Tetiana Khraban
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5169-5170
Mykhailo Khraban
https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7771-2307
REFLECTIVE WRITING AS A PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY-BUILDING PRACTICE FOR FUTURE MILITARY PERSONNEL
Full text (pdf)
Language: Ukrainian
Abstract. The purpose of this article is to highlight the critical experience of integrating the practice of reflective writing into formal English classes as a means of providing insight into the development of military cadets’ professional identities. Materials and Methods. A reflexive thematic analytic approach was used. The study was based on the results of reflective writing of 43 cadets (students) of the Military Institute of Telecommunication and Information Technologies, who are in their fifth year of study. Results and Discussions. Most of the reflections focus on self-perception, which is found in 86% of the works. In their reflective writing, cadets view their development as a growth in personality rather than a growth in skills and abilities. Reflections on taking responsibility are found in 77% of the written works. Self-esteem as a component of professional identity is found in 64% of the works. Reflections on work motivation are found in 16% of the works. Reflections on future prospects are found in 8% of the works. Most reflective writing (83%) is characterized by a superficial descriptive approach; stereotypical and conformist presentation; avoiding describing the dilemma or problem; disregarding emotions; failing to analyse or reflect. The results may indicate 1) a lack of reflective capacity among military personnel; 2) psychological discomfort associated with restrictions on free expression that turn reflective writing into a test of conforming to institutional requirements. Conclusions. It is necessary to create a clearer methodological basis for introducing the practice of reflective writing into the curriculum of military institutions. This is essential to develop reflective skills in military personnel and to find alternative means and tools to facilitate cadets’ reflection, at least on their professional identity.
Keywords: reflection, reflective writing, professional identity, higher education, military.
https://doi.org/10.32987/2617-8532-2024-1-96-109
Keywords: reflection, reflective writing, professional identity, higher education, military.
https://doi.org/10.32987/2617-8532-2024-1-96-109
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2. Kelchtermans, G. (2009). Who I am in how I teach is the message: Self-understanding, vulnerability and reflection. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 15(2), 257-272. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13540600902875332.
3. Ryan, M., & Carmichael, M. A. (2016). Shaping (reflexive) professional identities across an undergraduate degree programme: A longitudinal case study. Teaching in Higher Education, 21(2), 151-165. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2015.1122586.
4. Khraban, T. E., Silko, O. V., & Khraban, I. A. (2022). Group cohesion of military units in the context of civil-military relations in Ukraine. Insight: The Psychological Dimensions of Society, 7, 75-89. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32999/2663-970X/2022-7-6.
5. Engelbertink, M. M. J., Colomer, J., Woudt-Mittendorff, K. M., Alsina, A., Kelders, S. M., Ayllon, S., & Westerhof, G. J. (2021). The reflection level and the construction of professional identity of university students. Reflective Practice, 22(1), 73-85. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2020.1835632.
6. Linsenmeyer, M., & Long, G. (2023). Goal-Oriented and Habit-Oriented Reflective Models to Support Professional Identity Formation and Metacognitive Thinking. Medical Science Educator, 33, 569-575. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-023-01752-9.
7. Trede, F., Macklin, R., & Bridges, D. (2012). Professional identity development: A review of the higher education literature. Studies in Higher Education, 37(3), 365-384. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2010.521237.
8. Wald, H. S. (2015). Professional identity (trans)formation in medical education: reflection, relationship, resilience. Academic Medicine, 90(6), 701-706. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000000731.
9. Brown, M. E. L., Laughey, W., Tiffin, P. A., & Finn, G. M. (2020). Forging a new identity: a qualitative study exploring the experiences of UK-based physician associate students. BMJ Open, 10(1), e033450. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2019-033450.
10. Khraban, T. (2024). Developing a Well-balanced Military Identity among Female Military Personnel. Polish Sociological Review, 225(1), 69-82. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26412/psr225.04.
11. McKay, L., & Sappa, V. (2020). Harnessing creativity through arts-based research to support teachers’ identity development. Journal of Adult and Continuing Education, 26(1), 25-42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1477971419841068.
12. Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2023). Toward good practice in thematic analysis: Avoiding common problems and be(com)ing a knowing researcher. International Journal of Transgender Health, 24(1), 1-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2022.2129597.
13. Skaalvik, E., & Skaalvik, S. (2017). Motivated for teaching? Associations with school goal structure, teacher self-efficacy, job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion. Teaching and Teacher Education, 67, 152-160. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.06.006.
14. Kosmanou, E., & Vassilaki, E. (2023). Constructing desirable professional identities: Linguistic analysis of student teachers’ reflection on project-based learning. Frontiers in Education, 8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1050563.
15. Berzonsky, M. D. (2011). A social-cognitive perspective on identity construction. Handbook of identity theory and research, 55-76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7988-9_3.
16. Novac, A., Zahn, C., & Blinder, B. J. (2022). Identity narrative, group and individual narratives and their role in social stability: A multidisciplinary approach. Group Analysis, 55(2), 191-212. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/05333164211012529.
17. Guerrero, A. (2011). Narrative as resource for the display of self and identity: The narrative construction of an oppositional identity. Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, 13, 88-99. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14483/22487085.3771.
18. Vahasantanen, K., & Arvaja, M. (2022). The Narrative Approach to Research Professional Identity: Relational, Temporal, and Dialogical Perspectives. Methods for Researching Professional Learning and Development: Challenges, Applications and Empirical Illustrations, 373-395. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-08518-5_17.
19. Chiapello, L., & Bousbaci, R. (2022). It’s complicated: Dewey, Schon and reflection-in-action. DRS2022: Bilbao. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2022.349.
20. Tracey, M. W., Hutchinson, A., & Grzebyk, T. Q. (2014). Instructional Designers as Reflective Practitioners: Developing Professional Identity through Reflection. Educational Technology Research & Development, 62(3), 315-334. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-014-9334-9.
21. Vince, R., & Reynolds, M. (2009). Reflection, reflective practice and organizing reflection. The SAGE Handbook of Management Learning, Education and Development, 89-103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857021038.n5.
22. Luehmann, A. L. (2007). Identity development as a lens to science teacher preparation. Science Education, 91(5), 822-839. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.20209.
23. Wharton, S. (2012). Presenting a united front: assessed reflective writing on a group experience. Reflective Practice: International and Multidisciplinary Perspectives, 13, 489-501. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2012.670622.
24. Vassilaki, E. (2017). Reflective writing, reflecting on identities: The construction of writer identity in student teachers’ reflections. Linguistics and Education, 42, 43-52. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2017.08.001.
25. Creme, P. (2008). A space for academic play. Student learning journals as transitional writing. Arts and Humanities in Higher Education, 7, 49-64. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1474022207084882.
26. Graus, M., Broek, A., Hennissen, P., & Schils, T. (2022). Disentangling aspects of teacher identity learning from reflective blogs: The development of a category system. Teaching and Teacher Education, 111. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103624.
27. Beauchamp, C. (2015). Reflection in teacher education: Issues emerging from a review of current literature. Reflective Practice, 16(1), 123-141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2014.982525.
28. Aluri, J., Ker, J., Marr, B., Kagan, H., Stouffer, K., Yenawine, P., … & Chisolm, M. S. (2023). The role of arts-based curricula in professional identity formation: results of a qualitative analysis of learner’s written reflections. Medical Education Online, 28(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10872981.2022.2145105.
29. Shapiro, J., McMullin, J., Miotto, G., Nguyen, T., Hurria, A., & Nguyen, M. A. (2021). Medical Students’ Creation of Original Poetry, Comics, and Masks to Explore Professional Identity Formation. Journal of Medical Humanities, 42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-021-09713-2.
30. Hilgeman, B., Kurtz, K., Hoeschen, M., Hovis, Z., Harrison, R., & Minshew, L. (2024). Brief, Real-Time Reflections: An Efficient, Contextual, and Familiar Variation of Narrative Medicine: A Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis. Research Square. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3852081/v1.
31. Khraban, T. (2021). Psychoanalytic Interpretation as a Research Method for Studying Military Discourse. Alfred Nobel University Journal of Philology, 2(22), 184-192. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32342/2523-4463-2021-2-22-17 [in Ukrainian].
32. Wald, H., & Weiss, B. (2018). Making it “More Real”: Using Personal Narrative in Faculty Feedback to a Medical Student’s Reflective Writing – An Illustrative Exemplar. MedEdPublish, 7:171. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15694/mep.2018.0000171.1.