Developing reflective learning in a strategic thinking class

Management Teaching Review

Reflective practice supports critical thinking and assessment skills through analyzing one’s own life experiences, and the role of reflection in learning has been long recognized. However, drawbacks of many reflective practice assignments are their broad scope and lengthy written requirements. I propose that the reflection process is robust enough to support management student learning through short written tasks as well. Three examples of brief reflective assignments are presented suitable for management educators teaching undergraduate, graduate, or non-credit learners: (1) writing an organizational story, (2) a reflection about learning from adversity, and (3) a goal-oriented personal change. Learning outcomes and student responses have been positive, and the assignments have also been an insightful teaching experience for the instructor.

1998

It is widely agreed that effective problem solving is a fundamental skill for managers (e.g. . Recognizing the importance of problem solving, most North American business programs incorporate it into their curriculum in some format. This paper proposes an integrative model for teaching reflective problem solving in a graduate management education program. It describes an approach that incorporates the dual educational goals of improving both analytical and behavioural competencies through inductive and deductive teaching methods. In particular, our discussion examines the role played by root images or metaphors that provide students with a generative source of insight into the relatedness of different aspects of course content and curriculum. We conclude by addressing a number of salient issues that arise as part of the continuous refinement and development of this approach to teaching this critical managerial competency.

Theoretical and Practical Perspectives, 2010

Simulations can be powerful tools in helping students learn about strategic management. This chapter discusses the value of simulations in helping to illustrate the importance of contingency, the impossibility of a perfect strategy, planning ahead, and aligning internal resources to external environments in strategic management classes. The authors also discuss the benefits that simulations can offer in going beyond the book and class, being interesting, and the importance of instrumentality in facilitating student learning. This chapter then compares self reported student learning results for each of these variables for two simulations, a professionally packaged simulation and a "home

anzmac.info

Capstone marketing courses are being increasingly focused on by governments, scholars and business as an important component in assisting students to transition to employment. This paper demonstrates how learning tools such as a reflective journal and a marketing simulation game can be effectively used in an undergraduate marketing strategy capstone unit. It investigates the specification of student learning outcomes; discusses the role of simulation games and reflective journals and their contribution to learning outcomes; illustrates the application of a student reflective journal and a marketing strategy simulation game; reviews student feedback on the factors that assisted or hindered the simulation game and the reflective learning experience; assesses how the capstone was conducted and the resources needed to make it effective and finally assesses the impact that the capstone experience on student learning.

Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, 2007

The paper aims to identify a solution to the dilemma that currently exists within the paradigm of strategic learning: the dilemma of whether a strategy should be seen as an action dependent on the specific knowledge of an educational actor-strategic knowledge-or whether it is dependent on a planned instructional context-strategic context. This article will argue that the mental inter-psychological scenario must also be seen as a space of dialogue, an inter-psychological space in which different versions of one's own identity or selves interact, decisively influencing the learning strategies, in the case of learners, or the teaching strategies, in the case of teachers, that are activated when faced with a certain problem. In order to come to this conclusion, we will briefly review the state of the art of the paradigm, based on the empiric evidence available, some valuable criticisms regarding the need to incorporate the educational actor's social and emotional goals, and the theory of the construction of multiple selves as a hypothesis that incorporates these socio-mental elements. Finally, an agenda for future research in the line of this article is proposed.

Computers & Education, 2004

Nurturing reflective teaching and improving critical-thinking instruction are two important goals in teacher education, but these are only achievable when teachers-in-training are provided with opportunities for building professional knowledge and for exhibiting reflective teaching practices. A computer simulation program (CS-TGCTS) was therefore developed here, and its effectiveness is explained in this study. From 149 preservice teachers participating in this study, a pretest-posttest control group design was defined by four student groups and two treatments. The central hypothesis was that increasing participants' self-awareness of teacher behaviors and enhancing mindful learning in professional knowledge would provoke reflective teaching and further bring about improvements in teacher behaviors. The findings support the hypothesis and suggest that the CS-TGCTS simulation is an effective vehicle for improving preservice teachers' reflective teaching in critical-thinking instruction.

International Education Studies, 2013

Globalization and liberalization in the business environment have changed the requirements of types and qualities of human capital needed by the corporate sector. In relation to this, business graduates not only need to have theoretical understanding, but they also need to have creative thinking, communication skills and decision making skills based on multidisciplinary knowledge. Simulation game in business education is suggested to fill the gap by exposing students to real business situations. This study evaluates the effectiveness of business simulation in teaching Strategic Management in Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). A total of 48 students participated in the business simulation game and answered a survey at the end of the Strategic Management course. The objective of this paper is to present the findings in terms of contextual and processual context of using business simulation as an approach in teaching strategic management. The important findings of this research are the ability of simulation in transferring theory to practice, applying multidisciplinary knowledge, managing team dynamics, making decisions in uncertainties and managing in realistic situation. This study highlights the potential of business simulations in developing competent business graduates that fulfill the requirements of the industry.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2017

With the increasing use of technology in education, one may ask if psychological subjects with a huge amount of personal involvement are suitable for teaching within technology based learning formats. The UAS Burgenland redesigned the course "Critical Thinking" for part-time business students to reflect on leadership and intercultural communication using a blended learning format. This paper (presentation) elaborates on the requirements when teaching psychological topics and combining on-campus training with virtual classrooms. Succeeding in this effort means selecting very specific exercises and tasks in the diverse phases, linking them properly, adjusting the feedback processes and being aware of the diverse roles as a coach and moderator. Results have shown that students value the combination of various teaching methods as long as they feel safe within their self-development. Moreover, they are motivated to participate in virtual classrooms as the physical distance provides them with a sense of security in contrast to on-campus classes. The course "Critical Thinking" aims to provide a model for teaching psychological subjects within technology based education.

International Journal of Teaching and Case Studies, 2009

This paper outlines an exercise designed to preview primary strategic elements through a team-based experiential exercise. Designed for delivery in a traditional classroom setting during a two-hour session, the exercise uses videogame software and a narrative context to transfer strategic management concepts into a real-world situation. This paper discusses the outcomes from implementations in postgraduate pre-experience and post-experience classes; an organisation structure variant presented to an undergraduate class is also described. The article illustrates how instructors can use the exercise as presented, can adapt the narrative context to fit their course design and objectives, or indeed design and develop their own exercise using similar software. In addition to previewing content in the course, the exercise served as an effective vehicle to begin structured interactions among students, to open a dialogue between students and the instructor, and to create a participative and interactive climate. The exercise, instructions, and material lists are presented.

International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development

Critical thinking is one of the essential skills in learning. Malaysia has continuously made an effort to embed critical thinking in the curriculum of secondary school because many subjects in the secondary schools levels involve a vast amount of critical thinking elements. One of the distinguished elements that needed to be enhanced to promote critical thinking is the questioning skills. Currently, many students do not ask appropriate questions during their lessons especially in-depth questions that require critical thinking skills. This is a call to introduce an instructional strategy in the classroom to help students to ask the right questions confidently and at the same time encourage them to be further involved in the active discussion in the class. Problem-posing instructional strategy (PPIS) is one of the strategies used to promote critical thinking among students. This paper will review previously conducted studies to identify activities and approaches used in PPIS and systematically arrange them in order to be used as a strategic management tool to develop critical thinking among students. The purpose of this study is to address the potential of problem-posing instructional strategy (PPIS) as a strategy to develop critical thinking for secondary school students. The key research questions of this study were 1. What are the activities of PPIS commonly used in previous studies? 2. How can PPIS activities be arranged systematically to construct a PPIS model to develop critical thinking? The findings show the activities and approaches employed by previous studies can be arranged in a systematic sequence to construct a model for PPIS. The findings provide teachers with a model to implement PPIS as well as the processes involved in PPIS to promote critical thinking in the classroom.