The Purpose of the Review?
To energise the learning experience
The more fun someone is having then the more they will learn from it. Reviews allow participants to holistically look back on the experience and offer a dynamic approach to learning – whereby learning can be made obvious through fun and stimulating methods.
To enrich the experience
Reviewing can encourage people to notice more about themselves, others and their surroundings. By learners valuing their experiences more, they will increase in confidence and build a better rapport with others. By knowing a review is coming up, participants may also start anticipating the review and think about the challenge/activity and any other potential review material.
To make sense of the experience
Reviewing takes participants beyond their normal responses and helps make sense of their experiences. It may also introduce a fresh perspective, or provide the opportunity for people to talk things through and be listened to. During the programme, participants may experience – fear, anxiety, exhaustion, peacefulness, solitude, camaraderie, pain, anger, alienation, sadness, frustration and joy. Each individual in a group may encounter a very different experience from each other or at different times during one activity or challenge. It is important that reviews can support these ranges.
To make connections
Help learners make the connections between the experience and everyday life (transfer of learning). Encourages people to think about wider significance of the programme and by comparing experience with others means they can reflect back in such a way to enhance the programme and what can be learned. It makes learning obvious and helps them understand the purpose of the session (especially in training specific to job role).
To develop learning skills
Enhances ability to learn from individual or group experiences and therefore take more responsibility for own learning and development.
To set goals
Sometimes it is important to set goals to help transfer or apply what has been learnt to future application e.g time management and how this can be applied to workplace schedules. The outcome of reviews may be goals for the task, session or the workplace. This can provide focus and a starting point for future reviews.
