Collaborative Action Research to Promote Reflective Thinking Among Higher Education Students

AbstractNine instructors, from across a range of departments, engaged in action research aimed at promoting reflective thinking among themselves and their graduate and undergraduate students. The study aimed to: (a) develop the instructors’ own abilities to conduct collaborative research; (b) develop and implement activities promoting reflective thinking among students; and, (c) investigate effects of project activities on students’ reflective thinking. Six instructional activities which contributed to effective reflective thinking were identified–creative tasks, seminar, learning resources, group processes, invited speakers, and problem posing and problem solving. Details are given of analyses which indicated that students’ reflective thinking developed considerably