I mentioned in an earlier post about changing my 'normal' comfortable lesson plan and trying a different technique and method after discussing assumptions. Reading back over my journal i found i was very nervous about doing this but really enjoyed the experience; mainly as the response i got from my students was wonderful. To see them working creatively together and thinking more about learning to experience feeling in movement rather than the outcome being a perfectly demonstrated step or sequence was wonderful and reminded me why i had started dancing in the first place - because of how dance and movement can make you feel.
I compared this experience directly with an interview question that i had asked 'what teaching methods do you use when teaching children?' The practitioners who work within my practice listed teaching methods typical to that of working toward a specific outcome, teaching methods that i always use within my lesson plans; 'group and individual feedback, physical and verbal correction, task setting' However those from a creative background did not mention physical correction at all: 'community techniques which include everyone and are more therapeutic to a dance school framework. Trying to engage all with the intention of learning from the process rather than the outcome.' However both backgrounds had undertaken safe guarding courses and were aware of policies within their own practice regarding child protection.
Whilst dance i feel needs some kind of physical correction in order to achieve goals such as exams, this creative technique is something i will try and include in my lesson plans regularly in order to achieve a more well rounded practice.
Monday, 2 November 2015
Thursday, 15 October 2015
update of inquiry progress
I have contacted and spoken with 2 other practitioners who work and studied in a more creative dance environment to that of my own. I have interviewed them using the same questions as those asked of my peers who work within my dance school to compare and see experiences beyond my own. I will blog more on this and the comparisons made in regards to my inquiry later.
Taking on board these different techniques of teaching, i planned a class last night different to my usual style of teaching and took on a more creative approach, involving them choreographing their own pieces of dance. I gave my students 4 steps related to their genre and grade and gave them some free music, asked them to discuss how the music made them feel/think and then got them to dance that feeling, using the steps given as well as their own. It was interesting to see them talk about the music and it was awkward to start but once the class relaxed they produced some lovely choreography. We did not talk about technique at all, nor did i correct any steps that were not picture perfect. I have written about this on more detail last night in my journal which i will post and use as evidence later.
I planned and led this class with somatic practice in mind (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatics) and my next step is to look at other learning theories such as that of Schon, reflecting more and link to my inquiry using literature.
Our own practice needs to be constantly reviewed - things change such as syllabus and we as practitioners must go on courses to update our knowledge and keep our ideas fresh. CPD is essential in this profession. As well as going on these courses, speaking to other professionals outside our own practice is invaluable and i have found this so helpful in terms of now mixing up my lesson plans and trying out different ideas.
In direct relation to my inquiry i took a basic safeguarding course over the summer and have since updated this, taking a more in depth course online via high speed training; safeguarding is a buzzword right now. There are many articles on young people pushing themselves too far in order to achieve what is expected of them (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-12/intense-competition-drives-young-dancers-to/6848432)
As much as laws are in place for protecting children, they are pushing themselves in order to achieve what they feel is neccesary to be successful.
Another interesting article relating to the loss of the 'soul' in dance http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/jul/12/contemporary-dance-debate-shechter-khan-newson-laban-students-training
Taking on board these different techniques of teaching, i planned a class last night different to my usual style of teaching and took on a more creative approach, involving them choreographing their own pieces of dance. I gave my students 4 steps related to their genre and grade and gave them some free music, asked them to discuss how the music made them feel/think and then got them to dance that feeling, using the steps given as well as their own. It was interesting to see them talk about the music and it was awkward to start but once the class relaxed they produced some lovely choreography. We did not talk about technique at all, nor did i correct any steps that were not picture perfect. I have written about this on more detail last night in my journal which i will post and use as evidence later.
I planned and led this class with somatic practice in mind (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatics) and my next step is to look at other learning theories such as that of Schon, reflecting more and link to my inquiry using literature.
Our own practice needs to be constantly reviewed - things change such as syllabus and we as practitioners must go on courses to update our knowledge and keep our ideas fresh. CPD is essential in this profession. As well as going on these courses, speaking to other professionals outside our own practice is invaluable and i have found this so helpful in terms of now mixing up my lesson plans and trying out different ideas.
In direct relation to my inquiry i took a basic safeguarding course over the summer and have since updated this, taking a more in depth course online via high speed training; safeguarding is a buzzword right now. There are many articles on young people pushing themselves too far in order to achieve what is expected of them (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-12/intense-competition-drives-young-dancers-to/6848432)
As much as laws are in place for protecting children, they are pushing themselves in order to achieve what they feel is neccesary to be successful.
Another interesting article relating to the loss of the 'soul' in dance http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/jul/12/contemporary-dance-debate-shechter-khan-newson-laban-students-training
Friday, 2 October 2015
Trying to organise the messy stage
My Title:
The Importance of Safeguarding Children and How It Has Affected Dance Teaching
The term 'safeguarding' needs to be defined.
Safeguarding legislation and government guidance says that safeguarding means:
Protecting children from maltreatment
preventing impairment of children's health or development
ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care
taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes
The ISTD who i work under have their own child protection policy:
After completing my field research and making my own assumptions i need to compare this to what is available in my literature, how it differs, if comparisons can be made etc. I also need to look at other points of view and perhaps speak to someone from a more 'creative' background/working environment.
Is there anyone on the course from this kind of background or who teaches in this way who would be able to speak with me about this topic?
After discussions/interviews with my practitioners and through literature i have had my eyes opened to safeguarding being not just a physical protection of children but an emotional/mental protection too. How you speak to and direct children needs to be thought about in more detail as well as how you refer to dance when teaching. Thinking about why the children come to dance class and what sort of experience i can offer them is what i want to find out; i would like to be able to offer them a more well rounded view from what i will learn through more literature, other peoples points of views.
I will think about the 'routine' of my own classes and perhaps re structure slightly in order to see how this might benefit students - will they prefer routine or enjoy this more well rounded approach - i will write in my journal about this to record what i learn.
Exploring this subject will be valuable to myself and other practitioners as its a hot topic that isnt always talked about due to its vastness.
Tuesday, 29 September 2015
Looking beyond my own practice
I have been doing some research on community dance, something i have never taught or worked in, having always worked within the western codified environment, often working towards examinations and making progress on paper and in technique, rather than the creative aspect of dance.
Having grown up in the kind of dance school that i now work for, other teaching techniques are something i have little knowledge in. I trained in ISTD syllabus and was told ultimately what was right or wrong in order to pass my teaching exams. I have never taught much 'creativity' as i am normally focusing on helping children through their dance exams and correcting them in order to help them receive their desired grade by getting the syllabus right. Then when it comes to choreographing show pieces i am frustrated when children don't understand how to dance the emotion or feeling behind the music and movement. Does anyone on the course work or teach wihin a community dance school or work mainly on creativity and understanding?
I have found some interesting articles online which i will blog further about later on in the week. This one in particular mentions the coming together of technical and creative.
http://www.communitydance.org.uk/DB/animated-library/in-its-purest-form.html?ed=14067
Having grown up in the kind of dance school that i now work for, other teaching techniques are something i have little knowledge in. I trained in ISTD syllabus and was told ultimately what was right or wrong in order to pass my teaching exams. I have never taught much 'creativity' as i am normally focusing on helping children through their dance exams and correcting them in order to help them receive their desired grade by getting the syllabus right. Then when it comes to choreographing show pieces i am frustrated when children don't understand how to dance the emotion or feeling behind the music and movement. Does anyone on the course work or teach wihin a community dance school or work mainly on creativity and understanding?
I have found some interesting articles online which i will blog further about later on in the week. This one in particular mentions the coming together of technical and creative.
http://www.communitydance.org.uk/DB/animated-library/in-its-purest-form.html?ed=14067
starting back
On Friday i joined a skype chat with Paula, Adelosa and a few others on the BAPP course. It was really good to talk and get back into the right mindset for uni - i felt quite overwhelmed after coming off the call but in a positive way!
We talked about assumptions, questioning our question and looking further than our own field of practice something that had been mentioned in my feedback at the end of module 2. I had become consumed with what i already knew about my question (how safeguarding of children has effected dance teaching) rather than exploring teaching outside a western codified dance technique/environment, in which i live, work and teach in.
Ultimately what i want to get out of my question is what kind of teacher do i want to be and what is going to benefit me and my students in my practice with the teaching methods i use. The biggest point that was made on Friday was looking outside my own practice and after talking about this i need to explore the following:
We talked about assumptions, questioning our question and looking further than our own field of practice something that had been mentioned in my feedback at the end of module 2. I had become consumed with what i already knew about my question (how safeguarding of children has effected dance teaching) rather than exploring teaching outside a western codified dance technique/environment, in which i live, work and teach in.
Ultimately what i want to get out of my question is what kind of teacher do i want to be and what is going to benefit me and my students in my practice with the teaching methods i use. The biggest point that was made on Friday was looking outside my own practice and after talking about this i need to explore the following:
- How dance syllabus has changed and whether or not that has affected how teaching methods have changed
- Looking at a more creative based dance school, rather than one that concentrates on further education and examinations
- Looking at safeguarding and the protection of children as a whole not just a physical point
This last point is something i had stumbled upon when looking at literature last term. I read a report of eating disorders within dance schools and how the mental and psychological effect of how a dance should look can take hold of students. Dance has been accused of being 'abusive' due to certain dance teaching techniques, looking at the discipline involved in dance, I plan to research some literature on these points before blogging again and perhaps adjusting my question slightly. any suggestions/comments greatly received !
Sunday, 3 May 2015
“Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry”.
Initially I found it hard to find my line
of inquiry as I had a number of different questions and ideas that I was
interested in.(appendix A) I took part in an online skype session and was
comforted to hear a lot of others on the course were also struggling to find
direction. I knew once I had a focus I would find it easier to continue so sent
out my different questions to work colleagues and employers to see what their
opinion on the subjects were. After some further reading and discussions with
those in my community of practice and on the course I decided to continue to
explore the safeguarding of children and whether or not it has affected dance
teaching. It was an issue that I was dealing with on a daily basis as a dance
teacher and found when talking to my peers that it was something they too were
becoming more aware of (Appendix B). Continued research led me to learn that the topic
was currently being discussed in higher education (Appendix C)) and realised this could
be a very interesting focus.
After reading Adelosa’s blog regarding
ethics and making ‘assumptions’ I found that my own feelings and opinions on
the subject due to my style of teaching were affecting my reviews initially of
literature and swaying questions and conversations toward certain points (Appendix D). I
have now focused on keeping my research neutral rather than trying to find an
‘answer’ that I agree with before conducting and completing my research. I have
learnt that my topic is one with many ethical considerations due to children
being involved; there is much literature on dance teaching and its ethics (appendix F) and I
am very aware of handling this subject sensitively.
The literature available on safeguarding
policies online was extensive as the safeguarding of children has become a
great focus over the past 15 years but I soon found there was a lack of 'rules'
for those in dance education. There is set legislature for those in the medical
profession and other sports such as gymnastics and football but nothing for
dancing (Appendix E) I felt this was where the problem lay as dance teachers as a
group have nothing official to follow and wanted to explore this further and to
question teachers on this. I developed a few practice questions and dry ran a
few of these with colleagues and friends to see how this worked and supported
my research.(Appendix G) I also observed a friends dance class taking place and took notes
on how she taught in regards to physical corrections.(Appendix G) By conducting these ‘dry
runs’ I was able to plan how to continue my inquiry best and learn what
questions and techniques would be best suitable.
I hope that my learning over the course of
this module has allowed me to develop a significant and important subject to
study in my practice. I hope that the plan I have formulated from my learning
is successful and allows me to come to a conclusion that will benefit myself
and others in dance and dance education.
Appendices:
Part 6: using the tools
Over the past month i have tried out a number of the tools suggested to develop my inquiry and aid my research. Here are some examples of practice interviews, conversations and questions i have tried and tested via email and my SIG. I wasn't entirely sure how to go about my questioning as i have never conducted an 'interview' before so i kept very casual and spoke to a family member and a close friend and colleague of mine.
Consent has been given by all participants for these conversations to be posted, viewed and used as data.
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Consent has been given by all participants for these conversations to be posted, viewed and used as data.
Notes taken whilst observing a dance class
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