A New kind of normal: Challenging ethics.

It seems impossible to think just two weeks ago, life was completely different. Towns were busy, theatre shows were thriving, and you could get a roll of toilet paper wherever you went. Now? Absolute madness. It feels so completely unreal that I am half wondering whether I really have gone mad from stress and whether this is all a terrible nightmare I’ll wake up from.
Sadly not.
 
I was struck this evening when I was reading through the Ethics section of the Module 2 handbook. The paragraph on Social and Cultural Ethics describes how society evolves over time, and with that becomes the notion of cultural normality. Something which needs to be considered when making judgements as what is defined as ‘normal’ - changes. (Akinleye, 2019).

This explanation couldn’t apply more in the current climate. People have been thrust out of their state of mundane expectations and into a situation which is entirely foreign. It has been demanded of us that our behaviour must change, and even if we didn’t intend on doing anything different- COVID-19 has other ideas. 
It breaks my heart to think about all of the businesses who will surely face bankruptcy in such circumstances. Dance schools have been forced to reconsider their use of Web 2.0, desperately trying to create a virtual community in less than a week just so they can stay afloat. I came across this article from the  Guardian which describes the devastation on the Arts industry:

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/16/uk-theatre-coronavirus-cancellations

It seems so unjust that everyone has to struggle in this way, especially in a field which has questionable ethics on any regular day. Or maybe that’s just me, an assumption? How is my practice impacted by the notion of ethics?

My learning so far has emphasised how important it is to critically reflect on my perspectives, especially from the position as a researcher within an inquiry.
To really challenge how I view the world is the only way I can delve deeper into the purpose of my inquiry question. (Which at the moment is looking at whether dance teacher methods have an impact on adolescent student wellbeing).
My natural instinct is to be drawn to literature, participants, angles which would only justify my preconceived belief that compassion is a vital quality in ensuring good training.
But in doing that, what would I learn? I’d just be gathering more and more entitlement to the fact that I hold that opinion! It would greatly reduce my ability to be reflexive. As IP 26 noted, ethics are
 
"an accumulation of values and principles that address questions of what is good or bad in human affairs. Ethics searches for reasons for acting or refraining from acting; for approving or not approving conduct; for believing or denying something about virtuous or vicious conduct or good or evil rules." (ALRC, 2001)


I therefore decided to create a table which took examples of assumptions from three ethical perspectives:

Reflecting on that activity, I’m aware how much harder the final row was to complete rather than the first row! Because the initial assumptions automatically come to mind. It’s also a challenge to separate the three categories as personal assumptions often seem to inform social and cultural assumptions and vice versa.

I do believe ethical considerations are important in my practice, especially when in a mode of self reflection. The following Ted talk is one I really enjoy. Here, Azol Terenez talks about how social and professional expectations in the teaching profession could mask what is really in front of Teacher’s eyes. A quick shift of perspective could majorly transform the quality of Teaching. 
A simple shift of mindset from a Teacher being a learner WITH the students, rather than a mere informer could drastically change their learning experience. 
Wow, why does that sounds so revolutionary? Possible because in society, history, education, the model of expertise against naivety has been repeated again and again.
I certainly want to experiment with the advice Terenez gives when I next teach (Whenever that may be in this crisis). Please do let me know what you think- any Teachers, I’d definitely give it a watch!

Video: What makes a good teacher great?

(Figure 1)

 
I don’t really know where I am going with all of this. It just seems impossible to neglect the complete cultural shift we have experienced in the last seven days. I have also been having to consider the ethical considerations and procedures in my inquiry. I’d hoped to be able to observe dance classes but this is not an option due to the ethics of involving minors. So I’m now planning to conduct interviews with Dance teachers, which still brings a wave of ethical factors to consider. (I’ve been drowning in the intimidation of the MORE form).

But I will try and keep choosing to question my assumptions, stop taking such cultural expectations for granted. Because what happens when you suddenly don’t know what to expect? When nothing is predictable anymore? When normality is destroyed and there is now, a very new, strange kind of normal….


References

Akinleye, A. (2019). Module Handbook ACI3622 Mapping Practices. London: Middlesex University.

Australian Law Reform Commission and Australian Health Ethics Committee, Protection of Human Genetic Information, IP 26 (2001), ALRC, Sydney, 106.
 
Terronez, Azul, director. What Makes a Good Teacher Great? Youtube, TEDX, 2 Feb. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrU6YJle6Q4. (Figure 1)