Self-Reflection Guide

The IRIS Internship program seeks to enable interns to develop both the practical skills and intellectual proficiencies required of independent geophysics researchers. To facilitate interns' progress towards this goal, the program has developed, in collaboration with M. Brudzinski, a practical tool and structure for mentors and their interns to use during their summer research experiences. The IRIS self-reflection guide, consists of seven broad target skills expert researchers know when to employ and how to best use. Each skill is clarified by three to six demonstrable “action” statement which is rated on a three-point scale; the scale, “Not yet”, “Adequate” or “Proficient”. The guide also provides extra room for mentors and interns to include additional skills that they deem are important to the intern's personal development. It should be noted that there is no expectation that interns will achieve proficiency in each skill by the end of the summer. Instead, what is expected is that mentors and interns will work towards enhancing interns’ intellectual proficiencies throughout the summer.

Through the use of the self-reflection guide, interns are introduced to a superVISION of skills experts use to handle complex research tasks, as well as an understanding of where and when to employ that strategic knowledge. Mentors model these skills and their application by describing, or clarifying and refining students' conceptions of these skills through direct dialogue. The guide also encourages both interns and mentors to reflect on the intern’s abilities and based on the results, provide appropriate methods and scaffolding to support the interns' learning of the skills. As students begin to gain practical experience, mentors can coach the intern more concretely as they strive to develop targeted intellectual proficiencies.

Current version of the IRIS Self-Reflection Guide (pdf)

Implementation of IRIS's self-reflection guide

1. Interns are introduced to the self-reflection guide during the orientation week. Here small groups discuss skills on the guide with near-peer orientation staff (e.g.. graduate student alumni, early career faculty, etc.).
2. Prior to arriving at their placement, interns complete the self-reflection guide independently. Interns should do their best to provide an honest assessment of their present abilities for each skill.
3. In the first week, interns arrange to meet and discuss the initial self-reflection guide and their self-assessment with their mentors.
4.  
5. Half way through the summer, interns and mentors meet and re-assess interns’ level of proficiency with each skill on the rubric and reflect back on intern’s initial assessments.
6. In the final week of the summer, interns and mentors meet again to re-assess interns’ level of proficiency with each skill on the rubric and reflect back on the initial and midway assessments.

More information about IRIS's self-reflection guide

Hubenthal, M., Brudzinski, M., & Collella, H. (2013) Development of a monitoring protocol to enhance mentoring in the IRIS REU site. Abstract ED41E-04 presented at 2013 Fall Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, Calif., 9-13 Dec. 

Hubenthal, M., and Brudzinski, M. (2016) Supporting student skill development in undergraduate research experiences through the development of a self-reflection guide. Abstract ED51B-0796 presented at 2016 Fall Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, Calif., 11-15 Dec. 

Brudzinski, M., Jaeger, A., & Hubenthal, M. (2017) Self-reflection guides as a strategy to support students’ development of intellectual skills. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://serc.carleton.edu/getspatial/blog/self_reflection.html 

For further information about the guide or its implementation contact Michael Hubenthal,  hubenth@iris.edu