Module 3 Critical Reflection

A Critical Reflection on my learning experience throughout Module 3…

Module 3 has been, by far, the most challenging part of the BAPP Arts course. It has been a huge workload to complete in such a short time frame and I certainly feel as though it pushed me to keep up the momentum with my work and be very aware of my time management. I feel as though my skills in this area have improved and this is something I can carry forwards into my further studies. Organisation really has been key throughout this entire project; the Module 3 Handbook along with Reader 7 assisted me in visualising how to best organise the Module into sections that could be completed systematically so as to avoid confusion. thinking about the project in stages that naturally developed into one another helped me to monitor my progress and ensure that I was fully completing each step before moving on to the next level of development.

I started Module 3 feeling like a tiny, tiny fish in a massive pond. The research and inquiry tools looming before me seemed rather daunting and it took me a while to get to grips with where I was going and what I wanted to find out through my research. Here I welcomed the help of my SIG as well as the advice offered in a group chat on Facebook I have the pleasure of being a part of with other Module 3 students. It is great because we all encourage each other and reassure people’s ideas, opinions and paths of discovery which has been a great help for me throughout the entire duration of Module 3.

Forming my literature review was really where I started with my research. I re-read all of the sources that I had mentioned in my Professional Inquiry Proposal for Module 2 and these helped set me off on the right foot. Finding the relevant sources took a lot of perseverance and at one stage I was sure that I would struggle to get my project moving forwards as the sources seemed rather scarce and irrelevant. However once I got the ball rolling I was pleased to find a range of sources which contained excellent expert ideas, theories and opinions to be noted down for my inquiry, and so my topic area was finally set in stone.

I then set to organising my interviews with arts industry practitioners exploring, as I went, how to best structure an interview to get the most out of the experience. I have explained previously that my intention to do a focus group unfortunately fell through however, upon final reflection I can say that I am very pleased and satisfied to have been able to conduct 6 very informative interviews. Having now written my Critical Review I can say with assurance that I had all the information I needed to meet the requirements of this research project.

It was a lengthy task to transcribe the data yet far more challenging to actually analyse it. I did this by picking out key themes from the interviews as a whole. These themes emerged from the questions I had asked which in most cases were of similar wording. I eventually was ready to pick out the key quotes I wanted to use from each interview, all of which appear in the Analysis section of my Critical Review. Alongside this I also took to the task of picking out main quotes from the sources I had collected for my literature review which was no easy feat. My method was to highlight the quotes in each source and then type all quotes (with references) into one document under themes. This enabled me to systematically include them in the Evaluation section of my Critical Review.

Moving onto the Professional Artefact section of Module 3, this developed very late on for myself as I wanted to be secure in my research and the writing of my Critical Review before starting it. As stated in previous blogs, I chose to write an article which presented my findings in an informative yet visually exciting way. I actually really enjoyed writing the article as it is a completely different way of writing and one which I had not done for a while. It gave me the opportunity to be more creative and informal in my writing style which is very different to the more academic way of writing used in my Critical Review. I also included an image I had drawn which was also a very enjoyable part of the process as it is not often that i put pen to paper to create an image!

The final stage of Module 3 is the oral presentation which will not be happening for another few weeks. Once the 6th of January deadline has passed, all of my focus will go into creating a Powerpoint presentation and complimentary script for me to take reference from as I present my research to the audience. Although a nerve-racking, this is something that I am looking forward to as I will be able to explain and present my hard work to others who will be able to do the same in return so it will be a lovely sharing experience. To go with my presentation, I plan to get a few copies of my article professionally printed t hand around and give people an idea of what my artefact looks like. Updates on my oral presentation will follow in the near future. 

I am glad to have chosen a topic area that genuinely means a lot to me and really sparks my interest. As I have probably mentioned before, I am looking to study the law following the BAPP Arts course and hopefully, eventually, become a solicitor. I wish to specialise in areas of the law that sit within the arts industry; entertainment and intellectual property being the major two. I want to help artists in any legal disputes they find themselves in and advocate for the expansion of the services that assist artists in their professional lives to ensure that they are happy and legally secure in their workplace. Overall, Module 3 has secured my enthusiasm for this topic area and allowed me to better my own practice by learning more about the law and how the arts industry sits within it. Going forwards I can use all of the knowledge I have gained from this research project to fuel my future legal studies - something I am so excited to embark upon!  

Lil' Blogger

Summary of Inquiry Research Findings

Summary of the main project findings and the main benefit that emerged throughout my research:

Throughout this project I have discovered;

• The main areas of law which can potentially affect professional dancers (predominantly), but also choreographers, company directors and arts industry practitioners, such as contract; copyright (intellectual property); employment and claims of negligence (personal injury)
• Further details about the trade union for performers, Equity, and the free legal services it offers to its members
• Professional dancers’ opinions on the support they receive in their current company and how their work environment could be improved through the addition of legal advice and support
• How educating artists and improving advocacy for this topic area needs to be addressed for the benefit of future artists, working in conjunction with organisations like One Dance UK

If I could choose the main benefit that has emerged from my research, I would say that it has given me the opportunity to inform others of how important it is for dancers to be really protected in their workplaces to prevent them from being taken advantage of and treated in a way that falls outside the law. I have been able to highlight how often it seems dancers are mistreated by employers and struggle through the challenges and tests of what can be a ruthless industry. I like to think that this research, if further developed, could offer a voice to dancers who feels misrepresented and desperate for an individual or organisation who is on their side and willing to fight for their wellbeing.   

Developing my Professional Artefact

Having finally finished writing and editing my Critical Review, I am moving onto creating my Professional Artefact. I had initially thought about making some sort of information leaflet aimed at professional dancers which explained to them the typical areas of law affecting their industry, and where they can look to for legal advice and support. I felt that a leaflet format would be a great way for me to present my research in a concise, convenient way.  

Following a discussion with Paula, I came to the decision that a leaflet may not necessarily attract enough attention to the information I am providing. Think about how many times you have picked up or been handed a leaflet and had either a brief look or thrown it in the bin. So it was back to the drawing board for me!

I knew that I wanted to produce something informative yet eye-catching that combined both text and images to capture the readers attention. I found it particularly useful to view the artefacts created by past students and regularly had a look at the examples presented in Paula’s slides which can be found in her blog (http://paulanottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/final-21216-session-module-3.html). My artefact will be a completed product instead of a work in progress. I like to imagine that it is something that could be featured in a magazine in the future perhaps after further research of my own.

It was the posters and booklets that tended to spark my imagination as I knew from the start that this was the type of artefact I wanted to create. Finally, I decided to create an article. To start me on my way, I looked through old copies of magazine The Dancing Times and gained inspiration for layout, language and general format. Using these sources really helped me to get my head into article writing as it is something I have not done since studying English at GCSE level.

In terms of target audience, I imagined the sort of people who would read The Dancing Times and also the practitioners who would benefit the most from my research and the information I will be providing in my article. This means that particularly professional dancers and in general, dance industry practitioners would have the strongest interest in my artefact.

Yesterday, I spent a fair amount of time designing the format of my article, choosing the images I want to include and also doing a drawing of my own to feature in the article. This was me using my creativity to make something that is visually exciting yet professional looking and I must admit that I enjoyed drawing as it is not something that I ever really do. To inspire my drawing, I Googled ‘abstract dancers’ and ‘dancer silhouettes' and ‘abstract dancer silhouettes’ to find images that ignited my imagination and made me want to draw. Some of the images really were simple yet stunningly beautiful and it was along these lines that I created my own interpretation of an ‘abstract dancer silhouette’. Although time consuming, I really enjoyed playing around with the layout and format of my article, playing around with the document until i felt I had it just right. Again I very much drew inspiration from an article in The Dancing Times entitled Dance and its Disappearance by Paul Arrowsmith. It was an article which immediately caught my attention whilst flicking through the magazine and so I used it’s design as a basis for my own article.

Today I am making a start on the actual writing of the article. This morning, I started by simply Googling ‘magazine article writing tips’, in the hope of finding a few pointers to set my writing streak in motion. I found quite a useful article written by W. Terry Whalin entitled Some Basics on Magazine Writing. Whalin recommends;

• Establishing a rough word count before starting to write so that you can be specific about the information that is most important to include
• Focussing the article onto your area of research (something I am already secure in)
• Gathering and organising any data such as that from interviews (completed in my case)
• Summarise the point of your article into one sentence and never move away from this goal; ‘My article is about……..’
• Settle on the main points you want to make, choose any quotes you want to include and make a template of a beginning, middle and end; in other words an introduction, a body of text and finally the conclusion

Whalin urges you to consider; “Does it make sense? Are there areas that are missing?…Is the article focussed and targeted for the assigned publication?” (Whalin, 2016). I have to ensure that my article achieves its objectives and fulfils its purpose of providing interesting, thought-provoking research to the reader. 

Finally, I need to remember that every “article is unique from a creative source” (Whalin, 2016), and that I, as the writer, have to discover my own way of writing and putting my own twist on things. It is so fascinating reading something that is clearly in a certain writers style where their personality or enthusiasm for a certain topic emerges - I hope to achieve the same!

Below I have created a very brief draft for my article which will guide me through the writing stages from here on. It is simply to inform me of the sort of writing structure I should be using. My article is to inform the reader of my research and what I have learnt throughout this process as well as advising them on where I have found legal support for dancers can be sourced from… 

1. Title

• exciting, eye-catching, capture readers attention, brief yet descriptive of subject of article

2. Subheading (optional)

• Single sentence giving general overview of what article is about. Could perhaps begin with ‘Lily Grundy explores…’ or ‘Lily Grundy delves into…’

3. Body of text

• 2-5 paragraphs where the topic area is further explained and developed. Can include images and quotes to enhance the information provided.

4. Conclusion

• Summarises the topic area or gives a final opinion on the research presented 

I now have the next week to complete the writing of my article to then submit with my Critical Review - cannot believe the end is in sight!

Lil’ Blogger   

Bibliography

Arrowsmith, Paul (2012) Dancing and its Disappearance, The Dancing Times, October 2012 Ed.

Nottingham, Paula (2016) Final 2.12.16 session Module 3 artefacts, oral presentation, sourced from http://paulanottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/final-21216-session-module-3.html accessed 30.12.16

Whalin, W. Terry (2016) Some Basics on Magazine Writing, sourced from www.right-writing.com/basics.html accessed 30.12.16    

Module 3 Skype 02.12.16

Yesterday evening, fellow Module 3 student Charnelle and I attended a Skype session with Paula. This session was aimed largely around our Professional Artefacts and Oral Presentation however we also discussed quite in-depth about our Critical Review and where we are up to with it. See Paula's blog (http://paulanottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/final-21216-session-module-3.html) for the information slides - they're really helpful!

I am just going to run through some of the key talking points that stood out to me and assisted me in my thinking about how I am to best utilise my last month on the BAPP course. It is rather scary to think that it is already December! However Paula also reminded us that this should be an exciting time when everything is coming together and you are presenting to everyone the hard work you have done and the interesting things you have found out from your inquiry.

In terms of the Critical Review, Paula said it would be fantastic for us to get a completed draft in to her by 19th-20th December just so that we can get some written feedback which, as we all know, is really useful. This panicked me slightly yet again Paula changed my thinking on as remember it is only a draft - IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE PERFECT! The whole point of the drafting process it to be able to continue the development of your ideas in conjunction with your writing. Drafting and re-drafting (with feedback along the way) gives you the opportunity to add more detail to the vague information that often plagues us at the beginning of a written piece of work. Adding more detail and information; explaining further and expanding ideas; elaborating on the basic points and giving examples; are all features which occur naturally throughout a drafting process so do not be afraid of it!

In summary, your Critical Reflection is showing what you have achieved throughout the inquiry process. It shows your progression as a practitioner as well as the progression of your ideas and how you have used existing theories and concepts to support them. It should certainly challenge your thinking and, in simple terms, present WHAT YOU HAVE FOUND OUT throughout this journey. You are essentially writing up your results and explaining them. When I think about it like this, I realise that there is not so much of a need to stress as I have the resources I need to achieve just this. Yes time restraints are a slight issue but I would encourage all of us Module 3 students to just press on for this final few weeks and we will reap the rewards!

Paula also commented that our research is all about ourselves and our own development as practitioners. She said, and I quote; "we should see you in all of this".

I just think this is a fantastic reminder that at the end of the day we are doing this for ourselves and our own development as professionals. We should grasp this as an opportunity to express ourselves and present something that we are passionate about and want to carry into our future. I think this is a lovely way to motivate yourself amongst all of the stress and business. It is a way to take a step back and think about how you can incorporate more of yourself into your inquiry to make it personal and special to you.

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Paula highlighted that both Charnelle and I have strong political aspects to our inquiries. This gives us an opening to challenge people's thinking and change attitudes surrounding a certain area of our society. We are doing something that could make a difference which in itself is a wonderful and empowering thought. Indeed we both have to take a neutral tone in our inquiries however we can still say something of impact which challenges people to think in a different way or simply highlights to them the issues we have picked up on. Saying something meaningful is of great use to us and so from this, I will take the courage to attempt to express my findings in a way which makes people stop and think.

We also referenced back to Paula's Dinner Party idea (http://paulanottingham.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=dinner+party); a blog which is really worth reading. We discussed that it is not necessarily good reading when all of your points coincide. It is a good thing to have some healthy debate amongst your inquiry where you are showing differing opinions and opposing arguments. You do not have to present this in a forceful way however having a rounded viewpoint makes for particularly good reading.

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As a final point I want to talk about the Professional Artefact which is something that was rather unclear to me until recently. This strand of Module 3 is something that, as said by Paula, is still emerging. This is a creative way for us to present the ideas and results of our inquiry to a chosen audience. I think first and foremost it is useful to select what audience you are pitching your artefact to as this will influence its format, so how you present your findings. The slides on Paula's blog (referenced earlier) give some great examples of previous artefacts done by students so if you are stuck for ideas I would definitely suggest giving those a look over.

The Artefact can show the outcomes of your inquiry so what you have done, quite literally! So have you made new connections; applied for a new job or course; talked to professionals and thrown around ideas and opinions. Whatever it is you have done, talk about it. For myself, I was steering towards creating some sort of information leaflet but as advised by Paula, have decided to change tack a little and look to creating some sort of book instead. It needs to be visually creative to draw people in and keep them interested in its contents. Paula also suggested that, as well as having a hard copy, creating a digital copy of the book on a memory stick. This is something that I will be elaborating on over the next couple of weeks! Just need to get my ideas together and start creating! Of high importance, the artefact should be something special that stands out and makes people want to take notice!

Overall it was a really useful session and I enjoyed being able to talk to Charnelle and Paula about where I am up to with my Critical Review and how I can improve and develop the initial ideas I have for my artefact.