Reflective

 Journal  Template  
 
Many  fields  have  adopted  the  reflective  journal  template,  including  journals  for  art,  law,  and  
science.  The  reflective  journal  format  makes  it  simple  to  apply  critical  thinking  to  nearly  any  
type  of  creative  endeavor.  Examples  include  creative  journals  for  artists,  log  books  for  
scientists,  and  reflective  notes  for  legal  professionals.  These  guidelines  and  template  will  help  
you  get  started  in  keeping  track  of  your  own  insights  and  digging  deeper  into  issues  throughout  
the  study  abroad  experience.  
 
Guidelines  for  Reflective  Writing  
Reflective  writing  is  an  activity  that  includes  description  (what,  when,  who)  and  analysis  (how,  
why,  what  if).  It  is  an  explorative  tool  often  resulting  in  more  questions  than  answers.  
Reflection  involves  taking  a  pause  to  examine  your  own  thoughts,  beliefs,  values,  attitudes  and  
assumptions,  which  form  the  foundation  of  your  understanding.    Revisit  your  prior  experiences  
and  knowledge,  and  consider  how  you  think  and  why  you  think  the  way  you  do.    There  is  no  
absolute  right  or  wrong  way  of  reflective  thinking.  The  key  questions  in  reflective  
thinking  are  often  how  and  why  rather  than  what.  Some  guiding  questions  to  consider  are:  
•   What  happened  during  that  event  or  experience?    And  why  did  it  happen?    
•   What  was  my  role  in  the  event?  And  why  did  I  adopt  that  particular  role?    
•   What  were  my  feelings  during  that  experience?    And  why  did  I  feel  that  way?  
•   What  were  my  thoughts  during  that  experience?    And  why  did  I  think  that  way?    
•   How  do  I  interpret  what  I  experienced  or  observed?      
•   What  might  this  experience  mean  in  the  context  of  my  course?    
•   What  other  perspectives,  theories  or  concepts  could  be  applied  to  interpret  the  
situation?  
•   How  can  I  learn  from  this  experience?  
 
What  can  I  discuss?  
•   Experiences,  ideas  and  observations  you  have  had  and  how  they  relate  to  the  course    
•   What  you  found  confusing,  inspiring,  difficult,  interesting  and  why  
•   How  you  solved  a  problem,  reached  a  conclusion,  found  an  answer,  or  reached  a  point  
of  understanding  
•   Alternative  interpretations  or  different  perspectives  on  what  you  have  read  or  
experienced  on  the  field  trips  or  in  your  coursework  
•   Comparisons  and  connections  between  what  you  are  learning  and  your  prior  knowledge  
and  experience;  your  prior  assumptions  and  preconceptions;  or  what  you  know  from  
other  courses  or  disciplines  
•   How  the  field  trip  experience  challenges  what  you  already  know  
•   What  you  would  like  to  explore  next  in  terms  of  thoughts  and  actions  
 
Writing  Style  
As  it  concerns  your  thoughts,  reflective  writing  is  mostly  subjective.  Therefore,  in  addition  to  
being  reflective  and  logical,  you  can  be  personal,  hypothetical,  critical  and  creative.  You  can  
comment  based  on  your  experience,  rather  than  limiting  yourself  to  academic  evidence.  A  
reflective  task  allows  you  to  use  different  modes  of  writing  and  language:  descriptive  (outlining  
what  something  is  or  how  something  was  done);  explanatory  (explaining  why  or  how  it  is  like  
that);  and  expressive  (I  think,  I  feel,  I  believe).  Remember  to  use  personal  pronouns  like  'I',  'my'  
or  'we'  as  well  as  full  sentences  and  complete  paragraphs.  
 
Template  for  Reflective  Journals  
Introduction  
The  introduction  tells  the  reader  what  the  subject  of  the  reflection  is/what  the  reflection  is  
about.  Specifically,  it  sets  the  context  and  describes  what  is  covered.  
 
Sample  Introduction  
Reflecting  on  experience  is  an  important  capability  for  professional  engineers.  Increasingly,  
engineers  need  to  be  able  to  work  with  others  in  teams.  While  people  in  every  workplace  talk  
about  building  teams  and  working  as  a  team,  it  is  not  always  easy  developing  an  effective  team.  
Through  reflection  on  the  team  process,  I  have  become  aware  of  useful  strategies  to  deal  with  
issues  and  to  gain  commitment  to  the  goals  of  the  team.    Developing  team  building  skills  is  an  
important  benefit  for  my  learning  and  for  my  development  as  a  professional  engineer.  
 
Body  Paragraph  
The  body  is  a  series  of  paragraphs  that  integrate  description,  analysis,  and  evaluation  with  
course  concepts  or  theories.  Notice  how  description,  analysis,  and  evaluation  are  integrated  in  
the  following  paragraph.  
 
Sample  Body  Paragraph  
The  major  benefit  of  working  in  a  team  for  me  was  that  it  facilitated  learning  and  enhanced  my  
understanding  of  the  project.  I  have  definitely  learned  more  about  the  topic  from  other  
students  than  I  would  have  if  I  had  completed  this  assignment  on  my  own.  We  discussed  each  
entry  in  depth  and  that  helped  me  understand  the  complexity  and  the  value  of  recording  the  
transactions.  Our  team  had  regular  weekly  meetings  in  the  library  and  went  through  each  
transaction  together  to  make  sure  we  all  had  the  same  understanding.  Regular  and  detailed  
team  meetings  are  an  essential  part  of  the  team  building  process  and  for  building  collaboration  
and  improved  outcomes  (National  Society  of  Professional  Engineers,  2008).    My  team  members  
and  I  felt  free  to  share  our  ideas  and  knowledge  with  each  other,  and  that  definitely  made  my  
learning  process  more  interactive,  interesting  and  enjoyable.  
 
Examples  
Describe   It  took  a  lot  of  time  at  each  meeting  to  decide  what  we  needed  to  
do  that  day  and  what  we  needed  to  do  for  the  next  meeting.  
Analyze   It  is  possible  that  the  different  approaches  reflect  the  different  
preferences  and  backgrounds  of  team  members.    
Evaluate   The  major  benefit  of  working  in  a  team  for  me  was  that  it  
facilitated  learning  and  enhanced  my  understanding  of  the  
project.  
Self-­‐awareness   Reflecting  on  the  team  experience  has  helped  me  to  develop  a  
better  understanding  my  own  strengths  and  weaknesses  in  a  
team.  For  example,  I  realized  that  I  enjoy    
Integration  of  theory   Kilmann  (2011)  describes  conflict  resolution  as  an  integral  part  of  
the  team  experience.  In  addition,  the  Myers-­‐Briggs  Type  Indicator  
illuminates  why  we  struggled  to  negotiate  and  delegate  tasks.  Half  
of  our  members  are  Perceivers  (P)  and  half  of  our  members  are  
Judgers  (J)  so  we  had  different  approaches  to  making  decisions.  
 
 
Field  Trip  Example  
Elements  
Briefly  describe  a  key  experience  from  your  field  trip.  What  are  the  key  elements  and  how  did  
you  encounter  them?  
 
Example:  I  am  looking  at  an  etching  by  Francisco  Goya  called  “El  sueño  de  la  razón  produce  
monstruos”  (The  sleep  of  reason  breeds  monsters).  A  man  sits  in  a  chair  resting  his  head  on  a  
desk,  presumably  he  fell  asleep  while  working.  I  know  how  he  feels.    
 
Significance  
Describe  why  this  is  interesting  to  you.  How  are  you  using  this?  Why  do  you  care?  What's  the  
context?  Use  theories  and  any  other  analysis  tools  you  have  but  make  it  personal.  
 
Example:  I  have  been  in  this  same  position  many  times,  up  late  working  until  I  fall  asleep.  My  
dreams  are  usually  full  of  whatever  I  was  studying.  Smith  (2014)  states  that  Goya  was  ridiculing  
Spanish  society,  saying  that  it  had  become  superstitious  and  demented.  The  caption  
underneath  the  etching  read  “Fantasy  abandoned  by  reason  produces  impossible  monsters:  
united  with  her,  she  is  the  mother  of  the  arts  and  the  origin  of  their  marvels."  Fantasy  needs  
reason  to  create  art.  Without  reason,  people  let  their  imagination  get  the  better  of  them  and  
they  act  in  monstrous  ways.  Was  this  a  critical  statement  or  a  guide  for  artists?  
 
Influence  
Describe  what  actions  you  will  take  as  a  result.  What  have  you  learned?  Does  this  reflection  
lead  to  any  conclusions?  
 
Example:  No  matter  what  Goya  meant  by  creating  this  piece,  this  etching  has  made  me  
reexamine  my  counseling  approach.  As  a  sociology  major,  I  am  curious  about  the  motivations  of  
others  and  the  collective  impact  on  society.  What  fears  do  they  have?  How  do  their  fears  drive  
them  to  act  in  monstrous  ways?  People  rarely  act  out  of  reason,  or  even  their  own  best  
interests.  As  I  prepare  for  my  future  career  as  a  counselor,  this  etching  provides  me  with  an  
important  reminder  that  while  humans  know  what  they  should  do,  they  often  do  not  
understand  why  they  do  not  do  it.  
 
Future  tasks    
What  is  the  next  step?  Has  your  reflective  led  you  do  any  actionable  tasks?  Do  you  have  a  
schedule  for  the  next  journal  session?  
 
Example:  I  am  going  to  look  further  into  the  Renaissance  at  the  Goya  exhibit  when  we  visit  the  
British  Museum  in  two  weeks.