THE ADVANTAGES OF REFLECTION
GRACE-ANN SANCHEZ PANGILINAN
A reflection is how people see themselves generally or in a certain way. Just like one's reflection in a mirror, it gives people a chance to look upon themselves in their own perspective. Writing or sharing reflections is very important and beneficial not only to the one reflecting but to those who will read or listen to the reflection also. It can help many people learn from others' experiences as well. As teachers, reflections are a part of our daily teaching and learning process. W e reflect about how effective our teaching strategies were, how the activities helped the learners understand their lessons, how the behavior of the students changed because of our classroom management skills, how can we help students who did not understand the topics, how effective is the intervention or remediation, and how can we make our next lesson more interesting and interactive. There are a lot of certain things that we can reflect upon. These reflections will surely help us be better teachers each day. Educators can critically analyze their teaching performance and how they can be best according to the level of their learners. Letting the students reflect on themselves especially about their academic performance has a great impact on their growth as a person. It is vital that learners have the time and opportunity to look back upon themselves and their life experiences even at a young age. Through this, they will come to realize how they can make themselves better and learn from their past. It is highly encouraged that students reflect on their activities in every lesson because this will help them digest and absorb their academics even more. This will also help them make their own interpretation of their learnings and how they can apply these in their daily lives. During the teaching and learning process, experiential learning and reflection can greatly help both teachers and students to have a meaningful interaction and discussion. Through these, there will be a sharing of real-life experiences and individual learnings which will give additional information and lessons to others. Indeed, it is safe to say that reflection is a great help not only in education but also in life.
-oOoThe author is Teacher I at Camba High School