And so it begins ... Module 2
After listening back to the Zoom call from last week and making my way through the handbook, slowly but surely things seem to be making a little more sense. Talking to a couple of other Modules 2 on a call last week it was really helpful to talk my thoughts out loud and try to find the sense in them. It made it much easier and I instantly remembered how helpful this community is and how I definitely couldn't have made it through the last module without it!
I am still trying to get my head around mapping my practice but I do feel heading in to the second module I feel slight more at ease, although the amount of work ahead looks rather scary. But trying to keep in mind Helen's comments in the call allowing us to be comfortable with keeping the focus to the mapping of our practice and ideas at the moment.
As I begin to think about where I would like my work to go over the course of the next two modules I feel I have the beginning of an idea which I now need to investigate further. Since March of this year I have been working as Performing Arts teacher in a secondary school alongside working as a dance teacher in two local dance schools. I have been exploring the different areas around my work and how it's becoming the main focus of my practice I would like to explore an area around this over the next two modules.
My thoughts have been a little all over the place and I am going to do some reading and more research to hopefully find the specific area I will look at but I am interested in the importance of performing arts as a mainstream subject to develop the learning and of children and the impacts the subjects can have on the social and mental development of children.
This is something that I have found myself coming up against a lot with having to explain to children the importance of the subjects and how it is helping them.
This has also led my to think about the importance of the transferable skills that are gained from the performing arts and how this is also is helping my own skills to develop with the different teaching environments that I am working in.
I still feel unsure as to the exact route I will take and where my map
will lead me but I'm hoping over the next week with more reading and my 1-2-1 I will get there.
H x
I think this is a really interesting area of research. During the pandemic I think even the least creative people realised the need for the arts. I used to work in a primary school and saw first hand the benefits of creative subjects. I'm in touch with many I used to work with so if you end up doing surveys etc I can always ask if they could contribute.
ReplyDeleteHi Sally, thank you for this I will definitely get in contact when I look in to this! Thank you.
DeleteGreat blog! I enjoyed reading this and I agree that after more reading and mapping and talking to your tutor your ideas will become clearer and you will notice a trend in your research and questions.
ReplyDeleteI think the transferable skills we gain from performing arts at a young age are important. I feel that I learnt discipline and professionalism and learnt to appreciate and celebrate the talent of the others.
Ellie
Thanks Ellie,
DeleteI do feel things are a little clearer now however things do still feel very overwhelming but nothing new there with this course!
I agree in that the difference of discipline is 10 fold in those students who actively engage within the performing arts.
Hi Hannah!
ReplyDeleteI definitely think arts are so important in mainstream education, and having gone to a high school with a focus on performing arts (not a vocational school, we just took classes once a week) I've definitely seen how it can bring some people out of their shell or enrich their learning. I'll definitely be keeping up to date with your blogs as I'd love to know a bit more about why that happens.
Becca x
Hi Becca, thank you I do feel that it is such an important thing for children to learn and the skills in gives them to develop in others areas of academic and vocational learning is amazing.
DeleteI'm still unsure as to my specific line of inquiry but im hoping that it will soon come.
Hi Hannah,
ReplyDeleteI also teach curriculum performing arts, but at primary school level. I work for an outside company that schools employ to come in, and getting schools to cut out budget for it is almost impossible. The uptake has been even less since the pandemic because schools are naturally a bit hesitant to have outsiders coming in. I've seen so many children who struggle in a typical academic setting flourish in dance and drama classes and I wish schools would see this as encouragement to allow more time and money for it! Not to mention the cross-curricular benefits to communication, fine-motor skills, language, reading etc etc.
I look forward to reading some of your future ideas!
Shannon x