Objective To explore the effect of applying Gibbs′ reflective cycle in clinical teaching of students majoring in rehabilitation therapy. Methods Using the experimental control method, 88 students majoring in rehabilitation therapy from Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine who practiced in the rehabilitation department of the second affiliated hospital of Air Force Military Medical University from September 2022 to December 2023 were enrolled, and randomly divided into experimental group and control group, with 44 students in each group. The experimental group adopted Gibbs′ reflective cycle teaching method, while the control group adopted the traditional teaching method. After the teaching, the two groups of students′ theoretical knowledge, practical ability, critical thinking ability, and evaluation of their respective teaching Methods were compared. T-test and χ² text were used for statistical analysis. Results The knowledge test scores and test scores of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group [(92.71±2.93) vs. (88.76±3.19), (92.65±3.32) vs. (88.63±4.00)], and all the difference were statistically significant (all P＜0.001). The scores of critical thinking ability and teaching evaluation score of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group [ (292.95±11.42) vs. (279.25±12.38), (44.59±2.76) vs. (40.59±3.06)], and all the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (all P<0.001). Conclusions Gibbs′ reflective cycle can improve the clinical knowledge and practical skills of students majoring in rehabilitation therapy, and has a positive effect on the formation of critical thinking ability, which is highly recognized by students.