New Year, new diary, new challenges...LETS GO!!

As the New Year celebrations are beginnning, 2014's diary becomes obsolete and in its place sits a shiny new 2015 diary...How exciting I think to myself!  However, as I turn the pages and think of how 'long' this next year will be, I realise that in actual fact I can plot all the way through to this time next year just bouncing date to date...

January: Deadline for Module one

January - Mid February: Additional coaching for students each Sunday in preparation for ISTD Tap and Modern exam session.

February 14th:  ISTD Exam date

Mid February - May: Module two

June: GCSE Maths examinations

June - July: Additional coachiong for students each Sunday in preparation for ISTD Tap and Modern exam session.

End of July: ISTD Examination (date tbc)

Summer Holidays:  Planning and preparing for another school year.

September:  Module three

October - December: Applying to Universities/schools onto PGCE/SCITT courses.

Wow...so here is my year ahead and as scary as sitting here looking at it like this is right now, a New Year comes as a fresh start allowing room for development and improvement.  2015 will be a huge year overall, but taking baby steps I feel confident I can achieve all I plan to! 

                                     

Task 3c - Sources of Information

Reflecting on the diverse roles I am currently involved with, I concluded the most appropriate and productive way in which to approach this task would be to choose one of these roles; teaching, the role I intent to go into full-time upon completion of this course.

For inspiration I looked towards my peers blogs and found the use of a visual aid - in the form of a mind map used by Sinead McMenemy - to be the clearest route to explore my current sources of information for teaching and begin to arrange my thoughts and to be able to pinpoint the five I consider to be most useful within my work:

Sources of Information most relevant to my work (in no particular order):

Publications: Books & Other Published Articles - 

As a teacher I have a duty of care by law, to my students and their parents to be knowledgeable of and then apply to my daily practice guidelines to ensure child safety.  For example, having copies of current child protection policies and health and safety at work guidelines is vital to me as without having this information, I would be unable to uphold the relevant policies within my daily practice.

Although such policies are kept accurate and current by the government, they do not change every day and as such, I simply need to be aware of when new legislation is created or altered, in order to carry any changes through into my work, ensuring my practice is always kept within the realms of the law and therefore both professional and ethical.

Face-to-face Conversations - 

I find conversing with other professionals within the teaching world a vital source of information and something I place great value upon on a daily basis.  When I have a problem within my work - for example, managing the behaviour of a particular child in class - being able to converse with a fellow practitioner and talk through possible solutions or reasoning behind a situation is often extremely helpful; they may have knowledge of a certain issue leading to the child's behaviour or may have taught a child with similar difficulties and have found a way to overcome this issue.  They may not necessarily have the direct answer, but I often find that through reflecting in this conversational manner, an idea may spring to mind leading me to find a different approach to the situation.


Whilst undertaking the RoL module of this course, I found it particularly inspiring to have face-to-face conversations with my advisor for the same reason stated above.  Often, I do know the answer, but talking through reflection in an interactive real life situation has a very positive outcome for me.


Pinterest/Blogs - 

When reflecting on blog posts by other BAPP students, I often find new methodology for approaching tasks, helping me find various different lines of questioning in regards to my own work and practice.  For example, upon reading the information in the reader regarding the theory of 'social constructionism',   I was utterly confused, not seeing the way in which this could possibly link to my professional practice.  However, when reading through Dani Tougher's blog post relating to this theory, I was able to see a link to a practical use for these ideas.  From there, I was then able to find a situation within my own work to help me understand and then formulate blog ideas relating to this theory.  I always find it helpful to see something explained in a different format, from another perspective or, even better, using a relevant example.

Image source: www.bestadsontv.com

As I have discussed in several of my other blogs, Pinterest for me is a huge source of information.  There are many ideas on teaching strategies, lesson plans, managing behaviour and even cross curricular ideas (i.e. linking maths and dance) to read, comment on and save onto my network; food for thought at a later date if need be.  Reflecting on my first paragraph (Publications), I do restrict what I use Pinterest for as  I am fully aware that not everything on the internet can be classed a reliable information; for example, I would never search for child protection policies on this platform as vital information may be lacking, incorrect or simply out dated.

Radio - 

Due to my commuting times each day, I am almost guaranteed to listen to the radio at least six, often seven days per week, making this one of my most prominent sources of information.  I use the radio to find modern music to choreograph to that will keep the children engaged during classes.  For example, I recently choreographed an exam dance to a number one chart song, which the children absolutely loved as they new all the lyrics.

I also listen to the news on the radio, keeping me up to date on current affairs and - reflecting back on the 'Publications' paragraph above - abreast of many policy updates or changes regarding school, health and safety and child protection legislation.  I find that as a source of information, radio news bulletins are on point, mostly accurate and ideal for my busy schedule.


ISTD Website - 

Having trained through and currently being a teacher of the ISTD association, I find this website a very current and relevant source of information in regards to my current practice.  The website is kept regularly updated and the information has always been totally accurate in my personal experience.  I often refer back to the pages on exam procedures when organising sessions and regularly attend the courses that are promoted to keep my syllabus knowledge up to date.  Any changes to policies, procedures or syllabus examination expectations are clearly outlined and further sources in relation to such changes (where applicable) are also linked on their pages.

The only downside I find with this site is that as yet there are no forums or interactive zones where teachers can discuss problems and ideas or ask questions to specific members of the association.  I wonder whether this will happen any time in the near future or whether there is a reason behind not moving the website in this direction as yet.



Conclusion - 

Overall I feel that I do currently use a wide variety of sources and I feel this is because I have always enjoyed researching different opinions, allowing ideas to digest and then being able to form my own opinions based on culmination of view points.  For example, before investing in 'Kindle' e-reader recently, I read several reviews online comparing different e-readers, posted a status asking friends for their opinion on Facebook and also spoke to colleagues in the staff room about whether they were happy with the e-readers they had.  From the pros and cons list I created, I was then able to formulate a decision, which, so far I am happy with.

Although I am happy with the sources of information I currently use, I am aware that over time some of my current sources may become less prevalent or even obsolete; for example, when I go into mainstream teaching, I doubt I will have time to teach regular ISTD classes, therefore I am less likely to view the ISTD website as a main source of information.  In this situation however, I hope to discover new sources of information to replace the old, keeping my knowledge both current and relevant to the area in which I am predominately working at the time.

Task 3b: Theories related to networking

During my initial thoughts when reading through this task and planning, mentally, how best to approach it, I had unconsciously linked it straight to social media and Web 2.0 as this is where the main focus of this module has so far been based.  However, after noticing my error, I felt it important to note that we are now considering networking in all forms, not just using an online platform.

What is Professional Networking?

The oxford dictionary defines networking as: 

networking: Interact with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts:the skills of networking, bargaining, and negotiation
Reader three defines professional networking as:'A work related community held together by either close working affiliation or more distant but common work interests or needs.'
Reflecting upon the last task and considering my current social media networks, initially it would appear that I have a huge network community, consisting of over two hundred contacts.  However, when I think about this number in terms of who is actively involved in my professional network, this number severely decreases.  At first I began to think of this as a bad thing, however, I feel the smaller list of connections who I am in regular contact with are actually strong connections' for my network - those who offer me regular work, can cover classes for me or are other highly respected professionals within the Performing Arts industry.  
The other contacts in my network are people who I may have worked with once or twice, or those who have similar interests to me, such as those who I follow on Twitter or Pinterest platforms.  I may never even have had a face to face meeting with them, however, they often bring another level to my network, such as information, possible further contacts, or potentially exciting opportunities and promotion within my career.  To this point it could therefore be argued that,
'Your effective engagement of your Professional Network may well impact on your success, promotion and development, your sense of worth and fulfilment, and even enjoyment in you working life.' (1)
Further to this point, when I reflect upon my CV since leaving full time training, I have worked with many of the same people time and time again.  This is due to work often being seasonal or part time or even jobs such as promotion or supply teaching work, that are just to fill the periods out of work.  To emphasise this point I have drawn a web of companies I have worked for, with the arrows demonstrating where many of my contacts have crossed to and from the same companies I have, or do still for work.  

This network map I have drawn clearly demonstrates how small the industry is in reality and how it is important to build positive connections with people from the offset as it is highly likely that the same people will work together several times over.

Image source:  www.forbes.com
Concepts of the Professional Network:
Cooperation - I found the theory put forward here very interesting and have recalled two situations that fit into the 'TIT FOR TAT' model put forward by Robert Axelrod, one resulting positively (A) and the other not so (B).
A - When I joined a teaching agency last year, I informed my contact that I was looking for full time teaching roles only.  She asked if I would be willing to do odd supply days in the meantime, to which I agreed if she needed someone urgently.  I was called upon a number of times to do such work and cooperated fully, demonstrating a professional attitude, even when I was covering lessons I would rather have avoided.  At the start of the Summer term, the agency contacted me to ask if I would like to be put forward for a role as a dance teacher, to which I said I would be delighted, however they also informed me that I might not get an interview as the initial request was for a teacher with QTS, something I do not have currently.  My contact sent my CV across to the school and also stated my case via phone call in order to successfully secure me an interview.  I went on to be offered the job.  
I feel that if I had not been willing to help my contact out when she needed a teacher for supply, she probably would not have bothered with the persuasive phone call, which in turn secured me the interview.  This is what I would consider a positive outcome of 'TIT FOR TAT' networking.  
B - A 'friend' of mine from college, deleted me for no apparent reason on Facebook.  I thought that it must have been a honest mistake (it is easy enough to do after all!) until I attended an audition she happened to be at and she totally blanked me.  A couple of months later, I had begun my first contract for Disney Cruise Line and logging on to Facebook one day, I noticed a friend request, which when I opened it, turned out to be the same girl.  I didn't think much of it until I noticed I also had a message from her asking how she could go about applying for the company and asking if she could use my name.  Needless to say, I did not message her back.
This is an example where the process 'TIT FOR TAT' did happen but to negative effect.  I have often found this within the industry, that as soon as a 'friend' finds I am attending an audition or have got through to the final stages, they then try to jump on the band wagon as it were. Being used and abused within a network grates on me immensely as I find it very rude and totally selfish; Networking needs to be a two way street. 
'When should a person cooperate, and when should a person be selfish, in an ongoing interaction with another person?' (2)
In a professional networking sense I feel that there is no need to be selfish unless the outcome will do damage to your own career or future opportunities.  For example, I would never share on a social media site that one of the companies I work for is ideal for smaller girls (in terms of height) as this would directly affect the amount of work I would get.  However, if a friend of mine is looking for a drama teacher, for instance, and the job is on days when I am already working, then it is only natural that I should share this post to help two of my friends out.  This way, if another job arises via either party (now doubling the possibility of chances as I have helped out two contacts), I would hope they would suggest me for it as I helped them out…'TIT FOR TAT'. 
This 'TIT FOR TAT' model sits perfectly well with me as a performer in regards to networking to best effect, however when I consider it going forwards into teaching rather than networking, this idea does not work well for me.
Based on this 'TIT FOR TAT' theory, if a child was to hit another child, I should tell the assaulted child to hit back in retaliation.  Of course I wouldn't do that because instead I would tell the second child to take the moral high ground by walking away and informing a teacher.  However, in this situation the second child is far more likely to naturally retaliate, wanting to hurt the child in the same way he has been hurt.  From this we can draw a parallel to the work of Richard Dawkins (evolutionary biologist) who said;
“We are survival machines – robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes." (3)
Another quote by Dawkins that I feel lends itself better as a model for teaching is;
“Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are all born selfish.”  (4)
Afilliation - 
This concepts argues that being sociable, as we naturally are as human beings, leads us to "form close relationships" (5) that in turn gives us "a network of support that will help us when we are in need" (6)
I find this true when networking both professionally and personally.  For example, when I require the answer to a personal conundrum - should I buy a 'Kindle' or a 'Kobo'? - I will often post it as a status on social media to listen to the advice of my friends.  Professionally networking, I may ask questions such as 'Is anybody available to cover a class for me next week please?'.  In both of these situations I am requiring the help or advice of my friends, peers, or professional acquaintances that I have built through networking.  
There are also some interesting physiological questions posed in this concept…
"Is professional networking an extension of our innate capacity and need to affiliate to develop our careers?" (7)
I would personally argue yes, professional networking is something that we all have an inbuilt need to do.  From the day we are born until we leave school, college or university, we are learning constantly, taking onboard advice from teachers, peers, family and friends.  Once we are not submerged within this learning environment and we have to find our own feet, we can feel lost and isolated so by creating a new network, on a professional level, we have rekindled a safety blanket for our career and a network of support to turn to for advice and ideas when necessary. 
Another physiological aspect that I found interesting was…
…"a lack of affiliation may have a lasting negative impact.  In research among children raised in orphanages a lack of social and physical contact adversely affected the ability of the brain and the hormonal system to cope with stress." (8)
In this case, I would like to then argue that a professional network can then become a coping strategy for stress.  I recently spoke to a peer, also on the BAPP course and part of my professional network,  as I was worried about the final part that I am soon to write.  We spoke for a long time, sharing concerns and discussing how to best approach it and decided that it would be beneficial for both parties to email updated drafts back and fourth advising each other throughout the process.  Although essentially I am still no closer to finishing the work, I do feel as though the stress has been slightly alleviated, simply because I have now created a pillar of support to connect and share concerns with.  
This is a concept that I feel I would like to try and use consciously within my future networking, not being afraid to ask questions to experienced professionals as I sometime am, at the risk of sounding stupid.
There is one quote that I feels perfectly sums up this concept and it goes like this;

Image source: www.yaymicro.com




Theory of Connectivity
Social Constructionism:This theory argues that thing 'A' is only thing 'A' because we have decided that it is thing 'A' as a species and that therefore 'meaning is not discovered but constructed' (10).
When looking at this in relation to my own networks and how I have 'created' them, I feel that this theory does ring true for both personal and professional networking.  Thinking personally, I am part of a locked Facebook page created solely for the purposes of ex cast members from Disney Cruise Line which allows everybody around the world to keep in touch with each other and keep 'in jokes' running without boring or confusing the rest of my friends with a status update on my own Facebook profile page.  This works perfectly as we are able to reminisce on comical or happy moments or other ship life 'banter' and not be judged by other 'non ship' friends, as working on a cruise line is a very different way of life that my other friends may not understand.  I feel this created page can be linked to the thoughts in the reader as described below…
…'Through our interactions, we can make meanings, which might be the values we attribute to a particular network, our preferred ways of engaging the network…' (11)
Looking then at social constructionism then from a professional networking point of view, I am again part of a Facebook page which aims to connect performing arts teachers for the purpose of cover work only.  When I need cover for a class/day, I simply post the details of the hours and style etc and teachers can then privately message me if they would like the work.  For performing arts teachers this page is simple yet genius, however, to a chef friend of mine, this page would have no use at all, so again here, the idea of our networks being constructed to have relevant meaning is clear to see.  

Connectivism:
'Taking a Connectivist perspective, we might suggest that a professional network is a system with which we can interact to learn.' (12)
'Over the last twenty years, technology has reorganised how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn.' (13)
Thinking about the above quote in terms of my professional networking, I can easily see the links to my everyday practice.  Through my online networks - friends posts, professional pages (such as the one mentioned in the previous paragraph) and theatre pages followed, amongst other platforms - I learn of auditions, jobs, projects and even cheap theatre tickets or dance wear, something that was unheard of before Web 2.0 became readily available and devices became so 'smart'.

Communities of Practice:
A community of practice could be related to any field from dance to cake making however, in order for it to be classed as a community of practice per say, there must be evidence of these common features:
'They are social, they are informal and they are often connected with specific social groups.  They are also self-organising rather than hierarchal.' (14)
Looking at my current networking tools, I feel this theory resonates best in regard to my professional boards on 'Pinterest'.  Here like minded individuals can connect and share boards of information between each other becoming part of one another's communities of practice.  
'Members of a community of practice, whether work place, special interests, virtual or any other form, come together because of mutual interest and generate a shared experience of engagement in the community of practice.' (15)
These contacts can also be removed depending on how much one individual feels another is contributing or how relevant their ideas are to the other.  Everybody within my community is a professional performer or teacher and can bring something new, from ideas on teaching, to lesson plans or ideas on creating props for shows - likewise, I am able to share my experiences and thoughts.  These dimensions fit perfectly within Wenger's three dimensions of communities of practice as stated below:
'What is it about - it's a joint enterprise as understood and continually renegotiated by its members;
How it functions - mutual engagement that bind members together into a social entity;
What capability it has produced - the shared repertoire of communal resources.' (16)
I feel this theory is highly relevant to my personal practice as teaching methods and dance techniques are constantly begin updated.  I enjoy the ability to learn within a social environment where I am able to bounce ideas back and forth between other professionals, so by keeping myself well connected, I am able to constantly improve myself and therefore be the best I can be.

Citation List:
(1) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(2) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(3) - The Evolution of Cooperation, Robert Alexrod
(4) - The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins
(5) - The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins
(6) - Crisp & Turner, 2007, p.266
(7) - Crisp & Turner, 2007, p.266
(8) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(9) - Essential Social Psychology 2nd Edition, Crisp & Turner, p.322-323
(10) - The Foundations of Social Research: Meaning and Perspective in the research process, Crotty, Michael, p.42
(11) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(12) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(13) - George Siemens, 2004
(14) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(15) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University
(16) - WBS3730 Module 1, Reader 3, BAPP Arts, Middlesex University