Task 6d: Delicious

I have set up a account with delicious and gathered literature from their library and my own findings. I think I will find it useful! I will use a selection of the literature I have found to review for task 6c.

Here is my profile link:
https://delicious.com/hannahshepherd

Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry

Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry

 

As term began and I embarked upon module 2, the next stage of my BAPP journey, I was feeling anxious but ready to get back into the routine of work and study. (Appendix 1) The idea of creating a plan for my professional inquiry in a matter of months seemed daunting however the module gave me the knowledge and information to be able to piece together what I hope to be a solid plan for my professional inquiry.

Principles of a Professional Inquiry

My key moment of this section was the creation of a SIG. Following many comments on my blog several of us managed to connect via Facebook and create a module 2 SIG in which we have communicated about all aspects of the course (Appendix 2). As a natural worrier, having the access to others on the course and the ability to help each other has been very useful.

Following Reader 4, I launched into creating questions for my inquiry proposal.(Appendix 3) Looking back, I created questions that are very specific and could possibly have restricted my inquiry. As the module has gone on I have managed to loosen the grip on these questions, creating a line of inquiry that encompasses all the areas of questioning within Task 4a and still gives me the freedom to explore and in an entire topic.

Ethics

This topic gave me the opportunity to ensure I will go about my inquiry in a safe, moral and ethical way. This set of tasks ensured that I knew the importance of ethics and reminded me that they should remain at the forefront of my inquiry. (Appendix 4) In Task 5a, I blogged that,

"Ethics isn’t about what work we do, more HOW we do it. How I, as a dance teacher, can ensure that my pupils are learning dance safely and enjoying the lessons that their parents have invested time and money in. " (Shepherd, H. 2013 Task 5a)

Following Reader 5, I can have the confidence in knowing that my inquiry will be carried out in a way that is morally and ethically correct.

Tools of my Professional Inquiry

After reading about all the different ways of gathering and analysing both quantitative  and qualitative data throughout Reader 5 I carried out a pilot of all the methods. The tools that came as the biggest lesson for me was the way my interview turned out. (Appendix 5). I now feel ready to gather evidence through focus groups, questionnaires and observations.

Module 2 has given me the time and space to explore what line of inquiry to pursue. It has helped me to structure what I will do and develop HOW I will go about it. My main lesson within this module has been learning to allow things to take their course, following all lines of interest, reflecting upon their results and ensuring I have an open mind to be able to listen to others and let them help within my study.

6b: Critical Reflection on Tools of Professional Inquiry

Critical Reflection

 

Questionnaire.

 

As part of my pilot survey, I created a questionnaire that was given to 26 children at the primary school in which I work.

 

These children were aged from 8 – 10 years old and all participate in whole school “Wake and Shake” dance routines every morning along with production dances and dance PE in line with the curriculum based upon the topic they are studying at the time. This questionnaire, I feel was a success as I managed to accurately collate what skills they thought dance developed as well as how they felt dance impacted their school life and education.

 

 I decided to ask the children many kinds of questions to see if they were able to respond with both quantitive and qualitive information. I included multiple choice questions, open questions (with lots of room for the children to explain and develop their reasonings) as well as declarative statements the children could chose according to their views. In order to ensure the questionnaire was filled in honestly and without bias, I made sure I didn’t tell the children why I was giving them the questionnaire, just asked them to think carefully and be honest, that way they didn’t feel as though they had to please me with answer I might want to hear. I am happy with the results and the ways I have used the data to help with creating my inquiry and will definitely be using this tool in my inquiry as I feel it gives a valuable insight into the thoughts of the children who are experiencing dance within their education. I am glad I picked this age group as they were able to articulate their feelings enough to be able to tell me their opinions. In order to improve this method, I will open up the survey to more children over a wider age range, this way I will be able to see if opinions differ as children pass through the school and mature. It will also help with compiling data as more views give a more accurate representation of opinions across the school.

 

Interview/ Focus Group

I planned and organised a structured interview with the Head of The Arts at the primary I work at. I had many questions written down in a hope of getting opinions on all aspects of my inquiry. We were scheduled to meet straight after school and sit down formally for the interview. Many members of staff often casually gather together at the end of each day to pass on information, reflect on the day’s events and plan for the following day; this was happening as I went for my meeting. I got telling a few people about an online lecture I had been watching the night before for my literature review this meant that several people including teachers, teaching assistants and a professional artist, who was visiting for the day, got to talking casually about the infusion of the arts into and throughout the curriculum. We discussed how creativity can help all aspects of the curriculum by encouraging an open mind, confidence in your ideas and the ability to espress yourself in many ways. It was interesting to hear opinions from the point of view of an artist, a teacher and those who work closely with the pastoral care of children. The conversation flowed naturally with people giving anecdotal evidence, pondering out loud and letting their thoughts and ideas formulate as the conversation went on. There were some great, honest views being expressed so I quickly realised that this was the best way to get professionals to discuss anything to do with my inquiry. I sat down after the conversation to ask the questions in the interview and instantly realised that the more formal the setting, the less honest and more structured, ‘professionally correct’ statements I was getting. This may be due to the fact that I work with most of these people very closely on a daily basis and so they feel awkward setting up a formal conversation or it may be due to the fact that they know I am on this course and want to give me the ‘correct answer’ without offending or deliberately promoting me and my work. By starting a conversation with a piece of evidence that I had found interesting and I thought they would be interested in hearing, in a casual, comfortable setting, I unwittingly managed to ‘lull’ the staff into an unstructured focus group to discuss aspects of my inquiry.

For my inquiry I will aim to create the same organic, casual discussion by bringing evidence or visual stimulus to the group at the end of the day. I will be honest about my views and will let the conversation flow. I will, of course, need to record any points made, hopefully getting some statements to be able to quote in my write up, and so I will take my note book and write any comments made. I will then ask to be able to use these views raised and hope they will allow me to at least anonymously. I think that if I ask at the beginning staff members will naturally try to create well planned statements including background knowledge and evidence to back up their point. I think this will hinder the honesty to their thoughts. If any person shows particular interest or a view that I would like to look into further I will try to extend the conversation with them as an informal interview.

I do not think that planning a formal interview will get the desired information and so I do not plan to use this method in my inquiry.

 

Observation

 

I have asked teachers to observe a child in their class before, during, after and an hour or so after their 15 minutes ‘wake up shake up’ dance session in a morning at school. I discussed the impact it had on the child, their alertness, their focus and any notable changes that occurred in their demeanour throughout the morning. The results were positive, with most teachers reporting great increase in the child’s energy levels in class for the rest of the morning. I found the results interesting although rather short term. I think I will improve this method in my inquiry by creating observations on more children over several weeks. This is obviously providing the teachers agree and ensuring the children are unaware they are being observed. The results will be compiled and recorded with the children remaining anonymous. I think this will provide much more useful data than a single observation.

Task 5c: Professional Ethics

 

Following my thoughts and research on the ethical code of conduct within my line of work, I have studied the course reader and reflected upon the issues raised.

So, what exactly is ‘ethics’? Why does it play such a large role in not only the way inquiries are gone about, but the way people live their lives?

The reader tells us that the word ‘ethics’ is believed to derive from the Greek word ‘ethos’ meaning character. This shows that they believed that the concept of ethics is imbedded in a person – part of their natural character. Philosophers were very interested in the notion of good and bad; what leads a person to carry out certain actions? What is within them that makes them act in different ways?

Ancient thinkers such as Aristotle were continuing to be interested in what makes up and persons character – what makes them good and what actions may that incur? He discussed the issue of people making moral decisions throughout their lives or simply when they feel it is necessary. As with a lot of things, religion has played a large part in helping people to make decisions. As people have been raised with very strong beliefs in a certain religion they may not be able to distinguish between the morals that have been taught through religious teachings and those that they would naturally believe to be wrong. This also introduces the law. When many laws were created Britain was a Christian country so many rules were created around the Bible. This may not have had any issues at the time but as time has passed things changed and religion and law began to stop fitting together so well. The cases of abortion and gay rights seem to be the most obvious – issues that seem to cause a lot of anger between many people. As Britain has become more culturally diverse, it has had to adjust to the views of many people from many different backgrounds and, I believe, that is gradually making the law become more associated with moral as opposed to religion. This, of course, depends on your views upon religion. Hobbes (1651) believed that ethics is a practical solution to social harmony. If that is the case then what is the law for? If an action is ethically and morally wrong then consequently it should be enough of a deterrent to prevent any wrong doing? Does this mean criminals have no moral conscience or do they know it is the case that their actions are immoral but would prefer to do it anyway?

How do ethics impact on life nowadays?

The first thought was that ethical actions and views can be split into 4 main categories, personal, professional, organisational and social. Whilst these can intertwine and work well together, they also can be 3 separate ways of steering ones actions.

Firstly, personal ethics. This is based upon a person’s family background, religious beliefs and natural conscience of right and wrong. This brings up the age old nature/nurture argument – is one born with a moral conscience or are they taught it from birth? Either way, this can dramatically effect a person’s attitude towards all aspects of life including how they deal with others, whether colleagues, clients, friends or family. Many can have many strong views with regards to decisions that they feel are ethical however these often oppose the ethical code of conduct of their organisation. This, I believe, is the issue in Case Study 2: The Ethics of Photography (BAPP Reader 5, Page 10). In this case, Kevin Carter, a photographer who took a photograph of a Sudanese girl struggling to crawl towards water. The stunning photo won a Pulitzer Prize however the controversy sounded the fact that Carter took the photo and left, leaving the girl still struggling for water. The girl died raising the issue of should he have tried to help. From a professional point of view, Carter and the other photographers he was travelling with were specifically asked to not touch, to prevent spreading diseases however, from a personal point of view people would have expected someone in that situation to try and help. This is a particularly strong example of the differentiation between personal and professional ethics. The case can be compared to those who film wildlife documentaries – the have to stand a watch the cruellest acts in nature but professionally cannot intervene. Personally I could not do this, I can’t even watch the wildlife programmes, but I guess it takes a special sort of person to be able to put their personal morals and ethics to one side to be able to do a job. They must have enough reasons to justify that what they are doing is for the good of the job to be able to be content with their actions. Unfortunately Kevin Carter wasn’t. I find that very sad.

Professional ethics are often hard to separate with organisational ethical conduct as they often have to link together in order to work well within a business.

The profession that links all aspects of ethical practise together is medicine. To want to become a doctor, for example, you must be personally a morally strong person. You must want to commit your life to helping others. Professionally you must be able to work hard and always think of the welfare of the patient, constantly keep up to date with the latest medical findings and treatments and always act in a manner that is professional and honest. Most doctors work for the NHS, a huge nationwide organisation that has the responsibility of looking after the health of the UK, this means that an individual must conform to the organisations procedures an ethics in order to give the best care for so many people, ensuring fairness and consistency across the board. Finally the role of the doctor has a major role in being socially ethical- they are dealing with people’s health and potentially can be saving lives. The general public trust the medical profession and they have a duty to act in their best interest. All doctors sign the Hippocratic Oath to promise this. The case of Harold Shipman proves the public lay all their trust in doctors and if they are let down it is a huge problem. Case Study 1 (BAPP Reader 5, page **) “Mid-Staffordshire inquiry: Unhealthy System” proves that when such an enormous mix of ethical views and actions are combined, often it can go wrong and be a very complicated job to unravel.

With regards my professional inquiry, I will need to ensure that I follow that code of conduct within my school and also maintain my personal and professional ethical beliefs. When conducting inquiries I must always maintain a professional attitude and consider the wellbeing of others involved.

5b: Codes of practice within my professional communities

I work in a few different settings however mainly within one Primary School as both a teaching assistant and also leader of extra-curricular dance and drama lessons. As this is the case, for task 5b I have been to the school website to see what their codes of practice may be. The first quote I came across was the school’s mission statement.

 

‘Our school community aims to provide an education that develops children to their full potential within a safe, happy and creative environment.

We aim to maintain a Christian ethos that encourages curiosity and life-long enthusiasm for learning and fosters mutual respect for people of all faiths and cultures.’ (www.highamstjohns.com/mission_statement)

 

This briefly encompasses all the school’s ethical framework without having to go into individual policies. It shows the aims of the school and what it prioritizes as important in the development of all pupils at the same time as reminding all staff what our focusses should be.

 

In order to discover more detailed regulations for ethical codes of practice within a school setting, I came across the ‘NUT Code of Professional Ethics’ (www.teachers.org.uk/files/active/0/NUT-Code-of-Professional-Ethics.pdf‎). This is a specific, thirteen point list in which all of the aspects of teaching are covered. Some points are more appropriate to more senior members of staff due to their increased responsibilities however it highlights the key attitudes that should be used when working within a school.

 

From a dancing perspective, I have looked for something similar to refer to in my freelance dance teacher capacity. As I do not teach in line with any dancing examination body, I wanted to find something more appropriate for my type of classes. I found a company called “The Foundation for Community Dance” which seemed to be more appropriate to my job. Their Code of Conduct is:

 

Code of Conduct

This Code of Conduct translates the core values of community dance into standards of ethical and responsible practice to which community dance professionals adhere. It enables them to be clear and upfront about how they go about their work, their ethical stance on how they approach their work, and the expectations people can have of them in terms of their professional behaviour, actions and attitudes.

The Code covers five areas:

1.     Professional competence

2.     Responsibility

3.     Safety

4.     Working with people

I believe this covers all the bases with regards important areas of ethical conduct. I really like this companies attitude to ethical regulations and believe they have been able to show all the important aspects of ethically running a business. My personal favourites include:

 

Professional competence: As a community dance artist, teacher and/or leader,  I believe that I have a responsibility to myself, the profession and the people whom I work, to do the best I can. I aspire to bring quality to everything I do and commit to investigating in my own continuing professional development to ensure the relevance and quality of my practice and uphold the standards of the profession within the relevant and legislative frameworks and government directives.

 

Safety: As a community dance artist, teacher and/or leader I believe that every participant has a right to enjoy their dancing in an environment that provides for their personal safety, and that I have a responsibility to act in the best interests of their physical and mental wellbeing in the work that I do. I am committed to ensuring that my practice is informed by, and complies with, relevant statutory or legal requirements that safeguard my own and others’ legal, civil and human rights.

 

I have picked these out as I feel they cover so much in so little words. I believe in these principles very strongly and feel they are essential in running dance classes that are morally and ethically sound.

Task 5a: Ethical work within dance teaching

Without looking into the reader and researching the meanings of ethical working, I am aware of the important role it plays in ensuring quality work, safe practice and the safeguarding of both pupils and teachers.

Ethics isn’t about what work we do, more HOW we do it. How I, as a dance teacher, can ensure that my pupils are learning dance safely and enjoying the lessons that their parents have invested time and money in.

I have thought about what it is my moral responsibility to do within my job. Here are a couple of key areas:

Safeguarding: ‘The process of protecting children from abuse or neglect, preventing impairment of their health and development, and ensuring they are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care that enables children to have optimum life chances and enter adulthood successfully.’ Safeguarding Children / Ofsted - Ofsted. Safeguardingchildren.org.uk.

It is my responsibility to ensure all children are safe at all times in my dance lessons and in the transition periods before and after the lessons. It is also my responsibility to assess the wellbeing of the child and notice any changes in their health and emotional development.

Confidentiality: Some aspects of working with children must be kept confidential – their personal details being the key one. The children and parents must feel they can trust you with personal information, particularly if it is anything that may affect their behaviour, dancing and how they should be dealt with (for instance if stressful events may be happening elsewhere in their life at the time). However, confidentiality rules must always come with the clause that if someone discloses something that needs passing on for their safety this always should be made clear. It is my job to know when this is appropriate to do so.

Plagiarism: This is my sole responsibility. Ensuring that the choreography I teach and the shows I put on are all my creative property and not that of any one else.

Standard Policies: With many people attending classes, policies need to be created to protect both the school and the parents. So to prevent favouritism and ‘one rule for one, another for others’ type situations policies confirming procedures including children’s behaviour management, payments, uniform and general running of the classes can be created to make sure everything is clear and above board – helping to create an equal environment. Holding lessons within a school setting means that my policies must line up with that of the schools and so to prevent confusion. It is my responsibility to keep these policies up to date and relevant.

Responsible Adult: As a dance teacher, much like lots of other professions, I become a role model to children of many ages. It is my responsibility to ensure I do not set any bad examples and help guide the children to making correct choices. I cannot expect respect if I don’t show it to them.

It is my responsibility to, through these areas, ensure each child is happy, safe and learning. It is as important as the dance steps they are there to learn. Their wellbeing is key to their learning but also my business – why would a parent pay to take their child to a school that ethically is not sound.

Ding Ding! Round 2! Module 2, Task 4a (so far)

Welcome back one and all! I have to say, I have had a wonderful summer off and now am ready to get back into the world of BAPP! Having had 6 weeks off work altogether (2 of which on a beautiful beach in Jamaica!) It has been a bit of a shock to the system to get back to full time work so I am glad I have had a few weeks settling back into my routine before module 2 has kicked into gear!
So back to the usual routine - download the latest reader and panic. Leave it a few days and come back to it feeling a little less alarmed. Go away again and find my brain starting to think about issues raised, stew on thoughts and come up with new ideas. Research some of my thoughts and then let the penny drop ready to get on with it!
I'm still not fully there however would like to share a few ideas in order to begin developing questions to go towards my professional inquiry.

As I work full time in a very creative school, a lot of my time is spent with children teaching dance, leading morning exercise sessions, creating routines for songs to go in many performances and running extra curricular clubs. For this reason, I would like to keep my inquiry around the topic of children and education. I have a few ideas for which angle to take and don't want to make my mind up yet - I will do a little more research before then.

I am particularly interested in encouraging and engaging boys in dance, helping them to understand how broad a subject it is and how many different benefits it can bring.

How can boys education be enhanced through dance?
How can I, as a dance teacher, engage boys in many styles of dance, throughout all ages?

On the other hand I would like to look into the influence dance can have upon young children - the ways it can impact on their development and approach to learning and life skills.

How can dance impact the initial stages of a child's education?
Why should young children be introduced to dance?

Maybe looking into the short term and long term benefits of dance - how it can impact their education and life skills both immediately and then in the long run. This could include the obstacles they may face and how they might be overcome through dance,

What impact can regular dance lessons have upon children within education?
How can dance aid children improve their learning, across the curriculum?

Please help me by commenting on this post. Am I on the right track or being to specific with my lines of inquiry? These are all areas that I am already very passionate on and so I am finding it quite difficult to get a balance between a good open question and one that is too vague!

Thank you, and happy thinking!

Task 3b: Concepts of the Professional Network

I have studied the many different concepts relating to Professional Networking and believe that, although initially it was a lot to take in, following time studying, researching and reflecting I understand the views put forward will provide valuable in helping me develop my own professional networks.

Firstly, I feel it best to clarify the meaning of “Professional Networking”. This will help me relate the theories to my own experience of networking within both my personal and professional life. Professional Networking is defined as a 'work related community held together by either close working affiliation or more distant but common work interests or needs'. A network is not simply restricted to work colleagues it can take many shapes and forms, for example, close relationships or more distant acquaintances, friendships created in an informal setting or work affiliates who share the same profession or interests. Whatever the setting, an effective network requires time and effort in order to carve a career within your chosen profession.

The main concept of Co-operation is asking when a person should co-operate, and when they should be selfish in order to succeed. It is described as the “will and way to win” (Alan Durrant, Reader 3 BAPP). The main person to research this topic is Robert Axelrod, an American political scientist whose focus was the evolution of cooperation. In 1984 he identified the need for cooperation until you reach a “point of maximum benefit” (Axelrod, R. (1984) The evolution of cooperation. London: Penguin). This raises the debate: do we need others within our network to aid our progress or should they be seen a threat to our career?

When relating this concept to my networks, I believe a different attitude should be taken towards employment and self-employment. As a teaching assistant I had to apply and interview for a job. This required a selfish approach to the situation - in order to beat off competition, I needed to see all fellow applicants as a threat to me achieving my goal. There would no personal benefit in cooperating with other applicants in this instance, however starting my business as a dance teacher is a different matter. In order to start a business from scratch many new relationships need to be formed including people involved in hiring the required space, those involved in advertising and, of course, new customers. Cooperation was required to get the ball rolling and get the business on its feet, maybe not all initial plans were possible but compromise was essential in making sure the foundations had been laid. Once the business is established however the owner starts to develop the power to become more selfish. Maybe they don’t need others just as much and so cooperation isn’t as essential as it once was, decisions are made with the goal of the business in mind. This may not have always been the case, and personally I haven’t found the need to cut off anyone in my network but I can see how it can occur when one feels they have reached the “point of maximum benefit”.

The issues raised with the concept of cooperation are linked to the type of person who is involved. A person who has a high level of affiliation and need for social stimulation is less likely to come to the point of maximum benefit within a network. Networking is a natural social process in which people “form close relationships” (Crisp, J & Turner, R. (2007) Essential social psychology. London: Sage) of support that will help when in need however the level of affiliation desired may differentiate from person to person; this can be described as being ‘introvert’ or ‘extrovert’. This simply means that the level of need for affiliation is directly linked to the preferred level of privacy which is, in turn, linked to the level of social stimulation required by a person to be content in their networks, both professional and personal. Whether introvert or extrovert, the concept of affiliation also includes the principles of homeostasis – the need to keep levels of contact stable at a desired level. People want to be in control of how close they get to certain people, for example, I endeavour to keep all my networks in a certain place: family and friends close to me whereas colleagues, parents and pupils and work acquaintances at more of a distance. This ensure I have a gap between the people who know me personally, all my thoughts, opinions, beliefs, doubts, flaws and goals, and the people who know me professionally, who may not need to know me on the same level. For those who do not enjoy socialising, but prefer to remain private and introvert, a network may still be necessary to help their professional career, likewise, those who have established successful careers and are happy with their jobs often still have large professional networks. But why? Following some reflection on why people who do not enjoy socialising or affiliating themselves with others, I have come to the conclusion that all people have a sense of “just in case”. The smallest doubt in the mind can lead to people maintaining contacts within networks, just in case they need the support in the future- the potential is enough.

 

The main principle of Social Constructivism is that humans construct their own meaning of the world through experiences of social interactions. This idea has roots stretching back to Ancient Greek philosophy, right through the middle ages, continuing to the present time. The concept discusses how your views on the world are constructed through social attitudes and objects only have the potential of having meaning, constructed by human beings. Crotty. M. (2005) ‘The foundations of social research: meaning and perspectives in the research process’ (London: Sage) uses the example of a tree. As human beings we look at a tree and understand that it is, indeed, a tree. But the word ‘tree’ and all associations we attach to it have been constructed by us, human beings. What we must remember, however, is that a tree has a very different meaning to many people, depending on where they are from, what they do and if they have any association or emotional attachment to a particular tree or trees in general.

I the same way we can relate this concept to our networks and the people within them. To me, one person may just be a professional acquaintance, someone whom I see at the occasional training day and who I discuss the latest developments within our profession. That same person, however, can be seen in a completely different way to another person, whether they are a close relative or friend. They may even come across as a different person, with their ‘professional head’ turned off and their guard down, revealing a totally different personality to the one that I see. This is same person but, using the principle of social constructivism, my views and attitudes attributed to the person are entirely different to those who have a different emotional connection.

 

Connectivism is another principle raised. This questions the idea that there is only one way of teaching: knowledge is transferred from teacher to pupil. In it, G Siemens (2004) ‘Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age’ not only suggests that learning and learning activities should now be combined but that the traditional way of formal learning should be rejected entirely. I find the ideas raised within this section very interesting as I can relate to them in my teaching; a lot of the thoughts match my personal views on developing a pupil’s knowledge, technique and confidence.

Driscoll (2000) defines learning as “a persisting change in human performance or performance potential…[which] must come about as a result of the learner’s experience and interaction with the world” (p. 11) This explains that learning should be thought of as a long term, continual process in which a person always develops and grows. For this to occur, I believe a pupil needs to be given the foundations to learning: how to learn, why to learn and the basic techniques of a chosen profession. This can prepare a person mentally and physically (in the case of dance) to start heading down the pathway of learning, giving them the freedom to grow and blossom in their own individual way through communities of practice and the freedom to evolve. Siemens states that “many learners will move into a variety of different, possible unrelated fields over the course of their lifetime” and so by giving a pupil the skills to learn they are equipped to move in whatever direction they decide and still be able to acquire knowledge. “Knowledge is negotiated through experience and thinking” (Siemens, G 2004) and just like the principle of social constructivism, connectivism states that “reality is interpreted” as a result of “experience and interaction with the world” and so as a teacher I believe it is my duty to give a student a starting point to their journey, and make as many experiences as possible available to them.

In terms of networking, Laszlo Barabasi states that “Nodes always compete for connections because links represent survival in an interconnected world.” ( This backs up the importance of networking and maintaining connections with people who have similar interests and knowledge to yourself. It also raises the point that weak connections are just as, if not more important with regards to furthering your career as they are often the ones that enable you to branch out and take opportunities that may take you down an interesting career path.

I have found this principle extremely interesting and complex and I have taken a lot of time to look into it however I do not feel I have fully understood all aspects of it. I hope to be able to reflect upon some of the issues raised and be able to develop my knowledge and opinions through time.

Finally, communities of practice has been developed in order to explain “learning as the process of engagement in social relationships rather than a process of acquisition of knowledge as an individual” (Lave, J. & Wenger, E. (1991) Situated Learning. Legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press). It discusses the importance of social input within learning, if a person feels fulfilled and content in their affiliation to others they are more open and ready to learn. Members of communities of practice, otherwise known a networks, share a mutual interest and knowledge about a discipline, enabling them to connect as a network and develop into a social entity and share their repertoire of resources.

This occurs all of the time, however it mainly reminds me of training at musical theatre school, and the way many people of different ages and backgrounds were put together with the sole connection of a love of performing. The training was extremely challenging but the sense of teamwork helped to pull us all together to get through difficult assessments and obstacles. The lack of hierarchy, as discussed by Lave and Wegner, helped to balance the social group and maintain trust without one person feeling inferior to others.

 

I will continue to reflect upon the principles, opinions and ideas raised throughout this task as I feel there is simply too much information to be able to say I have understood it all. I have enjoyed getting my head around the contrasting and comparative views and hope to be able to discuss the issues further.

Task 3a: Current Networks

What are the current and different ways (tools) that you have or use to engage with your professional network?

 

In order to make sense of the many different networks, types of relationships involved and how to appropriately and effectively communicate with them, I have organised them into groups to highlight the differences and similarities between them.

 

 Colleagues

 

Professional with an occasional cross over to personal (in this instance, refer to 'friends')

Casual, professional relationship within working hours.

 

• Conversations - one to one / group
• Meetings - one to one / group
• Informal interaction - use of texting / Facebook conversation and messaging / twitter interaction
• Sharing information - newspaper or magazine articles / website addresses / adverts / posters / leaflets - this can be done in person or via the internet.

 

Friends

Mainly personal. Informal relationship with an occasional crossover and knowledge about professional life.

 

• Casual, face to face gatherings - one to one / group
• Web interaction - email / Facebook comments and messaging / Twitter messaging and retweets / Skype video chat and messaging
• Phone - calls / texts  voice mails

 

Parents and Pupils

 

Professional relationship. A little more informal with the pupils than the parents.

 

• Communicate with parents via - newsletters / posters / leaflets / word of mouth / notice boards
• Meetings - for pupils / parents / pupils and parents - one to one / group  - formal and informal
• Information / question and answer - Facebook posts, conversations, messages / Twitter tweets and retweets/ emails
• Text messages - group / private
• Calls - individual
• Media advertisements and announcements - newspapers / local magazines / radio / television

 

Family

 

This is obviously a personal relationship however I am in the unique situation of working with my mum and so I can cross over to professional with her. We manage to balance it really well and I am able to discuss professional issues with her and get an opinion from both a professional and personal perspective.

 

• Casual getherings - one to one / group
• Informal communication - Facebook comments and messaging / Twitter messages and retweets / Skype video chat and messaging
• Calls and text messaging

 

Employers

 

Professional relationship however I work in quite an informal setting so there is a personal element.

 

• Meetings - one to one / group
• Calls and voicemails
• Text messages - group / individual
• Emails - individual / group
• Notes - post it notes / noticeboards / individual pigeon holes
• Staffroom discussion - professional / personal

 

Professional Acquaintances

 

Purely professional - no personal relationship.

 

• Meetings - courses and training related to work / group and individual meetings with and without pupils - at my work base / their work base / neutral ground i.e. training centre
• Calls using phone number
• Voice mails
• Emails
• Passing messages through colleagues - word of mouth
• Letters to work - addressed to company / addressed to you personally

   

Having looked through my groups, I have noticed that I have a broad range of networks including both personal, professional and a combination of the two. Within those catagories, I have a variety of ways of interacting within the network depending on the formality and urgency of a situation. 

 

Formal situations: 

I have referred to meetings (one on one and group) across several different networks. This is a more formal situation that is often planned in advance by either myself or an employer, colleague or parent. This situation is generally more serious or private. 

I have also noted that in formal situations that are not face to face, I have referred to communication via telephone calls, voice mail messages or emails as apposed to using text messages or social network website conversations as this is generally seen to be more professional and formal. In the case of friends, close colleagues and family there is more chance of using informal methods to interact within a network.

 

Communicating with many people at once within a network:

Different methods of interaction are needed depending on not just the situation but the amount of people needing to be contacted at a time. For example, when I am needing to contact all of the parents of my dance pupils I would tend to post messages on both Facebook and Twitter, send out an email or group text and put up signs/ notices around the building instead of calling each individual. This is simply down to saving time and ensuring I have managed to contact everybody at the same time. If it were a more personal matter, for example, I would call the parent to arrange a meeting with them personally. This would also be the case within my family and friends networks if I was to arrange a party, for example.

 

Use of the internet:

When reflecting on my networks and methods of communication, I have noticed that I rely heavily on the use of the internet. I assume this will be the case with most people as it is the easiest and most common way of communication, especially since the rise of smart phones. Most people are permanently lined up to the internet and so getting hold of them to share information can be quite simple. Using Facebook and Twitter can also be a lot better to use when thinking financially as it is free to share and advertise any information related to dance classes etc. This is a great improvement from other methods of advertising!

 

What are the established (and different) ways that others use their networks, especially if they are more established or experienced practitioners that you admire?

Mainly, I use my networks to advertise my classes and find out about opportunities, this is all part of carving my career and building up my networks. People whom I admire through all areas of my professional and personal life are not necessarily doing completely different things towards networking, but may just have better established networks and so can use them to reach more people. For example, the more people that know about a class, the more the word is shared around and so it can continue to grow. The same applies for advertising on Facebook, the more friends who "Like" a post I may make about an upcoming class, the more of their friends can see it and get involved. I believe it is just a case of persevering and gradually building up the networks once the different areas have been established.
The other avenue I haven't ventured down yet is creating my own website. These days I believe it is a great way of putting yourself out to the public and showing everyone what your business is all about. I know from personal experience I will check to see if a company has a website and if I like the feel of the website I may judge the business simply through that. Recently business have relied upon Facebook alone to show their company online, this great as you can get easy access to them, contact them through private messages and even look at photographs and videos however more information and personal 'stamp' could be added to a website so I will work towards that.

When you reflect upon current networks, can you think about the motives of others to be in the network and what values and purposes they have in mind?

I will answer this question network by network as each one is very different in motives to another.

Employers-
Employers and seniors in my teaching assistant job are motivated as they need me to get a job done. This is obviously the basis of any job: they simply need to get somebody to work in return for money. Realistically there is more to it than that, I have been selected over many other applicant to do the job and so I am trusted to not only get on with my responsibilities but put my all into it and do my best. In return I will gain respect and the chance of more opportunities from my employer. In order for them to value me, I must prove myself be an essential part of their team.

Professional Acquaintances-
This is a more distant relationship, but still both parties must have a motive in wanting to stay connected. In this instance, the purpose of the network is to be aware of each others professional lives, contact each other when required and hopefully aid the other in their career. I may need someone to give some specialised help to a particular child I am working with within school and so a acquaintance in my network may have the skills required - this is helping me with my work and also providing them with work. In the dance world it may mean finding a job that isn't suitable for me however I may know somebody who it is ideal for and so I could pass the information on to an acquaintance - I would like to think that in a respectful network of people in the same profession, someone may do the same for me if the situation ever came about.

Colleagues-
This network is level and equal in motives. All colleagues have to work together and so the purpose of the network is to stay as a team and interact openly about all matters surrounding work. The motive to remain as a network will continue until somebody leaves their job and therefore will become either a professional acquaintance or a personal friend, depending on how personal the relationship has become in the time of being colleagues. Valuing a colleagues is important in being able to work well together and helping each other achieve the purpose of the job.

Friends-
This informal relationship is held together by the want share personal lives, thoughts, experiences and events, with each other. This is a positive, equal network in which both people can rely on each other and value each others feelings and views.

Parents and Pupils-
It is more appropriate to talk about my dance business for this network. The purpose of this network is to sustain a successful dance school - there is not point in putting on classes if there are no pupils to attend and no parents to support! The motive for the parents are the benefits of the classes:
-The advantages of learning to dance
-The location of the classes
-The price of the classes
-The class timetable
-The standards of my teaching
-The other pupils who may attend (friends/relatives)
Assuming that the pupils are wanting to go to the classes and not being pushed by parents, their motive is to learn to dance and have fun whilst they do it.
To keep the network connected, it is my responsibility to aim to ensure both the pupils and the parents motives are fulfilled to the best of my ability.

Family-
Unlike most other networks, this one cannot be chosen- you get what you're given! In an ideal world, the purpose of this relationship is to support, look after and value each other. This is not always the case however it is one of the most rewarding networks to have.


What would your ideal network look like and why?

My ideal network would be one in which there is mutual respect and understanding throughout. This doesn't have to be professional or personal, just equal an honest. Personally, I like to be able to combine personal and professional to create a relaxed, enjoyable network of people. This takes effort and a lot of care but is very rewarding. I the case of my pupil/parent network, I would like to develop the relationship even further the pupils and in return they work hard for me in classes, enjoy their time dancing and so their parents would respect me for that.

What realistic things could you do to work towards developing your ideal network?

In order to work towards a good balance between personal and professional in my networks, particularly the colleagues network, I need to put in a lot of effort in working as a team, ensure I am pulling my weight with the work load but also show interest and care in my colleagues as people. Notice and understand when they are feeling down, ill, frustrated or are in need of help and be their to support them as a friend, both through helping them with their work and also helping them with any problems they may be having. This has an impact throughout the network as it aids reputation and can bring a network closer together - often helping in the future when opinions may be passed on to others outside the network and therefore helping the network to grow.

In the case of growing my pupil and parent network, I need to continue fulfilling their motives for coming to class and hopefully this will help to not only improve the relationships within a network, but help to expand it further by spreading the word. Any good comments left on social networking sites, leaflets and advertisements all help the network to grow and develop.

What tools and methods do you need to use? What do you know about your current and intended networks, and importantly, what do you not know?

Through answering these questions I have learnt that I have more networks than I initially thought. I have been able to clarify the benefits of each network and the ways in which I use them across my life. I have discovered the many ways in which I communicate on connect within networks and have been able to reflect upon the good things I am doing to promote my career and also come up with ideas to be able to move forward and develop. The tools and methods needed include: keeping learning and progressing in my dance and therefore teaching styles, learning more about ways to extend networks and improve the networks I have already established (keeping up to date with new technologies and trends in order to stay relevant and up to date), maintaining standards across networks including working hard and showing care and consideration towards others and finally always listening to the opinions and ideas of others and using them to guide me. There are always things I do not know and so being open to new ideas and opportunities can help to develop networks further and, in turn, develop my business and career further.