Becoming a reflective practitioner

"Reflective practice matters. It matters because it opens a gateway for practitioners' to learn and grow towards realising their potential and their visions of practice as a lived reality. A reflective practitioner is someone who lives reflection naturally within everyday practice. It is a mindful way to practice whereby the practitioner pays attention within the unfolding experience, mindful of responding most appropriately in tune with their vision. It is a process of self-realization. Rolling Thunder describes this as 'seeking and knowing one's own identity' [Boyd 1974:7]. Reflective practitioners learn through reflection on experience. In this way the practitioner gains insights that inform future experiences within a reflexively spiral of being and becoming. I assume that the practitioner's practice matters to them and that values and vision are important. Hence realising one's vision of practice as a lived reality must be the aim of every practitioner who take themselves seriously. Recipients of service deserve nothing less. The emphasis of this book is on becoming a reflective practitioner. Becoming is a journey. No matter the practitioner's level of experience or status. It commences with a first reflection on experience. In the uncertainty and uniqueness of everyday practice practitioners face situations that often feel chaotic. As Salzberg notes (2002:76) 'No matter how much we want it to otherwise. The truth is that we are not in control of the unfolding of our experience. We can affect and influence and impact what happens, but we can't wake up in the morning and decide what we will encounter and feel and be confronted by during the day'. The book is designed to guide both student and registered practitioners at any level of professional learning, along with their guides, teachers, and managers, to become reflective practitioners, not just clinical practitioners but also educators, managers, and most significantly leaders able to enable others to grow and fulfil their potential. Although the book's background is health care it is a resource for all professions who aspire to offer a service to people"--