My line of inquiry will probe in to the teaching of
dance. I go into this, wanting to discover which teaching styles and methods,
dance teachers, especially practitioners of dance within communities who aim to engage anybody in dance, have found to be most effective and how different
methods have worked for them.
These teachers are often individuals or part of
organisations that support people of all ages, who want to participate in
dance. Community dance is creative and accessible to all, it is usually the
foundation of those wanting to involve themselves in dance for recreation or
professionally.
I have chosen this line of inquiry because I
want to broaden my own knowledge on a subject that I feel is very relevant to
me. As a dance practitioner within
the community, my credibility has often been questioned and I am often asked
about my teaching styles and even why I feel that the way I teach is the most
effective way. I can’t always answer these questions and using the knowledge I
acquire from this inquiry, I hope I will be able to in the future. I also hope,
that in doing this inquiry, I will develop myself as a dance teacher outside of
an educational setting.
I want
to focus my inquiry on teaching styles that work most effectively outside of an
educational setting. Most teachers within the community do not follow the
guidelines of the national curriculum for dance. I want to find out how they
gather their content for teaching and how do teachers of community dance
groups, organisations and dance companies achieve results. Most importantly,
how do they aid the progression of their students?
In
dance, in the community or in education, young people still gain access to
core artistic discipline. They develop skills in physical interaction, team
work, problem solving, observing, evaluating, verbal and non-verbal
communication of ideas and emotions, making connections, design in space,
musicality and creativity.
In my
inquiry I will observe Beverly Glean, Rosie Lehan. I have also contacted Vicky
Igbokwe of Uchenna Dance Company although I am still waiting upon a definite
confirmation. If I am not able to use Vicky as part of my inquiry, this will
leave a slot to include another community practitioner. All teachers
have inspired me and played a big part in helping me to attain my place
now as a community dance practitioner through their teaching methods and vast
knowledge of the history of their dance form. I have been taught by Glean,
Lehan and Vicky Igbokwe. All have different styles and methods but yet all
have developed me as a practitioner, all have made me more passionate about
dance. I don’t believe that any of these practitioners believe that their
method of teaching is best, but I do believe they feel their methods work best
for them. One factor links them all, they teach within the community dance setting. They are teachers who haven’t studied the
curriculum and who don’t follow the national guidelines but who use their
knowledge and experience to create dance and teach their students the core
disciplines of
dance.
I will be carrying out an intensive inquiry into
the three individual teachers. I will research their history, I want to
discover how they were taught and if it influenced their teaching practices. I
want to find out why they have chosen to teach with a community setting and not
within schools. I will research the literature that they feel has helped them
as practitioners and choreographers they are passionate about who may have also
influenced their work. I will also conduct a focus group with 4 students who
are currently being taught by these practitioners, to discover how they benefit
from each teaching style and if they have adjusted more with one method than
another. According to Patton, ‘the value of a case study is unquestionable
because it enhances the understanding of a phenomenon by providing a depth of
knowledge, not obtainable through other means.’ (Patton, 1990)
WHAT ARE THE INQUIRY QUESTIONS/OBJECTIVES?
Questions I will be asking will be tailored so to
ensure the most detailed knowledge and information can be received. I want to
discover, not so much what the teacher knows, but how the teacher uses the
knowledge in class instruction.
·
What do you know
about the dance form you teach?
·
What are the
sources of your knowledge?
·
How do you
manifest what you know to teach an effective class?
·
What are the defining
principles of your teaching content?
·
On what bases do
you select the content of what you teach?
·
What Practitioners
inspired you and why?
LITERATURE & PUBLIC AVAILABLE IDEAS-WHAT IS
ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT YOUR TOPIC OF INQUIRY?
I plan to look at literature, reviews on their work
and past recorded interviews on sites such as You Tube and Linkedin to discover what is already known about the three
practitioners I am studying. Some of the literature I will look at is; ‘Black
Dance’ by Edward Thorpe, Adad’s ‘Voicing Black Dance’, ‘Women in Dance’ by Christy
Adair. I will also be researching literature by Diane Amans; her literature
is based on the practices of Community dance. This will include ‘Passport to
Practice’ and ‘An introduction to Community Dance.’ What I cannot find through
literature, I will have to research through inquiry tools such as the internet
and media. I think You Tube will be a great source of information as it
documents findings of others whether this is an interview or choreography by
the practitioners themselves.
INQUIRY TOOLS THAT YOU WILL USE AND WHY (BASED ON
YOUR REVIEW OF PILOTS CONDUCTED WITH THE SIG’S)
Based on my past experience of using inquiry tools,
I was able to reflect upon which one worked most effectively in gathering
information needed to further my inquiry. For this inquiry, I know it is least
likely I will be using statistics. I don’t want to be restrictive and upon
reflection of the pilot survey I undertook when trying to discover how many
dancers found exams beneficial to their personal careers, I know that a survey
will not provide me with the valuable in depth answers I am looking for. The
inquiry tool I found most successful was the interview. Using the questions I
have collated, I can direct the interview to areas that are of most relevance
to the inquiry, it also gives me freedom to broaden my knowledge, adding
questions when possible. With this inquiry I thought I would take the interview
technique to another level, not only posing questions to receive answers, but
to video the interviewee. This will allow me, to not only to read back through
the answers given but to reflect on the reaction of the practitioner. Although
I have not done a pilot video interview I do not think this puts me at a disadvantage, I am confident that
videoing the interview will enable me to capture the true feelings of the
interviewee, the honesty and passion behind their words.
I will also be using observation as an illuminative
inquiry tool. I feel it will be particularly useful to watch, first hand, how
these practitioners teach their classes.
APPROACH TO ANALYSIS OF INFORMATION YOU WILL
COLLECT IN THE INQUIRY
I understand that there is no expectation for me to
learn something knew at this stage of my inquiry. I will carefully study the
video footage of interviews and answers given and when observing the classes I
will be studying all aspects of how it is taught. I can then compare my
observations to information I have collected from the interviews and from
literature I have researched. By doing this, I can analyse how the
practitioners put their knowledge into practice and whether it reflects upon
the sources they have offered to me as the reason behind their teaching
practices.
When analyzing the focus group with the four
students, I will be looking back through my findings to discover if more than
two of the students found one teaching style or one practitioner most
influential and why this was. Understanding why is most important because this
knowledge will lay a foundation for the final findings of the inquiry. Analyzing why and how a practitioner of community dance is most beneficial to
their students will be crucial if I am able to take some of this knowledge and
use it in my own teaching practices.
ETHICAL PRACTICE IN YOUR INQUIRY
When carrying out this inquiry, there are ethical
practices that need to be considered. As a researcher, I have a responsibility
to safeguard those involved and those who will be affected by my work. When analyzing the
information drawn from my interviews and observations, my findings will need to
be reported accurately and truthfully. The research I undertake will be for the
purpose of my Inquiry and I will need to ensure that participants in my
research are happy with the way I carry out my investigations. They will be
encouraged to look back through all my findings. The research techniques I used
will be appropriate for the purpose of my investigations. I will use Interviews,
observations, literature and focus groups. I need to understand my involvement
in the study and realize that my research methods should be diverse allowing me
to react humbly and courteously if I may not agree with something. Following
the guidelines of BERA, ethical principle’s I will be taking into account are;
*To ensure I have the consent of all research
participants, informing them of the purpose of my inquiry, getting their
consent and adhering to the confidentiality requirements.
*To make sure all information collected is valid
and accurate.
*To provide feedback of all information gathered to
the research participants and let them know of any intention to publish.
‘Data which is held in a digital form requires
proper managing of it and special handling to ensure the data is not
manipulated or shared with the wrong people.’(Reader 5: Professional ethics)
RESOURCES NEEDED
In order to carry out this inquiry I will be using Beverly Glean, Rosie Lehan of Irie! Dance Theatre
and Vicky Igbokwe of Uchenna Dance company to conduct interviews and observations.
I will use four students, over the age of 16 and currently being taught by
these three practitioners, to hold a focus group. All interviews and
observations will take place in the Moonshot centre, Angus Street, Fordham park, New cross and
the Bernie Grant Arts Centre in Tottenham. Both venues are a hub for Arts
learning and development within the community.
I will require the permission of all three
practitioners and I will also need their consent to hold a
focus group with participants of their classes.
I will need access to internet and web tools in order to gather
background research, I will also need computer access to keep an up to date
blog of my findings and to write up the final analysis.
I will be using a media device to record the interviews, the consent
forms will be given to the practitioner in week one of the inquiry
SCHEDULE
1) Background
research discovering
what is already known about my topic of Inquiry to build a basis for interview. This will take place at the beginning of my
Inquiry. I will take two weeks to gather my background information, during this
time, I will contact
the three practitioners to discuss the details of my inquiry, arrange dates and times of initial observations and interviews.
2) Observation-
Observe classes of each of the Practitioners before interview to interpret
their teaching style for myself and to build questions for interview. The initial observation will take place in the third week. I will discuss with the practitioners in week
one and two, weather this is possible and that they are teaching classes during this period that I can observe. The latest initial observation,
depending on class times will be in the fourth week. During the third week of the
inquiry in which the initial observation is taking place, I will ask four students partaking
within the classes to take part in a focus group.
3) Interview-apply
questions developed by background research and observations and get their own
reasons as to why or how they came to teach how they do. Interviews with all three practitioners will be
carried out in the fifth week, after
initial observations, this allows enough time for me to gather further
information and interview questions based on initial observations and also
allows time if classes could not be observed in the third week.
4) Observation
II- Observe for a second time to connect the information gathered at
interview to the class. Make links to what has been said to how it is applied. Observation two will also be carried out in week
five. I wanted the interview and observation two to be close together as I will
be comparing my second observations to the answers collated from interview.
5) Focus
Group- to ask
students over the age of 16, who have been taught by all three practitioners,
their opinions, perceptions and attitudes toward each teaching style and
method. What they have gained and which they feel they have adapted to best. The focus
group will be the last research tool I use before beginning my analysis. This
will be carried out in the 6th week.
6) Analysis
& write up- Analyse
all the information collected and write up my case study. My Analysis
will begin within a day after completing my research process. This will be in
week 6 after the focus group. I want to take approximately two weeks to
compare, analyse and write up my case study.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I plan to carry out a case study, an
intensive research process into the three individual practitioners Beverly
Glean, Rosie Lehan and Vicky
Igbokwe. The purpose of my inquiry is to discover how effective different
teaching methods are, in dance that aims to engage people of all ages and
abilities. I will then go on to use my
findings in my own teaching practice. This will develop me as a teacher and
benefit those whom I teach.
I will carry out extensive background research
before I begin to prepare my interview questions. I will use literature and web
tools research knowledge already known about the three practitioners. After
observing a class taught by each of them so as to build upon my research and
discover questions in regards to their teaching practices, I will conduct
interviews to discover how they came to use the teaching methods they do and why
they believe their teaching style is best for them and their students. The focus
group conducted with four students taught by the practitioners, will be to
discover which teaching method they feel has had the most influence on them as
dancers, from here I will be able to ascertain which teacher may be most
influential to me.
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