Reflective writing

Learning Objectives

After considering this resource, you should understand the benefits of reflective writing and how you might approach keeping a reflective diary.

Someone writing on paper

Reflective practice is an important element of professional education and recording your reflections – for example, in a reflective journal – will allow you to demonstrate your ability to practise critically and reflectively. While reflective writing can seem difficult for people who are new to it, it offers a valuable means of analysing experiences, processing challenging encounters and capturing your learning.

This resource, by Barbara Bassot, introduces you to the idea of keeping a reflective journal: where to start, what to write and other resources that can help with the process.

Reflective Questions

  1. Why will reflecting on my practice be important for me as a social worker?
  2. When will I set aside time to write in my reflective journal?
  3. How long will I aim to spend writing in my reflective journal?
  4. How often will I write in it?
  5. Where would be a good physical place for me to write my reflections?
  6. How will I decide what to write about?
  7. Who can help me if I get stuck?