My inquiry is all about the position of dance and drama within the National Curriculum and I am particularly interested in secondary teachers views.
If you have five minutes, please, please, please, fill it in!
Thanks
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KG6RNRX
Tuesday 4 November 2014
Wednesday 8 October 2014
The Beginning of the End!
Approaching the final stage of the degree seems very
daunting to say the least! The feedback I had received from module two was good
and I am happy with what I had proposed.
My initial main concerns with this module are a) the volume
of words we are expected to write and b) the artefact.
Most of my thoughts over the summer have been about the
artefact and what my artefact could be. My inquiry will relate to teachers and
so I knew that I would want it to be informative and laid out in a professional
manner. However, at the same time I still wanted it to be nice to look at and
something that I could put together quite creatively. I decided this could be
done by presenting, for example, bar charts using ballet shoes.
I am currently working to put together a questionnaire to be
completed by secondary teachers of all subjects because ultimately, it is their
views I am after.
Sunday 11 May 2014
Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry
Critical Reflection of Module 2
Introduction
After developing underpinning knowledge in module one, module two gave me an opportunity for professional growth. By expanding on what I had learnt, I was about to embark on a process of inquiry through which I will be able to “further investigate, explore, evaluate and understand your professional practice.” (Reader 4).
Principles of Professional Inquiry
Developing my own lines of inquiry I was struck by the comments of Kahn et. O’Rouke (2004) who stated in respect of the adult learner that they should “engage with relevant problems and scenarios, draw on existing knowledge, seek out new evidence, and analyse and present that evidence in appropriate ways.” My initial questions were all related and relevant to the fundamentals of teaching as well as my own experience with regards to this. (Appendix 1). I selected the questions which I felt not only most strongly about, but also the questions that I felt had the most potential to be developed I then critiqued each of the questions in my blog. Here I also noticed an improvement in the maturity of my writing in the way that I critically examined the negative as well as positive aspects of the questions. (Appendix 2). Although I made use of resources outside of the degree course, I feel that I could have benefitted more with a greater use of my SIG in this early stage of the inquiry process as I quote from my personal journal that I was “... feeling a bit unsure about where to go next with my questions” (D’Arcy, A, 2014). This is an area where using SIG would helped me establish where to go next.
Professional Ethics
My learning in this area begins with me stating the knowledge I already have. (Appendix 3). The list I had written was very basic and I had failed to consider the consequences to both others and myself if these ethical considerations were to be ignored. As I delved deeper into this topic with a focus on ethics within the workplace, it became apparent to me that the issue of ‘Safeguarding’ played a vast part when considering ethics (Appendix 4). This was one of the reasons why I wanted to lead my inquiry away from using under sixteens. As I gained a better understanding of ethical contexts (Appendix 5) I had a growing awareness of the part ethics would play in my inquiry. I am mindful of Devine and Heath (1999) “A researcher’s personal biography... can influence the choice of research topic establishing what ethics are - broad subject”. This became evident as I started to plan my inquiry as noticed that my writing was heavily biased in my first draft.
Tools of Professional Inquiry
As Bell (2002) states “understanding the major advantages and disadvantages of each approach is likely to help you to select the most appropriate methodology for the task in hand”. Throughout this part of the module, I lacked evidence through my blogs to support my development of my methodology. However, as I drafted my inquiry plan, I decided on three principal research methodologies to gather the information and then compare and contrast it in the best and most suitable way. Task 6c provided with a way a way of developing my own ideas through reading the blogs of my peers. (Appendix 6). This blog is an exemplar of how using rationale in a mature and professional way has helped me achieve an ideal conclusion.
Conclusion
Through this process of critical reflection I have established a number of areas in which I can improve my interaction with my peers and development of my own knowledge. From module one, I have further developed a way of critically examining each of the topics and gained a greater awareness of the ethical considerations. This module has built upon my knowledge gained in Module One and has assisted me greatly in the planning of an inquiry into teachers’ attitudes to dance and drama teaching in schools. The lessons learned from Modules One and Two will become invaluable to me as I proceed into Module Three.
Appendix’s
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
Appendix 4
Appendix 5
Appendix 6
Bibliography
Bell, Judith (2005) Doing Your Research Project. NewYork.
Devine, Fiona and Heath, Sue (1999) Social Research Methods In Context. London.
Kahn, Peter and O’Rourke (2004) Guide to Curriculum Design: Enquiry-Based Learning, Heslington.
Task 6c: Award Title
Deciding on the award title I wish to receive has been a very difficult process. My formal training at The Hammond, Chester was in Professional Dance making “BA (Hons) Professional Practice (Dance)” the most apparent choice.
However, upon completion of this degree I plan to study for a PGCE in Performing Arts with the hope to eventually be a dance and drama teacher in a secondary school. With this in mind, my two main considerations are either, “BA (Hons) Professional Practice (Performing Arts)” or “BA (Hons) Professional Practice (Performing Arts Teaching)”. I still felt that by choosing either one of these, still left very specific to just one topic. And although my aim for the near future is to become a teacher, I still want to leave it open incase later in life, I decide that I want to change my career path. I
It was only until I read Natalie Martin’s blog about the rationale for her award title that I thought about making my own title in a similar way. I was interested in how she had used the word ‘and’ within her title which made it appear a broader subject range. Therefore I would now like my proposed award title to be, “BA (Hons) Professional Practice (Performing Arts and Teaching)”.
Friday 2 May 2014
Task 5c: Ethical Contexts
Ethics as a topic is one which carries a vast amount of information. Through the diagram shown in figure one cited in Reader 5 (2013/14) it illustrates that the three main contexts in which ethics are considered are, personal, professional and organizational, which in turn affect society.
If I think about these ethical contexts and how they relate to me, when I consider personal ethics, it will ultimately be informed from my family values. I will use these values to help me be considerate and well prepared throughout the inquiry process. As my inquiry will partly be done in secondary school, this is where professional ethics will need to be considered. I will do this by, where concerned, following the school’s ‘code of conduct’ and keep any information I receive confidential.
As ethics evolved, we were made aware of different theoretical approaches to the topic, firstly through Aristotle who presented the idea of Virtue. Next brought Hobbes (1651) who’s view on ethics was Consequentialist. Kant (1779) believed in a Deontologist approach and Mill (1861) developed a theory of moral obligation published in his work as Utilitarianism.
Virtue
Virtue ethics is person rather than action based: it looks at the virtue or moral character of the person carrying out an action, rather than at ethical duties and rules, or the consequences of particular actions.
Consequentialism
Consequentialism says that right or wrong depend on the consequences of an act, and that the more good consequences are produced, the better the act.
Deontological
Deontological (duty-based) ethics are concerned with what people do, not with the consequences of their actions.
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism states that people should maximise human welfare or well-being (which they used to call 'utility' - hence the name).
All these fit into a theoretical, ethical framework which we use today to help us evaluate situations.
“As professions became more established and distinct they developed their own set of rules and norms. In tandem with this, professional codes of practice have developed in order to uphold the standards of the profession. Some professions have developed licences to practice and have professional bodies to oversee that codes and ethics are being adhered to.”
Reader 5 (2013/2014)
This highlights how ethics have developed and that professional ethics play a big part. As a profession becomes more established, they have developed licences to practice and a professional body has been introduced to oversee this. For example, in teaching you now need a PGCE or QTC followed by an NQT before you are considered “fully qualified” ) and OFSTED represent the professional body which make sure that ethics and regulations are being adhered to.
References
Reader 5, Middlesex University, 2013/2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/301107/Teachers__Standards.pdf
Monday 7 April 2014
Task 5b: Ethics within the workplace
After completing task 5a and coming to find out what the “actual” ethical policies were at the school I am working at, I thought it would have been much easier to get hold of! Obviously the main issue within a school would be ‘safeguarding’ and for this, the information provided was plentiful with lots of “what to do if such and such happens” and the correct procedures you must follow. The more I was looking at the information however, the more I felt I needed to know about what was meant by the term ‘safeguarding’. It is a word used frequently when discussing ethics in a school environment yet one I feel is used without much thought behind it. I decided to google it and got this definition from the website: http://www.safenetwork.org.uk/getting_started/Pages/Why_does_safeguarding_matter.aspx
What is safeguarding?
It might be difficult to accept, but every child can be hurt, put at risk of harm or abused, regardless of their age, gender, religion or ethnicity.
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 outcome
and
“the action we take to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm - is everyone’s responsibility. Everyone who comes into contact with children and families has a role to play.”
In addition to this, there is a government website https://www.gov.uk/childrens-services/safeguarding-children which has over 30 different links to different to multiple types of information all to do with safeguarding which just illustrates how much data is out there and how important an issue child safety is.
Anyway, back to the workplace and I still could not get hold of a code of conduct. I asked one person who said they would need to ask another.On the website however, they did have a list of ‘policies’ but these were all aimed at the parents/pupils and not for the staff. This is a form of ethical considerations which I did not think about that as I had only looked at things from my point of view (staff). This just highlights that a document which every workplace must have, in any industry, is done just to “tick a box” and the information is not to hand for every employee. Obviously, this statement is only based on one incident so after making it, I cannot speak for every workplace as that may not be the case.
Friday 21 March 2014
Task 5a: Ethical Considerations
When I first started thinking about this task I felt like I could think of a large number of ethical values within my workplace. However when it came down to putting pen to paper, I found it harder than originally thought.
I wrote my ideas out in list form as I felt this would lay out my ideas in a clear and
informative manner.
- Safeguarding
- Data Protection
- Staff/Placement CRB check
- No physical contact with children
- Appropriate Language
- Wear suitable clothing/Be clean and presentable
- Equal opportunity/No discrimination (for both teachers and pupils)
- Discretion/Confidentiality - act in a professional manner
- Health and safety policies
- Follow the policies the school has - job contract/verbal agreement
All the above ideas were thinking about being in a school environment. However, you must also consider ethics out side the workplace that my affect you/have consequences within the workplace:
- Use of social media sites
- Inappropriate/reckless behavior
As shown in my initial list, the immediate point that came to mind when thinking about ‘ethics’ within a school/teaching environment, was safeguarding. It is essential that a child must feel in a safe environment and as a teacher you must be aware of changes that may indicate something is wrong. As well as a role model, you also need to be someone that a pupil can trust.
As it stands at the moment, my inquiry does not involve focus groups or similar activities involving the pupils (as I aware some people maybe doing something along these lines) however, if it was, the idea of safe guarding is something I would need to take into consideration.
Task 4
After speaking to another professional who was in the teaching field, I developed my questions making them better and also ruling out some of the ideas where I felt there would not be much room to carry out a strong inquiry.
The question I liked most was number 10 :
“Some students who are less able academically can excel in these creative subjects. Why is this? And can doing these subjects benefit them in the academic subjects?”
It was decided that the way I’d written it was biased as I had based the question with a particular student in mind. In order for my inquiry to be successful I will need to take into consideration the ethics behind questions asked and also take into account safeguarding of children and data protection. I re-wrote the question now making it what I feel is “more inquiry friendly”:
“In what ways do pupils benefit from creative subjects within school and can these benefits be transferred to their learning in other subjects?”
I then brought this question up for discussion at the last campus session where Alan helped me develop the ideas that this question provoked. I have put these ideas onto a spider diagram (below) which I found really helpful as I could see everything down on paper infront of me and it showed more clearly the links between different ideas.
I have posted this question onto my SIG group and am still waiting for comments and ideas from my peers but would welcome suggestions on here too!
In terms of the way I would carry out my research for this inquiry, I would take a humanities approach.
Analytical, Critical and Speculative.
This is something Alan discussed at the last campus session and although I have not blogged about it myself, if you read Geri Masucci’s Blog, I feel that she has summed up well what was taught and discussed. In particular, the idea of 'positionality' and how your own positionality will potentially affect your inquiry.
Thursday 13 February 2014
Task 4a: Developing Lines of Inquiry
So I’m sat in Middlesex University waiting for the campus session to begin and Module 2 is now seeming even more real! I have been trying to tackle reader 4 but I’m thinking it’s going to take a few more reads yet until I fully understand!
Being here this early would seem a good opportunity to post my questions up on here and after seeing that others have already uploaded theirs, I feel more confident!
As teaching is a career I would love to peruse upon completion of this degree, that is the subject area I decided to focus my questions on. I am also aware this is a career path many others on this course are looking into and therefore a good top to discuss!
- What makes a good teacher?
- Will my experience of professional training at a performing arts college help me more or less than than doing a dance degree at university when trying to persue a career in teaching?
- Does being so young affect staff/students taking me seriously as a teacher?
- How does teaching a creative subject such as dance/drama compare to teaching a more academic subject?
- How does my teaching style compare to a more experienced practitioner?
- Will people people take me less seriously as a dancer for going straight into a teaching career as opposed to performing first?
- In such creative subjects, how do you find a “happy medium” between creativity and discipline as a teacher?
- As a teacher how do you encourage the students who are less willing to join in?
- How do you determine the best route to take in order to achiever your teaching qualification?
- Some students who are less able academically can excel in these creative subjects. Why is this? And can doing these subjects benefit them in the academic subjects?
Please feel free to comment and let me know your opinions!
Tuesday 28 January 2014
Back to Reality!
So with the holiday season well and truly over it’s time to get back to work and start looking at Module 2. Despite sitting down with the intention of doing “uni work”, once again I ended up on Facebook and was horrified to come across this article about how every year, hundreds of Calderon dolphins, are killed for “fun” as a “right of passage” in the Denmark.
I quickly exited the site without thinking anymore of it other than how cruel it was and disgusted at the people who would participate in such activity.
It wasn’t until a few days later (when I was on Facebook again) that I came across this:
I feel this is a perfect example of how you cannot just accept the first source of information you read as the truth and shows the importance of making a deeper inquiry.
As it states in Reader 4, module 2 introduces you to, “a process of inquiry through which you will be able to further investigate, explore, evaluate and understand your professional practice.” I thought that this was just a small (not entirely relevant) example of what we are about to develop as we begin to put together ideas for our own professional inquiry’s.
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