Why have a research journal? Why write reflectively about research?
When I first looked at this assignment, I thought about how tough it would be to have a research journal. I mean, what would there be to write? I decided that I needed to think a bit about the importance of a journal and ask myself what purpose a journal will serve. In order to really dig a little deeper into the idea, I decide to do some research on reflective thinking and reflective thinking about research. I found some ideas that weren't so different from my own, but I thought that my ideas were obvious and mundane so why would they be important to write about? As a teacher, I asked my students to keep a writing journal-what was the purpose of that assignment? Is it the same as this assignment? Yes, after careful thought and consideration, I think that it is.
According to Hume (2009) in her article "Promoting Higher Levels of Reflective Writing in Student Journals," reflective writing and journals are important in order for students to have “…an awareness of their own learning through reflection and a means by which they can monitor and further their own learning” (p. 2).
Creating metacognition or awareness of one's thinking is always a learning experience within itself. Recognizing and analyzing our own thought processes will make us better researchers, and push us to ask questions about our research. Asking questions will help to lead us to seek information , which is part of the research process. This process helps us to find ourselves as researchers, which is what du Preez (2008) wants us to do (p.58).
In her article, “Locating the researcher in the research: personal narrative in reflective practice,” du Preez (2008) quotes Bandura concerning reflective writing:
If there is any characteristic that is distinctively human, it is the capability for reflective self-consciousness. This enables people to analyze their experiences and to think about their own thought processes. By reflecting on their varied experiences and on what they know, they can derive generic knowledge about themselves and the world around them. People not only gain understanding through reflection, they evaluate and alter their own thinking by this means. In verifying thought through self-reflective means, they monitor their ideas, act on them or predict occurrences from them, judge from the results the adequacy of their thoughts, and change them accordingly. (Bandura, 1989, p. 58)
We need to connect the dots and create this self-reflection. As Bandura has recognized, it is important to know that thinking about our thinking helps us to better understand what we are studying and examine the reasons for our thinking. Examining what we have learned or what we are attempting to learn is a large part of the process. Additionally, thinking about the process is just as significant. We must ask ourselves many questions, a few of which are-Where am I going with this research? Why do I think this? What is the goal of this research? What am I looking to understand and/or find? and How will I apply what I have learned?
The goal of any type of reflective writing is the same-it is to make us think about the how and the why of the the learning that we are engaging in, which will give it meaning.
Bandura, A. (1989). Social cognitive theory. In R. Vasta (Ed.), Annals of child development, 6, 1-60. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
du Preez, Jan. (2008). Locating the researcher in the research: personal narrative in reflective practice. Reflective Practice, 9(4), 509-519. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Hume, Anne. (2009). Promoting Higher Levels of Reflective Writing in Student Journals. Higher Education Research & Development, 28(3), 247-260. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
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