‘Getting to the soul’: radical facilitation of ‘real world’ learning in higher education programmes through reflective practice

‘Reflective practice’, a rigorous, disciplined approach for noticing, attending to, and inquiring into aspects of practice (Trelfa, 2018; 2017; 2016), is integral to real world learning pedagogy and practice in higher education (Bruno & Dell’Aversana, 2018). It concerns the development of professional “artistry” (Schön, 1992) of, and for, post-degree life. Consequently, substantial attention in literature and reflective practice concerns the nature and form of reflective activities, such as journals, used to foster scrutiny and control of self and situation. Through them students reflect “on the understandings which have been implicit” in their ‘’actions and understandings’’ (Schön, 1983:61) whilst involved in learning ‘‘for, through and at’’ (Lemanski et al, 2011) real world contexts. However, research suggests that the only learning students participate in is how to exhibit appropriate journals to pass their course. In this chapter, the writing centres on a theory, drawn from PhD findings, that is based around lived concepts - The Trappings, Gaze and Glance. The Trappings refers to the way in which reflective practice has become ‘trapped’ by the orderings of messy practice, experience and learning, and by the role and impact of institutions (Hall & Taylor, 1996); Gaze, the fixed, externally determined, aloof activity of keeping a journal, which takes the ‘soul’ out of learning; and Glance, the fleeting potent moments of engaging with complexity, richness, messiness, and fluidity of real world experiences. Appreciating the implications of Glance for learning from experience in real world contexts is “radical” (Neill 1960; Freire 1996) as it is a neglected area of reflective practice, and, its facilitation gets to the ‘soul’ that real world contexts can offer students in higher education.