Reflective learning is a cornerstone of personal and professional development. Graham Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle, developed in 1988, provides a robust structure to learn effectively from experiences. This model is particularly valuable for repeated experiences, offering a cyclical process to analyze what happened, understand your reactions, and plan for future improvements. The Gibbs Reflective Learning Cycle is comprised of six distinct stages:
- Description: Detailing what happened in the experience.
- Feelings: Exploring your emotions and thoughts during the experience.
- Evaluation: Assessing the experience’s effectiveness – what went well and what didn’t.
- Analysis: Making sense of the situation and understanding why things unfolded as they did.
- Conclusion: Summarizing what you learned and identifying potential changes.
- Action Plan: Planning how you would approach similar situations in the future based on your reflections.
This article will delve deeper into each stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle, providing guiding questions and practical examples to illustrate its application. We will also explore how to use the model for both in-depth and brief reflections, making it a versatile tool for various learning scenarios.
While the gibbs reflective learning cycle is a popular and effective model, remember that it’s just one of many approaches to reflection. Experiment with it to discover how it best supports your learning journey. Focus on the elements that resonate with you and adapt the model to suit your individual needs. Engaging with each stage critically enhances your ability to learn from experience.
Exploring the Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle Model
The gibbs reflective learning cycle offers a structured approach to analyzing experiences, whether they are isolated incidents or recurring situations like team collaborations. Although initially designed for repeated scenarios, the principles of the cycle are equally applicable to single events. In the context of a one-time experience, the action plan stage can be adapted to formulate broader strategies for future application of your learning.
Each stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle is accompanied by a set of helpful questions. These questions serve as prompts to guide your reflection, encouraging you to consider key aspects of the experience. You don’t need to answer every question exhaustively; instead, use them as a starting point to stimulate your thinking and ensure a comprehensive reflective process. Personalize your reflection by adding any other prompts that you find beneficial.
1. Description: What Happened?
The initial stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle is to objectively describe the experience. Focus on providing a detailed account of the events without interpretation or judgment. Your feelings and analysis will be addressed in subsequent stages. The goal here is to paint a clear picture of “what happened.”
Helpful questions for the Description stage:
- What exactly happened?
- When and where did the experience take place?
- Who was involved in the situation?
- What actions did you and others take?
- What was the immediate outcome of the situation?
- What was your role in the situation? Why were you there?
- What were your initial goals or expectations for the situation?
Example of ‘Description’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| For a graded group assignment, my team of four decided to divide the research and writing tasks by section. Each of us would focus on a specific part, with the plan to assemble the complete assignment the day before the deadline. We anticipated a seamless integration. However, upon combining our individual sections, it became evident that our writing styles were inconsistent, and the assignment lacked coherence. Significant rewriting was necessary to ensure a unified piece of work. While we had allocated sufficient time for individual writing, we hadn’t factored in potential integration challenges or the time needed for substantial revisions. Consequently, two group members had to revise their evening plans to dedicate extra hours to finalize the assignment before the deadline. |
2. Feelings: Your Reactions and Thoughts
The second stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle shifts focus to your subjective experience. Explore your emotions and thoughts during the event, and consider how these internal states might have influenced the situation. Acknowledging your feelings is crucial for deeper understanding and learning.
Helpful questions for the Feelings stage:
- What were your feelings during the experience?
- How did you feel leading up to the situation and afterwards?
- What emotions do you think others involved were experiencing?
- How do you think others feel about the situation now?
- What were your thoughts and assumptions during the experience?
- What are your reflections on the situation now?
Example of ‘Feelings’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| Initially, before we realized the extent of the rewriting needed, I felt confident in our task division strategy and thought we had been efficient. However, discovering the stylistic inconsistencies and the amount of work still required led to frustration. I had been certain our initial plan would work smoothly, which decreased my motivation to engage in the extensive rewriting. Knowing that two group members had to cancel their personal plans because of this situation, I felt a sense of guilt. Paradoxically, this guilt fueled my determination to work harder that evening and contribute to completing the assignment efficiently. In retrospect, I feel a sense of satisfaction that we collectively committed to the extra effort and successfully finished the task. |
3. Evaluation: What Worked and What Didn’t?
The evaluation stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle requires an objective assessment of the experience. Identify both the positive and negative aspects, regardless of whether the overall experience was predominantly good or bad. Honest evaluation, focusing on both successes and failures, maximizes learning potential.
Helpful questions for the Evaluation stage:
- What were the positive aspects of the experience? What worked well?
- What were the negative aspects of the experience? What didn’t go so well?
- What contributions did you and others make to the situation, both positively and negatively?
Example of ‘Evaluation’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| Positively, each group member delivered quality work for their assigned sections by the initial deadline. Furthermore, the sense of shared responsibility, heightened by two members adjusting their schedules, fostered a stronger group work ethic and commitment to the task at hand. This collective motivation contributed significantly to our ability to complete the assignment. Conversely, a significant failing was our assumption that individual writing styles would seamlessly merge. This flawed assumption undermined our initial time management plan and ultimately led to increased workload and time pressure. |
4. Analysis: Making Sense of the Experience
The analysis stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle is where you delve into the “why” behind the experience. Move beyond mere description and evaluation to understand the underlying reasons for the outcomes. Explore the factors that contributed to both successes and shortcomings. This is also the stage where you can integrate external resources, such as academic literature, to provide further insight and context.
Helpful questions for the Analysis stage:
- Why do you think things went well?
- Why do you think things didn’t go well?
- What sense can you make of this situation in the context of your prior knowledge and experiences?
- What external knowledge, such as academic theories or models, can help you understand this situation better?
Example of ‘Analysis’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| I believe our initial success in individual task completion stemmed from allowing each person to choose sections aligned with their interests and perceived strengths. This approach fostered individual ownership and motivation. Past experiences working independently have shown me that focusing on strength-based tasks increases enjoyment and productivity. It seems logical that this principle extends to group projects as well. However, our assumption that the sections would easily combine was a critical oversight. We prioritized speed and efficiency in individual writing over considering the crucial aspect of stylistic and structural coherence. This ultimately backfired, costing us more time and causing unnecessary stress during the revision process. Our lack of upfront planning regarding writing style and structure was the root cause of this issue. Researching group work dynamics, I found two concepts particularly relevant. Belbin’s Team Roles (e.g., 2010) emphasizes the importance of leveraging individual strengths within a team for optimal performance. While we intuitively applied this by assigning sections based on self-identified strengths, we failed to address the crucial need for coordinated integration. Furthermore, the concept of ‘Groupthink’ (Janis, 1991) sheds light on our flawed decision-making. Groupthink describes a phenomenon where group members suppress dissenting opinions to maintain harmony or consensus, often leading to suboptimal decisions. In our case, ‘collective rationalization’ – repeatedly assuring ourselves that our plan would work – and an ‘illusion of invulnerability’ – perhaps stemming from our confidence as capable students – prevented us from critically evaluating our plan’s potential weaknesses. Recognizing the potential for groupthink in future collaborations will be a valuable lesson learned. |
Alt Text: Gibbs Reflective Cycle Diagram: A circular flow chart illustrating the six stages of Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle – Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan – emphasizing the cyclical nature of experiential learning.
5. Conclusion: What Did You Learn?
The conclusion stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle is about synthesizing your learning from the experience. Summarize the key insights gained from the previous stages and articulate what you would do differently in similar situations going forward. This stage should naturally flow from your analysis and evaluation.
Helpful questions for the Conclusion stage:
- What key lessons did you learn from this experience?
- How could this situation have been improved for everyone involved?
- What skills do you need to develop to handle similar situations more effectively in the future?
- What alternative actions could you have taken?
Example of ‘Conclusion’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| I learned that when dividing tasks in group projects, it’s essential to proactively plan for integration and coherence, not just individual section completion. Developing a shared understanding of the desired style and structure beforehand would likely have streamlined the assembly process and minimized the need for extensive rewriting. Moving forward, I will continue to leverage individual strengths, possibly even incorporating the Belbin Team Roles framework for more complex projects. Finally, I recognized the importance of critical evaluation of group decisions and the need to actively challenge assumptions to mitigate the risks of groupthink. |
6. Action Plan: Applying Learning to the Future
The final stage of the gibbs reflective learning cycle is to create a concrete action plan. Detail specific steps you will take to apply your learning in future situations. Consider not only what you will do differently, but also how you will ensure these changes are implemented. Sometimes, awareness of the learning is sufficient; other times, you might need reminders or strategies to reinforce new behaviors.
Helpful questions for the Action Plan stage:
- If a similar situation arose again, what specific actions would you take differently?
- What skills do you need to develop to improve your performance in such situations? How will you develop these skills?
- How can you ensure that you will act differently next time? What reminders or strategies will you use?
Example of ‘Action Plan’ in Gibbs’ Cycle
| Scenario: Group Work Assignment |
|---|
| In future group projects, I will initiate a discussion about individual strengths early in the process. This can be a simple icebreaker and valuable for task allocation. When dividing tasks, I will emphasize the importance of pre-planning the integration process. Specifically, I will suggest collaboratively writing the introduction or a sample section to establish a common style and structural template for individual sections to follow. The experience of extensive rewriting will serve as a strong reminder of this lesson. Finally, I will actively encourage critical discussion and challenge initial decisions within the group to mitigate groupthink. If I have concerns, I will voice them, reminding myself that constructive disagreement ultimately benefits the project outcome. |
Adapting Gibbs’ Cycle for Different Reflection Depths
The gibbs reflective learning cycle is adaptable to various contexts and time constraints. You can adjust the level of detail in your reflection depending on the situation. Here’s an example of a briefer application of the cycle to the same group work scenario:
| Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle – Short Example: |
|---|
| Describe: In a group assignment, we divided sections by strength. Assembly revealed style differences, requiring rewriting. |
| Feelings: Initially confident, then frustrated by the rewriting workload. |
| Evaluate: Task division was efficient. Lack of integration planning was a major flaw. |
| Analyze: Strength-based task allocation is effective (supported by Belbin’s Team Roles, 2010). Integration failure due to lack of planning and potential groupthink (Janis, 1991). |
| Conclude: Learned the importance of integration planning and awareness of groupthink in group projects. |
| Action Plan: Utilize Belbin’s roles for task allocation. Collaboratively write a sample section for style guidance. Actively voice concerns to avoid groupthink. |
Adapted from:
Gibbs G (1988). Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit. Oxford Polytechnic: Oxford.
By using the gibbs reflective learning cycle, you can transform experiences into valuable learning opportunities, fostering continuous improvement and deeper self-awareness. Whether in-depth or brief, consistent reflection using this framework will enhance your personal and professional growth.
