Here are a series of questions from a grade 11 student:
Hello Mr. Hamilton,
It has come to my attention that I am required to do reflections for my CAS activities. I just have a few questions about how I should be doing them.> How often do I have to do them?
You should be reflecting on your CAS programme regularly. For individual activities you must reflect upon their completion. Think about what you planned to learn, what you ended up learning, and what you would do differently next time if you were to do the activity again. If the activity continues over a long period of time you should expect to reflect once a month, but it depends on the activity. You will be reflecting on your CAS programme at the beginning, at the end of grade 11, and finally after 18 months. If you haven’t achieved all Learning Outcomes you can expect to continue with CAS activities and your reflection on them for a while longer.
> Are our supervisors required to review our reflections?
Supervisors will have an opportunity to read your reflections and comment on them if they wish. You should be writing your reflections on the activity before asking for a supervisor evaluation.
> What is the length that they have to be?
You will have a lot to say about some activities so you may want to write a lot. For some smaller activities you may not have anything to say. If this is the case you may want to explain why you are including it in your CAS programme. .
> How much detail should they contain?
As much detail as you feel is enough. Although you may be tempted to write what you did, it is more useful for you to write about what you learned, what you didn’t learn, what went well, what didn’t. Exactly what detail you will be including will depend on the activity. Remember, you must address at least one of the eight Learning Outcomes.
> Who/where do I submit them to?
We are using ManageBac. When you view the activity you will see a tab to the right of the screen labeled “Reflections”. Click on that and you should see what to do. If you’re not sure ask me.
And finally,
> When do I submit them?
Please write them as soon as you can after the activity has ended, or once a month. Have a look at http://sites.cdnis.edu.hk/school/cas/cas-overview/reflections/reflection-questions/ for more information about reflections.
jonathanhamilton