Three Reflection Questions That Help Students See Their Own Growth

It’s incredibly rewarding to see your drama students grow and improve their skills during your time together. But sometimes it can be hard for students to see that improvement themselves. It’s easy for students to compare themselves to others, or only focus on the things they can’t do yet.

Fortunately, reflection questions can help with this. They help students to pause, think about what they’ve accomplished, and realize that they’ve come much further than they thought. When students recognize their own growth, they build confidence in themselves and connect more deeply to their work.

Here are three reflection questions you can use in your drama classroom to make growth visible to your students. You can have students respond to the questions individually (in writing or in a recorded verbal response) or use them to spark a class discussion.

1. What can you do now that you couldn’t do at the beginning of the semester (class, term, etc.)?

This question encourages students to compare themselves to themselves, not to their classmates. They might notice they are now able memorize their lines faster, or that they feel less nervous performing in front of their peers. Maybe they can hold neutral for longer periods of time, they’ve written a monologue that they’re really proud of, or they’ve worked in a new technical area and gained skills there.

Tip: Frame this reflection as a celebration, not an evaluation. Encourage your students to think about any bit of growth, be it small or big. Small wins might include improving their vocal projection in even one class or remembering to not look at the floor during scene work.

2. What surprised you about yourself in this class?

Drama class challenges students to recognize their comfort zones, and then take a risk and push beyond them. By asking students what surprised them, you can help them to recognize moments of bravery, or an exciting discovery they experienced in class. Maybe a shy student found success in mime work or clowning, or a seasoned student performer realized how much they enjoyed stage management or costume design.

Tip: Use this question midway through the term, as well as at the end. Surprises often show students both how far they’ve come and areas, topics, or concepts for further exploration. On that note…

3. What’s one thing you’d like to keep working on or learning about?

Growth is continuous, and this question helps students to reach the next level. Students can use their reflections on their growth to set personal goalsthat they can work on going forward.

Tip: You can use students’ responses to help shape your classroom curriculum focus, to create a choice board activity, or for students to create independent study projects.