What is the Reflective Journal?

Your reflective journal is an important component of all Learna programmes and will be assessed by your tutor, counting towards 10% of your overall module mark (unless otherwise stated in Moodle).

But what is a reflective journal?

Reflective practice is not a new concept and can be used to enhance your own experiences, not merely articulating your experiences, but reflecting upon these experiences to optimise that experience.

The purpose of the reflective journal is to examine critical issues related to your programme and to examine how you apply your learning to your professional practice, work experience, or even to your personal life. 

The aim of this assessment method is to enhance the development of your own professional practice, to examine some of your ethical problem-solving skills, and to be involved in self-examination about your values and also to derive personal relevance to your work and studies. 

How should I approach my reflective journal?

Your journal should be a progressive, continuous, structured and personal process or journey, written in the first person (that is using ‘I’). This will differ from the more formal academic style you use in the academic forum and module activity components.

The content of your journal may relate to your thoughts and feelings about your learning and/or the learning and your application of it. Your reflective journal, however, is not a personal diary. You will enhance your learning and your marks by reflecting on topics studied and writing about how you might apply them to your professional practice. We also recommend that you make entries each week so that you can receive formative feedback from your tutor as you progress through each module. 

We recommend using reflective models and letting your tutor know which one you have chosen to use in your first post. Below are a few examples:

• Gibb’s Reflective Cycle (1988)
• Driscoll’s What Model (1994)
• ERA Cycle (2013)
• Kolbs Learning Cycle (1984)

Methodologies for this component are discussed in detail in your Study Skills module on Day 2.

Further information as to the word count and expectations for this component can be found on the “Reflective Journal” page within your module.

Submitting Entries to the Reflective Journal

As you progress through the module, you will add to the reflective journal in one text area as opposed to making multiple separate entries. 

Below are our articles on starting your reflective journal and updating the text area for future entries as needed.

Adding an Entry to the Reflective Journal

Editing the Reflective Journal