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Theme 1.5

A model for

reflective writing

People who are new to reflective writing often

find that a structure or framework helps them

in the early stages. It helps them to make a

start, and they will then discard it later as

writing reflectively becomes easier. Mantell

and Scragg (2019) offer a helpful structure for

writing a reflective journal, which is based on

three stages. Each stage has accompanying

questions to encourage a deeper reflective

approach, and I have adapted them for

application to research.

Stage 1 – Reflecting

Here you focus on an issue or a concern

that you have in relation to your research.

Like Bolton and Delderfield (2018) Mantell

and Scragg advocate free and spontaneous

writing in order to capture your thoughts

and feelings.

Stage 2 – Analyse

This is the most complex of the stages and

involves responding to key questions:

• What is happening here?

• What assumptions am I making in relation

to my research?

• What does this show about my beliefs

(for example, my belief in my ability to carry

out research, how the research process

should run or what a good outcome would

look like)?

Stage 3 – Action

The focus here is on the action you take

following the analysis. Again, the authors

suggest considering some key questions:

• What action can I take to move my

research forward?

• How can I learn from what has happened

so far in my research project?

• Would I do anything different if similar

things occurred again?

• What does this experience tell me about

my beliefs about myself, and my research

capabilities?

While a model like this can be useful, there is no

single correct way to write in a research journal.

Here are two examples of extracts about

reflective writing to illustrate this.