Read Jason Anderson’s article titled Key concepts in ELT: reflection in ELT journal.
Although discussion of reflective thought in education dates back at least to Dewey (e.g. Dewey 1933), it is only since the 1980s that the term ‘reflection’ has become prominent in discussion of practitioner, including teacher, development. Within English language teacher education, reflection is often promoted as an important feature of effective practice (e.g. British Council 2015). Yet, while ‘reflection’ is frequently invoked, use of the term often lacks conceptual clarity (van Beveren et al., 2018), and we still understand relatively little about the role of reflection in (language) teacher development (Mann and Walsh 2017).
Defining reflection is difficult. In one sense, reflection is simply ‘thought’ (van Manen 1991), but definitions in the teacher education literature (e.g. Zeichner 1981; van Manen 1991; Mann and Walsh 2017; Fendler 2003) tend to be more specific, involving a number of elements that often suggest a formative outcome. Such definitions can be synthesized as follows: reflection is conscious, experientially informed thought, at times involving aspects of evaluation, criticality,1 and problem-solving, and leading to insight, increased awareness, and/or new understanding. As such, reflection can be contrasted with ‘impulsive’ or ‘routine’ decision-making that reinforces and embeds current perceptions or practices (Dewey 1933: 17).