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Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a six-stage reflective model developed by academic Graham Gibbs in 1988, moving through Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion and Action Plan to structure how you reflect on any experience.
Widely used in nursing, healthcare and education, it gives students a repeatable, markable structure for turning a placement or clinical experience into evidence-based learning.
Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle was introduced by Graham Gibbs in his 1988 book Learning by Doing. It breaks reflection into six sequential stages, giving students a repeatable structure instead of a vague, unfocused account of what simply happened.
The model is a staple of nursing, healthcare, social work and teacher-training courses across UK universities. Reflective logs, placement diaries and portfolio entries almost always follow its structure, because markers expect Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion and Action Plan, in that order.
Unlike Kolb’s experiential learning cycle or Schön’s reflection-in-action model, Gibbs separates feelings from evaluation and analysis. That extra structure makes it easier to mark against a rubric, and easier for a student writing their first nursing essay to follow without missing a stage.
Most nursing and healthcare programmes assess reflection because regulators expect practitioners to learn continuously from real situations, not just from lectures. A clear model like Gibbs makes that learning visible and easy to evidence.
Reflection is not just an academic exercise. The Nursing and Midwifery Council expects registrants to reflect on practice as part of revalidation, using real examples drawn from day-to-day care.
A structured cycle like Gibbs also protects you academically. Markers can quickly see whether each stage is present, so vague or rushed reflections lose marks even when the underlying experience was strong.
This matters beyond nursing too. Social work, teaching, paramedic and allied health courses all use similar reflective cycles, because regulators across UK professions require evidence of ongoing learning from practice.
Each stage asks a different question, moving from raw description toward a concrete action plan. Working through all six in order, without skipping ahead, is what separates a genuinely reflective piece from one that just retells events.
The table below summarises what each stage should cover and the question it answers, useful as a quick-reference gibbs reflective cycle template when you are planning a first draft.
| Stage | Key Question | What To Include |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Description | What happened? | Facts only — who, what, where, when. No judgement or emotion yet. |
| 2. Feelings | What were you thinking and feeling? | Your honest emotional response at the time, before any analysis. |
| 3. Evaluation | What was good and bad about it? | A balanced judgement of what worked well and what did not. |
| 4. Analysis | Why did it happen that way? | Link the experience to theory, policy or module reading, e.g. Gibbs (1988) or the NMC Code. |
| 5. Conclusion | What else could you have done? | What you learned, and what you would change with hindsight. |
| 6. Action Plan | What will you do next time? | Specific, realistic steps you will actually take in future practice. |
Seeing a full example of Gibbs reflective cycle in use makes the model easier to apply to your own placement notes. Below is a short, illustrative sample based on a common ward scenario.
Notice how each stage stays short and specific. A common error is writing three long paragraphs of description and then rushing the analysis and action plan into a single line.
Use the blank prompts below as a starting structure for your own reflection. Replace each bracketed line with your own detail, keeping every stage separate rather than blending them together.
Gibbs is not the only reflective framework taught on UK courses. Knowing how it compares to Schön’s model helps you choose the right structure and explain that choice in your introduction or methodology.
Donald Schön’s 1983 model splits reflection into “reflection-in-action” (thinking while doing) and “reflection-on-action” (thinking afterwards). It suits fast-moving clinical decisions; Gibbs suits a single, structured write-up after the event.
Other frameworks you may meet include Driscoll’s “What” model and Kolb’s experiential learning cycle. Most UK nursing and healthcare modules still default to Gibbs because its six fixed stages are simple to mark consistently.
There is no single “correct” choice. If your module handbook names Gibbs specifically, use Gibbs; if it simply asks for “structured reflection,” a short justification of your chosen model in your introduction is usually enough.
Reflective writing is marked on depth, not just structure. These recurring errors cost students marks even when every stage is technically present.
Reading your draft aloud, stage by stage, is a quick way to spot where description has crept into analysis, or where an action plan has become another vague evaluation.
A well-referenced reflection also needs consistent citation. Most nursing programmes use APA or Harvard, so check your module handbook and use our referencing and citation support guide if you are unsure.
If you searched for gibbs-donnan equilibrium, gibbs-donnan equation or gibbs-donnan effect, this is a different topic. It is a physical chemistry and physiology concept, unrelated to reflective practice.
The Gibbs-Donnan equilibrium describes how charged ions distribute unevenly across a semi-permeable membrane when one set of particles, such as plasma proteins, cannot cross it. It is named after physicist J. Willard Gibbs and chemist Frederick Donnan.
Confusing the two is an easy mistake given the shared surname, but the contexts are completely different: one is about ions crossing a membrane, the other is about learning from a placement shift.
It appears in biochemistry, physiology and renal medicine modules, not in reflective-practice or nursing-placement writing. If that is what you need, search specifically for Donnan membrane equilibrium content rather than Gibbs’ reflective model.
Structuring six honest, well-evidenced stages under a word limit is harder than it looks, especially alongside placement hours and other coursework deadlines. Expert guidance can help you see where a stage is thin.
As a UK essay writing service, we support nursing and healthcare students with model reflective pieces, structure feedback and referencing checks, so you can see how a strong model essay is built stage by stage.
Every reflective piece we help with includes a free plagiarism check, and you can message your writer directly to talk through a stage that feels thin before the final draft is delivered.
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Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a six-stage reflective model created by Graham Gibbs in 1988, covering Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion and Action Plan. It is widely used across UK nursing, healthcare and education courses to structure reflective essays, placement logs and portfolio entries into a clear, markable format.
The six stages are Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion and Action Plan. You move from stating the facts, to your emotional response, to judging what went well, analysing why, drawing conclusions, and finally planning specific, realistic changes for next time, based on what you actually learned.
Yes, a typical example works through all six stages using a real placement moment, such as a nursing student raising a medication safety concern. Each stage stays separate: facts, feelings, judgement, analysis, learning, then a specific action written in your own words.
Yes. A simple template lists the six stage headings, Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, Action Plan, with a prompt question under each one. Fill in your own detail under every heading, keeping each stage distinct rather than merging facts with feelings or judgement.
They are unrelated. Gibbs’ reflective cycle is an education and nursing framework for structuring reflection, created by Graham Gibbs in 1988. The Gibbs-Donnan equilibrium is a physical chemistry and physiology concept describing ion distribution across a membrane, named after a different Gibbs, physicist J. Willard Gibbs.
Nursing students use Gibbs’ cycle to write reflective essays and placement logs after a clinical experience, moving from facts and feelings through to a specific action plan. It helps demonstrate professional judgement and links directly to NMC revalidation and portfolio requirements.
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