Beyond the Looking Glass: Reflection as a window instead of a mirror

by Matthew Ruddle

In the 24/25 academic year I made the decision to write weekly teaching reflections, which I published publicly on LinkedIn. Here I explain my reasoning behind this, and the impact it had.

Why reflect?

Teaching is challenging – ask any teacher, and they will tell you! This past year was particularly challenging, because I was assigned to work exclusively with our alternative provision faculty.

This meant that I was teaching GCSE English Language to groups of pre16 and post16 students, most of whom had high learning needs, were recovering from trauma, experienced high anxiety, displayed challenging behaviours, and had been failed by mainstream schools in a myriad of different ways. To help them to re-engage in education (and specifically GCSE English) I had to re-think my approach to teaching, which meant ripping up the resits rule book and starting again.

I already knew from previous experience that working with high-needs learners in alternative provision is often stressful, so I needed to find a way to help me cope with this.

I also knew that if I didn’t take the time at the end of each week to sit and think (to really think) about the successes and the struggles, then I would end up drowning in a pool of negativity. No. More than just a pool. A hungry, swirling whirlpool threatened to pull me under every Friday. Writing a teaching reflection was the lifejacket that kept me afloat.

Why reflect publicly?

Reflecting is something that most teachers do all the time: we are constantly thinking about our students’ progress, evaluating the impact of a lesson or a learning activity, and pondering how to improve things next time. I knew that if I reflected privately (perhaps in a notebook or journal) then I would be less likely to continue with it, so I made the decision to post these weekly reflections on LinkedIn, where anyone could read them, to make me more accountable.

What do I mean by “beyond the looking glass”?

Now, we all know that social media is fraught with difficulty. In many ways, social media is a place where we often present a distorted version of ourselves: where we look better, we sound more productive, we live more exciting and more perfect lives. Social media is a like a warped mirror: it reflects back to us a version of someone who doesn’t really exist, but we still share this strange image with the online world, where we strive to be “the fairest of them all”.

Although the word “reflection” reminds most people of looking into a mirror, the act of reflection is more about gazing deeply inside of yourself. It is not about crafting a more attractive version of who you want the world to see; it is about trying to discover truths.

Why share teaching reflections?

Rather than thinking of a reflection as a mirror image, I think that the act of reflecting is more like the opening of a window; through sharing my teaching reflections each week, I was not only offering a glimpse inside my classroom, but I was also looking outside, beyond my four walls, at the larger landscape.

Posting my reflections on LinkedIn created the possibility of connecting with other FE professionals across the UK. I was not seeking praise or “likes” or any sort of hollow flattery: I was trying to share my true experiences of teaching in FE, warts and all, and I didn’t really know what the reactions would be (or even if anyone would want to read them).

I made the effort to write truthfully about the struggles as well as the successes in my classroom. I wanted to give an accurate impression of what it is like teaching on the frontline, every week, and looking back at those reflections now, I am proud of my openness and honesty. More than a few people have told me that my reflections were “raw”. This reassures me that my writing has been frank and realistic, which was my goal all along.

Afterall, what’s the point of writing a teaching reflection if it isn’t true? It may not always present the “ideal” version of who we are, but it does present an honest snapshot of how things were that week, and opens a window into our pedagogy.

How did this impact me?

I cannot express enough how much writing these reflections helped my mental health. There were times when I was so tired, stressed, and was second-guessing my teaching, that the simple act of thinking and writing about my experiences lightened my load. I was subsequently reassured when other teachers told me that my experiences resonated with them. Knowing that I was not alone in my experiences helped me to feel connected to the wider FE community, far beyond the confines of my own desk, classroom, or college.

What’s my hot take?

Yes, sharing your honest teaching reflections online can be scary (it definitely made me feel vulnerable) but sharing our experiences in this way establishes the context for so many possibilities: for conversations, for connections, and for deeper contemplation about what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, and how we can make it better. Reflections really do open a window to the wider world.

Call to action:

Connect with Matthew Ruddle via LinkedIn

If you want to learn more about LinkedIn and how you can leverage the platform to make connections, do sign up to our AmplifyFE webinar on Friday 14 Nov 2025 from 12:00 PM to 12:30 PM AmplifyFE Community Space Workshop: How to master LinkedIn to achieve your goals