The Global Studio -- Reflective Writing

Global Studio

Individual reflective report

Barbara WhetnallB.Whetnall@lboro.ac.uk

Introduction

• Reflective practice and report• Possible problems and solutions• Benefits• Reflective notebook or journal• Report structure• Language

Reflective practice

Working it through, rather than just thinking it through

– making prototypes – and iterations - is thinking-by-doing

– designers can query by demonstration– good design comes through having

‘conversations’

•

Reflective report 1Self-inquiry

– express how you planned and established your goals

– opportunity to discuss the skills and knowledge you developed

• this helps across a practice lifetime– what can you learn from a global project

and working with an international team?

Reflective report 2

Use more informal language - describe the progress of the project and experiences

Share your insights and overall impressions with others, in the UK and internationally– explore areas of uncertainty - culture,

language, communication technology

Gibbs Reflective cycle

Description – what

happenedWhat are

your feelings?

Evaluation Was it good

or bad? Analysis – what sense

can you make of situations?

Analysis – what else could you

have done?

Action plan- if it arose

again, what would you

do?

Possible problems

Possible problems 1

Feel challenged when evaluating your own practice, and those of the Team and Client

– finding the right words to articulate your own thoughts and evaluation can be hard

Possible problems 2Keeping detailed project records can be time consuming

– how much detail do you go into?– making time to upload to the blogs

• Seeing only one point of view?

Possible problems 3

Unsure as to which situations or experiences to reflect upon

• Offer descriptions with little critical reasoning or evaluation

Possible solutions

Possible solutions 1

Record your own observations on how design decisions were made

– have confidence in your personal interpretations

Possible solutions 2Keep a project notebook, journal or diary – and write up as soon as you can – so as not to forget

– only select the experiences you thinks are significant

Possible solutions 3Situations or experiences (to reflect upon) may be come self–evident as the project progresses

CommunicationsThe value of feedback

Timing of meetingsExchange of ideas

Possible solutions 4Use critical reasoning and evaluation

– draw on your previous experiences: industrial placement

– draw on cultural experiences and observations

– opportunity to use problem-solving strategies

– draw on your own judgment and intuition

BenefitsUseful for the mid-project survey

• Fix experiences and knowledge into our long-term memory

• Share cultures and the values of others

• Improve our organisational and management skills • Turn experiences into learning opportunities

Reflective journal or notebook

Memories of experiences can become imprecise over time

Document your tasks / observations / environment /

colleagues / working practices

Share with your tutor

through the report

Can you accept new

ideas?

List personal goals

Opportunities for change and improvement

Notebook

Example of student field notes – Geography dept.

Notebook

Example of student field notes – Geography dept.

Project notebook / journal 1

• not just random thoughts

• write down the most significant or influential points

• your experiences – what are the underlying components of a situation or process?

Project notebook / journal 2

• anchored to what you wish to understand better

• how subjective are your thoughts?

• could things be done in a different way?

What might I incorporate?

I keep six honest serving-men (They taught me all I knew);

Their names are What and Why and When And How and Where and Who.

The Elephant's Child by Rudyard Kipling http://bit.ly/1JHLC4f

What?

Introduction– Description of the project brief - Very short –

1 or 2 paragraphs– identify your topic or focus - why your feel it was

important– state the key areas or themes you will cover

• cultural, theoretical, technological ideas and concepts

– introduce your team and yourself• the location of team members• who played which roles?

Design planning process 1

Introduce the design planning process • roles and skills in the Team

• was there clarity of ideas from the Client?• was the project brief approached in an

interesting and professional way?• were the ideas generated kept close to the

project brief?• was there much prior information

gathering?

Design planning process 2Refining initial concepts

– were several different approaches required?– how did the team avoid design paralysis?– could you transform an initial design concept

into something more well-defined?– could you argue for your design concept and

it’s value?

Design planning process 3

Activities

• were transitions between activities effective?• did anything threaten the project?• were there problems with design complexity?• could you manage unexpected events?• was there a degree of flexibility?• were there any primary concerns - did the

project run on time?

Materials and production

Suitability of material and manufacture

• were modern or traditional materials used?• were prototypes satisfactory?• were there skills available to make things?• what equipment was available? 3D printers

etc• was it possible to re-evaluate the design at

any point and add changes?

Communications

Reliability and effectiveness

Skype, internet connections, messaging apps, Kakao Talk, team blogs, Vimeo, Dropbox, YouTube, email, Gravatar

- was the technology good enough for detailed presentations and discussions?

- could the team upload files ok?

Meetings 1

Influence of time zones - UK is 2 hours ahead of Brazil, UK is 9 hours behind Japan and Korea – were projects moving at different rates in the

product’s design process and progress?– was there timeliness of feedback?– information density: how much discussed, for

how long, and in what detail?

Meetings 2– a good way to share cultural elements, design

suggestions and client feedback?– or share CAD designs and engineering

drawings?– could tasks be shared?– had you come across similar situations

before?– were you happy making your opinions and

judgments visible and open for discussion?

Verbal and Written Language

– development of a ‘working’ English– did the communications and blogs allow for

good transfer of information?– did the design work have enough written

explanation? – were difficulties able to be discussed?

– was politeness, consensus and harmony important in meetings?

Non Verbal Language

Drawings / designs / images / sounds & music

– colours and shapes can be metaphors. - did they travel across cultures, or viewed differently?

– were drawings and pictures able to convey the complexity and concept of design?

– if there were no responses to messages - what did this mean?

Culture and environment– was the Team able to recognise the

boundaries of its own culture and appreciate others?

– and move forward, away from sociocultural generalisations?

– did you learn something special about another culture?

– or understand better other values, tastes and traditions of other cultures?

– were concepts interpreted the same ?

Conclusion / discussion / action plan 1

• did the project help develop a more

designerly way of thinking?• would the experiences be useful when you

start a new activity?• did the project give insights into other design

strategies?• did you feel in control of the project or did it

slide away?

Conclusion / discussion / action plan 2

• what worked well, and why?• was there some really interesting moments?• is there more knowledge you would like to

acquire?• and practice more problem-solving

strategies?• did the project give you confidence working

internationally?

Conclusion / discussion / action plan 3

• did you feel stuck in routines?• were design problems solved better as a

group than by individuals?• would solutions and ideas be useful in the

future?• did the project help you to prioritise tasks?• what were you confident in?• are international ideas and practices

becoming more understandable or familiar?

MindJet MindManager 15 - available on all lab PCs

Using 1st / 3rd person1st person = ‘I found this significant because….’

3rd person = ‘This approach can be important because…’

Mixture = ‘We often see this approach in real situations…’

Hint: try to avoid a real mix. If you start with 3rd person continue to the end of the paragraph in the 3rd person.Then, you can change to 1st person in the next paragraph, adding your personal observations.

How might I refer to myself?

Yourself:• can you send it to the Team, Chris and me?

• try to avoid ‘Me and Chris….’

• the report might read better with ‘Chris and myself’ or ‘Chris and I’, ‘The Client and the Team’

How might I refer to the Team/ Client?

• You have a Team and Client names

• Honorifics: Team or The Client - it is a good idea to use the most polite, tactful style of English

• We tend to refer to ourselves last – ‘The Client, Chris and I’

Language• don’t start too many sentences with

phrases such as ‘I think that…’

• use written language – not spoken language – but not pompous

– try and avoid shortening words : couldn’t

Books on reflective writing• Moon , J.A. (2004) Reflection in learning and

professional development theory and practice. London: RoutledgeFalmer. http://bit.ly/1ThSheq

• Dewey, J. (1997) How we think. New York: Dover Publications. http://bit.ly/21GSDzM

• Schön, D.A. (1983) The reflective practitioner: how professionals think in action. New York: Basic Books http://bit.ly/1RwJE9R