The Process
The journey and not the destination
It can be very easy to read the criteria of the Reflective Project and see their main function primarly to mark the end product. However, they indicate the actual process students will be going on as they find their focus and utilise different research methodology, build their knowledge and understanding the more they research and then take a step back to think critically over the material they have gathered and consider the best way to present their findings. All the time, they reflect upon the ups, downs and discoveries of this process.
Making the reflective project manageable
Before we look into the details of the reflective project, it's good to consider the approach you will take with a 50 hour independent project as an educator. The word 'independent' can be distracting as it might suggest there is less you can do to support the process. However, talk to any CP educator - experienced or going through with their first cohort - and there are common threads of where the pitfalls lie when managing the reflective project (or any extended project for that matter). How students overcome that fatigue they can feel after the initial enthusiasm invariably wanes, and push through to a state of new learning and growth, really defines the success of their learning journey in the reflective project. A good lifeskill perhaps to know that this is what can happen with any work or long term project and the highs and lows that can ensue). Two key areas help you right from the start:
Anticipate and think ahead
When you come to know the criteria, you will notice in criterion E in particular that you get rewarded for reflecting on setbacks as well as successes throughout the process. The key to students coping when their project hits brick walls or stumbling blocks, is that they understand the process, they have anticipated this can happen and they really understand the resources they have at their disposal; this can be a bank of questions, thinking routine tools and supervisory support they can draw upon to help them move on. This approach encourages a growth mindset and a problem-solving spirit.
Scaffold, scaffold, scaffold
We are not talking about structuring the students' paragraphs for them and holding their hand every step of the way. However, rather than a 9-12 month project stretching out dauntingly before them, consider not just essential mini-deadlines and reflection due dates but perhaps a thematic approach to the project to make it manageable. For example, say you are a school, who has a process that runs over three terms from January to October/November, consider breaking it down into tranches to:
Term 1, Research, questioning and building knowledge
Term 2, Creating a draft reflective project
Term 3 (after a good long break) Understanding impact and finding solutions; the final draft.
This way, students are building through the stages of the reflective project process, they can know where they are heading but only concentrate on the stage that they are at right now. The final stage needs fresh energy as this is the area where the real meaning of the reflective project lies and, let's be honest, the most marks for critical thinking; can students assess the 'so what?' and the 'what next?' of their ethical dilemma? It's also a good way of making the most of a situation where a student has not done their final draft over the holiday and it feels like you are playing catch up; take a fresh take on it and use it to everyone's advantage.
There is more than one way to skin a cat...
... a slightly revolting English idiom but a great way of capturing another example of the flexibility of the CP. Talk to any coordinator around the world and you will find variations in how they carry out the reflective project from level of supervisory involvement to timescale. What remains unchanged are the three key reflections, the draft and a final submission. As students move through their IB course, the pressure can increase on all their subjects and this is instrumental in how you arrange the RP. Some schools choose to spread the RP out over a longer period or time to avoid Term 4 of CP2 and for that very same reason, schools place it earlier in year 12 over a shorter space of time. Whatever you decide, everyone is in agreement that you need to build up skills and awareness of their use, before you even say the words Reflective Project.
Case study: SPREAD OUT OVER THE WHOLE FIVE TERMS
The first term:
- CP1 launches with PPS and RP both timetabled explicitly on the student's schedule. Whilst PPS introduces the students to the five themes and establishes Personal Development and Intercultural Understanding to support Language Development as well as make Smart Targets, this also has a knock on effect of introducing students to the notion of having an ethical compass as part of your identity.
- In the scheduled Reflective Project class, the focus is on using thinking processes to understand ethical dilemmas in the real world and build up an understanding throughout the term of Applied Ethics, especially in relation to their CRS. Crucially, academic integrity along with research and communication skills are introduced too through debate preparation and presentation. In this school, the librarian is central to launching both the Extended Essay and the Reflective Project which adds another perspective to the understanding of academic integrity and accurate referencing.
- By the end of term the students have an ethical dimension and issue they are exploring with first attempts at research question. This research question might not be the fully finished version but certainly enables them to research the ethical field and find out where the dilemmas are.
- Students may also have a gut instinct about the format they are considering using for their project but this is a good chance to remind them of being open-minded and willing to evolve as they get to know their subject area.
Second term:
- By this stage students have made a proposal to their RP coordinator and, depending on numbers of students, the process of matching students with supervisors begin.
- To give students agency when first seeing their supervisor, it is expected they will have completed a full literature review to present to their supervisor in their first meeting. Sometimes, depending on supervisors, the RP coordinator releases questions to them to identify interest and investment on their part rather than matching students directly.
- By the end of term 2, the students are acting independently and the expectation that they will be proactive working with their supervisor is fully understood (if not always acted upon).
- As students move into Term 3, their research is taking shape and their knowledge and understanding is building. They might be getting ideas on how data might support their inquiry.
Third term:
- The research process is in full flow and the students are meeting dead ends and frustrations and responding to this in their RRS, knowing this might help them reflect for their interim reflection coming up.
- Discussions with their supervisor revolve around how their understanding of different perspectives are building and the nature of the research they are encountering.
- These supervisory sessions might also reveal that they are finding a lack of balance in their research and seek to address this. In the move to consider the nature of qualititative and quantitative data, conversations might also move to how primary data plays a part and whether it is appropriate or feasible for the student to carry out their own research.
- If students have not discussed this before, they will also be getting an idea of whether they are considering Option 1 or Option 2 for their RP and the best way to present and examine the research they have gathered so far.
- The students go away for their long break with the task of writing their draft RP ready to give in, in the early stages of the new term.
Term 4:
- In this school, students are expected to have finalised their use of data by the beginning of term and submit their draft by the start of October. Supervisors are expected to give feedback in a fair window of time to ensure momentum is sustained. They are also in the habit of recording the feedback session with the student so they can revisit the feedback session at various points over the coming months.
- Now this is arguably the trickiest of the IB terms in terms of a traffic jam of internal assessments due for the IB subjects. Students are therefore expected to submit their final draft at the beginning of the new term and new year. This does not mean they have stopped meeting with their supervisor during November and December when needed but it is expected they have everything they need to be able to work on their final draft for January.
Term 5:
- January brings the final deadline and submission of the RP. This also means the final reflection. Whilst it is not mandatory, this school holds a viva voce as a matter of course to bring a close to the process.
- This deadline also gives the RP coordinator the rest of the month to chase any inevitable late submissions.
- The supervisors have the month to mark the projects and by February, let's say Valentine's Day, the RP coordinator is ready to moderate with their team and if they work alone, they have connections at other CP schools to share RPs with.
- The RP coordinator ring fences March as their time for administration and submitting marks to IBIS to generate the sample.
Create your RP structure and draw from all elements of the CP to support it.
Whatever your timeline, it's good to keep the structure clear and constructive. And keep in mind that the reflective project is a keystone project that draws from skills developed in all areas of the CP; therefore you can build this into your reflective project structure. There is no better feeling for your students than knowing they are building on skills they have familiarity with and building on prior knowledge.
Exploring all the options first for parity (remember to use all the different options as assessment points in the PPS course so students have a chance to explore them).
The Options
Guiding students to the right option for themIt can be tempting to consider one option easier than the other; what is right for the student must come first and care should be taken to guiden them to make...
Breakdown the criteria and consider where in the CP you have already been developing those skills
Starting the project
Getting students startedWe know that students need to take ownership of their reflective projects but this is easier said than done. To kickstart the project, students need not only to build an understanding...
Students will have been growing in understanding of ethical dimensions, issues and dilemmas in both their career-related studies and PPS course. These two elements are key for content and for skills on how to navigate different issues.
Ethical dimensions, issues and dilemmas.
Finding the ethical dimension, issue and dilemmaBefore students, can find a suitable ethical issue and dilemma to analyse critically at the centre of the reflective project process, teachers need to feel...
Creating a research question goes hand-in-hand with the research process. Bringing in expertise like the librarian to assist with academically honest research processes is key. Students need to understand the non-linear feedback cycle associated with a research question; students need to understand the process that the more they research, the more they will go back to their question and tweak it.
Creating a Research Question
Why does the research question matter so much?Without the right research question, there is a limit to how successful the whole reflective project can be. Yes, students will still have the opportunity...
This is a good area to consider as the students complete a literature review of their research. It's important they can visualise what the project will look like and consider where the gaps are in their understanding so far.
Structuring the project
Structuring a project to meet the criteriaIt is always a little dangerous suggesting a structure to students to write their reflective project with; hard and fast rules on how they develop points can...
There is a way of both student and supervisor having agency and not relying on either the sterotypical relationship of the supervisor being the expert; nor the supervisor taking a complete passive backseat as the student must lead completely. An equal, question-led, discussion-based relationship is needed.
Supervising
Changing The Supervisor-Student DynamicSupervisory sessions can be made more dynamic with user-friendly activities and tools to support discussions. Students can receive up to five hours of supervisory...
How do you give feedback and be really useful? The process suggested here enables the student to stay in charge of their project and really consider how to redraft it. Remember to ask students to record feedback sessions so they can reflect upon it gradually rather than be over-reliant on getting all the relevant feedback written down.
Giving feedback
What feedback can you give to students?This is the most asked question when it comes to the drafting stage of the reflective project. Perhaps it should come as a relief to supervisors that they are not...