My research question
Gone Bloggin’ : Ethical Scaffolding for Inclusive Reflective Practice on the Diploma in Professional Studies
My project will focus on designing ‘blog prompts’ to serve as optional starting points / exercises for DPS reflective journal posts.
I will do this by:
collecting information on how the blog is used by students through the use of observing blogs and a student questionnaire
**Key** Indicates stage of action research cycle
Rationale
Observing, Reflecting & Reading to understand what i am seeing
Throughout the Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS), students are required to maintain a reflective journal in the form of an online blog. While students are advised to develop a weekly rhythm of reflection, there are no formal requirements regarding how many posts they should produce or how frequently they should write. An existing document provides nine suggested blog questions; however, these questions stand alone and are not explicitly linked to the DPS curriculum. The blog itself is not assessed, but functions as a space to store critical reflections that inform a final 4,000-word report and a 15-minute presentation evaluating the creative industries, enterprise, and students’ own professional practice.
Following the recent revalidation of the DPS, there is increased emphasis on students applying decolonial and decarbonising approaches to their practice, in alignment with UAL’s Climate, Racial, and Social Justice principles. Reflective blogging therefore occupies a significant pedagogical role, supporting students to connect placement experiences, curriculum content, and their emerging professional identities. However, through my experience of teaching on the DPS, it has become increasingly apparent that reflective blogging is not equally accessible across a diverse student cohort.
This project responds to structural inequities in access to reflective academic practices, particularly for students who are multilingual, disabled, or less familiar with reflective writing as an academic genre. While the blog is positioned as flexible and supportive, it also contains hidden assumptions about confidence, self-introspection, linear narrative, and writing as a mode of reflection. As Smith (2012) argues in Decolonising Methodologies, research and knowledge-making practices are situated and shaped by power, rather than neutral or universal tools for self-expression. When reflective blogging is seen as universally accessible, it risks privileging students who are already familiar with dominant (western) academic norms (Bhambra et al., 2018).
In Decolonising the University Bhambra argues that decolonisation requires an examination of the structures and practices through which knowledge is produced and validated
(Bhambra et al., 2018)
The project aims to:
- provide students with optional ‘jumping-off’ points to support the initiation and direction of reflective writing;
- better align reflective blogging with the core DPS curriculum;
- support the development of critical and reflexive professional practice;
- reduce disparities between students who feel confident with reflective writing and those who are less experienced or confident.
Contextual factors such as English as an additional language, learning disability, and prior exposure to reflective writing are likely to shape students’ experiences of blogging. Given that global majority and social mobility students are more likely to encounter one or more of these factors, this project explicitly acknowledges the racial and social biases that may be embedded within reflective academic practices. Data relating to these factors will be collected on an opt-in basis to provide contextual insight into student journeys.
Moon’s 1999 Learning Journals, supported my findings, arguing that reflection and reflective writing is learned over time and circumstance. Student require support, coming from a range of experiences with reflective thought.
Alongside Smith’s ideas that research is not an ‘innocent’ academic exercise but is instead ‘eurocentric’ (meaning British/ english as standard)
Blogging also occupies a ‘dual role’ within this project: it is both the focus of my enquiry and the method i have used to record my own reflections. In ways this mirrors McNiff’s action research approach in Action Research for Professional Development, where practice and reflection are informing eachother as the project unfolds (McNiff, 2002).
Engaging reflexively (Gibbs) with blogging as a research method has helped my development of understanding the hidden assumprtions embedded within reflective academic tasks, reinforcing the need for customisable scaffolding rather than a one size fits all approach.
The impact of the project will be explored through discussion with DPS students, tutors, and the course lead, alongside analysis of blog posts and reference to external examiner feedback from previous exam boards. Findings will inform iterative changes during the project and future iterations of the unit, prioritising inclusive, socially conscious pedagogical practice over generalisable outcomes.
Bhambra, G.K., Gebrial, D. and Nişancıoğlu, K. (2018) Decolonising the University. London: Pluto Press.
McNiff, J. (2002) Action Research for Professional Development: Concise Advice for New Action Researchers. 3rd edn. Dorset: Hyde Publications.
Moon, J.A. (1999) Learning Journals: A Handbook for Academics, Students and Professional Development. London: Kogan Page.
Smith, L.T. (2012) Decolonising Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. 2nd edn. London: Zed Books.
Ethical Action Plan
Considerations before ‘actioning’ my plan
Research has been a site of profound harm for many communities, making ethical accountability and consent fundamental to knowledge production.
Drawing attention to the ways indigenous knowledge has been deliberately squashed and undermined by colonisation, Smith argues that scholars need a ‘more critical understanding of the underlying assumptions, motivations and values which inform research practices’
With this in mind, I have created an ethical action plan, with the supervision of my tutor, taking into consideration the type of information that is collected, how it is collected, stored and shared.
Participant facing documents
Participants must be informed about the purposes of the research and give their voluntary consent for the use of data they provide
(summary from BERA, 2024)
Concerned with creating data that was ethical and voluntarily given, I created an information sheet about the research I was doing. The full cohort of DPS students were given the opportunity to share their views with the explicit knowledge that participation would in no way (positively or negatively) affect their studies or assessment. Students were informed that all responses were entirely anonymous. By doing so I created ‘informed consent’.
Following advice from Rachel, my information sheet and participant consent form was embedded into the Microsoft Forms questionnaire. This reduced the amount of documents participants had to manage (avoiding unnecessary demands on time/ overload) and insured that participants had read the information about the research and consent was given before questions were posed.
BERA argues that researchers should seek to minimise the burden placed on participants and avoid unnecessary demands on their time, energy or emotional wellbeing
I added in a feature to the questionnaire which ended the questionnaire if the participant selected that they had not read or received the information sheet or if they did not consent to any aspect of the research. One participant selected that they had not read / understood the information, so no data was collected from them.
Research Methods
The action
Given that reflective blogging is already part of the DPS curriculum, the questionnaire was designed as a low effort or low burden activitity that could be completed anonymously within the participants own time. This was particularly important in relation to ethical considerations around power, surveillance, and participation, as students may feel reluctant to speak openly or negatively in interviews with a tutor
Gone Bloggin’ – Fill in form This is the final Microsoft Form questionnaire that went out to student participants
some information may be sensitive, participants have the right to withhold information or decline to answer particular questions without penalty.
The GDPR defines personal data more broadly as ‘any
information relating to an identified or identifiable person’,
and requires that sensitive personal data is given additional
protection
(BERA, 2024, p. 24)
For this reason I chose to make the end part of the questionnaire optional and reminded participants that the information provided would be anonymous before they answered. The end of the questionnaire asks students about their educations background, ethnicity and if they were a home or international student and if english was a first language. I classed this as ‘sensitive’ information, as these were linked to identity categories that are socially created, and shaped by historical and present power dynamics that systematically create discrimination and inequality.
Post action reflections (before data was received)
These set of questions are obviously useful for my data collection (their intended use!), however on reflection they themselves are acting as reflection prompts for students to reflect on their own habits and relationships to blogging, (simiular to the self assessment within Formative Assessment). As reflecting/ blogging is part of their professional practice, the questionnaire has stood as an additional space to reflect on their professional practice. (Its all getting very meta!) This has made me consider if interactive questionnaires that allow for ‘branching’ questions that respond to the participants previous answers could be a way of supporting a student through critical reflective writing practice. Perhaps this could be an iteration of the next part of my research cycle outside of this unit?
Action Plan
Planning actions
| What | When | Completed |
| Review examiners report | 6th October | Yes |
| Introduce weekly blog prompts | weekly | in progress |
| Review blogs written by current students | every 4 weeks | in progress |
| Prepare questions, consent forms, participant information sheets | … | |
| Semi-structured interviews with students as part of progress tutorial | 24th Oct | possibly too early to complete consent forms / participant information and prepare questions |
| Review blog prompts | ||
| Student blog self assessment at Formative assessment point |
Observing, Reflecting, Amending Plans
My timeline changed a lot throughout this project as my knowledge of students blogging patterns increased. I adapted the project week by week as new information was revealed…The first hurdle met me at week 4, I had predicted that the new cohort of students would have their blogs set up with first thoughts and reflections from the weekly sessions available for me to review – when I found almost all students had not reached this goalpost, I realised I needed to think much more deeply about the relationship students had to blogging.
Reading Moon’s ideas on reflective writing as a learned skill that can be developed and fostered through structure initially inspired me to think more about what that structure would look like for the DPS. Having added in sessions on reflective models for writing into the course curriculum, alongside the course lead, I used the models to devise the developing set of prompts, shared as an optional framework for students to choose to engage with.
Following a group tutorial, I explored the suggestions of both simplifying the project and focusing on the social purpose of my research. This led me to start forming the questionnaire I would later use as my data collection method. I adapted my action plan to look like this:
| What | When | Action Research Cycle point |
| Review examiners report | 6th October | Reflect |
| Introduce weekly blog prompts | weekly | Act |
| Review blogs written by current students | every 4 weeks | Observe / Reflect |
| Add blog questions to Autumn Formative Assessment | October | Act |
| Reviewing blog self assessment from Autumn Formative Assessments | Observe, reflect | |
| Prepare questions, consent forms, participant information sheets | 24th Oct | |
| Develop questionnaire | Nov | Act |
| Request approval | End of Nov | (reflect on methods) |
| Send out questionnaire | 1st December | Act |
| Review data, observe patterns | 5th January | Observe / reflect |
| Review blog prompts based on information gained, share with team | Week commencing 12th Jan | Reflect, Disseminate |
Project Findings
Observing, Reflecting
Having digested the data through use of visual charts and word bubbles (which i have kept private for GDPR reasons) i found that the questionnaire confirmed some the assupmtions/ reflections i already had on the reflective journal task.
There was significant variation in students’ prior experience of reflective journaling, reinforcing the view that reflective blogging is not a universally shared or intuitive practice. Participants felt different levels of confidence and this was not necessarily linked to their own history with reflective writing, or english as an additional language as I had thought coming into this project.
Of the 8 participants who had used a blog prompt selected ‘positionality’ as their most reflexive blog post noting that it helped identify purpose and connected them deeper to their work. This was followed by values which helped to ‘put things into perspective’
Each participant said their most enjoyed prompt was also their most reflexive! There is enjoyment in asking why!
While all students shared a sense of value towards the blog as a flexible and personal space,(digital diary) confidence, consistency, and motivation really varied across the cohort with most students listing ‘finding the time’ as the most difficult aspect of reflective blogging.
Other difficulties are not knowing what tutors expect or how personal to be – there is a desire for freedom with an anxiety that they are being observed and must reflect in a certain way or engage with performative writing. This makes me think that alongside providing examples of prompts to get started, a resource of examples of reflections are needed. I think this could be done by acessing the previous years blogs (with students permission) and selecting a wide variety of approaches to be promoted as “good” practice. It may also be worthwhile to share examples from artists, poets, non academic writers, designers reflecting on their practice – these should be diverse in diciplines but more importantly come from all areas of the world with particular focus on the global south, and from authors from the global majority who are consistantly under represented in euro/ english-centric schools of thought and british academia.
Most particpants expressed desire for light-touch structure in the form of prompts or guidance, that allows them to engage informaly and with autonomy over frequency. One student asked for less prompts. They felt that a optionally approach to the roll out of blog prompts should be taken. When asked if anything was missing from the prompts, 3 participants said no. However the other participants stressed the desire for less pressure for frequency of posts but with more options of blog prompts to choose on and examples of different approaches to the prompts. One student expressed an interest in seeing examples of how blog posts might turn into the report/ presentation assessed outcomes.
Some participants refer to being at different stages than each other. and having lots to write about on “exciting weeks” but feeling lost on what to write on slower weeks. This makes me think that blog prompts should not be given in a perscriptive week by week guide but take more of an fluid approach given at the top of the year- perhaps something like a flow chart or a mind map that allows the writer to follow different paths depending on their interests at the time. Miro could be a flexible place to house this or perhaps a pdf poster that could be printed/ easily saved to a students personal files.
Participants said the blog would be better if there were prompts to organise thoughts on slow weeks, there was more opportunity for creativity in the myblogarts software, the blog was not hosted on myblogarts. One participant request less prompts in contradiction to the others surveyed.
When asked what support they would want they requested:
- that the blog is more talked about/ shared so that they are not ‘talking to a void’ but part of a conversation.
- reflection starter tools to bring practice and ‘uni brain’ together especially on slower / less exciting weeks
one participant asked for deadlines for blogs to keep them accountable, two other particpants said blog deadlines would be helpful, but four said it wouldnt and there is a reoccuring theme of self managed timing/ frequency of posting. this is in contradicition to each other. Although my sample size was 20% of the cohort, as we are a small course this means only 10 participants took part. A wider sample would be needed to identify if this is an anomaly or a pattern. Choice gives access, perhaps tutors tailoring the addition of blog deadlines could be created
I am trialing this now with students who have yet to post on their blog/ low number of posts. I am meeting with students weekly to review overall course progress with the blog central to their evidencing of engagement, this is supporting students individual needs on a 1-1 basis. Approaches to blog tasks are also discussed, the same student is currently speaking their reflections which they transcribe through AI. To push this reflection further I gave the prompt ” using your unedited transcript/ piece of writing redact words, phrases, sentences or whole paragraphs to create a poem that speaks to your time on placement” The student who had previously struggled to find meaning in their past experience was able to edit their thoughts in a personally accessible way to reveal “nuggets of wisdom”. In reflection of this task they noted that although short in time, they slowed down and noticed a shift in their perspective and shared a plan of their next moves. By taking the opposite of a ‘one side fits all’ approach, a once defiantly non academic student poetically evidenced reflection, reflexivity and transformed action.
Presentation
Reflecting, Disseminating
References
Bolton, Gillie E J. Reflective Practice : Writing and Professional Development, SAGE Publications, 2010.ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=743628.
Brookfield, D. (2012) Teaching for critical thinking. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
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Dirkx, J.M. (2008), The meaning and role of emotions in adult learning. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2008: 7-18. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.311
Dirkx, J.M. (2006), Engaging emotions in adult learning: A jungian perspective on emotion and transformative learning. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2006: 15-26. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.204
Francis, P. (2009). Inspiring writing in art and design. Bristol, UK.: Intellect Books. University Press
Henry A. Giroux, “Language, Power, and Clarity or ‘Does Plain Prose Cheat?’” in living Dangerously: Multiculturalism and the Politics of Difference (New York: Peter Lang 1993) 166.
James, A & Brookfield, S.D (2014) Engaging imagination: helping students become creative and reflective thinkers. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Kolb, David A. (1984) ‘Experiential Learning: Experience As The Source Of Learning And Development’ Prentice-Hall
Moon, Jennifer (1999) Learning journals: a handbook for reflective practice and professional development. Oxon: Routledge
Nicole, DJ and Macfarlane -Dick, D (2006) Formative assessment and self-regulated learning: a model and seven principles of good feedback practice, Studies in Higher Education, 31 (2):199-218
Pollock, Della, Performing Writing, http://artsites.ucsc.edu/faculty/gustafson/film%20223/pollock.perfwriting2.pdf
Schön, D. (1991) The reflective practitioner. New York: Basic Books.
Taveras-Dalmau, V., Becken, S. & Westoby, R. (2025) ‘From paradigm blindness to paradigm shift? An integrative review and critical analysis of the regenerative paradigm’ Ambio. Available at:https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-025-02232-7
Williams, Kate, et al. 2012 Reflective Writing, Macmillan Education UK. 40 – 45ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=4763232.
Williams, K 2003, Getting Critical, Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [6 October 2025].