Academic Study Skills Individual Reflection Report

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ACADEMIC STUDY SKILLS
Individual Reflection Report

Table of content
INTRODUCTION
KOLB'S FRAMEWORK PROPOSED
SELF-MANAGEMENT
NOTES FROM LECTURE
ACADEMIC WRITING
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES

INTRODUCTION
The report discusses the learning and assessment of the key academic skills which are
important to excel in the academics as well as in the entire career or profession. For any
student, there is a strong need to improve the standards of academic writing,
comprehension of academic principles along with the importance of productive
management of an individual with its work schedule. For these a student has to improve
it on various fronts such as developing active listening and reading skills; learn how to
deliver a compelling presentation etc. The report aims at providing the reflection over
these issues while assessing the implementation of these practices by the student to
become an effective learner (Cottrell, 2013).
Further, the framework model chosen for this reflection report is Kolb’s model of
reflection. Kolb in the year 1984 formulated that the learning approach consists of a
cycle of four stages, the most important of which is the reflective observation. This is a
popularly used theory which emphasizes that the process of learning is directly
correlated with the experiences in daily routine. The experiential learning suggested in
the model can be referred to as a process where learning is obtained by experience. In
the course, students learned through multiple interaction based activities such as
presentations and group tasks. It also considers reflection as an integral part of the
model. The four stages consist of concrete experience, followed by observation then
forming abstract concepts and lastly testing it in new conditions (Pears and Shields,
2010).

The reason behind choosing the model is its due importance given to the internal
cognitive processes of the learner. It allows the learning approach with the involvement
of abstract concepts which can be implemented in different types of the situation thus
highlighting its credibility. Unlike the conventional method of rote learning, this
framework allows the grasping of new concepts through new experiences.

Kolbe’s Proposed Framework
1. Concrete Experience
The first of the components in Kolb's model is the learner's solid experience. Student at
this stage learn according to their instincts and based on what they have experienced.
The link to their situations has a direct effect on the motivation of the student's learning
ambition. With reference to the course taught, the first learning outcome was the self-
management. It was directly reflected among the students while relating their
experience using their personal experience that a weekend was well spent by proper
time management and at the same time a course might not be well prepared due to
the following of strategy. Thus every week, the learning outcomes were first understood
as a new situation or the relation of the academics with the existing experience. The
learning developed through the concrete experience is thus natural and not intentional
(Bergsteiner et al. 2010).
2. Reflective Observation
While the next stage in the process of learning is observing the new information which
generally consists of searching, assessing and investigating the relations. The student
upon the introduction of lessons starts to incorporate different viewpoints and develop
new perspectives for the given assignment. Though the proper understanding of the
subject has not yet been achieved familiarization of meaning occurs. For the purpose of
efficient learning, reflection is important to a great extent. The possibility of improving
the understanding of any topic is achieved by reflecting on what one knows and doesn't
know. Thus the reflective approach at this stage is influential in the building of the
academic skills at the beginning of each learning outcome.
With reference to the course tasks, it is found that the among the students delivering the
presentation, the one who followed the reflective learning style as guided by the
instructor was able to actively engage in the brainstorming sessions and were able to
produce ideas exhibiting team workability.

3. Abstract Conception
The creation of new concepts, ideas, learnings in addition to the modification and
updating of existing knowledge occurs in this stage. The students generally fit the new
information and literature to their existing knowledge. Mostly this process is done in the
classroom based environment whether real or virtual because academic references are
required to be provided in justification of the new lessons. The term conception refers to
the generation of hypothesis from the interpretation of new facts.
4. Active Experimentation
This stage generally comprises the application of testing the hypothesis created in the
previous stage in the practical cases. The new experiences developed from this will
either defend or challenge the hypothesis. It is not sufficient to only learn from the
experience or correlate them. The purpose of true learning is fulfilled by reflection on
experiences, interpretation as well as implementing the interpretations (Bergsteiner et
al. 2010).

SELF MANAGEMENT
Concrete Experience
I have used the technique of managing the time and expectations in playing football
where the opposing team was ahead of 2 points and thus there was the expectancy of
scoring 3 goals in 20 minutes for winning the game.
Reflective Observation
I have observed that the managers and CEOs of organizations are very good at self-
management. They have their entire schedule planned and they work with constant
punctuality of time. Also, they are most successful in meeting their personal and
professional expectation.
Abstract Conception
The recommended strategy for self-management of the learners is C-R-E-A-M strategy
which emphasizes the importance of being creative, reflective, effective, active as well
as motivated towards following the strategies. The student is required to analyze areas
of strengths in the current level of study as well as the weak areas for development and
improvement (Walmsley, 2010).
Active Experimentation
The strategy of self-management was tried to be adopted in the current coursework by
effectively managing and strategizing the time for optimum study schedule. The results
obtained highlighted the benefits of effective self-management.

NOTE- MAKING FROM LECTURES
Concrete Experience
I have seen the assistants and translators of ministers and officials in public meeting
taking notes from the speech or explanation on paper or tablet.
Reflective Observation
I have found that the assistants and clerks take notes for future references and revision
of the details that were being told to them at that time. This reduces the burden of
memory and is also useful in recording purposes.
Abstract Conception
The most effective note making methods for academic students is the Cornell method of
note taking which consist of dividing the notebook or writing area into five parts each of
which is Record, Questions, Recite, Reflect and Review. It helps in revision as well as
provisions for clarifying the questions or doubts after lectures (Donohoo, 2010).
Active Experimentation
The use of Cornell note making was phenomenal for utilizing the maximum from the
lectures. Not only had it helped me in organizing the notes in a systematic manner but
also in critical analysis of the topics by asking questions and introspecting deeply. It has
also made the revision effective and faster by glancing just over the review section of
notes which contains the gist of the topic.

WORKING AS a TEAM
Concrete Experience
I have been a part of the team in many of the sports activities, school exhibitions,
competitions etc. The examples of teamwork can also be seen on a daily basis from
sports tournaments.
Reflective Observation
I have observed that the players of the team work towards the common and unified goal
of accomplishing victory irrespective of the individual condition and ambitions and each
member has a distinct role to perform.
Abstract Conception
The teamwork can be considered as a group of collective efforts, where a major task is
distributed in individual tasks with the help of proper communication and constructive
feedback. It plays a huge role in the nurturing of interpersonal skills, abilities and soft
skills (uLearn portal).
Active Experimentation
The objective of working together was accomplished by the course instructor by giving
the task of delivering a group presentation. The importance of giving a good
presentation was realized and various attributes and strategies which make a
presentation better were learnt.

ACADEMIC WRITING
Concrete Experience
In the high school or pre-college courses, the assignments and exams written in
professional English indicating academic knowledge is the only experience of academic
writing conceived by most of the students.
Reflective Observation
Upon the exposure of different research papers and journal articles, I found that many
things were different than the conventional method of writing articles. From formal to the
use of professional English, referencing and the use of reflective style in writing was
completely different.
Abstract Conception
Academic writing is generally different from the conventional writing as it is done for the
purpose of research investigation or academic reference. Academic writing is a
structured, concise discussion of the topic which is supported by evidence and its sole
purpose is improving the understanding of the reader (Swales and Feak, 2004).
Active Experimentation
Various formative and summative assessment tasks were given which consisted of
reading a journal article, understanding and use of Harvard referencing system, and
writing a group as well as individual reflection report abiding by all the rules of academic
writing. It was evident that a sufficient amount of practice is required for a good
command on academic writing.

CONCLUSION
The report considered the reflection of the learning of the academic study skills in
accordance to the Kolb's framework of the reflective model. The course was divided into
twelve weeks where different learning outcomes were achieved. The initial week of the
course revolved around the lessons of time management, self- motivation, formulating
different strategies to manage the academic workload effectively. Next, students were
equipped for taking the maximum benefit of lectures which consisted of the role of
active listening, various note-taking methods and techniques to extract maximum
information from the lecture. Over the implementation and trying various suggested
practices, it was identified that Cornell notes as well as bullet journal provided maximum
benefit to the student. The next learning outcome was based on working together in a
team. The effective approaches followed to achieve active experimentation were debate
sessions, presentation seminar. The opportunity given to reflect on the individual's own
performance helped in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the candidates
(Moon, 2013).
Subsequently, the importance of acquiring decent reading skills was indicated along
with the introduction of a journal article and how to read it efficiently by skimming.
Detailed coaching is given for referencing, its usage and various formats. Moreover,
improving the reading, note taking and writing skills were highlighted complying with the
academic standards. The uses of references according to the needs are discussed. The
students were found to have acquainted with the Harvard style of referencing with the
help of formative assignment tasks. Further, understanding is developed for reflective
writing in the academic context with an emphasis on Kolb's model. The revision on the
structure of the report is done and differentiating between the sources is learnt from the
course. The referencing skills, as well as paraphrasing, is practised with the help of
assessments to match up to the level of higher study. The students understood the
development of academic arguments and then uplifting the skill to match higher studies.
Approaches are illustrated towards writing essays and assignments of the academic