The following tips for facilitating reflection are adapted from Colorado State University's Office for Service-Learning and Volunteer Programs:
- Schedule regular opportunities for guided and purposeful reflection.
- Communicate in writing students' responsibilities for reflection and provide well-defined criteria for evaluating their participation.
- Seek to engage each student in both group and individual reflection activities.
- Challenge each student to assess the knowledge, values, and skills he or she brings to the project.
- Establish norms of behavior and a framework for reflection that guides students from objective observations and subjective responses to interpretation, awareness, and action.
- Devote some reflection time to orienting students to people and problems they will encounter and allowing students to practice skills that will be required, such as active listening and observing.
- Seek closure on emotional issues by the end of each reflective session.
- Leave some cognitive and topical issues open for ongoing discussion to encourage reflection between class sessions.
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