The making process

Looking at your practice whatever it identity it as 'making' is involved at some level. It is important to consider your approach to making (like your approach to learning - making understanding). Thinking about choreography or making and the different ways artists approach the making process. This is an interesting imagined  're-enactment' of the creative process of one maker (Diaghilev) by another maker (Alston).

Different situations create the BAPP Learning Environment

In his book 'Knowing Knowledge' George Seimens talks about Learning Domains

In this course, we create the situation for all four of the domains he discusses in this course. But it is the combination of the four that is the Learning Environment of BAPP. The dance, the music, the play, the yoga class are made of a combination of elements and so is the learning environment of BAPP. 

Transmission Learning- The learner is brought into a system through lectures and exposed to ‘facts’.  The Unihub and Module Handbooks do this.

Emergence Learning– involves greater emphasis on the learner’s cognition and reflection. What you do with the UniHub and Handbooks and Blogs, and Skypes and conversations with your Supervisor.

Acquisition Domain– learning is exploratory and inquiry-based. This has to be self-directed (because it is your practice not anyone else’s) but self-directed does not mean alone you need to remain connected through sharing ideas (on blogs, in Skype discussions etc…). You explore this domain through looking at what you have done in the past (and writing past learning in Module One), looking at your current practice and how the course and ideas you encounter connect with it, through carrying out a project based inquiry. Sometimes you are considering all three at once (if you are in Module Three for instance).

Accretion Learning– is continuous, the learner forages for knowledge when and where it is needed – Real life and ongoing. This is shared through your blog – which is why your blog is so important to keep contributing to and why commenting on others people’s blogs is so helpful to them. 

Across all this ‘relevance’is crucial to look at critically.  This returns us to thinking about what truth, deception, distraction and fact mean to you/do to you. 

Lastly feedback (to each other on blogs and back and forth with your Supervisor) becomes a conversation - ongoing and not as set of instructions to get an 'A'. Go back to 'The Test'  in my blog on September 17th 2019 for John Green to explain that again...

Here is a video made about Connectivism which is the overarching idea for the network of learning domains. 

Please comment below....

Module One focus session: Practice (peeling your practice away from the background noise of...)

We looked at what we could mean by Practice:

peeling it away from the background noise of your training, what you have had to do because xyz, what other people have told you are rather than what you see your direction as, the restrictions of work or organizations,....

We talked about how we are seeing your practice as fluid... changing as you find yourself in different situations, over time etc...

We looked at elements that contribute to what we are calling your practice - what you have learnt since formal training, what is 'self' learnt, or gleaned on the job/in action.

What are discourses in your field that around about things you value or contribute to shaping your practice.

We made connections between understanding your own learning style - as part of understanding and recognizing what you have learnt (AOLs) and also as a way to support your further learning now and across your professional career.

We made connections between using the Three lens in the handbook to help notice and give form to your practice. and also as a way to talk about it i.e. talk about your practice through reflecting on it, looking at what your networks are, seeing how you communicate and present it and yourself.

We said practice is not just the title of the job you do, it is deeper including what you value...

We saw how the 'diagram' maps out your practice, values, landscape, objects , discourses. How it might be a starting point to the essay rather than the other way around. 

We made lots of connections across all the elements of the Module ...please look at the comments below to see some connections people in the conversations made. 

All this is critical thinking - critically thinking about your context, your construct of what you do. 

Tuesday discussion ...

Tuesday (am) discussion group went well. We talked about a range of things making connections across ideas. The discussion groups are a place to ‘find your voice’. People in the group will be posting short blog posts on things that felt resonated with them and will put links in the comments below.

Here is a list of points people made to summarise the important moment in the conversation, explore the blogs to hear more:

Sometimes things click when you don’t look too hard.

Explore the blog network…

Teaching ideas and research about ‘Hands on and Hands off’ makes one realise there is a lot of discussion (discourse) about your practice that you might not been a part of or been aware of.

Some people will share their general notes from the conversation

About the blogs

We are now a network – a learning community

Not waiting for the ‘energetic beginning’ or permission to start – interact…

It is ok to have questions (great even)

Everything is relevant to all three modules

Ethics within networks (also the differences between ethical procedures (rules) and ethical considerations (the flow of how you engage with things).

Don’t be shy and finding your voice

Technique and /or interpretation - on being told what to do

Not being told what to do – how to stay motivated

I felt a lot of the conversation was about how we locate ourselves in the places we work, the ideas we encounter, the networks we engage with. I think about this often also in terms of how willing we are to forgive ourselves – How willing we are to hear our own voice, to own our own mistakes or misunderstandings and our own wonderful moments of being a part of everything in a good way. How willing we are to dive in, listen, be kind, share and be ok with changing what we would have done when we look back on it. Learning seems to be part of what nurtures this. and it resonates with ideas about what 'professional' can mean... What do you think? comment below and follow the links other people leave too…

Late nights reading drafts and finally having meaningful conversations with people!!!!

:(
I have been posting on my blog, having Skype sessions and being open for learning all term and now suddenly I am everyones best friend for emails and info. Suddenly my thoughts are really important and weirdly I have been having them all term!!!

It is not about the Advisors being there to tell you the 'secrets' to submitting something that will pass!! It is about you being on a learning journey and seeing the value of Advisors as people who can accompany you on the whole journey beginning to end of the module you are on.

Opening my box of 'A's and 'B's and sprinkling them on your essays - is not what I see education, teaching or learning to be.

Trust yourself and make what you do meaningful, reflective and kind; and then it will be useful to you; and that is the goal.

Adesola

Oct 7th AM SKYPE session conversation points

This mornings group SKYPE session went well – we had some helpful and interesting conversation. We were Lara, Gemma, myself and Hannah joined us at the very end.

The point of all the sessions we have (campus, skype even on-to-one with your tutor) is to feel like you are an ambassador for the rest on the BAPP learning community. That is share what you got out of the interaction what you learnt , what got you thinking, what it made you question. So true to form Lara and Gemma are going to write posts about what they thought was valuable about the conversation this morning.

Gemma is going to write further about how nice it is just to hear the voice of other students talking about their experience and realising they are like your own. Also practical aspects like adding people to your blog by making sure you have ‘follow’ activated on your blog site. Also starting to ‘follow’ other people to start to get connected. Lastly we talked about how basically this is all about starting to change your student self to a professional practice self, through reaching out and finding the information and connections that you need to develop your work. We are offering you lots of tasks and things to think about but only do this if you are linking it to your professional practice to developing yourself and your understanding. In other words ‘use’ things to find out more and develop do not just do them because you think you have been told to. We are seeing active development and responsibility for developing your professional practice what it mean to be professional and that is what this BA is about . Check out what Gemma has to say http://grwalker92.blogspot.co.uk

Lara is going to write further on how we talked about the importance of finding your own learning style. Try playing with some of the tasks to see what works for you in terms of how you have a meaningful learning experience. You don’t have to do everything suggested they are just ideas to get you thinking. You can try doing things or talk about the idea to people you work with to get their thoughts. The important thing is that what you do is purposeful. The purpose is not to do it to show you did it, it is to use doing it to think more about and develop your Professional Practice. That is what the BA is in. Check out Lara’s post on our conversation at http://larafbapp.blogspot.co.uk

Our next group SKYPE is 8:30 (in London) on Wednesday October 8^th (tomorrow). If you want to join in please say so in the comments box below. Also it would be great to hear what you think of the points made in our conversation. What do you think Professional Practice means?

Adesola

Knowledge, information and Web 2.0

I have been looking a texts about on-line teaching. I thought that the following was really useful. Especially for module two-ers and three-ers. It is important you don't just use information you happen to come across when you google a subject. Researching into things is not just about finding something someone has written on it. It is about evaluating what things mean in terms of what you already know (and who you respect who also knows about it) with what you want to know more about.  Don't let Google determine what you know; allowing your information on a subject to be whatever comes highest in a search! So here are some questions to ask yourself: 

 Authority. Who says? Know the author.

• Who created this information and why?
• Do you recognize this author or their work?
• What knowledge or skills do they have in the area?
• Is he or she stating fact or opinion?
• What else has this author written?
• Does the author acknowledge other viewpoints and theories?

Objectivity. Is the information biased? Think about perspective.

• Is the information objective or subjective?
• Is it full of fact or opinion?
• Does it reflect bias? How?
• How does the sponsorship impact the perspective of the information?
• Are a balance of perspectives represented?
• Could the information be meant as humorous, a parody, or satire?

Authenticity. Is the information authentic? Know the source.

• Where does the information originate?
• Is the information from an established organization?
• Has the information been reviewed by others to insure accuracy?
• Is this a primary source or secondary source of information?
• Are original sources clear and documented?
• Is a bibliography provided citing the sources used?

Reliability. Is this information accurate? Consider the origin of the information.

• Are the sources truth worthy? How do you know?
• Who is sponsoring this publication?
• Does the information come from a school, business, or company site?
• What's the purpose of the information resource: to inform, instruct, persuade, sell? Does this matter?
• What's their motive?

Timeliness. Is the information current? Consider the currency and timeliness of the information.

• Does the page provide information about timeliness such as specific dates of information?
• Does currency of information matter with your particular topic?
• How current are the sources or links?

Relevance. Is the information helpful? Think about whether you need this information.

• Does the information contain the breadth and depth needed?
• Is the information written in a form that is useable (i.e. reading level, technical level)?
• Is the information in a form that is useful such as words, pictures, charts, sounds, or video?
• Do the facts contribute something new or add to your knowledge of the subject?
• Will this information be useful to your project?

Order & Trust

This week seems to have rushed by.  

I have been thinking about order. There is a certain amount of trust that is required to follow the steps (tasks) in the modules. To some extent one needs to trust that they will add to your learning experience and not just be extra work or hoops or boxes to check. It is one thing to do them and another to open up – undo your thinking - enough for them to affect your plan or research or process.

This is the trust it takes to not look for the certainty of having ‘done that’ and allow instead for on-going development, on-going inquiry. 

(This trust is not just some kind of courage to find within yourself it is also about how the ‘teachers’ / ‘advisors’ / writers-of-the-module present as trust worthy. I think learning is a two-way street the experience of learning is the situation of the material, space, teacher, student and those roles are interchangeable.)

What do you think?

Adesola

Playing with ways to reflect

Hi Guys
Some people have said they haven't got much to reflect on or put in their journal and they are waiting for rehearsal or something scheduled to happen to start (and feel there is something to write about). But this is about teasing out from the every day. In research it is making the familiar unfamiliar (looking at 'everyday' things in new ways) and / or making the unfamiliar familiar (exploring new things and ideas). Here is an idea....
Ten minute poem each night. Take ten minutes to write a poem about anything from your day. These will be good starting points for realising what has effected you or what resonates with you. I am going to try it. Anyone want to join me. I am going to take ten minutes each night for a week to write a poem about my day. Lets see what comes out!!!

Another thing you could do if the poem doesn't sound like something you want to do. Choose a random time at the beginning of the day and when it gets to that time wherever you are or whatever you are doing stop and reflect on where you are. Write something as part of the reflection and then carry on. Again this might help to start to find things in everyday. There is Learning, Live, Love in every minute reflection is about finding meaning.

Lessons from Oprah!

Kolb's learning cycle popping up in unexpected places: I was reading my Christmas Oprah, Diet advice by Martha Beck titled 'It takes all Kinds'. Its fun to read the whole concept in terms of going on a diet!!! She has:
'"quick start" swings quickly into action, making creative discoveries and mistakes - through trial and error'
'"fact Finders" need information; they're the friends who'll research every relevant factoid about any task they're preparing to undertake'
'"Follow through" people naturally use methodical systems: they set up files for every receipt and alphabetise their refrigerator contents.'
"Implementers" focus on physical object and environments; they figure out things by building models or grabbing the appropriate tools. They respond better to bricks and mortar than castles in the air.'

The advise is that you need a group of friends that range across these types so that the strengths and weaknesses of the group can support each other on the diet. Groups - learning sets - are a great way to work. Martha says its like 'Fellowship of the Rings' a fellowship of people going on the journey together but all very different from each other. Funny to find it all in Oprah Magazine.