Using Blogs for Promoting Reflective Learning among University Students

• Main Authors: Ahmad, Rahayu, Mohd Yusuf, Shafiz Affendi, Muraina, Ishola D.
• Format: Article
• Published: JARDCS 2018
• Subjects: QA75 Electronic computers. Computer science
• Online Access: http://repo.uum.edu.my/25163/; http://www.jardcs.org/abstract.php?archiveid=5207
• Institution: Universiti Utara Malaysia

Reflective learning has been recognized as one of the most important lifelong learning skills due to its influence on the learning skills of the students towards the attaining understanding of complex ideas. The rise of blog publishing has given new aspiration for reflection learning unlike the traditional journals which only serve the instructor. Researchers have argued that the public nature of blogs within the class is capable of encouraging students to view each other work, thus, promoting collaborative writing and reflection among students. Realizing the importance of developing the reflective thinking skill, this study attempts to investigate how blogs can promote reflective learning among the students. In this study, 67 students are given a similar assignment question and they are required to answer and describe their experiences in doing the assignment. The students’ blogs are analyzed using an established reflective coding assessment scheme. Using the established coding scheme, 16 students (22 %) of the students have demonstrated reflective learning in their assignments while 34 students (50%) of the students at the level of understanding and the rest are non –reflective learners. Using similar assignment question, our result shows an increase of 22 percent of reflective learners compared to previous semester (0 percent). While there may be other factors that can influence this result such as the student’s ability themselves, the result suggests that blog has the potential to be used in class to promote reflective learning.