Perceptions of Translation Students about a Reflective Journal as an Assessment Tool

The present study investigated the perceptions of students about the use of a reflective journal with 42 students in an audiovisual translation class. They were required to write two reflective entries per week for 9 weeks and to complete a survey at the end of the semester. The results showed that most students indicated that it was their first time using a reflective journal, and it helped me organize and reflect what they learned in class. Moreover, the students claimed that their writing, translation, and critical thinking skills improved because of the reflective journal although the results of the t-tests showed a significant difference only with respect to critical thinking skills and being worried about mistakes in writing entries. However, there was a strong positive conclusion from the participants that reflective journal writing was a good assessment tool in class, for it helped them to reflect on their learning and to become self-regulated learners. The results of this study indicate that using reflective journals or e-portfolio can be good alternative assessment methods in order to increase learning autonomy and to understand learning process of students.