Why reflect?

So what about reflection? Why is it that it is touted as one of the most important elements of learning, yet few of us ever take the time to do it formally? We had a conversation about this today. We compared it to exercise for our bodies. We all know it is good for us. It is an important element to staying healthy, building and maintaining strength and endurance and finding mental balance. Nonetheless, it is often easy to put it at the bottom of our "to do" list, and therefore, rarely get to it.

Quotes from two famous philosophers helped us wrap our heads around the "why" of reflection:
"Know thyself." - Plato...or was it Socrates?
“We do not learn from experience…we learn from reflecting on experience.” - John Dewey

Much of what we found on reflection suggests that students cannot make emotional connections without reflection, and without connections, it is extremely difficulty to make meaning (aka learn). Experience alone is not enough to engage our whole brain. We need to process the experience (critical thinking) and take the next steps to apply what we have learned before moving onto the next skill or topic.

And, since we know that most of us will not reflect (or exercise) "just because," it becomes one of our jobs as educators (trainers of students or teachers) to provide both the structure and opportunity for reflection. With that said, we are curious. What are your thoughts? Do you see reflection as key to learning? How have you effectively incorporated reflection in your teaching and learning?

Photo: "Grey Crowned Crane watching its reflection" by Jean Spector from Fotopedia.com