Assignments sometimes ask that students think about the links between theory and practice.

Depending on your discipline this might take different forms. But what unites these tasks is the requirement to think about how what is written about something relates, or does not relate, to that thing as you, or others, have experienced it.

For example, a nursing student might be given an assignment which asks them to think about the links between theory and practice in patient care. Here, they are being asked to compare what is said in the theory – in the existing writing about patient care – with what can be seen in practice – in their own experiences of a healthcare setting. They might see that the theory exactly matches with what you see. They might see differences. This is interesting to reflect upon.

To take another example, a student in Education might be asked to think about theory and practice in children’s experiences of learning to read. They might look at journal articles and educational reports on the topic. They might also see children learning to read in an educational setting. Or they might talk to teachers and other educators about their experiences of children’s learning. Reflecting on these things brings together theory and practice. It helps us to think about learning and to be evaluative of the academic research.

Linking theory and practice, then, is often about comparing your reading (books, articles, reports) with your experiences.