Abstract of

Engaging in Retrospective Reflection

Laurey Brevig

Reflection is a powerful means to involve readers actively in gaining new insights about texts and themselves as readers. This article relates the story of three fifth-grade girls engaged in metacognitive inquiry within a classroom book club group. The use of exploratory talk and reflection illustrate how the girls constructed meaning and deepened their individual and collaborative understanding of a shared text. Revisiting portions of the group's audiotaped book club conversations during a retrospective reflection session allowed the girls to become consciously aware of the strategies they used to navigate a particular text, the ways in which the knowledge they brought to discussions was enriched or altered through exploratory talk, and the means available to self-monitor their growth as active learners. Upon completion of the text, stories continued to unfold as the girls became more self-aware and took a fresh look at their discourses, gaining insight into their evolving perceptions.

Abstract from Brevig, L. (2006, March). Engaging in Retrospective Reflection. The Reading Teacher, 59(6), 522–530. doi: 10.1598/RT.59.6.2