The Role of the Instructor in Teaching Students to Become Reflective.

INTRODUCTION

Traditional pistol instruction follows an apprenticeship or coaching model and, in so doing, aspires to provide students with skills, attitudes, procedures and techniques derived from a pre-existing body of knowledge and from the practical experience gained by coaches as practitioners in the various shooting disciplines. However, the conventional approach based on telling, demonstrating and imitating often inhibits the critical analysis, decision making and self-directed growth of students and thereby fails to promote their full potential development. This paper describes how shooting coaches can help students become reflective practitioners through reciprocal reflection-in-action combined with the use of reflective journals, thus promoting critical thinking, self-assessment and encouraging greater self-regulation or autonomy in students.

Professionals in the shooting disciplines agree that students must acquire the skills necessary to make reasoned decisions in unfamiliar situations, deal with complex, ill-defined problems efficiently, maintain situational awareness in a dynamic environment, adapt to change and work productively as team members. These skills are essential because problems of real-world practice seldom present themselves as well-formed structures. Instead, they tend to present themselves as messy, indeterminate situations (Schön, 1987). Therefore, to operate safely in a complex environment, such as target shooting, coaches need to become reflective practitioners who can define problems, make decisions consciously and rationally and who continuously monitor and evaluate their situation. They need to be professionals who "actively reflect" on their performance and on the result of their actions. Ongoing reflection has also been identified as an essential component of a "positive" safety culture (Reason, 1997). Furthermore, research by Beaumont (1998) indicates that reflection is an important element of situational awareness. However, sound judgment, effective decision making, self-evaluation and situational awareness are usually the product of extensive practical experience.

Consequently, our task as shooting educators is to find ways of assisting students so that they will benefit more fully from each of their experiences throughout their shooting training. However, experience is not just what happens to you, more importantly, it is what you think about what happens to you (Machado, 1993). The aims of shooting training, therefore, should include the development of critical reflective thinking, decision making skills, self-awareness or metacognition, and self-evaluation in order to help accelerate the development of the experiential base amongst students and to facilitate the growth of the reflective practitioner. Our experience indicates that an effective way of developing competencies such as self-awareness, self-evaluation and independent thinking can be through reflection-in-action, that is, thinking about what we are doing while doing it (Schön, 1987), combined with the use of reflective journals (Anderson & Henley, 1998).

REFLECTION-IN-ACTION

Essentially, shooting training is premised on learning by doing. Reflection-in-action is the process that takes place during training when an instructor analyses the student's performance, tries to discern what the student understands and offers instructions, feedback, advice and correctives. Initially, students are asked to replicate drills without fully understanding what is required to perform each sequence correctly. They often do not recognise all the cues needed to replicate the drill demonstrated by the instructor. Therefore, a verbal description by the instructor of how a drill is being performed and perceived is needed to provide the cues to essential features of the demonstration (Schön, 1987).

However, coaches must also encourage their students to join them in the descriptive and reflective process. Coaches need to gradually step back and allow the student to develop the skills needed to also reflect-in-action. Students must be encouraged to think and analyse what they are doing while performing a task. This will allow them to develop their skills of critical analysis and self-assessment. These are essential skills because many situations in shooting do not fit the normal pattern. In fact, most situations in shooting are unique and frequently fall outside the procedures learned. Consequently, there is often a need to improvise and to test the strategies used. This requires ongoing reflection. Furthermore, the coach's or the student's reflection on one's own or on the other's performance can often yield a description that highlights inaccurate cues or reveals misunderstandings or subtle differences in perceptions that need to be clarified or rectified. When a coach and a student combine demonstrating, imitating, describing and reflecting, each component can fill gaps of meaning inherent in the other. Unfortunately, reciprocal reflection-in-action is frequently neglected in shooting training. Too often, coaches tell students what they should be doing but fail to ask the students to describe their perceptions and reflect on their actions. Yet, reflection-in-action by students is essential in ensuring that they have an accurate picture of each of the drills to be performed.

Most shooting educators have long recognised that one of the most important ways to enhance learning is to strengthen the link between the practical learning experience and the reflective activity which follows it. In shooting training, this link is normally planned to be achieved during the debriefing period at the end of each session where the instructor and the student take the time to step back and assess the student's performance and reflect upon the session in a critical way. However, too frequently, because of time constraints, the debriefing phase is shortened or curtailed. Yet, the opportunity to engage in reflection is a crucial element of training. Therefore, to ensure reflection takes place after a learning event, students should be encouraged to write a reflective journal since journal writing is a way to structure self-monitoring, critical analysis and self-evaluation (Zeichner & Liston, 1987).

REFLECTIVE JOURNALS

Learning can be augmented and can be more profound when students are encouraged to reflect on the learning event and exercise their judgment about the content and the processes of learning. The benefits of this "consciousness raising" are that students learn to chart their development, identify barriers, patterns and strategies, challenge their own beliefs and avoid repeating the same mistakes. Reflection can also lead toward greater confidence and assertiveness or to a change in attitude, perspective or priorities. Furthermore, writing reflective journals can reinforce reflection-in-action because it allows students to reach a higher level of correlation between theory and practice. Therefore, the main purpose of using reflective journals in shooting education is to encourage students to be more aware of what they do, how they do it, why they do it, and for them to be able to identify useful problem solving strategies, as well as recognise their own strengths and weaknesses with regard to their understanding of content knowledge, procedures and practical skill development and application. Indeed, the first step in becoming a reflective practitioner needs to incorporate self-awareness or metacognition. In addition, the aim of reflection is to develop an orientation toward open-mindedness and a willingness to accept responsibility for self-directed learning as well as foster a keen sense of observation, critical thinking and reasoned analysis (Brookfield, 1995; Clift, Houston & Pugach, 1990; Sparks-Langer, Simmons, Pasch, Colton & Starko, 1990). Reflection also allows students to acknowledge emotions and feelings that otherwise may form barriers to learning.

However, we need to acknowledge the fact that reflection does not just happen. Reflection is an active and effortful activity. It is a skill that needs to be developed, nurtured and refined. Although some students will eventually, through trial and error, develop insights on their own without the use of a reflective journal, the learning process can be aided and time to learn decreased through the use of reflective journals. This is due, in part, to the skills and mental processes involved in writing that force students to contemplate and anchor relationships between perceptions as they occur. Therefore, to work well, reflection initially needs to involve a dialogue between the coach and the student.

There is no set formula or format to write reflective journals. However, it might be helpful to encourage students to organise their ideas into sections. When reviewing a training session, students could be encouraged to answer questions such as:

When reflecting upon a theory class, a book, or an article, students could be asked to consider the following questions:

STEPS TO ENHANCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF REFLECTIVE SKILLS

Coaches can help students acquire reflective skills by adopting the following steps:

Inform students at the beginning of their training that they will be expected to use a reflective journal. Also explain why reflection is an essential skill for athletes in the shooting sports.

In the beginning, give students specific assignments. Be precise about what you want. For example, ask them to explain what happened in the initial five shot series. Ask them to describe what they did, how they reacted and what they might do differently next time.

During each session briefing, review their notes and writings. Discuss and address any questions they may have raised. Correct misconceptions they might have formed about a technique or a drill. Use their reflections for further discussions on how a particular event they experienced might apply to other situations.

Encourage students to use the journal to describe their thoughts, feelings, and to also include the "fun" or exceptional moments that they experience. Make the reflective activity interesting and enjoyable. For example, once they have gained experience, have them take a camera to away open shoots so they can take pictures to place in the journal for later enjoyment.

As students progress through their training, allow them to choose the topic, drill, or learning event upon which to reflect. This encourages them to participate more fully in the learning process and to become more self-directed. Use the students' reflections to help them see the progress they are making, not just in terms of shots fired, but in terms of their achievements and the improvements in their skills, abilities and knowledge.

THE IMPORTANCE OF CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK

Since writing a reflective journal is a skill, it is also imperative that coaches provide timely feedback to students to help them develop their reflective thinking. However, it must be stressed that the feedback needs to be non-threatening, constructive and supportive. It is also important to include questions that will allude to, or prompt students to make connections between theory and practice. With appropriate feedback and prompting questions, students can move from simple description and unsubstantiated judgments to a greater frankness, open-mindedness and thereby acquire the ability to link theory to practice and even demonstrate a willingness to search for alternatives. As students develop their ability to reflect, they can be challenged to question their understanding and their perceptions, thus becoming more critical. Through carefully scaffolded guidance from the coach, the student can gradually progress to higher levels of reflection eventually achieving self-directed and independent learning. Coaches can gradually fade the guiding questions or the prompts, as students become more independent and more self-regulated.

STAGES IN THE REFLECTIVE PROCESS

According to Boud, Keogh and Walker (1988), there are three stages in the reflective process:

(pp. 26-36, also see Pearson & Smith, 1988).

The first stage in the reflective process, the returning to experience, is the recollection of salient aspects of the experience, or the recounting of what happened. This phase includes a narration or a description of an event or a learning situation, but often times, it remains strictly factual and is devoid of any reference to personal concerns, attitudes or emotions and does not reveal the student's understanding of the situation or what was learned from the experience. However, this stage is useful since it serves to "contextualise" what happened, and it provides students with a better understanding of what took place.

However, reflection is more than simply "thinking about" a host of events. Reflection has a purpose; it should be pursued with intent. Reflection involves the logical and analytical thinking needed to resolve a problem in a rational manner. Consequently, to encourage students to develop their reflective skills to a higher level, the coach needs to prompt students to go beyond the description (what) to consider how, why, so what, and what if? The task of the instructor is to assist and encourage students to become active receivers. That is, to seek meaning from previous experiences and incorporate the new information into existing knowledge. Asking prompting questions is crucial in the development of reflection in students. By asking questions that provoke reflection, students begin to realise the importance of context. That is, students come to the realisation that theory is not isolated from practice. For example, the following student's reflection shows that his level of learning has evolved from mostly rote memorisation and imitation to understanding and application. He is also attempting to assess his own performance more realistically. Furthermore, he is beginning to contemplate the consequences of his actions and develop the insights necessary for the next level of learning, that is, correlation.

Once again we stayed with Standard Match. This time I felt a little better. The practice is paying off, I think. The last series I tried did not show that though. My shots were coming in low and I got nervous and wasn't sure if I should adjust my grip or not. I didn't and my score went kind of thump. My instructor told me that if I think I should do a particular thing, like adjusting my grip, I probably should. That was good to hear. Later my shots kind of drifted to the left (in 10 sec series) and I was not sure what to do, but I should have corrected my stance and compensated for any error in my technique.

The following student's reflection shows a higher level of correlation. He has been able to associate why he performed as he did and the psychological factors which may have affected his performance on this particular occasion.

Today I got to go solo, it was a great feeling, no coaches. This time everything I've learned really had to be used, especially as I was not near my coach. I felt much more independent. Right from the start, everything seemed to go wrong, I loaded four instead of five, "twice", shot really badly, and forgot the malfunction procedure, incurring a penalty. This probably occurred because after the first mistake I became flustered and didn't think. I was particularly nervous as it was my first 'open'.

Attending to feelings and developing an awareness of emotions is the second stage in becoming reflective. Students need to consider the affective dimension of their experiences. Reflection includes the need to emphasise the positive feelings and remove impediments or obstructing feelings in order to examine the experience more objectively and more thoroughly without blinders. In relating the event, it is possible to reconsider and re-examine the experience afresh. Students can realise how they were feeling and examine what prompted their action. This stage helps to clarify the student's personal perception of the experience. The student is allowed to stand back from the experience and review it from different perspectives or in a wider context (Boud, Keogh & Walker, 1988). Therefore, the coach needs to encourage students to integrate elements of description, observation, analysis, interpretation and introspection. That is, the student's experiences, concerns and feelings should all contribute to the reflection. The following excerpt shows that the student is beginning to include some elements of analysis in his reflection and acknowledge some of the feelings he experienced:

Today, once again, we worked on Standard, but this time after we got started; we practised a simulated malfunction. When this happens, you must raise your non-shooting arm in the air to attract the Range Officer's attention. This was somewhat nerve racking, as I was still not sure what to do. But it really was easy, as you do absolutely nothing until he arrives except maintain your grip on the pistol. Next we practised our timing (cadence he called it) for the 20-sec series. This was difficult because it was hard to judge how much time was left and I was too fast. (I can practise that at home) Then we practised a full 20-sec series, which was almost perfect except for an equipment malfunction (a target fell off in the middle of the series), and we got to shoot it again. Although not planned the target falling gave me an example of another type of situation that we will encounter as I progress.

With reference to the journal entry included above, the coach and the student could reflect on the effect of stress on peripheral vision and how it can affect depth perception, decision making and performance. They could also reflect on the need for constant vigilance and when unforseen events occur, such as a target falling off during a series.

The third stage, re-evaluating experience (what does it mean? what should I do next time), is that of consolidation and application. Coaches can help students achieve this stage through supportive questioning. They can act as a sounding board, and can help students clarify their understanding, their interpretation and their intentions. Re-examining the experience is essential to appropriate new knowledge and skills to previous conceptual framework and to guide future action (Boud, Keogh & Walker, 1988). In short, coaches should encourage students to describe the event and then reflect ("look back") on what they have done and then "look ahead" to what they should do the next time. In addition, students should be encouraged to acknowledge the reasons for their actions and consider how they will approach similar tasks in the future. Reflection, in essence, is proactive; students are encouraged to reflect not so much to revisit past experience or dwell on the past, but to guide future action. Retrospectively, after the student has completed a learning activity, he or she must think about what took place in a critical and analytical way. In other words, students must engage in reflection about their practice. Therefore, in the final stage of reflection, students should be able to describe and analyse a learning situation, issue or problem, gather and evaluate information regarding the issue or problem under consideration, generate several alternative solutions, look at their potential implications and finally, integrate all of the information into a tempered conclusion or solution for the problem identified or for future application or actions.

ROADBLOCKS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF REFLECTIVE SKILLS

There are a variety of roadblocks that coaches may encounter in their attempt to encourage students to reflect seriously on their learning activities and on their performance. Some students may not see the value of reflection. Young male students, especially, may be reluctant to engage in what they possibly view as simply keeping a "diary", which is not an activity "real men" normally performed. Therefore, coaches need to explain very clearly the aims and the stages of the reflective process, why reflection is an important skill for students, and the purpose of using a reflective journal. In some instances, this may be problematic since many shooting coaches have never used reflective journals during their own training. Therefore, they may not be convinced of the value of the reflective process for students. This could entail additional training for current coaches and it means that the trainers of shooting coaches should be encouraged to use reflection-in-action and reflective journals during coaches' training.

Another major obstacle is the additional time involved for both the student and the coach. Students need to be willing to spend time to write in their journal. This can be a major stumbling block for students who may not be reflective learners by nature. Furthermore, the reflective process initially requires that coaches spend additional time discussing journal entries with their students. Since many coaches are not paid for the time they spend with students, this could prove to be a major barrier in encouraging coaches to adopt the use of reflective journals with their students.

Some coaches have also expressed the fear that their students may unknowingly get them in trouble because their students' account or perception of the event could be incorrect or may have been misunderstood. However, if coaches understand that journals can be used to clarify such misunderstanding or erroneous perceptions on the part of students, they may feel less threatened.

Some students, on the other hand, may not want to admit their failures or their apprehension to their coach because they feel that their coach may be part of their problem.

Finally, reflection is not easy since it involves having to admit the truth when we see it. It means being able to admit mistakes and weaknesses. Therefore, it can be daunting to some students. Prompting students to review what they did and why they did it can, at times, be quite uncomfortable. However, as students mature and begin to define and accept their behavior and their motives, they begin to view new possibilities and accept new challenges. They become increasingly aware of the complexity of operating in the shooting environment and can start to gain more confidence in their practice.

CONCLUSION

In summary, reflective journals can provide students with a way of organising their ideas and of relating knowledge and experience. It enables students to analyse and evaluate their own practice, adopting an analytical approach towards their learning. Journal writing makes students face themselves and accept the consequences of their actions. When students reflect, they become researchers in the practical context. They do not separate thinking from doing, and thus, reflection becomes the core of practice. It must be stressed that coaches play a crucial role in preparing students for the demands of their sport and their feedback is of paramount importance in assisting students to become reflective practitioners. Through insightful critique, coaches can respond to their students' account, providing alternative interpretations and responses to students' writings that challenge their views and beliefs, and encourage them to question and analyse their perspectives or preconceptions. One coach, who has used reflective journals with ab initio students, wrote:

I have found that in my role as a teacher of shooting I must not only help students learn to shoot but also help the students enjoy the learning process. I have been using a journal with a small number of students in an effort to more effectively improve their correlative learning, motivation, and enjoyment of training. The journal allows students to reflect on each session and thus allows for a high level of correlation of perceptions. It also rewards them with a memorable keepsake that includes fun aspects of their days as a student, and is enjoyable for them to read back, even while they are in training. By training students to write about each session they can also more readily see the progress they are making in fulfilling their goals. (Email, 1/3/99)

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