To begin with, I would like to explain you about what a reflective learning journal is. When we refer to this type of writing, we are talking about a piece of writing in which we reveal and record our thoughts, insights and feelings regarding our own experiences in our learning process. It helps us to review, consolidate and evaluate such occurrences. Reflective learning journals are similar to diaries and that is why they reflect our personality, preferences and experiences. As many times these writings are only read by those who write them, we may say that they are a bit anonymous and I think this is the reason why we feel free when writing them, because we know that they are not going to be published.
We can appreciate many positive aspects as regards reflective learning journals, for example, among others, this type of writing can provide a real image of our growth on our learning process, it helps us express our feelings, thoughts throughout our experiences, and the most relevant attribute, it encourages us to identify and accept our strength, weaknesses, improvements and drawbacks in our everyday life as learners.
As future teachers, we must take into consideration this kind of journal when teaching and try to introduce it in our classrooms as we may help our coming learners to express themselves and learn from their personal experiences.
Source: http://ar.cetl.hku.hk/am_rj.htm
