A Question Of Ethics

I have really enjoyed spending time broadening my knowledge of Ethics. The dictionary defines Ethics as - 'moral principles that govern a person's behaviour or the conducting of an activity.' (Anon, 2018) Initially this makes me think of the safeguarding and health and safety considerations that apply to my practice, Dance Teaching. The things that are very much recognised as bad on pretty much anyone's moral compass. For this reason there are now laws in place to ensure the line is never crossed. 

But Ethics isn't so black and white, often Ethics are a personal opinion or depend on a persons own moral values. Hence why guidelines, codes of conducts and laws are put in place. 

Ethical theory serves as the foundation for ethical solutions to the difficult situations people encounter in life. In fact, for centuries, philosophers have come up with theoretical ways of telling right from wrong and for giving guidelines about how to live and act ethically.( Panza and Potthast, 2010)

There are many Ethical Theories but I feel the below are most relevant to my practice - 

Virtue ethics states that character matters above all else. Living an ethical life, or acting rightly, requires developing and demonstrating the virtues of courage, compassion, wisdom, and temperance. It also requires the avoidance of vices like greed, jealousy, and selfishness.

Contract theory proposes thinking about ethics in terms of agreements between people. Doing the right thing means abiding by the agreements that the members of a rational society would choose. So for contract theorists, ethics isn’t necessarily about character, consequences, or principles.

Care ethics focuses ethical attention on relationships before other factors. As a result, acting rightly involves building, strengthening, and maintaining strong relationships. Acting rightly thus displays care for others and for the relationships of which they are a part. To care ethicists, relationships are fundamental to ethical thinking. (Panza and Potthast, 2010)

As a teacher I have developed and demonstrate compassion and wisdom towards my students as in Virtue Ethics. I also fit into the Contract Theory, teaching under a dance society I uphold their ethical values and code of conduct. I also have a duty of care towards my students ethically, ensuring I build and maintain strong and trustworthy relationships.

Above I have mentioned Code of Conduct, as a teacher for the ISTD I adhere to their code and principals, to maintain the reputation of the society, demonstrate personal best practice and teaching and act with integrity, courtesy and consideration. The code highlights 11 principals of practice, they are all equally as important but I feel some lead to more common discourse among dance teachers.

• Acknowledge their own professional limitations at any point at time, and not agree to do work in which they are not competent but engage in continual professional development to maintain and improve their professional competence.
• Use best endeavours to ensure that all teaching staff are of an appropriate level of competence. All members should encourage constructive communication between teachers and students and foster professional attitudes to work and Dance, acknowledge physical variety and limitations in a positive manner and seek to resolve problems by effective communication with students. (ISTD, 2016)

Have you ever experienced anything that may question the practice principals above? 

Dance teaching hasn't always been so well monitored, and there are many questions surrounding the methods used. Within the media dance teachers are often portrayed as pushy and as bullies. For example - Abby Lee Miller on Dance Moms, uses humiliation, favouritism, and threats to supposedly better her students.  The second episode of season 1 was even entitled ' Wildly Inappropriate'  However this would not be acceptable in any dance school I have worked in.

At vocational college dancers are exposed to more extreme methods of 'motivation' such as weekly weigh ins, punishments of extra physical workouts and verbal warnings of showcase numbers being pulled if not perfected.

I remember at college being made to dance 1 by 1 the opening of the showcase in front of everyone to prove we had the timing correct, this was a form of humiliation. I have been pushed into the splits and been left with pulled muscles from rigorous 'Bikini Body' workouts.

Are these methods acceptable? Should more be done to regulate dance training in a college setting? Often 'guest teachers' are professionals who have not gone through the in depth training required to teach and may not adhere to the same codes of conduct, leading them to teach how they were taught. 

Do you feel that 'tough love' made you the performer you are today? 

There is now so much support and material available to educate and inform Dance Teachers on how to provide best practice, but is there enough governing bodies to ensure this is being adhered to? Or do you think it is becoming too rigid? 

Bibliography 

Anon (2018) [online] https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/ethics [accessed October 2018]

ISTD Codes of Professional Standards and Practice (2015) [online] available at https://www.istd.org/site-search/?keywords=Code+of+Professional+Conduct+and+Practice+for+Teachers+of+Dance [accessed October 2018]
Panza, C Potthast, A (2010) Ethics for Dummies [online] available at https://www.dummies.com/education/philosophy/a-snapshot-of-key-ethical-theories/  [accessed October 2018]


References
Dance Moms (13th July 2011) [TV Programme] Network Lifetime

Image
Pixabay (2018) [online] available at https://pixabay.com/en/business-idea-style-concept-goals-1753098/

Weighting Up My Presentation Of Self

I have been thinking a lot about how I'm going to present my practice diagram, initially after our first Module 1 Skype call it made sense to me to do a visual presentation.  I had felt confident speaking about my practice and I thought building a presentation that I would then video might get what I wanted to say across clearer, as I often struggle to type what I want to say, and drive myself mad by re-typing the same sentence up to 5 times. However there was an issue with my idea, I'm not particularly fond of hearing my own voice, and I am OVERWEIGHT!!

Having 2 kids in 2 years, and working 2 teaching jobs and working as a duty manager in a health club (of all places) hasn't left me much time to dedicate the hours it takes for me to achieve a dancers physic. I couldn't confidently talk on camera about being a professional dancer and teacher, if I felt that I didn't look like one.This lead me to think more about, presentation of self. 

Online we can hide what we really look like, an old profile picture for some is a way of hiding our true image, so that we will not be open to judgement. But should there be any judgement?

Looking at my presentation on Web 2.0, my Facebook account is purely personal, while I like my profile pictures to be nice I don't consider how it may look to anyone in my field seeing it. Through my personal page I am linked to dance teacher groups and have even recently acquired teaching work through the pages but it has never occurred to me that my profile picture may skew someones impression of me. Many of my Facebook friends, would probably be surprised to hear that I'm still dancing or teaching. Visually my professional practice is very much something I just turn on when I am in a dance class and not at all represented by my media self. However 10 years ago, I was very much a dancer online, while there weren't the networks and online considerations that there are now, I wanted anyone viewing my profile to see that I was in fact a dancer.

2009 Facebook Profile

VS

 2018 Facebook Profile

When creating my blog, I'll admit that used a photo that is 8 years old, I didn't feel that a 'selfie' or family photo (the kind of image I'm usually in) was professional enough. Is it OK that my photo is out of date? Is this false representation? 

After having my first child I went to teach dance for a friend I danced with at college. I hadn't seen her for years and when she posted on Facebook she was looking for a teacher, I got straight in touch, and the job was mine. In our initial messages I did say " I have put on a lot of weight", it was only 3 months since having my son, so my friend laughed it off and said no more. I started the job a few weeks later and while there was no mention of my size, I felt that it was an issue. I was predominantly teaching the senior performance team, and while I created some original and well received dances, I felt there was never a great connection. Did they not take me seriously as a teacher? Did they not see me as a dancer? This may sound irrational, but I witnessed them come alive and act totally differently when they were taught by a 19 year old teacher straight from dance college. While it could have been down to my teaching style or personality, a part of me wonders if I would have had a better response if I was half the size having just come off tour with Little Mix?? Needless to say after going on maternity leave with my second child, I haven't discussed going back.

At the start of the course I was nervous of the Skype discussions as I didn't want anyone to see me (especially that awful laptop angle) I made sure I put make up on and even wore something dancey!! I was so relieved when there was no video. The stereotypes put on dancers has caused me now, when I am my most experienced and creative to be the least confident I have ever been. 

Presentation of self  has many angles of consideration. I started writing my blog, thinking i would have a balance of personal honesty and professionalism. Well I feel that's all gone out of the window, and while this is not something that will go into my critical reflection essay in great detail, the ethics surrounding size maybe something I continue to explore.

This whole blog was really inspired by the question below????

On Sunday nights X Factor there was a performance of 'This Is Me' performed by Keala Settle, it was a great arrangement but the first thing I noticed was that one of the dancers was - Whats the term?? ' Plus Sized' I hate that I even have to use a term, as she was fantastic. But was she merely part of the ensemble because of the message in the song? Would she become a regular on X Factor now?

What are the stereotypes that effect you and your practice? Are you your true-self online?

Twilight Tuesday Skype Session

It was great to connect with everyone on Tuesdays call. It was the little pick me up I felt I needed. I was late on to the call, due to technical issues, but I joined the call just as the group were discussing choreography as a practice and how we each go about creating what we do. This is something I have been reflecting on in my journal, as I find it fascinating how we transpose the ideas and thoughts we have into movement. When asked "How I create a dance?" there are integral steps such as listening to the music, imagining a story or shape to the routine, experimenting with bits of choreography. But there is an element that can't be explained. This made me think on Tacit Knowledge - we know more than we can tell (Polanyi and Sen, 2009) and I look forward to exploring this more.

I was pleased that we discussed our Areas Of Learning and it was really helpful for the learners on modules 2 and 3 to give us feedback on how they approached theirs. I had already written lists of what I had learnt and when, and started looking at links into Transdisciplinary Learning and if I could find areas of my learning that had developed through my practice. Matt Shepard from module 3 had a more simplistic suggestion. Similar in writing lists but picking out AOL's on a timeline theme.

• Write 2 lists - What I Know Now vs What I Need To Learn
• Pick an area of learning from - Before your training, During Training and 3 Years after training
• Identify - What you learnt, what you took from it and where it will go

I am currently looking into how I can generalise the following, so that I can do further research into how I can expand my knowledge. 

- Understanding Progressions and Breakdowns

Learnt as a child going through grades, example - Timesteps, I then used this knowledge in college and as a professional dancer. I now use this to teach syllabus classes and in lesson planning. In the future I'd like to apply this to academic work.

- How To Take An Appropriate Warm Up for Dance Style and Age

Performing daily warm ups at college, understanding how they improved my performance. Studying Health and Safety at DDI, injury prevention and having a deep understanding of why its important for students to have a warm up. Putting this into practice in my current teaching, and watching how the students respond. Developing this knowledge into a classroom setting to help motivation and energy.

- How To Use Imagery As A Teaching Method

Was taught as a child to 'leap over puddles'. Learnt to use imagination to perform. As a performer this helped my portrayal of the choreography. Focused a lot on this teaching method in ISTD DDI as useful for younger age groups - Example rocking a doll. Imagery is now one of my most useful tools while teaching, especially in Ballet and Modern. Will be a useful tool in Primary School teaching.

- How To Prepare Students For Exams

Took exams as a child, can remember the teacher giving me music and notes to practice in the kitchen. Took higher level exams at college, learning what it takes to gain high marks. Learnt in depth knowledge of syllabus at ISTD DDI. Developed abilities in class planning and exam coaching over years of teaching. Currently have a system of teaching exercises supported by giving the students learning materials and the right amount of correction. This is something I can use as a transition into further teaching. 

I will continue to work on these and other ideas so I can narrow them down to only 3 AOL's. If anyone has any feedback on the above I would be grateful. 

I enjoyed listening to the module 2 and 3 Students discuss there inquiry subjects and research. A few things I took away ....

- Look outside the arts - if you are struggling to find something relevant with the arts, explore outside. -eg- Physical Education

- To narrow down research look for the things that keep coming back to you

- Don't worry about having an idea of the end result (Artefact, Module 3) ( Reflection Essay Conclusion, Module 1) until you have spent the time on the research.

- It's OK the be in a bit of a 'Funk' now and then, especially when there is a great network of like minded individuals with ideas and motivation to get you going again. Just ask for help if needed.

I myself have felt in a bit of a 'FUNK' the last few weeks, with lots of extra dance teaching work, poorly children and birthday celebrations I feel like I've lost me flow. I'm looking forward to half term and losing myself in my Reflection Essay and Diagram development.

  

                                                             

Learning From My Mistakes...

This blog has been a few days in the making. I'll be honest in my first attempt to discuss learning styles I was winging it, or what I would now say entering into Kolb's Learning Cycle (Kolb, 1984) at ' Active Experiment'. 

I wasn't happy with what I had produced as I didn't feel as connected to the subject as I wanted to be. As a dance teacher looking to transition into a primary school teacher I have always been interested in learning styles, however I wasn't concentrating my efforts on MY learning style and taking time to analyse how they work for me.

 Image Source A - McLeod, S (2017) Kolb's Learning Styles and Experimental  Learning Cycle - retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/learning-kolb.html 

Active Experimentation - I had planned that I wanted to add elements of Kolb's Learning Cycle and Multiple Intelligences (Gardner, 1983), I dived in with the knowledge I had gained without applying it to something relevant to me. 

Concrete Evidence -So while I was trying out what I had learned it dawned on me I had not fully understood what I was writing about. This experience was disheartening and caused me to lose momentum. Leading to me abandoning that draft and take time to recollect information and reflect on my failed blog.

Reflective Observation - I went back to re-reading the module handbook, this time however I didn't just read it and highlight bits, I used many different coloured pens to re-write sections how I understood them and to pick out questions I had or what I wanted to look further into. This made me very aware of my cycle of learning, and how I often experiment and try things physically before paying attention to the smaller details or looking at things from different angles. 

Abstract Conceptualisation - This learning experience has had a particularly positive outcome on not only my understanding of Kolb's Learning cycle but on my outlook and plans for the rest of the module. I didn't plan to make this blog on Learning styles become my example of learning styles but I'm glad it did. I look forward to applying this to my further learning and observations within my practice.

I wanted to support this learning experience by applying Howard Gardners - Multiple Intelligences (Gardner,1983) theory to my reflection and how this has an effect on my learning and practice. 

Image Source B - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Multiple-intelligence.jpg

I am most definitely body smart and people smart, this is very helpful in my practice as a dance teacher as I rely on my body to respond to what I am thinking and how I explain things. Being interpersonal I am comfortable engaging with people and can give feedback. I feel that at times I can struggle with academic studies. I like to discuss my ideas with others and rely on feedback to validate my work. As with the handbook, I felt I didn't fully engage with it until I had physically re-written it. 

Through my reflective journal I have noted that I often use the learning techniques that appeal to my learning style such as Imagery, Repetition and Physical Correction so have made a note to try new ways of giving feedback and corrections to my students as a way to broaden my understanding.

What do you feel is your dominant intelligence? Does it correlate with your practice?

This period of  reflection has really boosted my confidence and motivation. I now have lots of thoughts on my areas of learning and have a better understanding of how I process information and turn my experiences into learning.

 Bibliography

Gardner, H. 1983. Frames of mind: the theory of multiple intelligences, New York, Basic Books
Kolb,D. 1984. Experimental learning: experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.


Image Source

A -McLeod, S (2017) Kolb's Learning Styles and Experimental  Learning Cycle - retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/learning-kolb.html 

B- By Sajaganesandip [CC BY-SA 4.0  (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)],retrieved from Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Multiple-intelligence.jpg 

Seeing Your Practice and Seeing Yourself - group discussion 1st October 2018

I entered into Mondays Skype call feeling comfortable with knowing what my practice is. After making mind maps and time lines, it was re-writing my profile that helped me put it all into place.

For me it was a matter of reflecting over my training and experiences and finding the point when I stopped being told what to do or how to do something and started doing it for myself. I was the creative behind my ideas, I took what I had learnt and made in my own. When parts of my practice became second nature. I was very pleased when our discussion backed up my conclusion and I felt I could share my thoughts confidently with my fellow learners on the call.

There are still many questions to explore -
How did I make this happen? 
Can I articulate between my original training and what I do now? 
These questions have helped me realise the place of the reading lists, and I am excited to learn about the theories and ideas behind how we learn.

While I felt like I had put together one piece of the puzzle, I hadn't realised the importance of WHY it was relevant to be able to identify our practice within ourselves. The following points were discussed on the call and I think they really help solidify the concept of my practice in my mind. Here are my notes -

• Transitions - knowing what your practice is now can help you identify the transitions within your practice. For example I have gone from dancer, to dance teacher and hope to be a primary school teacher.
• Connections - It will help you navigate in the right networks and communities, whether you are looking for work, further training or inspiration.
• Choices - Being aware of your practice or where you want it to go will enable you to make more choices.
• Definition -  Being able to define your practice at any point in time will ensure you don't get lost in it, you can own it and structure it to what it needs to be.
• Personal - Your practice is yours to keep, it is a thing you have and it will keep changing and emerging. 

We went on the discuss the essay and diagram, and this is where I lose my confidence. I have thought of my 3 areas of learning, and have a good understanding of how the lens can be applied to my practice, however I have no idea how I'm going to start putting it all down on paper??? 

I'm hoping that by completing more of the suggested study activities I will have a better grasp on what I'm actually going to write. And by physically (I have drawn rough mind maps so far) putting together my diagram and mapping the whole picture, I will have more of a sense of what I want my essay to say about me and my practice.

The group discussion did shed some light on the execution of the diagram which was really helpful. It doesn't have to be a mind map on paper it can be whatever suits your learning style.

• Visual - Make a video
• Oral - Make a recording
• Graphic - Make something with different levels or tiers
• Spatial - Use of pictures or drawing

I now have a mind buzzing with new ideas but am getting more conscience of the weeks ticking away. I know I want to do more blogs, read more into experimental and reflective learning and start creating my diagram in the form of a presentation. 

 So watch this space....... 

This is me...

On reflection of my current CV and Profile I feel that I'm not giving myself enough credit as a Dance Teacher. I have always felt that I needed to add as much information about my performance history as possible so that I appeared as an experienced dancer. However my greatest accomplishments have come from my time as a dance teacher.

I had been thinking of my Professional Practice as my dance career on a whole but I have come to realise that while my earlier dance experiences have made me a dancer, it's my later training and work as a teacher that has made me a professional.

So instead of using references to historic performances dating back to my youth, my profile should reflect my current teaching credentials and successes. I have previously added the fact that I took a break from the dance industry for a few years but having now been back into teaching for the last 2 years this feels irrelevant. I have also questioned whether it is necessary to mention that I am a mum with 2 small children?  After some thought, I decided I wanted possible employers to see that I had a young family, this may not have been the case if I were still a performer as this may conflict with rehearsal or performance schedules, deeming me unsuitable for some roles. But as a dance teacher this shows I have the patience and understanding sometimes required when working with smaller children, and also that I am reliable and not likely to disappear on a 6 month dance contract.

My profile is also used on dance school websites and in student welcome packs, I feel that a bit of personal information in this context is nice for parents. And on a deeply honest note, I am also not the small, athletic looking dancer I once was and sharing that I have just had a baby makes me feel more comfortable about my body image.

This was my former profile.

To compile a new profile I have thought about how I want my blog readers to see me and how I now see my Professional Practice -

I am a teacher of Dance and Musical Theatre, specialising in teaching ISTD Ballet, Tap and Modern. I currently teach students from age 3 - 16 in both a dance school setting and in after school clubs in Kent. I trained at  the Miskin Theatre achieving a BTEC National Diploma in Advanced Dance and a PDC in small scale touring and physical theatre. I worked as an entertainer and cabaret performer for TUI from 2004 - 2009 returning to the UK to transition into dance teaching. I studied for my I.S.T.D DDI in modern and tap at Liz Burville Performing Arts Centre where I was then invited to teach the competition show teams, winning awards for choreography in the UK and USA. I went on to take over a local dance school as Principal, teaching ISTD syllabus classes, street dance, adult dance classes and Musical Theatre workshops. I was successful in staging annual Dance Performances and Examinations from 2010 - 2015. I have since gained experience teaching Contemporary Dance, Strength and Conditioning, Jazz and IDTA Ballet and Tap. I have continued to develop my teaching methods and styles through further training and research, and strive to create unique and ambitious choreography. I am now concentrating on my academic development by studying a BA (Hon) Professional Practice, Arts and Creative Industries at Middlesex University, while I am currently teaching ISTD Ballet, Tap, Modern and Street Dance at Langley School of Dance and KS1 Musical Theatre  for Centre Stage Theatre Academy. When I am not teaching or studying I am Mum to two year old Sullivan and 3 month old Roxie, who are an education in themselves. It is for them that I am embarking on this new journey to achieve my end  goal of becoming a primary school teacher.

This is the closest photo I've had to a head shot in 14 years. But this is me being proud to be a teacher. So i felt it was relevant