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Reflection within the Context of CEL
Reflection is a cornerstone of Community-Engaged Learning (CEL). It transforms hands-on experience into meaningful learning by helping students make sense of what they’ve done, seen, and felt in relation to course content, social issues, and their personal development.
As Bringle and Hatcher (1997) describe it, reflection is the “intentional consideration of an experience in light of particular learning objectives” (p. 153). Done well, it deepens academic understanding, encourages civic and ethical awareness, and helps students move from surface-level reactions to more critical, systemic thinking.
“Reflection is the process of analyzing, reconsidering, and questioning one’s experiences within a broad context of issues and content knowledge.”
— Jacoby, Service-Learning Essentials (2014, p. 26)
Models of Reflection
Different courses and community partnerships benefit from different reflection strategies. Below are several well-regarded models that can be adapted for written assignments, discussions, journals, multimedia, or group activities.
Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle
Encourages a recursive process: Concrete Experience → Reflective Observation → Abstract Conceptualization → Active Experimentation.
The Lens Model (Cone & Harris, 1996)
Encourages students to view experiences through three lenses: academic content, personal values, and civic engagement.
The 4 C’s of Reflection (Eyler, Giles, & Schmiede, 1996)
Effective reflection is:
- Continuous (throughout the experience)
- Connected (to course content)
- Challenging (pushes deeper thinking)
- Contextualized (fits the setting and goals)
The DEAL Model (Ash & Clayton, 2009)
A structured framework guiding students to:
- Describe the experience,
- Examine it in relation to learning outcomes,
- Articulate Learning gained and future applications.
Understanding and Facilitating Critical Reflection
Critical reflection—the “active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusions to which it tends” (Dewey, 1933, p. 9)—is essential for CEL to achieve its transformative potential.
Without it, community engagement risks becoming a superficial activity, where students might unintentionally reinforce stereotypes or oversimplify complex social realities. Thoughtful reflection fosters ethical awareness, challenges assumptions, and encourages systemic thinking.
For a comprehensive guide to designing and supporting critical reflection, we recommend Chapter 2 of Service-Learning Essentials: Understanding & Facilitating Critical Reflection by Barbara Jacoby (2015). Critical reflection helps students:
- Question their assumptions
- Recognize power dynamics and systemic inequities
- Apply course theory to real contexts
- Identify tensions, contradictions, and learning edges
- Reframe personal and civic identity
📚 Faculty Support for Reflection at MSU Denver
The Faculty Engagement & Experiential Learning (FE&EL) team can support faculty in integrating meaningful reflection by offering:
- Customizable reflection prompts and activities
- Guest facilitation of reflection workshops or class sessions
- Feedback on written assignments or journal formats
- Sample rubrics to assess depth and learning
- Consultation on adapting any of the models above to your course structure
Contact Faculty Engagement
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Phone: (303) 615-1133
Email: CEL Program Manager: Nora Bashir
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