during it, we can more effectively develop efforts to enhance the transition for future generations of engineers.

Despite many Clinical Psychology training programmes utilizing reflective practice groups as part of clinical training, there remains little research examining the experiences of such groups from a trainee perspective. However, it remains the preferred method of developing reflective practice skills during training. This research used interviews and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to explore the experiences of attending reflective practice groups as part of doctoral Clinical Psychology training. A purposive sample of eight participants were recruited for a single, semi-structured interview. The interviews were audio-recoded, transcribed and analysed by the researcher. Five superordinate themes were constructed: 'the process: there were so many layers', 'the impact: an ongoing process', 'the facilitator: a presence who was not always present', 'commitment: I hated it, but I still went' and 'getting through it: finding ways to cope'. Nineteen corresponding subordinate themes were constructed from the data. The research findings illustrate the varied and complex experiences of the participants. Whilst the experience was often difficult, participants appeared committed to attending and sought out ways in which to navigate the experience. The results are conceptualised in terms of existing psychological theory and literature. A critique of the research and suggestions for future studies are offered, which include exploring the views of the facilitators of such groups and comparing how groups are utilized within different training institutions. Recommendations are made related to the development of future reflective practice groups, which include recommendations related to the style of facilitation and the frequency and size of the group.

The aim of the study was to investigate to what extent integrating systematic reflection into the academic English courses at the tertiary level fosters learning. To this end, the teacher-researcher designed an action research study and carried it out with seventy-one students in the three sections of ENG 101 she taught at the Middle East Technical University. In the course of the action research, the teacher-researcher developed an interactive reflection model in which the teacher and students engage in a collaborative process of reflection to improve their performance. For each writing and speaking task in the syllabus, a related reflective task was developed, and the reflective writing assessment rubric was created. Students wrote reflective paragraphs through which they explored their strengths and weaknesses in their performance. Moreover, the teacher-researcher and students engaged in reflective dialogue. In their reflections, students were expected to develop an action plan for further improvement. The teacher-researcher kept a reflective journal in which she reflected on the research and her teaching skills. At the end of the semester, the students evaluated the effectiveness of the reflective activities. The data collection tools were student questionnaire, student work, transcripts of the reflective dialogues, students&rsquo / evaluation of reflective activities and teacher&rsquo / s reflective journal. The quantitative and qualitative analysis of the data revealed that the integration of reflection in the course increased students&rsquo / awareness of their strengths and weaknesses in relation to the tasks they performed, improved their self-assessment skills and increased their self-confidence. Reflecting with students and on students&rsquo / reflections became a journey of discovery for the teacher-researcher. She developed an action plan and put it into implementation.

The dissertation substantiates reflective learning as the conception and continuous education process. The application of the conception of mixed methods created possibilities to diagnose, to reflect and to point out models of reflection applied by future special education teachers during theoretical and practical studies as well as the factors influencing students’ self-reflection and their reflection on their activity and studies. The qualitative research was carried out by analysing unstructured written reflections presented by students, by applying the method of phenomenological hermeneutics to process the data. It was identified what internal and external as well as of what level factors make the strongest and the weakest impact upon the efficiency of reflective learning of students – special education teachers. The quantitative research disclosed general tendencies of students’ reflective learning at theoretical and practical studies by supplementing it with the results of the quantitative research. The significance of theoretical preparation was substantiated by the decrease of the fragmentation and inconsistence of applied methods of reflective learning. The latent structure of reflective learning was revealed, the model of reflective learning at university studies, based on theoretical and empirical data, was designed. The dimensions of the model should be treated in trends when improving the training and development process of special education teachers, modelling... [to full text] / Disertacijoje pagrindžiamas reflektyvus mokymasis kaip koncepcija ir tęstinis edukacinis procesas, transformatyvus ir įgalinantis studentus integruoti teoriją ir praktiką universitetinėse studijose. Mišrių metodų koncepcijos taikymas sudarė galimybes diagnozuoti, reflektuoti ir išryškinti būsimų specialiųjų pedagogų naudojamus reflektavimo modelius teorinių ir praktinių studijų metu bei veiksnius, darančius poveikį studentų savirefleksijai ir refleksijai apie veiklą bei studijas. Atliktas kokybinės edukacinės diagnostikos tyrimas, analizuojant studentų pateiktas nestruktūruotas refleksijas raštu, taikant fenomenologinės hermeneutikos duomenų apdorojimo metodą. Nustatyta, kokie išoriniai ir vidiniai bei kokio lygmens veiksniai daro stipriausią ir menkiausią įtaką studentų specialiųjų pedagogų reflektyvaus mokymosi veiksmingumui. Kiekybiniu tyrimu (apklausa raštu, naudojant uždaro tipo klausimyną), išryškintos bendrosios studentų reflektyvaus mokymosi tendencijos teorinėse ir praktinėse studijose, papildant kokybinio tyrimo rezultatus. Pagrįstas teorinio pasirengimo prasmingumas, mažinant taikomų reflektyvaus mokymosi metodų fragmentaciją ir nenuoseklumą. Atskleista reflektyvaus mokymosi latentinė struktūra, parengtas teoriniais ir empiriniais duomenimis grįstas universitetinių studijų reflektyvaus mokymosi modelis. Modelio dimensijos, traktuotinos kryptimis tobulinant specialiųjų pedagogų rengimo ir ugdymo procesą, modeliuojant profesinio ugdymo curriculum aukštojoje mokykloje... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]