Using Your Reading in Reflective Writing

In your reflective writing, you will use the content of the unit and the scholarly readings to show that you are thinking deeply about the themes and issues of your discipline and can apply this knowledge to your discussion and evaluation. You will need to reference: • Any time you copy or cut and paste information from a print resource or online site. You will need to identify the information as a “quotation” and reference it. • Any time you refer to ideas or information from a print resource or online site and put the idea in your own words. You will not use quotation marks but you will still need to reference this idea as a paraphrase.

Example Jones (2010) argues that … Her example of … shows … The research of Smith (2010) also found that …

… I now realise that …

I am beginning to see that … This reading (Brown, 2009) has raised the question of whether / if … The evidence suggests that … (Brown, 2010). Statistics show that …. (Thompson, 2009). I can use Brown’s (2009) theory … (then specifically identify which parts you will use and how) I see learning as … (Brown, 2009). I also agree with the idea of Thompson (2010) that … Thompson’s (2010) study found that … I am uncertain about … I guess … It seems that … Other research (Brown, 2008; Jenkins, 2009) has reported that … This means that … I need to learn more about … I read Brown (2010) to find out … While on placement, I had to negotiate … Communication strategies like … allowed me to … (Thompson, 2010). In this situation, my leadership style involved … (Smith, 2009). Collaborative learning occurred when … (Smith, 2010). network model in … (Brown, 2009). As I had limited experience of …, Brown’s (2009) reading helped me to understand that …

As a nurse, I need to be aware of the responsibility to …. (Robinson, 2009). I would use …. (Jenkins, 2010). I now realise that … I have learnt that … Therefore, my approach would be to incorporate … Prepared by the ACU Academic Skills Unit for HLSC120 Last reviewed/updated: 20/2/12

Purpose of Example Shows the self-­‐dialogue you have with the ideas in various journal articles, books and websites you read.

Provides supporting evidence and validity for your comments. Shows how you are exploring the usefulness of various theories.

Identify ideas and issues that are still unclear for you, gaps in your knowledge.

Links your example from personal experience to accepted theory.

Discusses how your thinking and actions have changed or would be different if you experienced a similar situation in the future.

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