Reflecting on Teaching and Learning with ICT

By Michael Hilkemeijer

 

 

 

 

Why Do Educators Need to Practise Critical Reflection in Early Childhood Education?

In early childhood education (ECE), intentionality matters. Educators aren’t just facilitating activities—they’re guiding rich, meaningful learning experiences. This is especially true when integrating digital technology. But how do we know if our choices are working?

 

That’s where critical reflection in early childhood education comes in. It’s the key to turning daily moments into professional learning. Through reflection, we ask:

• Did my teaching strategy support the learning intention?

• How did children respond to ICT use today?

• What can I improve next time?

 

Inside the ICT in Education Teacher Academy, critical reflection is not an afterthought. It’s embedded throughout the entire membership—through lesson plans, workshop logs, a structured workbook, and community interaction—helping educators grow through every teaching moment.

 

 

 

 

What Is Critical Reflection in Early Childhood Education?

Reflective practice in early childhood education involves thinking deeply and systematically about your teaching decisions. It goes beyond “What worked?” and asks:

• Why did it work?

• What learning did I observe?

• What would I change—and why?

When we critically reflect, we consider:

• Children’s responses to our teaching

• Alignment with EYLF outcomes

• The effectiveness of ICT in teaching and learning

This process helps educators make intentional, informed decisions—and avoid relying on habit or assumption.

 

 

 

 

What Are Some Examples of Critical Reflection in Early Childhood?

Here are three realistic, ICT-focused reflection examples taken directly from member experiences and workbook prompts:

1. During a Bee Bot activity, an educator reflected:
   “I noticed children used directional language confidently, but they weren’t extending their predictions. I need to scaffold their thinking with more open-ended questions next time.”

2. After a digital storytelling session, a member wrote:
   “Children were deeply engaged with their photos, but struggled to narrate them. Next time, I’ll include a shared storytelling model before independent work.”

3. Following a nature photography activity, one member shared in the community:
   “I hadn’t realised how much the camera changed what children noticed outdoors. I’ll incorporate this tool in other exploratory tasks like texture or symmetry hunts.”

 

These are examples of reflection about teaching strategies that transform future lessons. They are grounded in observation, guided by EYLF outcomes, and centered on student engagement—the hallmarks of meaningful critical reflection.

 

 

 

How Can Educators Practise Critical Reflection Effectively?

The key to effective critical reflection is structure. The Membership Workbook 2025 helps ECE educators reflect meaningfully using dedicated tools and prompts.

Here’s how the membership supports reflection at every stage of your teaching:

 

When	What You Reflect On	Membership Tool That Supports It
Before the lesson	Intentions for ICT use, EYLF alignment, pedagogical approach	Planning Templates (pg. 114)
During the lesson	Children’s responses, learning behaviours, use of digital tools	Observation Guide (pg. 101)
After the lesson	What worked, what didn’t, what surprised you	Critical Reflection Prompts (pg. 182)
With other educators	Alternate strategies, shared challenges, adapted ideas	Community Forum + Wisdom Tool
After a workshop or resource	What you’ll apply, how it shifts your teaching mindset	Workshop Reflection Logs (pg. 122)
Over time	Your growth in TPACK and ICT confidence	TPACK Radar Chart + Success Path tracking

 

This system helps you turn reflection into practice change—and tracks that change over time.

 

 

How Do Educators Ensure Reflection Is Meaningful?

Educators make reflection meaningful by:

• Asking deep, purposeful questions

• Basing reflection on classroom evidence (not assumptions)

• Linking observations to teaching strategies and outcomes

• Sharing and refining practice through discussion

That’s why the membership doesn’t just provide space for reflection—it provides the right prompts, structures, and community support.

 

 

 

Reflection Questions for Teachers’ Professional Development

The Membership Workbook includes powerful questions aligned with EYLF and APST that help members grow professionally:

• What surprised me about how children engaged with ICT today?

• How did my questioning techniques support or limit learning?

• What learning outcomes were strengthened through this digital activity?

• How could I improve the way ICT was integrated?

• What changes will I make in future planning?

These questions appear in:

• Lesson plan templates

• Workshop logs

• Community reflection prompts

• TPACK growth pages

They are designed to support real teacher reflection on lessons examples—with no guesswork required.

 

 

 

 

Member Story: How Critical Reflection Moved Mia from Adoption to Infusion

Mia, a kindergarten teacher, began using ICT in simple ways—mainly for digital games or songs. After joining the membership, she used the Digital Nature Walk and Photography lesson. It included a built-in critical reflection section prompting:

“What did I learn about the use of ICT in teaching and learning?”

Mia noted how children showed curiosity with digital photography, particularly noticing patterns and colours in nature. She reflected:

“I hadn’t expected this much focus. They were more observant using the camera than when we normally explore. ICT helped slow the moment down.”

She shared this in the community and received suggestions to try an augmented reality extension. This process led Mia to:

• Rethink how ICT changes the learning process

• Observe new layers of engagement

• Move from basic ICT use (Adoption) to intentional integration (Infusion)

Her reflections became her roadmap for improvement—all tracked through her workbook and supported by community dialogue.

 

 

 

 

How the Community Deepens Critical Reflection in Early Childhood Education

The membership community is where reflection meets collaboration. Early childhood educators reflect with others—not just on their own. This ensures that reflection becomes richer, deeper, and more responsive to classroom needs.

In the community, members:

• Share their workbook reflections and receive insights

• Post real teaching challenges and receive feedback:
  “How did you scaffold children’s digital storytelling responses?”

• Exchange ideas based on shared lessons, experiences, and ICT tools

 

The Wisdom Tool allows educators to search for similar reflections, questions, or ideas from past discussions, supporting continuous reflective practice.

This means:

1. You apply a lesson.

2. You reflect using the workbook tools.

3. You receive new perspectives from peers.

4. You adapt, grow, and try again.

The result? Reflection becomes a habit—and a community-powered strategy for improving ICT integration.

 

 

 

The Professional Growth Mindset That Makes the Difference

ECE educators are often asked to reflect—but rarely supported in doing it deeply and consistently.

The ICT in Education Teacher Academy changes that.

It offers:

• Structured reflection systems aligned to EYLF and APST

• Digital and ICT-rich lesson plans with built-in reflection steps

• A workbook that tracks growth over time

• A supportive community that enhances reflective thinking

This is professional learning that doesn’t just ask what you do—it helps you understand why you do it, how it worked, and what you’ll do next.

That’s what meaningful critical reflection in early childhood education looks like—and that’s what this membership is all about.

 

 

🎯 Join the ICT in Education Teacher Academy today to make reflection part of your daily teaching practice—so that every lesson becomes a step forward in your professional growth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How Can Educators Practise Critical Reflection to Improve ICT Integration in Teaching and Learning?

When educators intentionally integrate ICT into early learning, reflection becomes more than a professional expectation—it becomes a tool for transformation. But many teachers still ask:

• How can educators practise critical reflection in ways that are practical and impactful?

• How do educators ensure reflection is meaningful—not just routine?

• How do I identify opportunities for using ICT to support learning?

 

Inside the ICT in Education Teacher Academy, these questions are central to how members develop professionally. Through a combination of guided workbook prompts, structured planning tools, and collaborative discussions, educators don’t just use ICT—they reflect on why, how, and to what effect.

 

 

Practising Reflection With Purpose: The Membership Approach

🧩 What Makes Reflection Practical and Powerful in the Membership?

CHALLENGES EDUCATORS FACE	HOW THE MEMBERSHIP HELPS
“I don’t have time to reflect deeply after lessons.”	Guided reflection pages are integrated into lesson plans and planning templates.
“I’m unsure what to reflect on when using ICT.”	Prompts in the workbook direct educators to focus on children’s responses and ICT impact.
“Reflection feels vague or disconnected.”	Templates link reflective questions to EYLF outcomes, ICT pedagogies, and teaching goals.
“I don’t know if my ICT strategy was effective.”	Observation guides + peer feedback in the community help assess and refine your approach.

 

 

How Do Educators Ensure Reflection Is Meaningful?

In the membership, meaningful reflection is:

• Intentional: Members begin every lesson plan with a clear ICT learning intention, making it easier to reflect on outcomes.

• Structured: The workbook provides frameworks that prompt educators to consider ICT use, student response, pedagogy, and learning impact.

• Visible: Educators log their reflections, track growth, and revisit past entries to measure change.

• Shared: Reflections are discussed in the community forum and enhanced through feedback and peer stories.

 

 

 

Practising Critical Reflection in ICT Integration—Step-by-Step

Here’s how members actually practise reflection at each phase of ICT planning and implementation:

📘 Before the Lesson

• Identify ICT goals that align with EYLF outcomes

• Use the planning template to:

  • Define the learning intention

  • Describe the ICT tool to be used

  • Justify how it supports pedagogy

👀 During the Lesson

• Use the observation guide to:

  • Note how children engage with ICT

  • Record signs of curiosity, collaboration, or problem-solving

  • Track any unexpected outcomes

✍️ After the Lesson

• Use the critical reflection page to ask:

  • What surprised me about how ICT was used?

  • Did it support or extend learning?

  • What would I change next time—and why?

💬 In the Community

• Share a reflection or challenge

• Respond to others with feedback or alternate strategies

• Use the Wisdom Tool to find how others integrated ICT in similar contexts

 

 

 

 

Connecting ICT Pedagogy to Reflection

One of the most valuable aspects of the membership is how it links ICT pedagogy integration in learning plans with professional reflection. The goal isn’t just to use ICT—it’s to understand its pedagogical value.

 

🔁 Identifying Opportunities for Using ICT to Support Learning

In every lesson plan and reflective entry, members are asked:

• Where did ICT enhance exploration, inquiry, or creativity?

• Did children demonstrate new thinking or skills they hadn’t before?

• What future activity could extend this learning using digital tools?

 

This ensures that educators continuously identify opportunities for using ICT to support learning, rather than falling into repetitive or disconnected use.

 

 

 

Real Prompts from the Membership Workbook That Support Reflection

Here are workbook prompts that guide educators to think deeply about ICT integration:

• What was the role of ICT in the children’s learning process?

• How did the ICT tool support, extend, or limit the learning intention?

• Which EYLF outcomes were reinforced through this activity?

• What questions or responses from children indicated meaningful engagement?

• What changes will I make next time based on what I observed?

These are not generic questions—they are strategically placed in every stage of planning, observation, and evaluation.

 

 

 

Deep Reflection Leads to Real Change: The Membership Model

REFLECTION STAGE	WHAT MEMBERS DO	OUTCOME
Before Teaching	Set an ICT learning intention and plan integration with EYLF in mind	Clear focus on ICT’s role in the learning process
During Teaching	Record observable behaviours and unexpected outcomes linked to ICT use	Rich evidence to analyse later
After Teaching	Reflect on what happened, what worked, and what will change	Ongoing improvement and deeper insight
Community Reflection	Post in the forum, receive feedback, and compare strategies	Collaborative professional growth
Ongoing Tracking	Use TPACK radar and success path to document development over time	Visible progress and structured transformation journey

 

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts: Why This Approach Works

• How can educators practise critical reflection? By using a framework that turns daily teaching into guided professional learning.
• How do educators ensure reflection is meaningful? By basing it on clear ICT goals, observable evidence, and peer dialogue.
• How does ICT integration improve through reflection? Because every experience becomes a chance to identify what works—and why.

Inside the ICT in Education Teacher Academy, reflection isn’t a once-a-term task. It’s a daily, deliberate, and supported process that transforms the way educators use ICT to support children’s learning.

🎯 Join today and experience what it means to reflect with purpose, integrate with confidence, and grow professionally—every time you teach.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Importance of Reflection in Teaching

Reflecting about teaching practice with ICT plays a very important part in the development of student ICT capability throughout the integration of ICT in the curriculum. However, for teachers, it is all about taking responsibility for the use of ICT in the classroom and their professional growth.

 

According to QCAA (2020), teacher reflection is critical as it encourages teachers to:

• Regularly evaluate their approaches to teaching and learning.
• Understand more about the positive impacts of high-quality effective pedagogies on children’s learning
• Become more aware of the importance of high-quality interactions, including strategic intervention and substantive conversations to maximise children’s learning
• Use action research approaches — e.g. drawing on alternative teaching strategies to help
  children to learn when familiar methods fail
• Co-construct learning with children and other partners so it is responsive to the child’s family and
  community

 

It is important that teachers do reflect on practices and take the appropriate steps to improve them. These teaching strategies for the classroom can help you go a long way in ensuring that outcomes are learned by students.

As teachers, you should encourage students to reflect critically and evaluate their own work with ICT, so too must teachers.

It must involve determining which parts of the lesson went well and which ones were less successful. From here, they can make adjustments and plan for better lessons accordingly.

For this to occur, they need to look deeper into the practices and ask questions as to why a particular approach was a success or failure.

Classroom reflection such as this is said to promote thinking about classroom activities and the beliefs associated with those actions (Kennewell et al., 2000).

 

Clarifying existing ideas about teaching helps to forge new ideas or modify old ones. A powerful reflection involves carrying out action research. That is the approach where teachers are required to take a more rigorous look at the quality of their teaching and learning.

 

For judgments here to be made, evidence such as the following in relation to classroom activity needs to be taken into account:

• Lesson plans and schemes of work.

• Comments from observing teachers.

• A diary of classroom activity.

• The results of students’ class and homework and.

• The results of examinations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teacher Reflection Questions 

The following teacher reflection questions can be used as a guide (Kennewell et al., 2000, p189). Reflection about teaching strategies with technology in the classroom will help you analyse your teaching strategies in the future.

 

They include lesson reflection for teachers that cover the learning of outcomes planned for students.

 

• To what extent am I catering for the abilities of all the students in the class?

• Are students able to build on prior learning?

• Have I considered common misconceptions associated with this topic?

• Are the students able to use what they have learned in a new situation?

• Did the students appreciate that they were making progress?

• Did the students improve their confidence in the subject and the image they have of themselves as a learner of the subject?

• Did the students develop good habits of work, including perseverance and concern for correctness?

• Did the students use their initiative, exercise imagination, and think for themselves?

Other teacher reflection questions

• How was the ICT activity integrated into the normal running of the classroom?

• What skills did I need in order for the ICT activity to succeed?

• How did I ensure that all students had access to the ICT activity?

• What were the learning outcomes for the students in ICT?

• What assessment opportunities were there?

• How does this experience add to my understanding of teaching ICT capability in literacy development?

• What will I do next time?

 

Here are some lesson reflection for teachers:

• Did you need, for example, to alter the timings of the introduction to ensure understanding of what was required for all the children?

• Did you find that you talked too much and the children needed more time and more independence in their work?

• How far did the lesson achieve the intended learning objectives? 

• Make a judgement based on your identified assessment opportunities. If it is part of a sequence of activities, how much is there still left to do? 

• Comment on how the lesson went for the children experiencing difficulty and for those children of high ability. 

• How well were you able to meet the needs of those with English as an additional language? 

• Did children with special educational needs have full access to the activity and were they able to succeed?

     (Allen, Potter, Sharpe & Turvey, 2012, p.36)

 

If you are an early childhood teacher, these education reflection questions are good to consider:

(Early Years Learning Framework, 2020)

1. Who is disadvantaged when I work in this way? Who is advantaged?
2. What are my understandings of each child?
3. What theories, philosophies, and understandings shape and assist my work?
4. What aspects of my work are not helped by the theories and guidance that I usually draw on
   to make sense of what I do?
5. What questions do I have about my work?
6. What am I challenged by? What am I curious about? What am I confronted by?
7. Are there other theories or knowledge that could help me to understand better what I have observed or experienced? What are they?

(DEEWR,2009:13)

 

Reflection about teaching strategies with technology is significant as it will ensure that your students gain the knowledge, skills and understanding they need in order to become proficient users of ICT.

It will help you conduct a thorough analyses of the situation on the outset of your planning and prepare your students for their future.

 

Take this lesson reflection questions with you about teaching and learning with ICT. 

 

 

 

 

 

Critical Reflection in Early Childhood Education

 

Having a reflective practice in early childhood education is important if you want to ensure that are being responsive to a child’s learning needs in relation to technological skills, capabilities, knowledge and interests. As an educator, you would need to engage with questions of philosophy, ethics and practice with the intention to gather information and to gain insight that will support, inform and enrich your decision-making.

 

 

 

Why is Critical Reflection important in Early Childhood?

Critical reflection in early childhood education is just as significant as it is in primary education and other sectors of education. As the EYLF emphasise “it involves closely examining all aspects of events and experiences from different perspectives”. From this perspective, you should be able to frame your reflective practice with a set of more specific questions.

 

It also makes up one of the five key principles that reflect contemporary theories and research evidence concerning children’s learning and early childhood pedagogy. This principle along with the others in the EYLF underpin early childhood practice so that all young children are supported and progress through their early learning outcomes.

 

Additionally, early childhood teachers working within the EYLF need to submit critical reflections on the use of, teaching decisions and pedagogies, and purpose of ICT in early childhood learning environments as evidence of teacher practice at both the Proficient and Highly Accomplished level where they are expected to lead critical reflection with colleagues.

 

 

What is Critical Reflection in Early Childhood?

The NQS (National Quality Standard – ACECQA) state that to be confident educator in critical reflection is the ability to understand how it differs from evaluating, summarising and recording what you see and do.

 

For example:

In relation to ‘looking in detail and creatively’, you would:

• Think about your teaching practice and program decisions.
• Explore multiple perspectives.
• Make the links between theory and practice clear.
• Make purposeful changes to practice to improve children’s early learning outcomes.

 

Reflective questions for early childhood educators would involve key questions such as:

• What do we know about this child?
• Why did we make the decision/respond the way we did?
• Were we guided by our philosophy and theories about how children learn (with a focus on equity, inclusion and diversity)?
• How did we feel about the decision?
• What went well?
• What didn’t go well?
• Should we continue, improve or change the decision/practice?

 

Other reflective practice questions for early childhood educators that would explore ‘feelings’ would include:

• What were my feelings when it happened?
• Why did I feel that way?
• How can I use these feelings to motivate change for myself, the team, and the service?

 

Critical reflection in early childhood education can therefore be used as tool for professional and personal growth especially when questions are asked such as:

• Can I share my critical reflections at a team meeting?
• Can I develop ideas for improvement?
• Can I implement a change and what will it look like?

 

 

The NQS also recognises that critical reflection is about:

• A process that usually takes place after the decision/ practice, etc., has occurred.
• Done individually or in a group, such as with educators, children, families, or other professionals. A group setting gives us other perspectives.
• Used to enhance our professional practice, identify improvements, and inform the decisions we make.
• Used to strengthen our program, providing ongoing quality experiences for our children, with a particular focus on equity, inclusion and diversity.
• A continuous process of engagement.
• Done in daily diaries, reflective journals, meetings and reflection sessions.

 

 

 

How often do early childhood teachers have to ‘critically’ reflect?

The process of critical reflection in early childhood education is an ongoing process and there are no set rules how often you should set aside time to document your reflections.

 

 

 

 

How to Practice Critical Reflection?

One way that you can practice critical reflection in early childhood education is to engage in collaborative reflective practices. This is a good way to promote change as learning together can make it easier to experiment with new ideas and ways of teaching and learning with ICT in early childhood learning activities.

 

Collaborative practices also help to motivate you in making positive changes in children’s learning. Having a critical friend can:

• Inspire you.
• Challenge you.
• Support you.
• And lend an ear and offer friendship when the process becomes too overwhelming.

 

Another way is to also develop a Learning Journal that will reflect your beliefs and practices about children’s learning with ICT in early childhood learning environments.

 

You could also develop a philosophy statement with your own team that will address questions like ‘What do we believe’ or ‘Why do we hold such beliefs’ and ‘How can we transform these beliefs into practice’.

 

 

 

 

Steps for Critical Reflection in ECE

As a guide to start your critical reflection process, the EYLF outlines as according to Aussie Childcare Network, the following:

 

Identify a concern

The first step is to choose an issue for critical reflection – this can happen in a formal setting like a weekly staff meeting or informally over lunch break when perhaps some educators begin discussing the challenge of conducting group time for children and how most seem unwilling to join. With educators generally agreeing that none of them are happy with the way group time seems to be working, you have an issue suitable for critical reflective practice.

 

Gather information

The next step is to collect evidence on what is currently happening and look for patterns. In the above example, staff may decide to use different ways to collect the information about children’s participation in group time, like taking observations and photographs of the children at five-minute intervals to see where the children were positioned and how they were participating, as well as asking children questions about what they understood group-time to be.

 

Once information is collected, it is time to analyse the data and reflect upon what the information is telling you. For example, in the above instance, educators may find that though a small group of children appeared to be highly engaged in the group times, a relatively large number of children remained disinterested and some even complained of it being too teacher-driven

 

Frame a question to be explored

Once you have identified what is not working, ask how might the situation be improved. So in the above example, a question framed by educators might be, “How can we rethink group time to make it more meaningful to the children?”

 

Decide upon action

This is mainly focused on ways to change a practice that is no longer working for example, in this instance, the staff may decide to offer ‘workshops’ around music, stories, puppetry, and gardening to children instead of group time so that it would be both be focused on the child’s interest and involve hands-on activities.

Let children could choose between group time and the workshop, thereby giving them more agency and reducing the chances of non-compliance.

 

Evaluate the change

This is when educators would examine whether the new practices have addressed the issue first identified. Thus in the example, the staff would collect another round of observations and photographs, and then get back to discuss whether they revealed any changes, for example, children who had previously struggled with group time may now appear to have fun in the workshops. On the other hand, if evidence shows children still disengaged from the activities, educators may have to return to the evidence with a fresh set of eyes to identify patterns they may have missed out on earlier – like higher chances of task refusal in the late afternoon than mid-morning, based upon which a different framing question would have to be drawn up and action is taken.

 

 

 

 

 

Critical Reflection as Part of Technology Integration and Digital Play-based Learning Professional Development to support Pedagogical change

Within all our online training for early childhood educators, we make it a requirement for participants to complete and submit a critical reflection on the educational theories learned.

 

The successful submission would address the following standard descriptors: APST 2.6.2, 3.4.2, and 4.5.2. Alternatively, if you teach in the Philippines you will address PPST 7.4.1, 7.4.2, and 7.4.3 in relation to Professional reflection and learning to improve practice.

 

 

Critical reflection questions in early childhood education

• To what extent am I catering for the abilities of all the students in the class?
• Are students able to build on prior learning?
• Have I considered common misconceptions associated with this topic?
• Are the students able to use what they have learnt in new situation?
• Did the students appreciate that they were making progress?
• Did the students improve their confidence in the subject and the image they have of themselves as a learner of the subject?
• Did the students develop good habits of work, including perseverance and a concern for correctness?
• Did the students use their initiative, exercise imagination and think for themselves?

 

• How was the ICT activity integrated into the normal running of the classroom?
• What skills did I need in order for the ICT activity to succeed?
• How did I ensure that all students had access to the ICT activity?
• What were the learning outcomes for the students in ICT?
• What assessment opportunities were there?
• How does this experience add to my understanding of teaching ICT capability in literacy development?
• What will I do next time?

 

• How far did the lesson achieve the intended learning objectives?
• Make a judgement based on your identified assessment opportunities. If it is part of a sequence of activities,
• how much is there still left to do?
• Comment on how the lesson went for the children experiencing difficulty and for those children of high
• ability.
• How well were you able to meet the needs of those with English as an additional language?
• Did children with special educational needs have full access to the activity and were they able to succeed?

 

 

 

Critical Reflection Exercise

I have no doubt that since you are reading this you may have already started the productive process of technology integration in early childhood education.

 

In this case, you can begin the process of critically reflecting on the following:

1. The use of technology and its relevance to the children’s learning (APST 2.6.2)
2. The use of ICT resources with young children (APST 3.4.2).
3. The purpose of ICT in early childhood learning environments (APST 4.5.2).

 

Write a 500 word report now in relation to these points and how you currently integrate technology in early childhood education and care today.

 

 

 

 

 

Reflection Isn’t Just a Requirement—It’s a Path to Growth

Critical reflection in early childhood education isn’t something to check off a list—it’s what helps you see the impact of your teaching, refine your strategies, and make confident, informed decisions in the classroom. When done meaningfully and consistently, it becomes the key to improving outcomes for both educators and children.

But reflection doesn’t happen in isolation.

The ICT in Education Teacher Academy gives you everything you need to reflect with purpose:

• Real examples of critical reflection in early childhood

• Structured tools to support reflective practice in early childhood education

• A supportive community that helps you grow from each teaching experience

 

If you’re ready to take your professional learning deeper—and truly transform the way you use ICT in your teaching—it starts here.

🎯 Become a member today and make critical reflection your most powerful teaching tool.

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