Skype Discussion: 27th November: Questioning construct

On Wednesday morning I engaged in a slightly different skype call to the others I've been a part of as this one only consisted of only three participants! One including Adesola, so the only other student was Tom who is also currently in module one. Initially I felt a sense of anxiety as I realised I'd really have to vocally contribute, which as a performer you think I'd be used to by now (sadly not). But the whole experience was incredibly helpful and I believe that between the three of us we managed to construct a relevant, thought provoking discussion.

Tom and I are both in the process of refining our Essay and diagram submissions which formed the background of our conversation. I was able to share the feedback I'd had from Adesola which had prompted me to make some improvements to my writing style. To elaborate, my first draft was very wordy and without realising it, my anxieties around not appearing 'academic' resulted in me inserting hundreds of citations, regardless of their impact. When I was instructed that to correctly format my essay, I needed to place all quotations on a separate line it highlighted to me how disjointed my writing had become. The document almost felt like a Wikipedia style fact page as opposed to an explanation of my personal practice. What I perceive to be relevant- how the theory actually applies TO ME.

Therefore, I used my initiative to research a little about APA citations and I came across a website which explained quotations should be used scarcely and only if absolutely necessary. Instead one should aim to explain a citation in their own words, whilst still correctly making reference to the original source. This was a bit of a lightbulb moment for me. Relating back to Kolb's learning cycle (1984), Kolb explains how knowledge is attained through experiences and then the transformation of these experiences into action. (Kolb, 1984, p. 41) By using reflective observation, I learnt from viewing paraphasing examples online and used this knowledge to make adjustments to my work:

Examples of Paraphrasing rather than direct quotations

EXAMPLE 1

BEFORE:

This follows the emphasis Lo et al place on student variations as they explain

“Crucial is a deep and thorough understanding of the different ways by which students come to acquire the capability targeted”. (2002, p. 4). 

AFTER:

This follows the emphasis Mun Ling Lo et al place on student variations. They explain how vital it is to understand how contrasting capabilities require adjustable targets. (Lo et al, 2002, p. 4). 

EXAMPLE 2

BEFORE:

Twyla Tharp explains that this type of Tacit knowledge

'doesn't need to be accessed through conscious effort'. (Tharp and Reiter, 2006 p 65.) 

AFTER:

Twyla Tharp, author of 'The Creative Habit' (Tharp and Reiter, 2006 p 65.) explores this type of tacit knowledge which she characterises as automatic, non-verbal and sensed rather than articulated. 

As you can see, rather than just inserting direct quotations from another source, I was able to convert what I was trying to say into my own words. Inadvertently this made the essay a little less 'academic' in my eyes which prompted me to reflect on where my focus is being directed. I was prioritising the correct writing style and proving how much theory had been understood rather than selecting what was necessary. Adesola described this in a different way by explaining students need to be telling their own story, saying what they want to say rather than just saying what they predict the tutors want to hear. 

Tom and I then both reflected on our past experiences of the notion of academia. What does it mean to be academic? My initial thought is intelligent, erudite, logical, correct. Ken Robinson describes in his book Out of our Minds, how seemingly academic subjects like mathematics and history are placed at the top of a hierarchy and the arts are at the bottom. (Robinson, 2017, p.9). I think this is a projected assumption within the education system and one which students are likely to inherit. I have memories of my teachers at Dance college almost insinuating that none of us were fit for academia, we were instead creative, as though the two are separate labels. 

Adesola challenged us with this perception. Academic is not a 'thing'. It's not a category you wake up and fall into much like one doesn't just become a celebrity. These ideas are the constructs created by other people which help us make sense of identity. There is safety in the streamlining of categories: academic/non academic. Famous/unknown. We perhaps fill these identities to reach the expectations of others, or embrace them to help us make sense of who we are. 

But how limiting to define oneself in such a way? In reality the world is objective; a result of social interactions and subsequent meanings. Instead our skills and qualities are fluid, on a spectrum, ever changing according to our environment. As Claire Robson explains, our identity is not just given to us, but through reflexive activities it is continually recreated. (Robson, 2012, p. 3).

The following video supports the idea of social construction and how it influences our identities. Florencia Escobedo Munoz questions some asumptions about her culture, and describes how these external views impact on her own concept of self.

How Our Identities Are Socially Constructed: 

Florencia Escobedo Munoz TEDxColegioAngloColombiano

Reflecting on my assumptions of intelligence which partly have been infuenced by the messages within the industry, is an example of critical thinking, or critical refection. Robert Ennis describes this as:

“the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action.” (Ennis, 2015)

By engaging in this method of thinking, I am able to realise that my beliefs are not concrete. There can be a continuum apon which performers can study, self educate, be intellectual as well as creative and so on. The transdisciplinary approach of my practice almost justifies this notion as mathematical skills used in my admin contrast from my communicative skills in my teaching. Performers have to juggle many disciplines in order to make a living and in realising this, Tom and I both acknowledge a ease in pressure relating to the assignment. Rather than desperately strriving to include every theory and every quotation under the sun, I will dig deep and think about what I really want to say, then work at conveying this in an appropriate tone. Therefore, I am placing myself 'somewhere' on the intangible spectrum of academia!

Bibliography

Ennis, Robert H. (2015) , "Critical Thinking", The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Thinking in Higher Education, Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN  9781137378057, retrieved 17 Oct 2019.

How Our Identities Are Socially Constructed. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIuJT1n2vRY

Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development (Vol. 1). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Lo, M. L., Pong, W. Y., Marton, F., Leung, A., Ko, P. Y., Ng, F. P., et al. (2002).Catering for individual differences building on variation: The first findings. Hong Kong: INSTEP, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong.

Robinson, K. (2017). Out of our minds: learning to be creative. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Robson, C. (2012). Writing for change: research as public pedagogy and arts-based activism. New York: P. Lang.

Tharp, T. & Reiter, M. (2006). The Creative Habit: learn it and use it for life: a practical guide, New York, Simon and Schuster.

Networking: Collaboration, community and competition.

I haven't been able to post in a while due to my focus being intently on finalising my first draft submission! I was very tentative in sending it to Adesola, mainly because I have the usual self doubt demons running on autopilot, convincing me that I've done the work all wrong. In moments of self observation, I then have the ability to question my assumptions and affirm to myself one of the first concepts I noted at the start of the year. There is no end goal, no right or wrong. Questions lead to more questions and that is the nature of this study course.

Mindmap of Lens 3: Networks, Community and Connectivism.

In reflection, I can see that my standard approach to fulfilling a task such as an essay submission is to isolate myself, get my head down and work. I sometimes struggle to shift focus between different tasks, and in the process of writing I perceived any straying from my assessment as a 'distraction'. How ironic when writing about the importance of networks, affiliation and interactivity I was in fact contradicting this notion all together and NOT communicating. The BAPP community of practice is an example of “a group who share a common interest” where “the desire to learn from and contribute to the community with their variety of experiences” (Lave & Wenger, 1991) substantiates the generation of knowledge. There is no doubt that learning through interaction is of benefit. In fact, Siemans states “We can no longer seek to posses all needed knowledge personally. We must store it in our friends or within technology” (2006, p 51). I know that I have learnt a lot from reading the blogs of my fellow peers, especially when I am able to comment which sparks subsequent discussion. Equally the Skype discussions create innovative ideas from alternative perspectives which encourages me to embrace the diversity of input.

So if I can opening acknowledge the advantages of networking within a community, where does my resistance come from?

One factor could be my natural predisposition to introversion. Over the years I have found this to be quite a contrast to many musical theatre performers within my networks who seem to be closer to extrovert qualities. Extroverts typically gain energy from interactions, whilst introverts feel the opposite and need individual time to revitalise after social encounters. In everyday life, being an introvert may cause few recognisable consequences, but there may be implications within a professional network, especially in a profession such as the arts which is sadly a lot about 'who you know'. 

However, there is certainly a difference in willingness to participate within different networks. For example, whilst I may be tentative about contribution to a wide network of ISTD Teachers due to my perception of inadequacy, I would be more inclined to engage in a close knit team of staff at a dance school who are putting together a show. Especially if I felt inspired with creative ideas I wanted to share, and particularly if I knew that these ideas may be received without judgement. The slight change in perspective from 'networking' to 'collaborating' offers a voluntary approach which feels less suppressing than the need to network for ones own advances. Hargreaves and Dawe describe collaboration as “evolutionary relationships of openness, trust and support among teachers where they define and develop their own purposes as a community”. (1990). On the surface this sounds harmonious, but in reality human relationships consist of clashing personalities and agendas which complicate matters.

This leads me on to 'game theory' which relates to the notion of corporation, conflict and returns. In game theory, “any actions taken by the user may affect the performance of others in the same network segment”. (Lin et al, 2018). In other words, all the nodes in a network hold an element of responsibility towards the meanings and relationships within that group, where responses depend on actions encountered. 

This made me consider the potential problems which arise within a professional network. Of course there is the factor of introvert vs extrovert and the existence of lurkers online who tend to browse from a distance with limited contribution. This could be due to confidence issues as already mentioned or there may be a deeper ulterior motive which perhaps is particularly apparent in the showbiz industry which is a highly competitive field. My experience of the game when I was in the audition circuit, was that values were frequently cast aside and performers would do whatever they could to get ahead, like some sort of 'survival of the fittest'. That doesn't necessarily mean that all performers are vehemently bad people with no moral obligations, it's just the way the industry is via years of construction. Therefore, it feels counterintuitive to openly corporate with members of a network who could potentially be competition.

An example of this I can relate to is during my DDE ISTD teaching course. All candidates attended weekly sessions where we'd often be put on the spot to talk about innovative teaching methods we had conjured up. By vocalising an idea which one has piloted, you then have revealed something which other candidates could use to their advantage in their own exam. This could then lessen the innovation, the pride of having invented something which then becomes common knowledge. Conversely, this 'good idea' could be shared amongst the teaching community for the greater good, as surely the goal is to be able to influence good teaching practice for all children to benefit from? But one's desire to 'be better' may override the true intentions. Ultimately, if all contributors adopt this reluctancy to share, the whole group will suffer. As Kollock and Smith state; “ A lurker may withhold information because when they contribute, it benefits everyone in the community except for themselves. When everyone then chooses to withhold information, the collective benefit is no longer produced”. (1996).

Thankfully, when considering the BAPP community of practice, there is hopefully a less dog eat dog approach! It seems that when all parties corporate to their fullest extent, all benefit as a result which is why I am going to make it my intention to be more active in engaging with the online community. In doing so, I hope that the process will become increasingly instinctive so I can not only profit myself, but pass on the skillset of networking to my students. I came across the following video which expands upon the possibility of integrating networking theory into schools, thus providing students with a more active involvement in their own learning. Wouldn't this create more enthusiasm? An authentic and engaging experience? The predictable teaching philosophy in schools is outdated in today's current digital climate and surely embracing the wondrous communicative tools we have available can take the next generation to excelling standards?

Learning Networks Could Reconfigure Schools | Steve Regur | TEDxElCajonSalon

I'd be grateful for any thoughts on the above- especially as this would be conducive towards my communication aims! Lets not lurk, lets connect!

References

Hargreaves, A., Dawe, R. (1990) 'Paths of professional development: Contrived collegiality, collaborative cultures and the case of peer coaching' , Teaching and teacher education, 6 , (3) , pp. 227-41.

Kollock, P., Smith, M. (1996). Managing the virtual commons. Computer-mediated Communication: Linguistic, Social, and Cross-cultural Perspectives. Pragmatics & Beyond New Series. 39. pp. 109–128. doi:10.1075/pbns.39.10kol

Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. New York: Cambridge University Press.

"Learning networks could reconfigure schools". (2016, May 10). Retrieved November 11, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpsMDbBrAbQ

Lin, D., Wang, Q., & Yang, P. (2018). The Game Theory: Applications in the Wireless Networks. Game Theory - Applications in Logistics and Economy. doi: 10.5772/intechopen.79508

Siemens, G. (2006). Knowing knowledge. Winnipeg, MB.