Philosophy of learning based on reflection begins from everyday experience at a higher education institution. Students’ learning is holistic: it encompasses the person’s thinking, feelings, perception and behaviour. Therefore one of the aims in order to improve the students’ learning should be the development of abilities to reflect on one’s experience. Many scholars (Brockbank et al., 2002; Jarvis et al. 2004; Boud, et al., 2005; Black & Plowright 2010 et al.) analyze the issues of learners’ personal and professional development, paying a lot of attention to learning from one’s experience and development of reflective practice. Reflection here is called a process during which experience is turned into learning. It is a way to analyze experience and to discover new meanings, because experience itself does not ensure acquisition.

Reflection, which can strengthen learning and corporate personal as well as professional efficiency, helps to outlive and to give a sense of experience; thus, analysis of experience has to be one of the main goals of learning at a higher education institution;  it activates learning, self-analysis, as well as solution of problems; it emerges from professional experience as well as it involves reflective thinking in forming a situation when it is referred to personal system of viewpoints, attitudes and values, constantly leaving an open possibility re-form (Roberts, 2009).  Reflection, learning from own experience, stimulates taking of responsibility for one’s actions and decisions. It is an active creation of information, its revision and creation of new theories.

Different models of reflection for analysis of experience are offered in scientific literature sources (Dewey, 1933; Boyd & Fales, 1983; Kolb, 1984; Schön, 1987; Gibbs, 1988; Jarvis, 1992; Atkins & Murphy, 1993; Cowan, 1998; Johns, 2004; Boud et al., 2005, etc.). Planning students’ learning at a higher education institution, it is possible to successfully use schemes of these models formulating assignments for theoretical lectures, seminars and practical classes as well as organizing students’ independent work or practical classes. Different patterns of reflection as a way of analyzing experience should be integrated into the whole educational process, helping the prospective specialist to become aware of his/her attitude towards learning. He/she should learn making complex decisions in various life situations and develop the practitioner’s holistic competence.

The characterand organization of research on reflection modelling and implementing into curriculum (Janssen et al., 2008; Kreber & Castleden, 2009; Harvey, et al., 2010; Harvey & Bauman, 2012, etc.) is determined by political and social context of a country, traditions and aims of a higher education institution. The analysis of most works (Moon, 1999; Sugerman et al., 2000; Nash, 2008 etc.) allow stating that coherence of reflective learning concept to the conception of Kolb’s (1984) experience-based learning (which emphasises the importance of learners’ experience in educational process) dominates. However, it does not elaborate reflection as essential element in learning from own experience. Such concept of reflective learning can be treated as insufficient in disclosing possibilities of reflection application in higher education.

The presentation includes reflection models, accentuating conditions of reflection at a higher education institution, in order to answer the research question: “What are the key stages and conditions of reflecting and reflection in higher education?” 

Research focus is conceptual relationship between reflective learning models and context of higher education.

The aim is to substantiate the relationship between reflection and context of higher education by comparing reflection models and illustrating possibilities of implementation of reflective learning in higher education.

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