Reflection is a very important aspect of learning. If you cannot reflect, you cannot identify where you have went wrong in order to improve it.

At first I just assumed reflection was about thinking back and seeing how far you have come, but from reading further into it I have realised it is way more complex than that.

To reflect is to have the ability to stand back and look at something from a number of different perspectives. It is the act of thinking about something and analysing those thoughts. When reflecting, it is important to make sure you do so from many perspectives, as doing so from only one may limit understanding.

Reflection is important in order to highlight your weaknesses. By doing this, you then understand exactly what went wrong and you can then improve from there. This is evident within Gibbs Model of Reflection (1988). This model is very useful, with six parts all explaining how to break down your reflection and use it to critically analyse a situation. These points included in the model are:

• What happened?
• How did you feel?
• What went well and what did not?
• What sense did you make of the situation?
• What else could have been done?
• If the situation happened again, what would you do? Would you do anything differently?

I think this model is very useful in reflecting on situations as it highlights everything needed to do so. In future I will certainly refer to this model.

Reflection is very relevant to teaching. Teachers must be able to look at what they do in their classrooms and question why they are doing it and if it is having a positive impact. It is important for teachers to reflect and realise why lessons went well and why exactly that was. Similarly, it is important to reflect on situations that did not go so well, to make sense of the situation and come to a conclusion on what else could have been done to either prevent or resolve the situation. Then, they will know what they would do differently if a similar situation was to arise.

Reflection can be useful in many different situations. In dancing, it can be hard when you do not place as well as you have done in the past in competitions. Reflection is very beneficial in situations like these. It allows you to reflect on the positives, that you are capable of doing well, as well as the negatives – not everyone can be perfect all of the time. I believe it is very important to always be conscious that things do go wrong and there is always something to improve on. By reflecting, we can identify what has changed (for better and for worse) so we can do something about it. Reflection helps us learn from our experiences. And experience is a very successful way of learning.