. Reflective Practice
Outline of Syllabus Contents
1. An introduction to the philosophy of reflective practice and its relevance to the
aromatherapist
2. Understanding Self Attitudes, beliefs, and values; what they are and how they
develop and the factors that influence their development. Defining health and
well-being.
3. Identifying the therapist’s own attitudes and beliefs. The effect these might
have on clients and others with whom the therapist may
work.
4. Interpersonal skills. The nature of inter-personal relationships, the therapeutic
relationship and working with others. How these relationships may affect the
therapist's ability to work effectively. To recognise and deal effectively with own
behaviour and practice, when it adversely affects working with different people.
5. Effective learning and development. Review and evaluate existing knowledge
and professional practice using NOS and Professional Code of Practice to Updated May 2009 CP 26
identify strengths and limitations. Knowing how we learn, learning styles, what
they are, to improve upon the limitations identified above.
6. Learning from experience. To learn effectively from experience requires
analysis and interpretation of the event so that it leads to new understanding.
Structuring the process to identifying the experience, returning to the
experience and describing it, attending to feelings, making sense of the
experience and assessing competence.
7. The role of reflective journaling as part of the learning and self development
process
8. Writing a development plan. Produce a Portfolio of learning evidence and
detail programme for future professional progress.
9. Support for learning and development to gain knowledge of various types of
support systems and networks and how to access them.
Recommended Reading
Reflection - http://www.trainer.org.uk/members/theory/process/reflection.htm
Boud D, Keogh R & Walker D; (1985) Reflection: turning experience into learning,
Kogan Page
Johns C. (2002) Guided Reflection Blackwell Science
Johns C. (2000) Becoming a reflective practitioner; a reflective and holistic
approach to clinical nursing, practice development and clinical supervision
Blackwell Science
Johns C (1994) Guided reflection. In reflective practice in nursing (Palmer A et al
eds) Blackwell science, Oxford
Reflection - http://www.trainer.org.uk/members/theory/process/reflection.htm
Reflective Practice
Aims
a. To develop a sense of self awareness to enhance the learning experience;
b. To enable therapists to reflect on the manner and effectiveness of their
treatments;
c. To enable therapists to learn from their experiences, both for their own
benefit and for that of their future patients;
d. To enable students to use their experiences to direct their professional
development in a conscious and deliberate way, both as an individual and
as part of practice development
To enable students to carry out a review of their clinical practice and reflect
on improvements that can be made on a continual basis.
Learning outcomes
The module will provide students with the skills and knowledge to:
i.Increase their self-awareness by identifying their own attitudes, beliefs,
interests, priorities and values in relation to health and well being.
ii.Enable them to understand the importance of recognising the impact these
have on their personal and professional life.
iii.Enable them to review and evaluate their own knowledge and practice in
relation to the NOS and their professional codes of conduct.
iv.Identify their strengths and limitations.
v.Enable them to devise development/action plans that will build on their
strengths and improve their limitations.
vi.Recognise appropriate learning opportunities for developing their
knowledge and practice.
vii.Improve their ability for recording/building documentary evidence of their own
knowledge and practical experience.
viii.Identify and utilise support systems and networks appropriate to their practice.
