Reflective Essay: Personal Development in BSc Health Programme

This essay is a reflection on personal development within an academic environment, specifically focusing on the experiences and learnings gained during the foundation year of a BSc (Hons) Health and Social Science degree. The reflection covers the development of academic learning and skills, identification of personal strengths and weaknesses, and the enhancement of employability skills. It also delves into the understanding of digital literacy and technology skills, including key aspects such as information, data, media literacy, problem-solving, and digital communication. The essay incorporates reflective thinking processes, including learning in action and learning on action, to analyze personal experiences and learning outcomes, concluding with insights on the PSKC model and its impact on future planning. Desklib provides various resources to students including past papers and solved assignments.

Reflection on Personal
Development in Academic
Environment

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY.............................................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES...........................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Reflection is like looking into a mirror and describing what you see. It is a way of
assessing yourself, your ways of working and how you study. To put it simply ‘reflection’
means to think about something. Reflecting and composing a piece of self-reflective writing
is becoming an increasingly important element to any form of study or learning. Personal
Development is a lifelong process that involves the assessment of current skills and talents
and the enhancement of oneself based on that assessment which then leads to the realization
of goals and an improved quality of life. To be able to assess yourself, you need to be able to
reflect on your past which helps you to understand the attitudes you have developed and the
foundation that you will be building your life on. In the report I will be discussing the
outcomes what I have studied during this.
MAIN BODY
In the first week of study I was confused about what I should chose for me better study.
After that I just found that I had a great interest in BSc (hons) health and social science
degree is aimed at students who have a board interest in health and the social science but who
do not wish to specialise in a single area. Typically, health & social science graduates follow
careers in sectors such as public, voluntary, government, sports and leisure industry, research
and development organisations, probation services and many other. With post- graduate
training this programme could also enable students to access careers in law, community sport
projects, social work, nursing or teaching. The course I have developed knowledge about
social, political, economic, organisational and environmental influences upon the capacity of
the health. In the foundation year of my studies I worked upon my academic learning and
skills in which I developed and upgraded my confidence. Along with it, that academic year
also enable me to identify and critically evaluate my personal strengths and weaknesses. Help
of identifying my strong areas and weakening aspects I found out my progression
opportunities which I need to develop during my undergraduate degree. The course help in
developing knowledge of several areas and also to learn about applying them in the most
creative manner in order to attain success during my higher education. The course enabled
me to keep myself motivated and encouraged to attain more and more study skills as well as
employability skills. Another set of abilities which I gathered during the course work and my
studies are transfer ability skills. Course has provided me an opportunity to explore myself as
well as gather most information and adapt number of skills. The module prepared me for

successful progression of academic study. The buck graduate attributes include reflection,
investigation using a range of resources and digital resources.
After the above study they have provided me intended learning outcomes which have
different outcomes. They can be listed as, I have effective communication skills, application
to academic and professional. Taking again in the context with reflective thinking, according
to a number of theorist’s people reflect using one process which is called reflective thinking.
It gives me the correct thinking process and help in analysing. They help in analysing, what I
am doing now, what I have done before, what and how I learn. Reflecting thinking means
when I as an individual is working over interpretation, critical evaluation and analysis of my
personal experiences and learnings. This is an important factor and practice which is
conducted by individuals as well as professionals in order to understand and cater meaningful
solutions separate hurdles that are been generated or faced by us during our learning and
development. Ashford different researchers it is identified that an individual can reflect by
using multiple techniques and processes. The two most commonly used and are prominent
ways of doing so are learning in action and learning on action.
In regards to to learning in action it is determined that the techniques explain about the
the thinking of a person and the ways he or she reacts wine they are performing respective
task or engaged in a particular task. This reflection technique enabled me to understand and
act appropriately in separate situations by thinking about what exactly is happening,
analysing the reason behind it and working in a unique as well as create a manager to stand
outside the box. This practice of reflection help me in gaining better results and unique one
from the others. Another reflection technique which is commonly used is reception on action
which is interpreted as a practice used by individuals when they are working on the same
activity again in order to improve it. This is the practice which is commonly very useful as it
assist the professionals to deeply think about the situation that has been developed after
certain actions and also provide options which are suitable in order to make them better.
Discussing their differences, Extroverts often prefer reflecting-in-action technique and to
think on their own and to get feedback from others along with learning from there
surrounding environment and professional settings. However, introverts prefer thinking-on-
action about events after and or writing them down to think how they could have gone better,
in practice, as they get energy from being on their own.

In second week program I have studied about the digital literacy and technology skills.
The major objective of learning is to demonstrate the understanding of digital literacy and
technology skills, and to perform task effectively in the digital environment. Digital literacy
is referred as a capability which enable an individual and most suitable fore people living in
the digital world and working over digital platforms. There are six elements of digital literacy
which I have learnt during my models and experienced several learning through it. Some of
the elements of my learnings were information, data, and media literacy, problem solving,
vision and digital learning, action and participation as well as digital communication. Key
aspects to digital literacy are - It’s very easy to create and modify text digitally. Text is used
across a wide range of media from a variety of devices, so, communication is far easier than
it used to be providing a myriad of opportunities for engaging in dialogue with others –
socially or academically (for learning). My Digital literacy skills include:
 Identify the need for information
 Access (find) information digitally
 Evaluate digital information critically
 Use digital information for the specific purpose
 Use digital information ethically and legally
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded from above report, that reflection in reality, this is when you
interpret and evaluate your experiences, and check that they make ‘sense’, (so you can
understand/create meaning/justify/solve problems), and it helps you make plans for the
future. In the further report I have studied about the PSKC model, and along with that I have
studied the reflecting thinking and digital literacy. I have studied the different key aspects and
skills of digital literacy.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bebbington, J., Russell, S. and Thomson, I., 2017. Accounting and sustainable development:
Reflections and propositions. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 48, pp.21-34.
Ibrahim, M. and et. al., 2021, March. Enhancing Self-Regulated Learning Strategies for
College Students Through Discussion Reflections in Online Learning Environment.
In Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International
Conference (pp. 185-196). Association for the Advancement of Computing in
Education (AACE).
Usher, E. L. and Schunk, D. H., 2018. Social cognitive theoretical perspective of self-
regulation.