Å skrive om hendelser fra egen praksis

Abstract

In this chapter, 60 reflection notes written by 20 students of continuing education for advisors in NAV are analysed. The research question is: What do the texts tell about the students’ learning within the relationship between theory and practice? The intention of the chapter is to shed light on how the writing activity affects the students’ thinking about their practice. The analysis follows two axes: on the one hand, the level of learning found in the texts is examined – how the learning is expressed in changes in behaviour/actions, and in thinking/assessment. The second axis shows the students’ capacity for abstraction (theory formation) and for concretization based on theories. When these axes are put together, four categories emerge, which show different nuances in the relationship between theory and practice: 1) Synthesis (think ‘up’), 2) Analysis (think ‘down’), 3) Concepts promoted for practice, and 4) Testing of new methods. The analysis shows that the students commute unproblematically between these categories. Practice is both a necessary breeding ground for learning and a benchmark for learning. Practice does not contradict theory. The writing activity helps to clarify theory and develop students’ abstraction abilities. The teachers’ responsibility is to formulate high quality assignment texts that bind together theory and practice and that would prompt the students to stretch their mental borders. The analysis categories developed in this chapter can help teachers successfully face this task.