A reflective model for action research: An evolving pedagogical trajectory

One of the most important trends in education in past decades is the notion of reflective practice. This type of pedagogical practice, which is largely based on the influential approach proposed by Donald Schon ( 1983, 1987), focuses attention on the forms of knowledge that practitioners use in problem-solving and decision-making. This further highlights the role of reflection in the process of making sense of personal and professional experiences. Schon's (1987) work emphasises two main processes: reflection in action and reflection on action. Reflection in action refers to the making of decisions guided by tacit knowledge that occurs in the midst of acting. In contrast, reflection on action denotes the kind of reflection that occurs after the action. thus it is retrospective in nature. More recently. other scholars {e.g .. Eraut, 1995; Moon, 1999) have underscored the importance of reflection for action, which embraces future courses of action. This prospective type of reflection, along with alternative names for the concepts of reflection (i.e. about, on, in. after, and for) and. their relationship to the process of identity construction in the action research cycle, constitutes the focus of this chapter.