PDF (PhD Thesis) - UWE Research Repository - University of the ...

Appendix 1
Information Sheet for Participants who have completed a Reflective Practice
Course at UWE (First Strand of a Co-inquiry into Reflection-in-action)
A Collaborative Inquiry into the Tensions and Possibilities of Reflecting in the
Context of Care Delivery
This is an invitation to take part in one aspect of a research doctoral study sponsored
by the Faculty of Health and Social Care, UWE, Bristol about reflection in practice.
Reflection has been described as a way that practitioners can learn from practical
experience, and in the process, question, understand and learn from the ―messiness‖
of practice because actual practice does not always fit neatly into an appropriate
theory (Schon, 1983).
Before you decide it is important for you to understand the project, and what your
involvement will be. There will be an introductory meeting about the project which
will allow for any questions you may have to be answered. If you decide to attend
the meeting it does not mean you have to take part in the study. If you choose to take
part in this inquiry you would be free to withdraw at any time. No reasons need to be
given and any information you wanted withdrawn would be honoured. Please take time
to read the following information, discuss it with colleagues, relatives or friends or
contact me for any further information before deciding whether to take part.
What is the Purpose of the Study?
This inquiry forms part of a doctoral study which I am currently undertaking with
SOLAR, (Social and Organisational Learning as Action Research). It is a research and
development centre based in the Faculty of Health and Social Care, University of the
West of England, Bristol and encourages a collaborative approach to action research.
Put more simply, this means the researcher and research participants‘ work together to
learn and understand practice encouraging improvement and changes in practice.
This study aims to explore learning from practice through reflective processes in
practice settings during actual care delivery. This has been described by Schon (1983)
as ―reflection in action‖ which means ―reflecting while doing‖. You may be familiar with
reflection as a looking back process sometimes known as reflection on action. This
involves learning from practice and is usually performed away from the bedside e.g. on
educational courses, often through critical incident analysis or diary keeping. Or you
may be aware of, or involved in the recent initiative in this trust, relating to clinical
supervision of practice, a process which involves some reflection on practice. I am
interested in whether reflection is valuable in practice. Is it time consuming? Does it
make any difference to the quality of the service provided? Does reflection have to be
through writing or are there other ways of reflecting? Does reflection happen
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