There are a number of things that you should and shouldn’t be doing with this kind of essay, and you can refer back to this article, as a reminder, when you begin such an assignment. our expert writers, Hi, my name is Jenn However, many students get low marks for a reflective portfolio essay or report just because they do not follow the main principles of reflective writing. Writing is important because it allows us to communicate with others. After I gain work experience and make sure I am on the right road, which is in 3-5 years, I am planning on applying for a degree in either Marketing or Finance. If this is the case, then you are going to need to go into some considerable depth, and this will likely lead to further revelations as your analysis of your experience becomes more extensive, and as you add theories and different perspectives into the equation. Furthermore, the idea with both of these ‘cycles’ is to then also reflect further upon the action plan that has been derived from the initial reflection, so that this process can become finely tuned over time, with further reflections, and can lead to some significant development in the individual (see Figure 1). Of course, reflective essays are likely to be much more in-depth than this, with your assignment perhaps specifying a particular number of words for the piece, such as 1,500 words, or 3000 words, for example. Figure 1. More specifically, you will do this by first briefly describing what happened, from your own unique point of view, before reflecting upon this, and trying to learn something from the experience by putting this in the context of any perspectives or theories that you have studied, or simply by analysing the experience after the event in a little more depth, and trying to understand what happened. You can find hundreds of example reflective essays at NursingAnswers.net. Throughout the semester, I have realized more potential for realizing my goals in my work and I have worked on different, excited to share with you the contents of my website. As such, it may take quite a long time to get myself well acquainted with the production of the Company. This can be refined with each proceeding draft though; so don’t worry too much if you’re not able to nail this down right from the start. Sometimes we do not have a choice, but rather are pushed out by circumstances into external environment; and sometimes circumstances create too many road paths to choose from. "You must agree to out terms of services and privacy policy", Don't use plagiarized sources. A combination of Management skills with either Marketing or Finance will help me to become a highly skilled business professional and give me an opportunity to take the leading management positions. Being realistic, I will certainly face hardships on the road to professional success. Reflection on What I Learned. When it comes to speaking about life time goals – I try to stick to the path “least traveled by”, as I want to bring change into this world for the better. To export a reference to this article please select a referencing stye below: Copyright © 2003 - 2020 - UKEssays.co.uk is a trading name of All Answers Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales. Thus, you could try out what you have learned in a practical setting, and then add the result of this into your conclusion section. Moreover, it is also important to get this tone right from the outset, as first impressions matter. The activity or ability of putting logical words on paper and producing text. Thus, this time, the six stages are: (1) description, (2) feelings, (3) evaluation, (4) analysis, (5) conclusions, and (6) action plan. I used to believe that writing was just putting words on paper, but have since learned that writing is much more than that, I now understand that writing is a way of exploring my mind and of making connections with other writers and readers. Reference this. The task is simple: using your own voice, tell your readers what you think about some novel, story, different articles you have read. Thus, you can include academic elements, and the piece should be referenced like any other academic piece of work if you include in-text citations in the piece, but this should also be balanced by a more subjective and reflective approach, which should naturally come across if you are writing in the first-person. This reflection will obviously vary depending upon your field of study, but the principle is the same: you will have had a particular experience in the field, or in life in general, and you will then write about it, and reflect upon it will various analyses. Therefore, as you progress, you should start to get a feel for what is required, and you can then fine-tune this with further drafts. Through my reading and writing in this course I have come to many realizations about myself as a possible teacher and what I want to see start happening in writing classrooms. Being a person with an active life position, I believe I fit well into the company and the scope of my interests, preferences, and skills will contribute to Company’s success. Sorry, but copying text is forbidden on this website. For instance, I love to cook, but I would certainly not think of myself as a chef. After you choose your topic, write a short summary about what you have learned about your experience with that topic. The reflective essay has become a staple of assessment in educational institutions around the world, and is particularly commonplace on university undergraduate or postgraduate courses—and so it is important to understand the ins and outs of such assessments, so that you are better prepared when you get handed such an assignment. Retrieved from https://graduateway.com/reflection-on-what-i-learned/, This is just a sample. First and most importantly, I want to see teachers more connected and active in the process of their students writing and learning, as I have outlined in my research paper for, Mid-Self Evaluation Essay Just remember that this, ultimately, is an essay, and treat it as such. Therefore, by reflecting upon your experience, and analysing it, you might begin to view the event through a different lens, and this might shape your future experience and thinking. Step #1.) Reflection is a useful process even if you have not been set a specific reflective assignment. In the end, the approach you take is very much a personal preference, and you should not be marked down by taking either approach—unless, of course, your assignment has specifically requested a particular structure from the outset. Thus, if you choose to go with Essay Structure 1, then you will need to merge your description and reflective analysis, and you can do this by having a topic sentence (detailing this particular part of your experience), followed by some analysis and supporting details, and then by adding a paragraph-ending mini conclusion—and then you can follow this micro-structure within each proceeding paragraph in your Main Body. Indeed, on this subject, there can be said to be two main types of reflection, in: (1) reflections made during an event, and (2) reflections made after an event. If you need help with your reflective writing then take a look at the reflective essay writing service at NursingAnswers.net. If you have been given a reflective essay assignment for the first time, you might have a lot of questions, such as: ‘What is the point of this assignment?’, ‘How do I write a reflective essay?’, or ‘What am I supposed to learn from this?’ The good news is that these are all valid questions, and you should be asking them. I look up to market changes and fluctuations, as I know one core principle – when there is stability in a company, there is hardly a possibility of fast and successful carrier. Just like everybody, I can be lazy from time to time and similar to other graduates, I lack life experience and, perhaps, general knowledge that is accumulated throughout life time. Throughout this semester I became more knowledgeable on what the liberal arts truly are, honed my reflective judgment, developed my writing skills, and I now have a deeper and defined sense of self. Although the entire courses, college. As an example, on a very simple level, a reflective piece could look something like this: Title: “ A Reflective Account of Working in a Psychiatric Hospital”. Sales representatives spend much time traveling and need to possess strong communicative skills, be able to motivate people, analyze the situation, react fast and be creative in selecting motivation strategies. My primary duties as a sales person will include to interest wholesale and retail buyers in the pharmaceutical merchandise as well as address their questions and concerns. It stimulates balanced assessments. This website contains an overview of the progression of my writing throughout the semester. Understand the Different Types of Reflection Papers. Nonetheless, considering the inevitable flawed nature of writing, there are some aspects that I still need to work on, and eventually master as I move forward in my academic career. If you can become familiar with the reflective cycles of Kolb (1984) and Gibb (1988), then you will have a good idea of what is expected of you when you receive one of these assignments, and you should be adept at writing in the first person, and in an formal tone, so that you can hit the mark with the kind of style you should be aiming for. If you know in advance that you are going to write a reflective essay about a particular experience, then it can be useful to keep a journal as you go along, so that you’re not relying exclusively on your memories (as memories can be malleable, and are not as accurate as most people believe), and this journal might also include some reflections as you go along too, so that you have an immediate record of how you felt or viewed the events at the moment they unfolded. Aside from this, a highly unstable environment with productions outsourcing to Third World countries and technological advance that allows online sales – open a wide range of opportunities alongside with challenges. Include a description of the experience or event from your own unique point of view, Gather data from various participants, and create an objective account of the event from various subjective perspectives, Include some considerable analysis and reflections of the experience or the event, Only include an extensive description of the experience or the event, Have a clear structure in place, with: an, Write it like a diary entry, containing thoughts and emotions, but without any real structure to it, Draw from established reflective cycle frameworks, such as Kolb (1984) or Gibb (1988), Do not consider any reflective cycle frameworks. I worried that I had lost the skillset, Living & Learning It helps you to make sense of and learn from your experiences. However, the main thing to remember, when doing such an assignment (in addition to striving to get a good grade! If you need this or any other sample, we can send it to you via email. However, there are various ways that you might go about this, from a structural point of view. Essay, Use multiple resourses when assembling your essay, Get help form professional writers when not sure you can do it yourself, Use Plagiarism Checker to double check your essay, Do not copy and paste free to download essays. Personal diary. Thus, the key difference here is that you should not only learn from a reflective experience, but you should also put what you have learned into action. By continuing we’ll assume you’re on board with our cookie policy, The input space is limited by 250 symbols, Robert Frost in his poem “The Road Not Taken” wrote: “Two roads diverge in the woods, and I took the one least traveled by/ And that has made all the difference.”. Having a clear picture of business processes in mind, I now can wholeheartedly admit that my education created me, my views, and my personality. The first thing you should know then, is that very essence of a reflective essay, at its most fundamental level, is that it should reflect on an experience that you have had—hence the name. Now that you’ve seen an example of a reflection paper, it’s time to learn how to write one yourself. How to Write a Reflection Paper on a Book? I have used these skills to compose two academic, here I go on my, what may be considered an overly naïve, reflection of my experience in this course, Feminist and Critical Pedagogies in English Studies. However, by reflecting more deeply upon the event, you may come to the conclusion that the client was not involved enough in their own care, and were removed from the decision-making process, making them feel impotent—which in turn led to them lashing out at what they perceived to be someone contributing to that impotence. VAT Registration No: 842417633. Simply by discussing and then analysing a past event, this in itself makes the piece reflective, by definition. Management is not a skill – it is an art – perhaps, the primary lesson I have learned within the past 4 years. Management is not a skill – it is an art – perhaps, the primary lesson I have learned within the past 4 years. As such, in Essay Structure 1, each paragraph of your Main Body might look something like this: However, for many people, Essay Structure 2 might be easier to handle, as by taking this approach, you can simply write a description of your experience in full, and then analyse everything, in more general terms, and pick out particular parts that you find especially interesting. Thus, I believe my writing has improved immensely over the years, especially this semester in my freshman seminar class. When I began writing this semester, I had several. My path in college has been filled with bumps and road backs. Although I do the work and get a good grade, I always feel uncertain before posting a blog or turning in my final assignment. Many degrees involve assessed reflective writing. In total I wrote five of them and they helped me a lot throughout the semester to manage my time in a more effective manner. A reflective essay is an opportunity for you to apply what you have learned in a course based on your past experiences or future goals. In the long run, I am planning to continue my education. If you can become familiar with the reflective cycles of Kolb (1984) and Gibb (1988), then you will have a good idea of what is expected of you when you receive one of these assignments, and you should be adept at writing in the first person, and in an formal tone, so that you can hit the mark with the kind of style you should be aiming for. When I say an overview of my progression throughout the semester, I truly mean that. Currently, I am a student at Brandman University. We will therefore address each of these questions in turn, and more, as we discuss the ins and outs of writing a reflective essay. In the end though, the overall purpose of a reflective essay is for the writer of it to reflect upon their experience, and to ultimately learn something from it. That’s when you need to rely on your skills. As Goldman Sachs’ and Pfizer are the leaders in pharmaceutical industry, I am looking forward to a highly professional environment with multiple opportunities where the work outcomes depend totally on me. My writing has developed, converting my weaknesses into strengths, through participating in class activities, writing several drafts and receiving feedback, and going to the writing center. Pay attention to the guidelines to avoid making any errors while putting your thoughts together. In the end, there is no right or wrong answer, but the important thing is that you do include some significant reflective elements, and some analyses of the experience; otherwise, it is simply a descriptive piece, and not a reflective one. The tone of your reflective essay is also important, and should be formal in nature, without being overly academic, as you will be including your personal thoughts and feelings, which are subjective in nature. I am confident, devoted, and goal oriented personality with own well established belief and value system. Success in learning is not a matter of how many times you fall down, but a matter of how fast you get up. So, let’s break down the process step-by-step and write one together. As such, a clear mission and persistence, ability to speak up and, perhaps, even courage – are the core principles of success both in life and in college. What writing a reflective essay does then, is to help the writer to make sense of their experience, through some in-depth analysis of it, so that some valuable lessons can be learned, moving forwards. The bottom line is though, that the underlying point of writing a reflective essay is so that you can learn something about yourself, and about your field of study, by drawing on a practical experience. Be creative and ensure that you … There are various types of writing such as; journals, essays, narratives, texting, emails, and blogs. I’ve been a little apprehensive with my writing style this semester and feel that at times I may be missing the entire ideas of the topic. Company Registration No: 4964706. Besides, pharmaceutical industry is unique and requires theoretical preparation, as I will have to know the merchandise and its’ constitutes well to be able to analyze clients’ needs and suggest a solution. This is perhaps currently the most well known and popular model used in reflective essays. Yet I seldom think of myself as writer, possibly this is equivalent to how I deliberate other activities. You can also write a reflective essay based on your understanding of course materials or concepts. 123Helpme.com. To clarify then, if you are not completely familiar with the third and first-person viewpoints, an example of a third-person and first-person account, is as follows: THIRD PERSON: “Observations were made of the research participants, and notes were kept via a secure, password-protected, laptop computer”. 06/05/20 In addition, Gibb (1988) also offers a ‘Reflection Cycle’, which represents an extension of the ideas of Kolb (1984), and provides two more stages to the four already proposed. You can get your custom paper from In fact, it is exactly these kinds of questions that provide the very foundation of reflective thinking—so if you’re already asking yourself such questions, then congratulations, you are well on your way to becoming a skilled reflective thinker. I believe I am well prepared to apply this art and create a masterpiece for the benefit of the company of my choice. Over the course of the semester I have been learning to write in a way that uses the skills of reflection, critical thinking, and much more. If you can do this, and your writing is solid, written in the correct tense, and with the right tone, then you are almost certain to get the grade that you want. This article, written by the nursing professionals at NursingAnswers.net will show you how to write a reflective essay, and will guide you through the process of writing this specific type of paper. In order to achieve this, a number of frameworks have been created over the years, to help guide the writing process of a reflective essay, and so some of these should be considered before you start. Going even further then this, development of e-sales industry will most likely modify my profession requirements and duties. As this semester has begun, and I have begun to adjust to this course’s requirements, expectations, and goals I have found myself taking more risks and challenging my prior writing style. Copyright © 2000-2020. Centuries ago during the Renaissance especially, learning the liberal arts were extremely important and deeply rooted in the education, Writing. This then, more closely resembles Essay Structure 2, detailed previously, with the analysis section being split into sections on feelings, evaluating these feelings, and then analysing the events, in addition to the action plan suggested by Kolb (1984). Persistence and devotedness to the path undertaken, confidence and pride with which one follows down the road – is what distinguishes a successful student from a total failure. The God of Arbaham, Isaac, and Jacob from the Bible, Tolerance in Benjamin Kaplan´s Divided by Faith, Ernest Hemingway: Travels around the World. By going through the process of writing a reflective essay, it is hoped that you will come to some deeper understanding of yourself, of your experience, and that you will develop some insights into what you might do better next time to achieve different results. I know that I am goal oriented, communicative, established personality with professional skills in management. Being a communicative person, I feel that now I possess strong leadership skills. Thus, in this particular situation, you may come to the conclusion that, if they have the capacity to do so, the client should have more involvement in the decision-making process in respect of their care in the future. The reflective thinking process begins with you – you must consciously make an effort to identify and examine your own thoughts in relation to a particular experience. To learn how to write a proper paper, you need some practice. Or, they might decide that they would be better suited towards low-level counselling work (such as in a school), rather than working with people with chronic and severe mental health conditions. Very often you don’t have an opportunity to choose. As the semester meets an end, I am enthralled into reflecting upon my progression as a writer, reader, and a prospective professional throughout this course coordinated by Mr. Billings. Registered office: Venture House, Cross Street, Arnold, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, NG5 7PJ. As such, these kinds of reflective practices can lead to profound changes in the way that you conduct your work, and in how you think about certain situations. your own paper. I believe I am well prepared to apply this art and create a masterpiece for the benefit of the company of my choice. ), is that you should be learning something about yourself from the process, and about your field of study. In case you can’t find a sample example, our professional writers are ready to help you with writing At the same time, when environment is unstable, it is both dangerous and opportunistic – instability does have adverse consequences, but it opens opportunities unattainable in situations when things just flow smoothly. Let readers know how you feel about your topic—and be honest. As such, these frameworks provide a useful structure to work from, and this could also be incorporated into the structure of your essay if you prefer, if you work better with a more formulaic approach. How about make it original at only $13.9/page? To begin with then, your first question might be that of deriving the point of a reflective essay. Eventually, college education is not about good grades and positive recommendations, it is about developing own personality and belief system that allows you to stand up for what you believe and work hard to bring a change into the world rather then simply fill own pockets. However, as noted, you might split the main body into a distinct descriptive section and an analysis section, or you could merge the two. Description: I worked at a psychiatric hospital for a period of six weeks, on a voluntary basis. I might feel shy at times or uncomfortable even though I have a strong theoretical background, but I believe that good organization and tight schedule at Goldman Sachs’ or Pfizer will help me to make up for these drawbacks and gain precious work experience. Next, you are to document your feelings about the events, both during the event, and after it; and this should be followed by an evaluation of the experience, and what the pros and cons were, including the reactions by those present, and whether the situation changed in any way. We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. For example, if you are working in the field of social work, you might have had an experience with a difficult client, who has physically abused you, and this might have left you confused and questioning your career choice if you do not fully understand why they became violent. Thank you for your time and I hope you enjoy it. I learned immensely starting from a variety of writing styles, proper use of MLA format to read and to critically use evidence to formulate, English IV, I wrote many different self reflection essays to reflect on the assignments and tests from different units. FIRST PERSON: “I made observations of the research participants, and I kept notes via a secure, password-protected, laptop computer”. All rights reserved. Therefore, the basic format of a reflective essay will be a standard: Introduction, Main Body, and Conclusion. Therefore, the description is fairly self-explanatory, and involves, again, a description of the events. Exercises to Develop Reflective Writing. I became more oriented to external environment – political situation on the national and international levels and economics fall under the category of my primary interests. In the end, what your teacher wants to see is that you are reflecting upon your personal experiences, rather than just letting them pass you by, and that you are linking theory with practice, and gaining a deeper understanding of your experiences. I feel that my degree in Management is my greatest achievement – I struggled through it and I gave up a great deal of my life for it. Knowledge of economics, computer science, and marketing will all help me to bring change into the world of business.