Reflective learning journals: From concept to practice

Reflective learning journals are recognized as a significant tool in promoting active learning among nursing students. Essentially, nurse educators strive to encourage students to think about past experiences, current situations, and expected outcomes of their actions so that they can explain what they do in the clinical setting and why. In other words, nurse educators seek to promote professional practice that is reflective rather than routine. The purposes in this paper are to discuss the application of two models of reflection to a set of reflective learning journals and to offer some recommendations for educators, researchers, and students. Using a three stage model of reflection (Scanlon & Chernomas, 1997), 52 nursing students explored managerial concepts. The major findings indicated that students may be categorized, according to Kember et al. (1999), as nonreflectors (i.e., lack evidence of deliberate appraisal), reflectors (i.e., demonstrate insight through analysis, discrimination, and evaluation), and critical reflectors (i.e., indicate a transformation from initial perspective).