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Reflection on Planning and Progress Form (RPPF)
Reflection on Planning and Progress Form (RPPF)
Key Activities
Key Activities
In developing the reflective project, students should:
Identify an issue directly linked to their career-related study.
Decide on an ethical dilemma that arises from the issue.
Show an awareness of the ethical dilemma.
Identify the key community(ies) involved in the dilemma.
Examine different viewpoints.
Develop a personal and relevant evaluation of the ethical dilemma.
Reflect continuously at key points of the process.
Throughout, students are supported by their supervisor. They meet formally with their supervisor three times: before, during and at the end of the project.
Key Content
Key Content
The issue
The issue
Students need to explain the issue and clearly and explicitly link it to their career-related study. However, they must also remain aware that the issue itself is not the main focus of the reflective project.
The ethical dilemma
The ethical dilemma
Students must be able to recognize the ethical dilemma that arises from the issue.
Research question
Research question
Students need to identify and describe accurately the question to be answered that explicitly references the ethical dilemma that has been identified.
The research
The research
Students must provide evidence of research that supports different viewpoints on the ethical dilemma. They should also critically examine the research itself.
There are five main stages in the research process:
Defining the research’s purpose and objectives and the research question.
Conducting a literature review.
Designing appropriate data collection methods and analysing the data.
Reflecting on the research methodology adopted.
Presenting the research findings.
Critical analysis of the ethical dilemma
Critical analysis of the ethical dilemma
This involves students evaluating the viewpoints on the ethical dilemma and then articulating their own point of view based on reasoned argument.
References, citations and a bibliography
References, citations and a bibliography
The reflective project is an academic piece of work and should be presented as such. This ensures academic honesty and allows the readers to check the evidence themselves.
A reference acknowledges the source of the information that the student has used.
A citation is a shorthand method of referencing, which is then linked to the bibliography.
A bibliography is an alphabetical list (by author) of every source cited in the project.
Students must use a consistent style of referencing throughout the reflective project. For further information please consult the IB publications Academic honesty in the IB educational context and Effective citing and referencing.
Appendices, footnotes and endnotes are not necessary but if students choose to use them they should do so appropriately and not circumvent the word limit.
Meetings
Meetings
Students will have three formal meetings with their supervisor: prior to commencement of the reflective project, while working on it and at the end.
Reflections on Planning and Progress
Reflections on Planning and Progress
Students record their reflections on planning and progress on the form provided—the RPPF—after each of their three formal meetings with their supervisor.
The RPPF
The RPPF
The completion of this form is a mandatory part of the reflective project. It helps the students to reflect on their planning and progress, including:
their initial ideas
any concerns to discuss with their supervisor
the outcome of those discussions
interim thoughts about the reflective project’s planning, progress and content
any changes that need to be made as a result of the interim thoughts
finishing the project and their conclusions. The RPPF has two further functions:
Together with the formal meetings with the supervisor, it provides the evidence to assess the students against Assessment Objective 5 (AO5): Engagement and reflection on planning and progress.
It also acts as a record to support the authenticity of their work.
The RPPF is informed by scheduled meetings between the students and the reflective project supervisor where progress, planning and issues are discussed.
The form is designed to document these discussions and is a formally assessed element of the reflective project.
A "Researcher's Reflection Space" (RRS)
A "Researcher's Reflection Space" (RRS)
Reflection is an integral part of the reflective project. Students should not see it as something that happens only sporadically, before a meeting or when they have a form to fill in. A “researcher’s reflection space” can help with this.
The researcher’s reflection space could be a journal or a blog to record day-to-day thoughts on progress within the reflective project.
This space can help students prepare for the meeting with their supervisor and identify what to include in the RPPF. Writing thoughts down regularly in this way may also help to develop the students’ skills of critical analysis.
When shared with their supervisor, the journal or blog can also give greater insight into the students’ thought processes and their progress within the reflective project.
The RRS is not submitted or formally assessed, but should inform the scheduled meetings with the supervisor, which in turn inform the RPPF.
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