By Christopher Miller
I have recently begun to serve as the Reflective Practice (RP) SIG facilitator for KOTESOL. RP has been something that has been ingrained in my teaching practice since I began my MSEd in 2011.
I have tried many strategies and experimented with a variety of frameworks while engaging in what I perceive to be RP. However, when I look back on my experiences with RP, the What, So What, Now What framework has been one of the more effective strategies (even if I may have labeled it as something different). Those three simple phrases are essential to practical and meaningful RP. In this brief article, I would like to introduce the three elements and partially illustrate them.
What, So What, Now What
Initially articulated by Terry Borton in the 1970s and popularized in the mid-90’s by John Driscoll, the framework is nearly as simple as the title would suggest.
What: Describe the facts of the event. Writers such as Bolton and Delderfield (2018) argue that trying to recall concrete details associated with the event can help to unearth further memories.
So What: Why is this event relevant? How did you feel about the event? What does it reveal about yourself, your perception of your students, or your learning environment?
Now What: This, in my opinion, is at the heart of useful reflective practice. As Borton points out, reflection is best when future-oriented and focused on expanding awareness. This is where one might think about how to address the event that stimulated reflection, perhaps draw up an action plan.
At this point, I think it is worth stating that there is no need to adhere rigidly to this three-tiered framework. Personally, I start with the description of an incident, attempting to recall as much as I can about the exact event and connect it to my larger professional context. Next, I will try to ask why this occurred and perhaps make text connections related to either my personal experience or professional literature. Then, I will consider how I might do things differently if I encounter a similar situation in the future. Sometimes this leads to a concrete change in my professional behavior, sometimes it motivates me to adjust my materials, and sometimes I choose to do nothing concrete. I feel that all of the aforementioned choices are acceptable. Even if one chooses to do nothing with a reflection or action plan, the exercise is still useful, as it may inform professional actions in the future.
A Concrete Illustration
Just a few days ago, I used a customized version of Borton’s prompts. I was teaching a class, and I was not perfectly in sync with my materials. For better or worse, I typically provide a lot of written input for my learners. This often takes the form of PPT slides. Without getting too deep into the weeds, I briefly modeled task expectations orally. And the next series of slides in my slide deck included models with visual and written support.
Reflecting on that, I felt that my presentation was unnecessarily redundant and increased non-essential teacher talk time. Not a major issue, but something I could have done in a smoother manner. So, then I asked myself, "Why did this happen?" My answer was that it was because it was my first time teaching this lesson. I am currently teaching the same exact lesson 10 times (because I have 10 different groups of learners at the same grade level). Often, I will make extensive revisions after one lesson, trying to smooth out my delivery.
By focusing on this relatively minor incident, I realized that I tend to take more of a reactive, rather than proactive, approach to my teaching. When something doesn’t work out as intended, I make changes for the next teaching performance – undoubtedly a useful disposition. However, after reflecting on this incident, I realized that given my level of professional experience (about 20 years!), I could have engaged in proactive reflection before my first delivery of this particular lesson. For example, I could have not only reviewed the slide deck a few more times but also reflected on what might go wrong in this lesson before the students arrived. This may (or may not) have allowed for a smoother delivery. Regardless, it would have at least primed my brain to be ready to deliver a more optimal performance.
Reflection as a Habit Leads to Good Things
Admittedly, this was a minor incident. Nevertheless, I derive a lot of personal pleasure from focusing on such moments and believe there is professional value in them. As Bolton and Delderfield stated, “In RP, no detail is too trivial or insignificant to write and talk about” (p. 114). Such reflections allow me to clarify my values (why am I doing the things I am doing), create a personalized understanding of a wide range of constructs found in the professional literature, and generate what I like to call a diagnostic mindset – recognizing when things aren’t working, why they aren’t working, and what some possible options are to ameliorate the situation. In my experience, this process helps incubate solutions even if they don’t always emerge immediately when I write down my ideas.
I’m a firm believer in establishing a set time and personal guidelines for engaging in written reflection. At least once a week and a minimum of 500 words per focus on a specific incident has served me well over the past few years.
Reflective Practice Can Be So Much More…
This brief article didn’t even touch on the core dispositions, theoretical assumptions, and alternative frameworks related to teacher reflection. While useful to reflect on those dimensions, sometimes it is best to just do it and not worry about asking, "Am I doing it right?" So, if you ever wondered about this thing called Reflective Practice, my advice is to keep it simple at the start and trust yourself. Experience will take care of a lot of the fine-tuning.
Structured, written self-reflection is excellent; however, reflecting in a community can offer opportunities to expand one’s awareness and entertain alternative perspectives not previously considered. With that in mind, the Reflective Practice (RP) SIG cordially invites you to our next event on May 27. In this event, we will try out the "What, So What, Now What" framework. Who knows, maybe participation in this event will lead to a personal breakthrough for yourself or… even others?
Details for the May 27 Reflective Practice SIG Event can be accessed here:
https://www.koreatesol.org/content/relfecitve-practice-what-so-what-now-...
Reference
Bolton, G., & Delderfield, R. (2018). Reflective practice: Writing and professional development (5th ed.). Sage.
The Author
Christopher Miller is the recipient of the 2025 KOTESOL Reflective Language Teacher Award. He is especially interested in documenting observable changes in his and others’ professional practice resulting from engaging in a range of reflective activities. He currently serves as the Reflective Practice SIG facilitator. Email: chriskotesol@gmail.com
(Illustration by Deep on Unsplash)
