The Art is in the process

We had two great Discussion groups on Tuesday. I am going to highlight some of the different points that we talked about and some I have talked about with other people in One-to-ones.
First some Module Two questions (and reminders for Module Three.)

What is the recommended time frame for the primary research aspect (interviews, questionnaires etc) in module 3?

I recommend 3-4 weeks for each section1-4 wks data collection (interviews, etc..)
5-8 wks analysis (triangulating the data, literature, your experiences)
9-12 wks creating communication of experiences and discoveries (written essay and artifact) 

How many research questions do you recommend? 
It depends on how you are working - I recommend being open to the area you are looking at and not pinning it down too much. This might mean one to two very open questions or lots of small ones that build to create a bigger picture together. You are not looking for answers you are looking to find out something more about an area in your own professional practice remember.

and how many pieces of literature to review? 
You are not reviewing single bits of literature - you are reviewing what is said about the topic in general (The Literature). Like not reviewing a show (Kinky Boots) but reviewing (overviewing) all the different types of shows there are - Musical Theatre, Drama, Medieval, Dance etc…. You are explaining the field where your one small area fits. In doing this you might (and should) identify three or four written books / articles that are particularly relevant and that will be key in informing your inquiry analysis. For ‘Review' think ‘overview' or 'The Literature' think ‘whats out there on the general subject…’ so a literature review is An overview of what is out there on the subject.

Other ideas we talked about

Don't get stuck trying to perfectly answer one question - cycle round tasks, come back to things review older Modules and tasks. You don't go to a ballet class and spend two weeks just standing at the barr trying to do the perfect plie or playing a song on the saxophone you don't spend two weeks  getting the perfect first note. (You know when to come back to it and when to work extra on parts. Use the same skills in your 'academic' study. Don't make the artist you a different being from the 'academic you'.

Reflection is about keeping track of your process

Differ your approach to ideas - organize yourself so you can play with looking at ideas from different perspectives.

Don't look at things in terms of 'I agree' or 'I disagree' - look at things in terms of what their relationship is with other experiences you have had and other ideas you have encountered. 

Ethics is not a thing it is a more a word that indicates you have taken or are taking an approach... 

Rather than the 'ethics of the situation' (as if Ethics was a thing)  you would say 'the ethical consideration made in the situation' (about how things were done). My last blog  Oct 30th 2017 talks more about this. 

For module Two and Three rather than think 'What question an I finding / exploring' think 'what do I want to find out more about / what am I finding out more about'.

People who attended the discussion ate writing the links to their posts about the discussion below. Also please comment below.

First week and Group Skype chat (First Tuesday of the Month Group Skype Chat)

OK its time to get started – I know its tempting to need to be told what to do by a voice and not just start your own way. In other words, its much nicer to get a one-to-one with an advisor and then say “I don’t know what to do’ and then she will tell you and you’ll do it. Then bling surrounded by rainbows and unicorns your on your BA journey again…

BUT the whole point is this course is about you developing and owning your professional development not about getting the full story on how to get an ‘A’ and doing it as directed.

The reason is that when we devised the course we were responding to the idea that once you have a job in an industry it is up to you to work out what you need to do to do the best job you can, or to fill in gaps, or to move towards what you are interested in. We are not trying to drop you in the deep-end here just trying to point out your already know the tools and actions for the kind of hussle you have to do for work and it is the same here. Look about, read-up, research, try things out. Unlike a work place setting where you might feel uncomfortable asking “well Ive found out I need a CRB check… but where do I get one I can pay for myself?” (I know they’ve changed the name now), non-the-less unlike the work place you do have someone to ask…that’s when you can talk to your advisor/tutor or even better come to a group skype and share with other people.

So if you want to talk to your advisor because you have no idea what to do or ask about it is not the time to talk to her. It is time to get yourself reading others blogs, looking at handbooks, researching and finding out. Remember this is not to look at these resources to look for the answer or the direction (thinking well if she won’t tell me maybe the books will tell me) …NO look at them to start to build your own direction, to start to form your own ideas, plans concepts. Its not like it’s a secret the handbook says what you have to hand-in and by when and gives suggestions for getting there and the blogs are thousands of posts by hundreds of people who have done this before you but the one thing no-body can do (or be) is an expert in your life – that’s your role.

So once you have some ideas, thoughts, ‘questions’ come and share them – post on your blog, comment on my post!! etc… come to a ‘First Tuesday of the month group Skype Chat’ to share your experience and get feedback on ideas and hear other people. We have one on Tuesday 6^th October.

How it works I will call everyone so I (Adesola) need to have your skype address if I don’t already have it. If I don’t have it send me a request (my skype address is in the hand-book. Say who you are in the request). Then we have in morning chat (for those who work in the evenings or live East of UK!!) and an evening chat (for those who work during the day or live West of UK!!) Write in the comments below let me know which chat you want to attend.

10am (London time)

or

8pm (London time)

What do you think?

Comment please :)

Adesola

Friday's skype orientation -

Tonight we had our returning orientation.

We talked about the importance of knowing ‘the obvious’:

• When hand-in date is
• What you need to hand-in
• Making sure you are aware of different ways to exchange ideas and share learning (ie know the dates of campus and on line sessions, join the First Tuesday group Skype chats we have every month, &/or start a Special Interest Groups (SIGs) with other people interested in what you are doing, and get back into blogging!

We also talked about getting started by questioning your assumptions and allowing yourself to look beyond your comfort zone. Getting back into study is also about getting back into being comfortable not knowing (yet), having questions and trust you can be confused at times but you are on a journey. The ways to exchange listed above and your Advisors are all there to keep you from getting lost even when you are in a fog of confusion every now and then.

Asking what people got out of the conversation-

Lianne said ‘Don’t just stick to thinking about what you already know. I already knew about my own practice and I want to look beyond that’ …to see different perspectives on my inquiry question. She is posting about the conversation on her blog 

http://lianneclootholt.blogspot.com

Lisa A. talked about the feeling of being confused and the importance of looking at your feedback from your last Module as a way to start back at things. She is posting on the conversation too.

 http://lisaaxelson.blogspot.co.uk

Lisa M. said ‘it is good to hear other people talking from other modules’… somethings start to make sense as you move forward in your own module. She will be posting on her blog too.

http://lisameiklejohn.blogspot.co.uk

We have another returning orientation tomorrow Saturday September 26^th  in the morning at 11am.

What do you think? How are you getting ready to start back?

Adesola

AM Skype chat

This morning group skype went well.

We talked about time management. Which James is going to post on also.

http://jamesbapp.blogspot.co.uk

Some tips were

Listen to pod casts on subjects as a way to be thinking about things on the go – like listening to a pod cast on reflection on the tube.

Learn to know times of the day or situations where you will time waste even if you have set time a side for study.  For instance maybe it doesn’t work if you block out time in the day to work on BAPP because something always comes up. But you know if you do some study at the end of the day when all your work chores are over you will be able to focus on it.

What’s App voice messages to yourself  to capture moments where you have time to think about something but you are on the go

We talked about practicing academic writing (task 2c). Lisa is going to post more of thoughts about this task. 

http://lisameiklejohn.blogspot.com

We talked about how this is really about learning a technique. Like learning a ballet technique it is somewhat about knowing the rules of the technique.

These rules include:

Knowing how to cite and why you need to

Being able to find books and use them as reference

Skills for writing Introduction and Conclusions

Jodie is going to write about this part of the conversation have a look at what she says in the comments below.

We also talked about thinking about the final work you are handing in. We said that you should be sending drafts by end of Easter if you want feedback from your advisor.

Also making sure you know what you want to say. Finding this out does not always come in the form of writing it. We talked about how going for a walk or doing a yoga class or talking to someone else are all methods of working out what you want to say (and what your point is). Then writing it down is just a form of presentation.

What do you think? Please comment below

Adesola :)