Plan to Develop Professional Practice

As a counseling student a lot is expected of you during placement, as it is a time when you are given the opportune to practice the skills and knowledge you have learned, a time when you act like any professional in the field. During this period of time lot of difficulties arise and it is up to you to decide on whether you are going to find a solution or let the difficult situations overwhelm you. It is therefore important, as a student to develop the essential skills requires for the professional practice that will enable you to tackle those situations skills such as reflective, listen and summarising.

Reflection according to Reid (1993) "is a process of reviewing an experience of practice in order to describe, analysis, evaluate and so inform learning about practice" (p.3). Reflection is regarded as a key to effectiveness as a helping professional, a way of exploring oneself and integrating your learning from your studies. The aim of reflective practice is to give students an opportunity to review an experience that is a lifetime experience and analyses those experience in order to learn from them. By doing so students get the chance to explore and thereby acquire knowledge that is significant and maximize professional development. Reflective practice as a learning skill dose not only influence students but also professional practitioners when dealing with clients during practice. The aim of this essay is to discussing ways in which I plan to develop professional practice during my first student placement experience.

Reflection is about thinking back or rethinking what is being said or done, it is from this concept that the application of reflection practice in psychology works. It "means that we constantly get evidence of how effective or worthwhile our actions are, and we can change what we are doing according to the evidence of its value" (Payne, 2002. P.127). In any discipline, reflection is consider as an important skill that provide students the opportunity to identify the positive and negative aspects in relation to practice and this applied to any practice. It assist student to learn from their experience during placement. Carroll and Gilbert (2006) suggest reflection as a skill that helps practitioners to reflect with depth and flexibility and to consider a broader range of meaning and possible options that will be help clients to create a shift in their current circumstances.

The structures of reflective practice have being provided by numerous models such as Kolb's learning cycle. Whichever model a practitioner decides to use or obey its ethical standard end result should be gain of reflective practice. Reflective practice is an essential key in dealing with everyday hitches. The application of this skill when dealing with situations that are found difficult and an undeveloped thought gives students chance to explore their worldview challenge their beliefs and attitudes in order to maximize their personal and professional development. It manufactures emotions and requires time to think and develop solution to difficulty situation. Therefore, as a student in order to have the ability to develop these skills it is essential to have an environment that is conducive. It is vital to have a supervisor that understands and have the ability to take you through the process and an environment that provides support when needed. Last but not the list, the organisation in which you undergo your placement should have programs that embrace the above issues.

As a student taking placement requires more to learn based on the numerous changes that one undergoes during placement. Reading and research is essential in learning, but not all of us are familiar with or embraces it as a way of achieving knowledge. Also there are various approaches available to learning most of which are nightmare as I believe developing knowledge is acquires experience. Based on the assumption, my placement experience will help me gain a lot of knowledge and skills in the practice. Therefore, in taking this student placement I intend to acquire a lot in the application of psychological theories I have learnt.

My first and foremost goal during my placement experience is to be able to applied theories that I have learnt in class into practice thereby minimizing if possible close the gaps that often occurs between knowledge of theories and the practical ability. My second would be to developed and practical implemented the various methods of care as becoming an effective helping professional is dependent on continually providing care to improve patient satisfaction. Thirdly, is to enhance my personal growth and/or professional development. Having done all this, I will be able to acquire my goals of choosing one specialization in psychology for further practice.

Reflection is a process. It is a step-by-step process that involves the processing of ideals and thought in the mind to create a solution to the issues at hand. This can be accomplishing with the use of the right and conducive atmosphere. Reflection can be encourage when facing challenges as it gives you the opportunity to reflect on old ideals and thought and thereby using those ideals in dealing with the current situation. There are various models used that provides the framework of reflective practice but the one I intend to apply during my placement is Kolb's learning cycle (Kolb 1984). This learning cycle is as follow:

Firstly I will what I have leant in class so far into practice which is the activity experimentation stage. By doing so I will gain necessary practical skill in psychology, which is the concrete experience stage. I will than review the experience or the skills I have