Using reflective thinking to develop personal professional philosophies

Reflective thinking, closely related to critical thinking, is discussed as an essential teaching-learning process to help students in introductory professional courses develop personal professional philosophies. Reflective thinking opportunities used by nurse educators and teacher educators include students' own experiences, actual case studies, and media presentations. Using reflective thinking to develop personal professional philosophies helps students view themselves as future participants in their chosen professions. Educators in professional fields such as education and nursing have a wide variety of objectives for their introductory courses. However, one major objective in such courses is that students develop an articulated personal philosophy about their future careers. Educators see this development as essential for understanding the profession and its societal context as well as the individual professional role. For education and nursing, fields involving continuous personal interaction with others, students especially need to identify their values and beliefs about the world and the people they will serve. Each individual's overall personal philosophy must then be compatible with the ideals and standards of the profession. Reflective thinking seems to be an essential part of developing complex understandings such as one's own personal professional philosophy (Brooks & Brooks, 1993; Henderson, 1996). Reflective thinking also is an integral part of professional practice (Schon, 1983). Teaching and nursing both involve real-world people and problems, rarely if ever, having easy solutions, Without an ability to reflect and use an articulated philosophy as a guideline in that reflection, practitioners are forced into haphazard, reactive patterns of behavior when faced with professional dilemmas. For beginning education or nursing students, the instructors' classroom exercises involving reflective thinking help promote the acquisition of knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary for effective career work in the future.