As my project continues- i am finding the volume of research and literature failry over wheling..however i have a tecnique that could be useful to others to help as a filter. So i find my research as a hard copy (printed/written etc) and highlight the main blocks of information that i see as relevant.
I then use a word document and go through each highlighted section; bullet pointing the information in my own SHORT words as well as my oppinions on the information.
I have found that filtering my resources in this way not only allows me to find the relevance in my research but also to comment allong the way. Using the various tools to do this stops me from coming complaicent/ passive in my working.
I hope this can be helpful...if anybody else has any tips let me know!
Monday, 19 September 2011
Friday, 16 September 2011
Planning my project
In order for me to complete my project on time as well as manage my commitments at Chickenshed, i have drawn up a schedule outling when the various aspects of my project will take place. Fitting this around my btec support and rehursal shedule means that i have to be specific in my planning from research to practical workshops.
I have used a microsoft excel spreadsheet to give me the clearest presentation possible:
I have used a microsoft excel spreadsheet to give me the clearest presentation possible:
I have highlighted in red project tasks. This timetable is still yet to be completed as i am awaiting replies form practioners regarding interview appointments.
Although this is an inital schedule it is still a helpful process to have undertaken and has allowed to filter my work load which can seem quite daunting at first.
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
preparation
so after a pretty boring summer im back and so ready to get stuck into this project! in thelast few weeks i have begun to collate the information that i am going to need for my professional inquiry. I have done my first workshop at the BRIT school but am not able to do the work at chickenshed just yet because their education programme doesnt officaially start for another few weeks.
None the less i have begun to prepare for the work ahead.
The main body of preparation has begun with my research- having sourced my inital literature in the previous module i have now sourced literature is more specific to my project and can develop form the previous (a review that i will post in the next blog)
All framworks and structures have also been drawn up and used for the practical elements of my project as well as the begininnings of photographic elements.
This is a very general post more still to come
None the less i have begun to prepare for the work ahead.
The main body of preparation has begun with my research- having sourced my inital literature in the previous module i have now sourced literature is more specific to my project and can develop form the previous (a review that i will post in the next blog)
All framworks and structures have also been drawn up and used for the practical elements of my project as well as the begininnings of photographic elements.
This is a very general post more still to come
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Critical reflection and Summary: Digital portfolio
The initial tasks within this module required me hone in my specialist interests, exploring and defining my own interests as well as discovering other peoples. Although I have always understood that my passion for inclusion has existed, I was unclear as to how I wanted to put inclusion into context in my own working environment. The introduction of education came from my involvement of Chickenshed’s educational programme; BTEC National diploma in performing arts. Having worked closely with both staff and students involved in the programme it soon became evident that this was an area of inclusion that I wanted to be involved in. This exploration of interest led me to raise initial questions about my workplace, the Chickenshed within the context of education:
These questions informed my special interest groups where I involved myself in discussions with other members of the BAPP course
And also professionals from within my working environment
The digital and in person debates that took place, developed my understanding of inclusion in education, interpreting perspectives that were formed outside of my own ‘comfortable’ thought process, prompting to develop my initial questions and ideas
The constant discussion and development throughout the process of this module has led me to define more formal considerations when undertaking my inquiry. Taking into consideration aspect of inquiry such as ‘ethics’ and ‘code of conduct’
has allowed the knowledge of practice of both my self and the Chickenshed to become informed and I feel more confident in my delivery of practice. These aspects of the inquiry have also led me to make an informed decision as to which research methods to use. Utilising the appropriate means of research will be key in conforming to my own code of practice and ethical practices as well as those established by my workplace
This module has allowed to explore a various number of tools of which I can implement in both the planning and execution of my inquiry. My knowledge and understanding of the subject matter that I wish to investigate has grown and strengthened leaving me excited and confident about beginning my inquiry next term.
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
My question: help required please!
As discussed in my earlier bloggs i have already begun to formulate questions with regard to my inquiry plan and the inquiry itself. However it has become clear that the wording of this question needs to be just write in order to generate the right feeling ethically and with regards to relevant responses
here are some of my ideas:
Is it necessary to formally equip students with the methodology of inclusion at BTEC National level?
How relevent is inclusion at BTEC National level?
Does the knowledge of inclusion in further education maximise the individuals success?
any suggestions please comment....
here are some of my ideas:
Is it necessary to formally equip students with the methodology of inclusion at BTEC National level?
How relevent is inclusion at BTEC National level?
Does the knowledge of inclusion in further education maximise the individuals success?
any suggestions please comment....
The BRIT: making movements!
Yesterday i was invited down to the BRIT School for a meeting to discuss a oroject opportunity. Term 5 at the BRIT is called the 'community' term, where groups from across the school; music, theatre. musical theatre, dance, art, media and production are merged together and sent out into a chosen community.
When i attended the school i took part in a project involving patients from St Christopher's Hospice- a project which changed me as a person and will stay with me forever.
So of course i was extacted to be asked back to the school to be involved as a profeesional within my field!
the project, as i understand it so far, will consist of 8 sessions run over four weeks working with students from dance, theatre and music strands as well as 10 members from the southside partnership- supporting people with mental health problems:
http://www.southsidepartnership.org.uk/fanon_mental_health_
the idea is to conduct a series of workshops to generate ideas and material to create a short piece relfective of all participants involved.
it goes wthout saying that i am SO EXCITED. it was strange sitting in the meeting and having people who used to teach me asking me for advice!
i have also been asked to run an 'inclusive skills' workshops for 70 students before the project begins to help equipp them for the project ahead.
as well as the project in june there was also mention of doing reaserch for the school in september; looking into inclusion with education at BTEC LEVEL, something which i am already exploring within my professional inquiry plan.
fingers crossed it all goes to plan!
When i attended the school i took part in a project involving patients from St Christopher's Hospice- a project which changed me as a person and will stay with me forever.
So of course i was extacted to be asked back to the school to be involved as a profeesional within my field!
the project, as i understand it so far, will consist of 8 sessions run over four weeks working with students from dance, theatre and music strands as well as 10 members from the southside partnership- supporting people with mental health problems:
http://www.southsidepartnership.org.uk/fanon_mental_health_
the idea is to conduct a series of workshops to generate ideas and material to create a short piece relfective of all participants involved.
it goes wthout saying that i am SO EXCITED. it was strange sitting in the meeting and having people who used to teach me asking me for advice!
i have also been asked to run an 'inclusive skills' workshops for 70 students before the project begins to help equipp them for the project ahead.
as well as the project in june there was also mention of doing reaserch for the school in september; looking into inclusion with education at BTEC LEVEL, something which i am already exploring within my professional inquiry plan.
fingers crossed it all goes to plan!
task 6c: literature reviews
The pieces i have chosen are just as individually relevant to my interests as they are combined. The pieces i have chosen to review are:
A plethora of benchmarks by Susan Elkin, december 2008- The Stage
Creative Inclusion in Community Theatre: A journey with Odyessy Theatre Company by Roger Wooseter, February 2009
Ofsted Report: How new teachers are prepared to teach pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites by Ofsted September 2008 (ref 070223)
All of the links to these are posted on the SIG WIKI page.
so lets start from the beginning..
A plethora of benchmarks by Susan Elkin, december 2008- The Stage
This is an article that i discovered on The Stage website and it discuss the National Association of Youth Theatres (NAYT)'s introduction of their Excellence and Inclusion Scheme. The idea is to eventually elimate external examinations from various boards across the country and for progression to monitered and examined internally. My intial reaction to this is that it gives companies the opportunity to focus on their own process and not become distracted by tickboxes and red tape from the outside, which in my oppionion is a good thing?
However the immediate contadiction in terms is the idea of a standadised membership with the 'inclusive' schene. Although the NAYT have said that they will 'keep and eye on' smaller companies that do meet the standard of excellence to become 'members' of the scheme, they have not outlined any strategies that could be put in place to help progression.
I agree with the authour when she says; 'too many organisations have had the same idea at once.' as i feel that the word 'inclusion' has become somewhat of a buzzword for many arts organisations and faliure to implement such a scheme would be highly frowned upon.
However, i do challenge the authors point that 'This is surely a recipe for muddle, mayhem and confused parents?' - is this the case? or should there be positive recognition for the fact that companies are embracing the need for 'inclusion' regardless of motive?
Creative Inclusion in Community Theatre: A journey with Odyessy Theatre Company by Roger Wooseter, February 2009
From the outset in this piece, the terminology used, for me raises imediate questions about the writers true comprehension on the subject matter. Although 'pre-warns' the reader of the terminolgy he will be using; 'In this article the term ‘learning disabled’ and ‘non-learning disabled’ will be used.' there is no explination as to why. Using the word 'disabled' within the context on inclusion, for me is an immediate contradtiction in terms. The 'dis'-abled immideatly implies the inability of the individual. I would argue that when arguing the positive's of inclusion the positives of the individual should be the foucs rather than enforcing the idea of people having a 'lack of skill'.
The first thing this piece does is recognise the struggle for quality within inclusion to be recognised. Mainstream views of quality are often immediatly comprimised for an 'inclusive' piece has been seen due do sympathy or patronage.
This patronising view is emphasised in the piece when the writer acknowledges the Department of Education's document published in 2006. Phrases such as 'them joining 'us'' are pointed out as patronising to anybody who is deemed to be outside of the norm which then raises the question for me;
How do we define who is 'them' and who is 'us'?
Wooseter also recognises the National Disability Arts Forum (NDAF) who say that 'specialist knowlege of disbility is vital in inclusion'. This is a statment that i would have to disagree with. If the understanding of inclusion is that labels are to be removed, knowledge of each individual specifically built and not having their individuallity removed by the knowledge of their disability.
It is discussed in the piece that, Gaynor Lougher, heavily involved with the ODYSSEY theatre company, emphasis her work on the engagement of the members and not on a fantastic performnace- is this not conflicting with the quality of the work produced? does her approach to ensemble and chrous work provied enough of a challenge for all involved in production from cast to director?
Ofsted Report: How new teachers are prepared to teach pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites by Ofsted September 2008 (ref 070223)
I chose to look at this report inparticular as it covers my interest in education and how teachers are trained to outlook various situations in the classroom. The first recommendation this report makes is to 'ensure awareness of what constitutes 'good practice' when teaching pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites'. My first question is how is 'good practice' recognised across the board? is there documentation of such practice? or guidlines given to the entire education system to ensure consistency? non of these questions can be answerd from this report.
it also discusses the use of teachers with 'appropriate expertise' to conduct training. Although i agree that a certain level of relevance to the subject matter would of course be positive- it then brings me to the question; how do we measure expertise? surely when dealing with individuals no matter what their age ability or background, there is not a generic course of action?
Interms of progression within schools the report embraces the need to adapt courses without great emphasis on any 'disadvatage' and individual may have in order to maintain the quality of work at a high level. This is something that i agree with as it compliments the ideals that every child learn's differently in order to acheieve their best.
The base of this report is in the need to ground teachers with professional standards giving them a familiar and strong guidline that they feel able to use as a point of reference.
A plethora of benchmarks by Susan Elkin, december 2008- The Stage
Creative Inclusion in Community Theatre: A journey with Odyessy Theatre Company by Roger Wooseter, February 2009
Ofsted Report: How new teachers are prepared to teach pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites by Ofsted September 2008 (ref 070223)
All of the links to these are posted on the SIG WIKI page.
so lets start from the beginning..
A plethora of benchmarks by Susan Elkin, december 2008- The Stage
This is an article that i discovered on The Stage website and it discuss the National Association of Youth Theatres (NAYT)'s introduction of their Excellence and Inclusion Scheme. The idea is to eventually elimate external examinations from various boards across the country and for progression to monitered and examined internally. My intial reaction to this is that it gives companies the opportunity to focus on their own process and not become distracted by tickboxes and red tape from the outside, which in my oppionion is a good thing?
However the immediate contadiction in terms is the idea of a standadised membership with the 'inclusive' schene. Although the NAYT have said that they will 'keep and eye on' smaller companies that do meet the standard of excellence to become 'members' of the scheme, they have not outlined any strategies that could be put in place to help progression.
I agree with the authour when she says; 'too many organisations have had the same idea at once.' as i feel that the word 'inclusion' has become somewhat of a buzzword for many arts organisations and faliure to implement such a scheme would be highly frowned upon.
However, i do challenge the authors point that 'This is surely a recipe for muddle, mayhem and confused parents?' - is this the case? or should there be positive recognition for the fact that companies are embracing the need for 'inclusion' regardless of motive?
Creative Inclusion in Community Theatre: A journey with Odyessy Theatre Company by Roger Wooseter, February 2009
From the outset in this piece, the terminology used, for me raises imediate questions about the writers true comprehension on the subject matter. Although 'pre-warns' the reader of the terminolgy he will be using; 'In this article the term ‘learning disabled’ and ‘non-learning disabled’ will be used.' there is no explination as to why. Using the word 'disabled' within the context on inclusion, for me is an immediate contradtiction in terms. The 'dis'-abled immideatly implies the inability of the individual. I would argue that when arguing the positive's of inclusion the positives of the individual should be the foucs rather than enforcing the idea of people having a 'lack of skill'.
The first thing this piece does is recognise the struggle for quality within inclusion to be recognised. Mainstream views of quality are often immediatly comprimised for an 'inclusive' piece has been seen due do sympathy or patronage.
This patronising view is emphasised in the piece when the writer acknowledges the Department of Education's document published in 2006. Phrases such as 'them joining 'us'' are pointed out as patronising to anybody who is deemed to be outside of the norm which then raises the question for me;
How do we define who is 'them' and who is 'us'?
Wooseter also recognises the National Disability Arts Forum (NDAF) who say that 'specialist knowlege of disbility is vital in inclusion'. This is a statment that i would have to disagree with. If the understanding of inclusion is that labels are to be removed, knowledge of each individual specifically built and not having their individuallity removed by the knowledge of their disability.
It is discussed in the piece that, Gaynor Lougher, heavily involved with the ODYSSEY theatre company, emphasis her work on the engagement of the members and not on a fantastic performnace- is this not conflicting with the quality of the work produced? does her approach to ensemble and chrous work provied enough of a challenge for all involved in production from cast to director?
Ofsted Report: How new teachers are prepared to teach pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites by Ofsted September 2008 (ref 070223)
I chose to look at this report inparticular as it covers my interest in education and how teachers are trained to outlook various situations in the classroom. The first recommendation this report makes is to 'ensure awareness of what constitutes 'good practice' when teaching pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilites'. My first question is how is 'good practice' recognised across the board? is there documentation of such practice? or guidlines given to the entire education system to ensure consistency? non of these questions can be answerd from this report.
it also discusses the use of teachers with 'appropriate expertise' to conduct training. Although i agree that a certain level of relevance to the subject matter would of course be positive- it then brings me to the question; how do we measure expertise? surely when dealing with individuals no matter what their age ability or background, there is not a generic course of action?
Interms of progression within schools the report embraces the need to adapt courses without great emphasis on any 'disadvatage' and individual may have in order to maintain the quality of work at a high level. This is something that i agree with as it compliments the ideals that every child learn's differently in order to acheieve their best.
The base of this report is in the need to ground teachers with professional standards giving them a familiar and strong guidline that they feel able to use as a point of reference.
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