Reflective Group Discussions Research Articles

Sweet Mother: evaluation of a pilot mental health service for asylum‐seeking mothers and babies

PurposeThis paper aims to describe the evaluation of an innovative pilot mental health service for asylum seeking mothers and their babies in their first year of life, and to highlight the challenges and possibilities when intervening with this group.Design/methodology/approachA mixed‐methods evaluation was designed based upon the participatory action research framework, viewing mothers and their infants as active participants in the research process. Evaluation comprised reflective infant‐led session evaluations, CARE Index video microanalysis, and reflective focus group discussions. CARE Index analysis was conducted by a trained Psychologist and an external coder to ensure reliability of findings. Focus group discussions were thematically analysed, and reflective infant‐led session evaluations scored for comparison.FindingsEvaluation has highlighted the imperative of designing responsive service models able to adapt to cultural nuances and the realities of asylum seekers' lives. Qualitative data provide a rich narrative of the benefits of therapeutic interventions for this group, which are reaffirmed by CARE Index analysis and session evaluations.Research limitations/implicationsAs a pilot service the numbers involved in this evaluation are small. Furthermore, a paucity of measurement tools validated in languages other than English forced reliance upon self‐designed tools such as the reflective infant‐led session evaluation designed to complement a “keeping the baby in mind” ethos of the intervention. This has been complemented by CARE Index analysis and qualitative focus group discussions. The combination of measurement instruments and data analysis tools provides a comprehensive indication of the impact of this pilot intervention.Practical implicationsThe benefits and challenges of establishing an early‐intervention therapeutic service for refugee and asylum seeking women and their infants are detailed and reflected upon. It is hoped that by chronicling the experience and findings an evidence base is being built to support development of future innovative service models.Social implicationsPolicy aspirations to meet the needs of refugee and asylum seeking women and their infants identify the need to provide rights‐based, humane and person‐centred services. The pilot model described here meets these aspirations and can be used as an adaptable and responsive model upon which other services can draw.Originality/valueThe paper provides a comprehensive service evaluation, highlighting key policy and practice implications to support the delivery of health and social care services targeting refugee and asylum seeking women and their infants.

Psychosocial Experiences of Coloured Grandmothers who are the Primary Care Givers of Their Grandchildren

This study explored the psychosocial experiences of grandmothers who care for their grandchildren. A qualitative research design was used. Twelve grandmothers (age range = 50 to 65) from a peri-urban community in the Western Cape (South Africa) were selected as participants. Qualitative data were collected using the Mmogo-method® (Roos, 2008; 2012), a visual representation data gathering instrument and reflective group discussions. The data were thematically analyzed. The results showed that grandmothers experienced physical, emotional and financial challenges. Grandmothers coped through their strong belief that caring for their grandchildren was a spiritual calling and by drawing on the support from community and spiritual relations. The coping strategy of identifying with previous intergenerational groups is functional but not beneficial for the relationship between grandmothers and grandchildren and should be addressed in intergenerational interventions.

Role of reflective group discussions in the development of nursing skills

Role of reflective group discussions in the development of nursing skills

In-class Reflective Group Discussion as a Strategy for the Development of Students as Evolving Professionals

The primary aim of this study was to determine perceptions of three cohorts of third year undergraduate students (n=65) on in-class reflective group discussion as a critical reflective approach for evolving professionals. Reflective group discussions were embedded into a final year course within the University of Queensland Bachelor of Oral Health program iteratively over three years. Reflective practices were integrated with clinical practice, and were linked with assessment requirements. Students’ perceptions of reflective group discussions were obtained via questionnaires and reflective essays. The key benefits of reflective group discussions perceived by students included peer learning, peer and/or tutor support and multi-perspective critical thinking. Students welcomed the inclusion of reflective group discussions into their curriculum, not as a substitute of, but rather, complementary to reflective writing. Students invoked that reflective writing and reflective group discussions were beneficial in different ways. The interactive, supportive and multi-perspective nature of reflective group discussions was particularly appealing to students.

Rethinking Difficulties of Teaching Inquiry‐Based Practical Work: Stories from elementary pre‐service teachers

To alleviate teachers’ reluctance toward practical work, there has been much discussion on teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge, teaching materials, and failsafe strategies for practical work. Despite these efforts, practical work is still regarded as a challenging task for many elementary science teachers. To understand the complexity of teachers’ conflicts in practical work, this study examines teachers’ ideas about teaching and learning that influence teachers’ decision‐making and action on teaching practical work. More important than knowing technical–rational aspects of practical work is to understand the internal contradictions that teachers have to resolve within themselves regarding their capabilities and beliefs about science teaching and practical work. Using stories and experiences of 38 third‐year university students in a science method course in Korea, we seek to understand the conflicts and negotiations that they experience as they make decisions regarding practical work throughout their course. Reflective writings and group discussions on their lived experiences and concerns were used to probe participants’ ideas on teaching using practical work. From written and verbal data, themes were saturated in terms of the aspects which could (dis)encourage their practice. Results suggest that there are multifactorial challenges in pre‐service teachers’ understandings and concerns in practical work. Besides time, materials, and curriculum, pedagogical assumptions and values also compositely challenge the minds of teachers. As the pre‐service elementary teachers negotiated within themselves the importance of science in classroom and social levels, the question is raised about their identities as pre‐service elementary teachers to appreciate the balance between science teaching and practical work.

The “It's Not My Fault!” Exercise: Exploring The Causes and Consequences of Managers' Explanations for Poor Performance

Experienced managers know that perceptions matter greatly when it comes to working effectively with employees. The task for organizational behavior (OB) instructors, especially in the undergraduate classroom, is to make the perceptions topic come alive for students who may not appreciate at first the application and significance of this subject for their future careers. This two-part exercise helps OB students understand how managers' perceptions shape the judgments they make about the causes of employees' poor performance and how these judgments affect managers' responses. In part one, students personalize the subject through an individual reflection exercise and group discussion. In part two, a realistic scenario-based exercise, students adopt the role of a manager dealing with an employee's performance failure. Exercise debriefing emphasizes the application of attribution theory concepts. Several options are suggested for integrating additional OB topics, such as the self-fulfilling prophecy, attribution errors, and confirmation bias.

Mathematics teachers’ beliefs about a new reform in high school geometry in Iran

The geometry textbooks of the new system of secondary education in Iran differed dramatically from the old ones considering the aims, the visions, the content, the approach, and the educational purposes. Four hundred eighty mathematics teachers participated in a nationwide professional development program conducted by the author to facilitate the implementation of the new changes. Based on this program, a research study was designed to investigate the teachers' beliefs about a new reform in high school geometry as a result of the professional development program. The data of the study were collected through teachers' reflective writings, project works, group discussions, reflective questionnaires, and oral communications. The purpose of this paper is to draw upon this study and to document mathematics teachers' beliefs about new changes.

Reflection as a Means to Foster Client-Centred Practice

Client-centred practice embraces important concepts about partnership and justice that promote client participation in meaningful occupations. It is important to understand how occupational therapists can engage in and continue to develop client-centred practice within the constraints of everyday settings. An action research study was undertaken by a group of four occupational therapists to describe insights gained, and to show the effectiveness of participation in reflective education to help foster client-centred practice. The six main insights generated by the group involve: congruence, understanding the potential, environmental factors, personal factors, expectations, and lifelong learning. Although actual change to daily practice was limited, group members felt the reflective group discussion provided them with a launch pad to start a journey toward more client-centred practice. This may be the key to moving beyond simply changing the face and language of occupational therapy practice toward a deeper understanding and implementation of client-centred practice to improve client outcomes. Suggestions are provided for implementing reflection to help continue to develop your own practice.

Cultivating Moral Imagination through Meditation

The purpose of this article is to show how moral imagination can be cultivated through meditation. Moral imagination was conceived as a three-stage process of ethical development. The first stage is reproductive imagination, that involves attaining awareness of the contextual factors that affect perception of a moral problem. The second stage, productive imagination, consists of reframing the problem from different perspectives. The third stage, creative imagination, entails developing morally acceptable alternatives to solve the ethical problem. This article contends that moral imagination can be cultivated through three kinds of meditation: non-discursive, semidiscursive, and discursive meditation. Part one shows how the seed of reproductive moral imagination is planted during sessions of nondiscursive meditation. Productive moral imagination, as will be shown in part two, is nurtured through semidiscursive meditation. Part three will demonstrate the flowering of creative moral imagination through discursive meditation. Reflection and small group discussion on each form of meditation will help to show business people how to cultivate moral imagination.

'Global Citizenship' Course in Premedical Year Development and Outcome of Manner Program for Future Physicians

Purpose: This study aims to introduce a one semester ’Global Citizenship’ program, being offered as a part of the premedical course at Gachon Medical School. The program was designed to meet the community needs in terms of etiquette and manner education for the future physicians and also to review the outcome of short-term experience. Methods: The program was offered to M1 (premedical students year-1) students from the first semester after entrance to the school with following objectives: to understand the anthropological aspect of culture, to motivate students in relation to medical scientific foundation, and to develop the appropriate human relations, including international etiquette and manners, prior to the subinternship in M5 (medical student year-3). Results: The program consisted of 12 sessions of lectures and/or practice-based learning such as etiquette for dormitory life, Korean traditional culture, gender role in the 21st century, dining etiquette in various cultural programs, netiquette(for computer usage), Korean housing and its architectural beauty, etiquette for alcoholic beverage drinking, dressing, and the respect and understanding of other cultures, services and manners. They were all instructed with presentations combined with site-visits or hands-on experience followed by a reflection paper and group discussion. Although the program was costly and time-consuming compared to the traditional theory-based natural science and humanity subjects, students expressed their strong motivation and concerns on their future responsibilities. Conclusion: We conclude that ’Global Citizenship’ course is a useful program to provide a meaningful motivation to the newly enrolled students, Further, it encourages students to understand human relations as a global citizen equipped with the appropriate etiquette and manners.