Tips on Using Reflective Learning Logs

When teachers collaborate, they do so with thesuch as in-service sessions.
goal of investigating additional ways to supportAll teachers can start using reflective learning logs
their students' literacy development. It is evenin order to ask questions and isolate the issues
more helpful and beneficial to collaboration if eachfacing their struggling readers. Once ELL teachers
teacher brings information about their classroomknow how the issues influence their instruction,
success and needs to the dialogue once they'vethey can then begin the process of adapting the
experimented with reflective learning logs.curriculum to meet the needs of ELLs.
Teachers can use such journals to documentReflective Journals Helps Teachers Learn what
students' progress, explore questions and issuesWorks
related to meeting students' academic needs,As teachers use their reflective writing to pinpoint
evaluate what works with their students, and planareas of success in their day-to-day teaching,
for further instruction and assessment. Thesethey can then use the reflective learning process
reflective writings provide a rich foundation foras they plan and develop subsequent instruction
effective collaboration to take place.to help their students close the gaps in reading
Reflective Learning Logsproficiency. Important areas such as planning and
Teachers add to their professional growth bydevelopment slowly became clearer for us when
observing and reflecting on what goes on in theirwe presented ourselves with questions that were
classrooms, and can then share their insights withspecific and geared to a certain content or
other teachers through the process ofpractical area which needed additional clarification.
collaboration. This acquired knowledge enablesTeachers need to reevaluate their instruction and
teachers to be more informed and to incorporateassessment and spend some time after lessons
working theories that potentially match thethinking more deeper about how to adapt the
instructional needs of their ELLs. Typically,curriculum to carefully suit the needs of their
reflective writing is an ongoing process wherebystruggling ELLs. Using specific subjects to help
teachers rethink what happened in class, whatguide them in their thinking, teachers can more
worked and didn't work to meet their instructionaleffectively evaluate the quality of their teaching
goals, and how their teaching behaviors canand assessment. As the center of the inquiry
change or improve.process, reflective learning works similarly to an
Reflective Writing Techniques Promote Successfulaction research concept. Using Wallace's practice
Collaborationmodel of professional education/development,
Reflective writing journals help enhance thereflective teaching "can have a specific and
process of collaboration by providing uniqueimmediate outcome which can be directly related
perspectives for ESL and ELL teachers as theyto practice in the teacher's own context"
endeavor to close the gaps in their students'(bibliographic information: Wallace, M. 1991. Training
reading proficiency levels in both smaller and largerForeign Language Teachers: A reflective approach.
general educational settings.Cambridge University Press.)
As teachers document student performance andIn this respect, all teachers can benefit using
related factors, they then have information toreflective learning logs in order to begin to ask
further reflect and plan how to meet studentquestions and focus on the issues facing their
needs. Reflective learning may take anstruggling readers. Once ELL teachers know how
inquiry-based format, in which teachers askthese issues influence their instruction, they can
themselves questions and then seek answersthen begin the process of adapting the curriculum
through collaboration with other teachers orto meet the needs of ELLs.
experimenting with various instructional strategiesTeachers can ask themselves questions about
and methods. The process of journal writing is notkey areas such as specific aspects of lesson
intended for quick and easy solutions, but ratherplanning which will result in effective teaching,
to explore a reflective process of thinking.classroom management, and assessment, and use
Reflective writing also allows teachers to maketheir reflective learning logs as a foundation for
connections between issues they observe in theidentifying instructional objectives and establishing
classroom and what they have learned throughgoals.
various professional development opportunities,