Assignment 1 Interview and Reflection Types of questions/creating questions How to approach an interview Follow up questions/taking notes Profile – example Reflection – 3 paragraphs - prep

Part 1 Interview a person you know that have extensive life experience, someone you admire and respect. Grandparents and parents, even extended family members (aunts, uncles etc.) would be such people. Your main objective is to discover more about their past and learn about their experiences and how these have shaped them as people. See assignment sheet for topics that will need to be addressed.

Interview After you have chosen a person, and they have agreed to be interviewed, you will need to do the following: Organise a suitable time to conduct the interview. Interviews can be done in person, over the phone, on Skype etc. All questions need to be prepared before the interview, however as the interview develops you can ask follow-up questions to gain more detail. During the interview you should take short notes on what the person is saying. It may help to record the interview so that you can listen back and add to these notes.

What you need to submit: A). A copy of all your questions and the notes you made. Notes taken during the interview can be in the form of bullet points and expanded later if necessary. b). A profile of your interviewee. Include a picture, key facts (birthday, place of birth etc.) and a brief overview of who they are as a person. This can be done on A4-A3 paper, with PowerPoint or another approved program. Programs must be able to print the profile created.

Sample Profile Sarah Sanders: A Rebel at Heart! Name: Age: Birthplace: My grandmother is a lady that I truly admire. She is an authentic individual and everyone who knows her admires her for her honesty and humour. She has experienced happiness, grief, challenges in her career and travelled around the world. Her ability to light up a room is what I have always loved and it was an honour to interview her and learn so much more. Name: Age: Birthplace: Siblings: Occupation: Children: ?? Fun Facts Favourite Colour: Most memorable pet: Best Friend: Fav Memory: ……

Part 2: After your interview, write a formal reflection in response to the experience. 600-800 words. Typed, Size 12 font. 3 main paragraphs must be included which address the following: Why you chose this person to interview. The most surprising or interesting thing that you learnt about the person during the conversation – what impact did this have on you? Reflect on the central differences between your life and the person you’ve interviewed. Has this made you view your life in a different light? – opportunity, advantages etc. What key lessons or piece of advice will you take with you from the experience going forward having interviewed this particular person?

Reflection Figure 1 shows that the reflective thinking process starts with you. Before you can begin to assess the words and ideas of others, you need to pause and identify and examine your own thoughts. Doing this involves revisiting your prior experience and knowledge of the topic you are exploring. It also involves considering how and why you think the way you do. The examination of your beliefs, values, attitudes and assumptions forms the foundation of your understanding.  Reflective thinking demands that you recognise that you bring valuable knowledge to every experience. It helps you therefore to recognise and clarify the important connections between what you already know and what you are learning. It is a way of helping you to become an active, aware and critical learner. Figure 1

Reflective writing is: your response to experiences, opinions, events or new information your response to thoughts and feelings a way of thinking to explore your learning an opportunity to gain self-knowledge a way to achieve clarity and better understanding of what you are learning a chance to develop and reinforce writing skills a way of making meaning out of what you study

Reflective writing is not: just conveying information, instruction or argument pure description, though there may be descriptive elements straightforward decision or judgement (e.g. about whether something is right or wrong, good or bad) simple problem-solving a summary of course notes a standard essay

Formal vs Informal Reflective essays Online thread Blog Discussions Reflective reports Ongoing journals Social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram Which is formal and informal?

Checklist 4R’s Report Relate Reason Reconstruct Have I… Reported (described) the experience upon which I am reflecting? Explained the relevance of the experience to my future? Described my own response? Reasoned with the significant factors showing why they are important for a new understanding? (key lessons or piece of advice) Explained how this may reconstruct my understanding? (view life in a different light) Followed the required structure for this assignment? Checked that my assignment makes sense? Checked that my spelling and punctuation are error free?