Reflection in the Electronic
Writing Classroom
L. Lennie Irvin, San Antonio College

Introduction

The Importance of Reflection
Reflection as a Catalyst

Reflection in the Writing Classroom
Reflection in the E-Writing Classroom

Reflection as Observation
Reflection as Refraction
Reflection as Coherence

The Importance of Reflection

Conclusion -- Works Cited

The last two decades have seen substantial growth in the use of reflection, not only in writing classrooms from elementary education to colleges and universities, but also in the training of nurses, doctors, and business administration students at the graduate level (Kember, van der Vern, Brown, Herrick, Bolton, Yagelski, Bleakley, Reid).  And for good reason.  Dewey is generally pointed to as the scholar who first stressed the importance of reflection for learning, but modern theorists such as Donald Schon and Kathleen Blake Yancey and her work with portfolios and reflection have given reflection credibility as a useful pedagogical tool in today’s classrooms.  Many see reflection as a form of meta-cognition or "thinking about "thinking" (Swartzendruber-Putman). In the writing classroom, as Marjorie Montague states, “metacognitive ability is the determining factor that enables writers to adjust accordingly to varying task demands and contexts.  ... metacognition facilitates the selection and allocation of techniques and strategies for successful task completion” (qtd. in English).  Although many scholars have made statements about the value of reflection (Camp, Hughes, Herrick, Swartzendruber-Putnam, English, Underwood, Bolton), Sherry Swain sums up the generally accepted benefits of reflection: “reflection enables us to evaluate experience, learn from mistakes, repeat successes, revise, and plan.”  No better listing of the uses of reflection in the writing classroom can be found than the five listed by Alice Horning in her 1997 article “Reflection and Revision: Intimacy in College Writing”:

First, reflective statements shed important light on the form and content of students’ written work.  Second, they help students become aware of their preferred approaches to writing, and enable them to take risks to try new and more productive strategies on a particular task.  Third, when revising, students may examine their reflections on their earlier process of writing and consider alternative processes or approaches.  Fourth, reflective writing produces an intimacy between students and teachers that enables teachers to respond to and encourage students’ growth in writing skill, Lastly, the reflective statements give teachers insights into students’ thinking and development not normally accessible otherwise.

Increasingly, reflection has come to be seen, as Yancey states, as a “a critical component of learning and of writing specifically” (6). 

Next: Reflection as a Catalyst

Introduction | The Importance of Reflection | Reflection as a Catalyst | Reflection in the Writing Classroom | Reflection in the E-Writing Classroom | Reflection as Observation | Reflection as Refraction | Reflection as Coherence | Conclusion | Works Cited
by L. Lennie Irvin, San Antonio College