The effects of learning contexts on the development of reflective thinking in university education: Design and validation of a questionnaire

Abstract

Reflective thinking is a key skill for constructing meaning in university. Its development requires appropriate learning contexts which can function as spaces for reflection, along with approaches, conditions and methods which can boost students' training in thinking, framed within their process of knowledge construction and their development of competencies and professional skills. This paper reports the development and testing of a questionnaire on the value of the learning contexts designed to foster reflective thinking. To ensure validity, the constructs measured were derived from the extensive literature on conditions for planning learning and teaching activities for reflective thinking based on narrative-based methods. The instrument was validated with a sample of students (n = 375) from five universities. The results obtained from the estimation of a 10-factor model offer appropriate goodness of fit and parsimony with acceptable and consistent indices of reliability. The results contribute to the evidence supporting the reliability and validity of the questionnaire and confirm the value of the model's components for devising higher education teaching activities to promote a reflective thinking process.