Assignment Task
In Laudato Si’ Pope Francis writes extensively about our complex and interrelated world. He draws attention to what he sees as pressing social, environmental, and moral issues, and the need for integral rather than piecemeal approaches for positive change and transformation.
In this task you will reflect on how key themes of Laudato Si’ and principles of Catholic social thought relate to your course of study.
Course of study: Bachelor of Nursing.
Why does thinking deeply and critically about both human dignity and the common good matter to the professional work you would like to do in communities? In this respect, how has this University prepared you for post-university life with your qualification, or not?
Answer the question by writing the script for a short graduation speech that reflects critically on your course of study and its ideal connection with your future profession.
Use one of the following two excerpts from Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ as a springboard for your speech and interweave it with your reflection on your course of study. Put another way, base your reflection on the key ideas in one of the excerpts, and incorporate these ideas throughout to show their significance.
i) Francis, Laudato Si’, paragraph 142: “If everything is related, then the health of a society’s institutions has consequences for the environment and the quality of human life. “Every violation of solidarity and civic friendship harms the environment”. In this sense, social ecology is necessarily institutional, and gradually extends to the whole of society, from the primary social group, the family, to the wider local, national and international communities. Within each social stratum, and between them, institutions develop to regulate human relationships. Anything which weakens those institutions has negative consequences, such as injustice, violence and loss of freedom. A number of countries have a relatively low level of institutional effectiveness, which results in greater problems for their people while benefiting those who profit from this situation.”; or,
ii) Francis, Laudato Si’, paragraph 157: “Underlying the principle of the common good is respect for the human person as such, endowed with basic and inalienable rights ordered to his or her integral development. It has also to do with the overall welfare of society and the development of a variety of intermediate groups, applying the principle of subsidiarity. Outstanding among those groups is the family, as the basic cell of society. Finally, the common good calls for social peace, the stability and security provided by a certain order which cannot be achieved without particular concern for distributive justice; whenever this is violated, violence always ensues. Society as a whole, and the state in particular, are obliged to defend and promote the common good.
Introduction
Reflection allows you to develop your views on topics or situations; it can raise your awareness of possible areas you need to improve, or gaps in your knowledge. Reflective writing enables you to consolidate your knowledge and develop your academic identity as a student and a professional in training.
Reflection is a common learning tool in applied degrees, such as health sciences or education. You may be asked to justify your professional response to a situation, to demonstrate the ways your actions complied with professional standards and explain how your learning will influence your future practice.
Reflective writing must demonstrate:
A willingness to learn and apply new ideas an understanding of the academic and professional context ability to question your personal experiences in light of new professional knowledge respect toward your professional colleagues respect toward those who may hold different opinions or have different experiences than your own.
Focus
In reflective writing, the spotlight is on your response.
You are being asked to:
- Look inwards for a personal response.
- Look outwards to connect your reaction to a wider understanding.
- Develop and demonstrate a wider understanding based on:
- The content of your unit of study.
- Your reading and research in the scholarly literature of your field.
- A developing awareness of your own learning.
- Your developing knowledge about your future professional role.
Task types
You will likely encounter different types of reflective writing tasks which can vary in length and format. It is important to understand the kind of task you have been asked to complete.
You may be asked to reflect on:
- A reading
- A video
- A case study
- A personal experience relevant to your course
- A strategy you used or actions you took with a client in a professional placement.
- There are many different types of reflective tasks, including:
- A reflective journal where you write regularly about your learning or experiences
- A critical evaluation of your own learning or performance
- A reflective essay.
Unlike an essay or a report, there is not a common structure for reflective writing. The structure you choose will depend upon the type of task; your unit outline and your lecturer are good sources of information about which structure you should use in your reflective writing.
Process
Steps of reflective writing
1. Self awareness
Identify your reactions, thoughts and attitudes about what you have been asked to reflect upon.
Example: Before I conducted the mini-mental assessment, I assumed it would be an easy task…
2. Critical analysis/reflection
- Question your reactions and thinking (self-dialogue).
- Example: My emphasis should have been on the patient’s well-being, not just my own
- agenda.
- Explore the connections between:
- Yourexistingknowledgeandviewpoint
- Thebasisofyourknowledgeandviewpoint o Thescholarlyandprofessionalliterature.
- Example: Important issues can be missed or overlooked (Day & Levitt-Jones, 2021). 3. Synthesis
- Integrate new knowledge produced during your analysis into your learning. Example: I have learnt to truly listen to the patient and not rush through.
Application
Explore the importance of your new knowledge to your development as a professional in your field.
Example: Patients will respond more positively to me if I am confident in my communication skills.
Incorporating ideas from your reading
- Your unit readings and your own library research will often form the basis of your reflective writing.
- Here are some examples of how you can incorporate information from your reading in your reflective writing:
- Jones’ (2021) research into has made me aware of.
My experience, whilst challenging, has helped me to Thompson (2020) confirms the value of The video shows…; however, research by Smith and Jones (2020) has found that. My immediate response was to use an approach based on Brown (2019). Later I realised that Robertson’s (2021) approach was more useful because I found the framework (Cargill, 2021) helped me evaluate. My own philosophy has been to regard therefore, Portman’s (2020) theory challenges me to.