Counterweight Flying Part 2: Loading weight and drapery. Year 1 BA-TP Technical and Production Management, Stage Management, Production Lighting joint session,
Considerations for planning, with specific considerations for health and safety:
This class is one of the most hazardous of the first year experience for BATP students, involving many people learning how to load weight at height, move large heavy battens overhead and engage with open traps in the stage deck. Communication must be clear and people must be alert.
Classroom observations: Five students are on the pinrail and another two are loading weight above. The tutor is up with them and the session appears to be predominantly for their benefit. Twenty students are on stage level to shift drapes onto and off of battens, wearing hard hats and steel-toed boots. Five lighting students are hanging fixtures off the electrics and tidying cables down cables and into deck-side traps. A VL appears to be trying to guide some activity on floor-level, but she doesn't appear to be sure what she's expected to do. Confusion and disorder abound. Communication is absent or poor.
Feedback session at the end of the day is very self-congratulatory. Small chides here and there and plenty of snarky asides from students and VL both, but the overall feel is one of pride and accomplishment.
Questions:There are too many students in this room doing absolutely nothing. These mostly stage management students are bored, disruptive, irritable and in the way, and appeared to be completely detached from the proceedings. They were not required (or invited?) to participate in the actual operation of the counterweight system. Why are they here? Why have they just been dumped on you? Were they told to take notes and pay attention to what the TPM students were doing? I'd imagine they tried for a while but there's only so much they can soak up from the sidelines while other students are intensely learning at height. Why did they not practice communicating with the fly tower? And why were the students left effectively to their own devices to develop a flyloft communication lingo when one not only already exists but it standardised across the global theatre industry?
This whole thing feels unnecessarily risky. I don't understand why the SMs are here, at least not all day. It could have been useful, if they are not really expected to learn how to operate flys but do need to know what's going on up there, for them to be invited in at the end of the day so the TPM students could show them what they've learned. That helps solidify their learning and gives the SMs an idea of what goes on when they're not around.
I can't bring myself to tell PC that this session needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. I like him and respect him as a colleague. But this was scary and resoundingly ineffective as a teaching opportunity. I don't know what to do.
Sunday, January 14, 2018
Observation of teaching, 14/11/2017: Prof: NM
Session: Semiotics.
Session description from tutor:
The session is an introduction to Semiotics and Dramaturgy for the Theatre Practice first years, in two groups. Each session is planned to be around 75 minutes long.
Tutor's considerations in planning for the session/tutorial. Please include any considerations regarding health and safety (Quote tutor):
The session is based on a PowerPoint - and I aim to follow basic guidance on this, including using sans serif fonts and an off-white background. The majority of the slides cover a single point, unless they are re-capping material.
I have run the core of this session several times for a variety of different audiences. I will need to be aware of the mood in the room and work to keep as many of the students engaged as possible in subjects they may feel "have nothing to do with my practice".
My overall aim is to enable those students to think differently about the subjects and their own practice.
Areas of focus for the peer observer (from tutor): How well do you think I succeeded in achieving this overall aim?
NOTES FROM OBSERVATION:
Semiotics: the study of language as an idea, how the brain engages with language. Limitations of understanding, based on community, culture. Signing vs signage. Communication is a two-way process, you are not finished communicating until the other person understands the message as you intended it to be understood.
(From Powerpoint)
Sign - Signifier - Object
clouds - rain likely - Actual Rain
"Fire!" - the sight and sound of fire - Actual fire
caballo - horse - an actual horse
other examples:
spray painted chair - throne - an actual gold throne
Response to space, time and students:
To start off with the students are all writing and listening. What is the course breakdown of the student group? How many are actively relating these concepts to their practice and interests?
The text is clear and easy to read.
At the 1/2 hour mark NM opens the floor for 3-4 minutes of questions and to segue into part 2. Scheduled breather, I think. Smart.
Students pause, breathe, look around when the slides change.
One hour mark. We've dwindled to a stop. Energy levels are low. Lists of definitions and blocks of text on the slide projector. At least four students are asleep, doodling is evident and several are looking around or out the window. Still fifteen minutes to go.
Responses to teaching:
Style of engagement: traditional lecture with AV assist. Would it be appropriate or helpful for the students to actively participate in this class in some way? 75 minutes of sitting quietly--that's a long time for theatre kids.
Use of rhetorical questions: is that advisable for this content? Or could more directed questions with an implied or range of correct answers might be helpful to promote relevance. The students are unsure if they are invited to participate or respond. Some tried to express active interest by 'm-hmm'-ing in response to prompts about chair uses (tapping, punching, pretending it's a car) but no one volunteered an idea, nor did they have time to come up with something. Was this simply in the interests of time?
Students want to take themselves and their jobs seriously. When you refer to their entire career as "playing pretend" you're likely to lose them. Your explanations are right on but they took your points as infantalising.
Question:
How can we make this more obviously relevant to students such as scenic constructors, costume makers and even prop makers who often aren't the semiotic decision-makers, but are implementing other people's decisions? Does this study cause them to feel dis-empowered or marginalised contrasted with designers?
Session description from tutor:
The session is an introduction to Semiotics and Dramaturgy for the Theatre Practice first years, in two groups. Each session is planned to be around 75 minutes long.
Tutor's considerations in planning for the session/tutorial. Please include any considerations regarding health and safety (Quote tutor):
The session is based on a PowerPoint - and I aim to follow basic guidance on this, including using sans serif fonts and an off-white background. The majority of the slides cover a single point, unless they are re-capping material.
I have run the core of this session several times for a variety of different audiences. I will need to be aware of the mood in the room and work to keep as many of the students engaged as possible in subjects they may feel "have nothing to do with my practice".
My overall aim is to enable those students to think differently about the subjects and their own practice.
Areas of focus for the peer observer (from tutor): How well do you think I succeeded in achieving this overall aim?
NOTES FROM OBSERVATION:
Semiotics: the study of language as an idea, how the brain engages with language. Limitations of understanding, based on community, culture. Signing vs signage. Communication is a two-way process, you are not finished communicating until the other person understands the message as you intended it to be understood.
(From Powerpoint)
Sign - Signifier - Object
clouds - rain likely - Actual Rain
"Fire!" - the sight and sound of fire - Actual fire
caballo - horse - an actual horse
other examples:
spray painted chair - throne - an actual gold throne
Response to space, time and students:
To start off with the students are all writing and listening. What is the course breakdown of the student group? How many are actively relating these concepts to their practice and interests?
The text is clear and easy to read.
At the 1/2 hour mark NM opens the floor for 3-4 minutes of questions and to segue into part 2. Scheduled breather, I think. Smart.
Students pause, breathe, look around when the slides change.
One hour mark. We've dwindled to a stop. Energy levels are low. Lists of definitions and blocks of text on the slide projector. At least four students are asleep, doodling is evident and several are looking around or out the window. Still fifteen minutes to go.
Responses to teaching:
Style of engagement: traditional lecture with AV assist. Would it be appropriate or helpful for the students to actively participate in this class in some way? 75 minutes of sitting quietly--that's a long time for theatre kids.
Use of rhetorical questions: is that advisable for this content? Or could more directed questions with an implied or range of correct answers might be helpful to promote relevance. The students are unsure if they are invited to participate or respond. Some tried to express active interest by 'm-hmm'-ing in response to prompts about chair uses (tapping, punching, pretending it's a car) but no one volunteered an idea, nor did they have time to come up with something. Was this simply in the interests of time?
Students want to take themselves and their jobs seriously. When you refer to their entire career as "playing pretend" you're likely to lose them. Your explanations are right on but they took your points as infantalising.
Question:
How can we make this more obviously relevant to students such as scenic constructors, costume makers and even prop makers who often aren't the semiotic decision-makers, but are implementing other people's decisions? Does this study cause them to feel dis-empowered or marginalised contrasted with designers?
Delayed type-up: Reflections on the reading for 11 October: Critical Reflection
A habit of critical reflection is a valuable opportunity to reassess assumptions and expectations, routinely and periodically.
:The writer clearly has some baggage he's working through. He expresses massive frustration with his status quo, which appears to be a not-so-subtle attack on his own institution for making employees take on more than they can reasonably achieve, and his colleagues for taking it on and suffering through it out of a co-opted sense of obligation to learning and the students.
This is an interesting introductory reading. It includes regular reminders to keep your expectations for yourself, your students and your field reasonable. As an introduction to this class, for the author to remind us to get out of this what we can, adapt the course content and other materials/resources to your own challenges. Do not waste too much time searching for the perfect technique or solution: while a perfectly-applicable system or solution may exist, it is far more likely that you will have to invent something yourself, advised by these resources.
He reminds the reader that progressive-crunchy-granola solutions and techniques don't always work, that teaching which leaves too much room for student contribution opens itself to particular students dominating discussion and your attention (likely to the detriment of other learners/participants). Reminds me that students who rise to the top often would do so regardless of how they are taught. Likewise, disruptive, apathetic and distracted students likely will be so regardless of your enthusiasm for the subject. You're just not going to reach everyone, so keep your eye out to ensure that you've caught the majority. Make room for weaker, less pro-active and courageous students to succeed and grow if they actually want to. Don't beat yourself up over negative feedback if it is rare. (Maybe do something if it is frequent.)
:The writer clearly has some baggage he's working through. He expresses massive frustration with his status quo, which appears to be a not-so-subtle attack on his own institution for making employees take on more than they can reasonably achieve, and his colleagues for taking it on and suffering through it out of a co-opted sense of obligation to learning and the students.
This is an interesting introductory reading. It includes regular reminders to keep your expectations for yourself, your students and your field reasonable. As an introduction to this class, for the author to remind us to get out of this what we can, adapt the course content and other materials/resources to your own challenges. Do not waste too much time searching for the perfect technique or solution: while a perfectly-applicable system or solution may exist, it is far more likely that you will have to invent something yourself, advised by these resources.
He reminds the reader that progressive-crunchy-granola solutions and techniques don't always work, that teaching which leaves too much room for student contribution opens itself to particular students dominating discussion and your attention (likely to the detriment of other learners/participants). Reminds me that students who rise to the top often would do so regardless of how they are taught. Likewise, disruptive, apathetic and distracted students likely will be so regardless of your enthusiasm for the subject. You're just not going to reach everyone, so keep your eye out to ensure that you've caught the majority. Make room for weaker, less pro-active and courageous students to succeed and grow if they actually want to. Don't beat yourself up over negative feedback if it is rare. (Maybe do something if it is frequent.)
Saturday, January 13, 2018
16/10/2017 Peer Observation of Teaching: JH
Intro to Performing Research Unit. Joint session of all MA-level new starters. Main auditorium, 100-200 students. Lecture-style.
Key points: ask yourself why you are here. What do you want to get out of this? Academia, an MA, the Arts? What is Performing Research? What does the school expect of you and your research?
My thoughts before the class: JH has revealed some of her puppet strings that she manipulates to pique attention and maintain enthusiasm. She adopts a genuine, honest and approachable tone to set herself apart, to an extent, from the very right-on 'true believers' in the building. Does this attitude, when conveyed, encourage engagement? Does it encourage trust?
Session and Assessment/Teaching Strengths: The lighting is poor. It is difficult to see JH unless she stays very still. Are lecturers taught to use the panel interface in for the lecture hall lighting?
She's very light-touch with the rhetoric. She asks questions but actually Does want answers. Eyes are focussed. Her responses to student statements are almost universally positive, and she can turn even not-quite-to-the-point responses to relate them productively towards her learning objectives. It requires strong listening and fast analysis. She has a fantastic ability to roll with it.
The big, ugly Powerpoints: she approaches them when necessary with disappointment and dramatised dread. This commiseration with students enhances notion that this is unfortunately important. It does appear to improve the likelihood and level of student receptiveness.
Thoughts after the class:
JH expressed that she did not feel confident about her delivery, despite the fact that (I would argue) the one or two hiccups she encountered (Powerpoint issues, one or two disjointed questions from students) actually served as opportunities for the group to re-engage and reset. The presentation went well, and the students appeared to get something out of it--if nothing else they paid attention. No phones were out, no one chatted or dozed off. Her lowered confidence after the presentation surprised me, as she performed confidence and wit throughout. Her music 'trick', as AS put it, offered mixed results. While turning the music Off as a method of re-establishing order was effective, I wonder if it allowed for the masking of considerable disorder while it was active. I'm not convinced 'music time' was spent productively, or if that was really the intent.
Reflection and Development:
What are your key indicators of student attentiveness? What is your reflex when you sense you might be losing people? Do you act on, suppress, or evaluate that reflex?
Do you have access to user data/usage data with regard to film copies of your lectures and additional support resources?
How much do people actually engage with the VLE when it is not mandatory?
Can anything rattle you in the moment? Technical issues, errors and flubs (and weird responses from students) roll off of you. Your preparation and experience are evident.
Are giant, multi-strand groups always like this? Most people more-or-less in phase, paying attention, two noisy attention-seekers, and one person so off-the-mark it beggars belief? What are good ways of keeping on-track when disruptive individuals try to re-route the point? What leads to disruptive tendencies in large, impersonal settings (and a passive audience)?
Key points: ask yourself why you are here. What do you want to get out of this? Academia, an MA, the Arts? What is Performing Research? What does the school expect of you and your research?
My thoughts before the class: JH has revealed some of her puppet strings that she manipulates to pique attention and maintain enthusiasm. She adopts a genuine, honest and approachable tone to set herself apart, to an extent, from the very right-on 'true believers' in the building. Does this attitude, when conveyed, encourage engagement? Does it encourage trust?
Session and Assessment/Teaching Strengths: The lighting is poor. It is difficult to see JH unless she stays very still. Are lecturers taught to use the panel interface in for the lecture hall lighting?
She's very light-touch with the rhetoric. She asks questions but actually Does want answers. Eyes are focussed. Her responses to student statements are almost universally positive, and she can turn even not-quite-to-the-point responses to relate them productively towards her learning objectives. It requires strong listening and fast analysis. She has a fantastic ability to roll with it.
The big, ugly Powerpoints: she approaches them when necessary with disappointment and dramatised dread. This commiseration with students enhances notion that this is unfortunately important. It does appear to improve the likelihood and level of student receptiveness.
Thoughts after the class:
JH expressed that she did not feel confident about her delivery, despite the fact that (I would argue) the one or two hiccups she encountered (Powerpoint issues, one or two disjointed questions from students) actually served as opportunities for the group to re-engage and reset. The presentation went well, and the students appeared to get something out of it--if nothing else they paid attention. No phones were out, no one chatted or dozed off. Her lowered confidence after the presentation surprised me, as she performed confidence and wit throughout. Her music 'trick', as AS put it, offered mixed results. While turning the music Off as a method of re-establishing order was effective, I wonder if it allowed for the masking of considerable disorder while it was active. I'm not convinced 'music time' was spent productively, or if that was really the intent.
Reflection and Development:
What are your key indicators of student attentiveness? What is your reflex when you sense you might be losing people? Do you act on, suppress, or evaluate that reflex?
Do you have access to user data/usage data with regard to film copies of your lectures and additional support resources?
How much do people actually engage with the VLE when it is not mandatory?
Can anything rattle you in the moment? Technical issues, errors and flubs (and weird responses from students) roll off of you. Your preparation and experience are evident.
Are giant, multi-strand groups always like this? Most people more-or-less in phase, paying attention, two noisy attention-seekers, and one person so off-the-mark it beggars belief? What are good ways of keeping on-track when disruptive individuals try to re-route the point? What leads to disruptive tendencies in large, impersonal settings (and a passive audience)?
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Observations from Teaching, 5/12/2017, Prof. IM
Session led by I.M.; MA & MFA Actor Training and Coaching.
Today's seminar was the culmination of a multi-session series on positioning oneself within their practice and desire to teach. Ten students in three groups prepared and presented the types of actor training institutions they would establish if ideal conditions were met (if, for instance, money was no object). They sought to offer curricula that were well-rounded, grounded in theory and proactive towards producing capable, industry-ready performers.
Notes Verbatim:
Thorough introductions to the plan for today's session right off the bat. My own appearance is a helpful segue into learning objectives.
Despite the low lighting (broken, not intentional) IM makes good eye contact. Tone is warm and inviting. He knows everyone's names and knows at least something specific about them.
The interesting theme we see in this building: when you need reference materials for pedagogy-focused students, they are often taken from in-house. We learn how other classes are being taught, how we as an institution are guiding and even manipulating other groups of students in the same building. Does this serve to other-ise the "rest of them"? Do students in teacher-training classes feel privileged in some way to gain insight into how their teachers and other students' teachers think? That they have insider knowledge, or are "in on it"?
Semicircle to start, IM speaking. Briefing and provoking discussion shortly in the session. The students are planning, expecting to engage with discussion in their breakout groups shortly. There is momentum (potential energy?) building up here.
Ethical questions have underscored earlier discussion, and may even form a framework for today:
art vs paying the bills, which is not to say art vs craft, because it is art and craft.
Thoughts: Does anyone here expect to make money from acting? We expect to be paid to teach actors, but is it ethical to pay someone to prepare others to do unpaid activity, to enter into an unpaid profession?
Listening and nodding: what does this mean? I am listening, I am understanding, I want you to hurry up, I want you to go into more detail? Yes I get it, but please continue anyway?
Periodic interruption of group discussion to gently (or even abruptly) redirect conversation of small groups back to what we need to be discussing.
I can't actually hear the content of the discussion. It is all noise except the American who speaks loudly and clearly even when just nattering about nothing. Americans are inherently disruptive?
Almost all students are from different countries and have different levels of confidence when they speak.
6 women, 4 men, 2 quite mature students (mid 50's?) at least mature for an MA. Age range potentially 22-60. 5 East Asian students, 1 Indian, 1 British (present), 1 American. American easily loudest and most overtly confident--damn stereotypes! How does having one in your class affect your learning if you are not American and your culture is more demure?
(mmm, warm radiator on my back.)
Preparation and lack thereof is inclusive here, students and tutor. Students went to the wrong room out of habit. Everyone was late. Equipment was not booked. Paper and markers had to be collected. It is the last week of term--no one was judging one another for these tiny infractions. The atmosphere is warm, relaxed and productive. Everyone appears to feel intellectually and emotionally safe.
Small group engagement: the loud, giggly group gathered (Telly Group) around the tutor. How does this impact discussion among other groups? Table Group doesn't appear to notice but Chair Group noticeably puts their heads closer together and speaks somewhat louder to compensate. Eyes are cut at the noisy...American. Yep. Damn, I could write an essay on this. Was I the same as a student?
Question of note-taking as a secretarial function and learning support. More women are writing than men: is this a gender-stereotyped behaviour? Or do these people write everything down to help them remember?
Student presentations: Chair group: pitching a class
Spiral learning approach: multi-disciplinary. Boarding and training--start with life skills for young learners. (Where did this idea come from?) Very full-on programme including highly physical and textbook-style classes; theory. How relevant are these concepts outside of a BA? In terms of pure actor training, does anthropology truly hold relevance? Or is this more relevant, beyond the ethics of multicultural and extracultural performance, to directors, casting directors and producers? (Do BA-TP Technical and Production Management students have ethics and anthropology classes? They should.) This school sounds blisteringly expensive, logistically overwhelming and ultimately irrelevant to most students. In terms of asking actors to run lights--how is this relevant to their career development if they're just preparing themselves for the financially unsustainable world of am-dram?
Constructive feedback, critical engagement: the students are using polite innuendos for "I like, I don't like." A mobile classroom is in itself site-responsive. Interesting.
IM briefs other students about what to expect during the first presentation to make it clear to the first group that they are not being unfairly dug-into, while also structuring the rest of the session for the next student groups. Three layers to this comment: I'm asking for clarity, I will ask you for clarity too; relax, this is not indicative of my opinions of your ideas or method of presentation. IM is seated among the students, not snuggled up next to anyone but not particularly distant either. The students around him are attuned to him and want his attention, but not in a disruptive way.
Global Citizenship: is this a current buzzword? Is this to fight against Trumpistan, populist and nationalist identities? We are making a statement at this time about the identity with which we identify as an institution and as individuals, and no, we will not be playing along with any isolationist rhetoric.
Sound dampening of this space: creates odd deadening, distancing of speakers based on relationships with corners and windows. This is a purpose-built rehearsal space!! AARGH!
Responses to limitations of space: The lights are squiffy. So we present under the brightest light and sit as audience under the dimmer lights. The lights still need to be fixed--contact Tony, surely this has been noted before?
Window
Dim Out Out
Dim Med Med
Bright Dim Out
Door Wall Door
Cultural engagement whirlwind tour: Too little time; Superficiality and Appropriation vs Depth, Learning, Appreciation. Del'Arte California: similar idea school. ITI Singapore, Asad Singapore? Models to be studied. ISTA: International School of Theatre Anthropology. Travelling University of Theatre Exchange (now defunct).
IM is honest and clear even when it hurts: The Dangers of Appropriation. You run the risk of making a franken-performer who only apes other cultures, borrows, rather than developing herself taking inspiration from these, or developing within one or a few. Whatever speaks to them. Provides points in which to develop thinking: re-direct forward engagement, if they intend to engage further.
Fight against box-ticking: personal loathing subtly revealed. How perfunctory is our paperwork here at school?
Observational aside: several students in this class speak with distinct accents but they do appear to understand the language of tuition. Does this represent progress among the MA courses or does this merely reflect the scope of recruitment for this specific course?
Are actors the best people to theorise about and teach engagement with stage management, lighting and production? Why is lighting many actors' mental default for "the rest of the show" but props and costumes are secondary? What is the relational flow from performer to each other department?
"We Literally didn't site this geographically."
"That's okay, let's have a go now." -subtle dismissal of self-deprecating impulse that also serves to promote momentum forward. I'm not judging or marking you downward, let's take this as an opportunity to discuss this among the wider group. Everyone is now invited to come on board.
This class is picking ideas to celebrate and explore further from the textbook we have fought with all term. Are they engaging critically with selected training theories, or just listing them and demonstrating that they understand them? No. They are specifically referencing the idea that they are employing a training technique, not teaching the theory of said technique (paper-based understanding). Learning by doing, just doing and not worrying about the desired outcomes identified by the theorizer? Are actors recipe-hungry?
How do we site thinking and critical engagement within the experiential learning structure?
Three different presentation styles employed here: Chair Group: Write As We Talk. Desk Group: Refer to pre-written (paper, prepared in class). Telly Group: refer to multimedia PPT and video with sound (ehhh?) pre written yesterday by one tech-engaged student (who not only particularly enjoys this sort of thing, but feels that he thinks best when doing it), performance-shaped presentation. Guidance supplied by tutor for audience thinking as well as encouragement for presenters. Remember why they are presenting to you: this is for feedback, not assessment.
We are gathering under the lights like mole people.
Limits on time: students respond to this limit in different ways. Some are fearful, some relaxed--some fear they will go over, others fear they do not have enough to say to fill in the time.
Telly Group is struggling with a lot of internal clashes: one student really wants to sell the fact that they don't have a plan, and that's the plan: they are artists. Another has gone into detailed, over-considered administrative work and planning, but has no idea of the desired over-arching structure or rationale for the school. Why do they feel the need to engage in this way? Is this presentation relevant to another class? This group has put days of consideration into this, while the other groups have only had a few hours at best. What was the different motivation for this group?
Other thoughts: Why is actor training history limited to the past hundred years or less? But theatre history is considered ancient and richly studied, despite the fact that for most areas of the world all we have is ruined buildings and a few plays? How is fifty years of Stanislavsky relevant to ancient Greece? Why do we try to imply that the vast majority of theatre history is in any way connected to modern performance?
Why don't these Asian students have any awareness of Asian or Eastern actor training technique? Have these English-speaking students had a western-facing education? What did they study at undergrad? Does Singapore engage with Chinese performance at all? How do get to become bilingual in China? Japan? India? Why does this class not engage with the cultures of the students in the room? Stanislavsky. Lecoq. Meisner. Gretowski. Nobody relevant to Asia, nobody relevant to any layer of history deeper than the Golden Age of Cinema. Is there older, documented actor training technique? Named? Or theatre- or dramatist- specific? Why have I not heard of anything besides bunraku?
Do we want to be engaged with the community around the theatre school, or is this a monastery? Mmmm. Universities. The best way to pretend to give back while only serving to market yourself.
End of class. Summary. Response. Space to decompress, to breathe.
Today's seminar was the culmination of a multi-session series on positioning oneself within their practice and desire to teach. Ten students in three groups prepared and presented the types of actor training institutions they would establish if ideal conditions were met (if, for instance, money was no object). They sought to offer curricula that were well-rounded, grounded in theory and proactive towards producing capable, industry-ready performers.
Notes Verbatim:
Thorough introductions to the plan for today's session right off the bat. My own appearance is a helpful segue into learning objectives.
Despite the low lighting (broken, not intentional) IM makes good eye contact. Tone is warm and inviting. He knows everyone's names and knows at least something specific about them.
The interesting theme we see in this building: when you need reference materials for pedagogy-focused students, they are often taken from in-house. We learn how other classes are being taught, how we as an institution are guiding and even manipulating other groups of students in the same building. Does this serve to other-ise the "rest of them"? Do students in teacher-training classes feel privileged in some way to gain insight into how their teachers and other students' teachers think? That they have insider knowledge, or are "in on it"?
Semicircle to start, IM speaking. Briefing and provoking discussion shortly in the session. The students are planning, expecting to engage with discussion in their breakout groups shortly. There is momentum (potential energy?) building up here.
Ethical questions have underscored earlier discussion, and may even form a framework for today:
art vs paying the bills, which is not to say art vs craft, because it is art and craft.
Thoughts: Does anyone here expect to make money from acting? We expect to be paid to teach actors, but is it ethical to pay someone to prepare others to do unpaid activity, to enter into an unpaid profession?
Listening and nodding: what does this mean? I am listening, I am understanding, I want you to hurry up, I want you to go into more detail? Yes I get it, but please continue anyway?
Periodic interruption of group discussion to gently (or even abruptly) redirect conversation of small groups back to what we need to be discussing.
I can't actually hear the content of the discussion. It is all noise except the American who speaks loudly and clearly even when just nattering about nothing. Americans are inherently disruptive?
Almost all students are from different countries and have different levels of confidence when they speak.
6 women, 4 men, 2 quite mature students (mid 50's?) at least mature for an MA. Age range potentially 22-60. 5 East Asian students, 1 Indian, 1 British (present), 1 American. American easily loudest and most overtly confident--damn stereotypes! How does having one in your class affect your learning if you are not American and your culture is more demure?
(mmm, warm radiator on my back.)
Preparation and lack thereof is inclusive here, students and tutor. Students went to the wrong room out of habit. Everyone was late. Equipment was not booked. Paper and markers had to be collected. It is the last week of term--no one was judging one another for these tiny infractions. The atmosphere is warm, relaxed and productive. Everyone appears to feel intellectually and emotionally safe.
Small group engagement: the loud, giggly group gathered (Telly Group) around the tutor. How does this impact discussion among other groups? Table Group doesn't appear to notice but Chair Group noticeably puts their heads closer together and speaks somewhat louder to compensate. Eyes are cut at the noisy...American. Yep. Damn, I could write an essay on this. Was I the same as a student?
Question of note-taking as a secretarial function and learning support. More women are writing than men: is this a gender-stereotyped behaviour? Or do these people write everything down to help them remember?
Student presentations: Chair group: pitching a class
Spiral learning approach: multi-disciplinary. Boarding and training--start with life skills for young learners. (Where did this idea come from?) Very full-on programme including highly physical and textbook-style classes; theory. How relevant are these concepts outside of a BA? In terms of pure actor training, does anthropology truly hold relevance? Or is this more relevant, beyond the ethics of multicultural and extracultural performance, to directors, casting directors and producers? (Do BA-TP Technical and Production Management students have ethics and anthropology classes? They should.) This school sounds blisteringly expensive, logistically overwhelming and ultimately irrelevant to most students. In terms of asking actors to run lights--how is this relevant to their career development if they're just preparing themselves for the financially unsustainable world of am-dram?
Constructive feedback, critical engagement: the students are using polite innuendos for "I like, I don't like." A mobile classroom is in itself site-responsive. Interesting.
IM briefs other students about what to expect during the first presentation to make it clear to the first group that they are not being unfairly dug-into, while also structuring the rest of the session for the next student groups. Three layers to this comment: I'm asking for clarity, I will ask you for clarity too; relax, this is not indicative of my opinions of your ideas or method of presentation. IM is seated among the students, not snuggled up next to anyone but not particularly distant either. The students around him are attuned to him and want his attention, but not in a disruptive way.
Global Citizenship: is this a current buzzword? Is this to fight against Trumpistan, populist and nationalist identities? We are making a statement at this time about the identity with which we identify as an institution and as individuals, and no, we will not be playing along with any isolationist rhetoric.
Sound dampening of this space: creates odd deadening, distancing of speakers based on relationships with corners and windows. This is a purpose-built rehearsal space!! AARGH!
Responses to limitations of space: The lights are squiffy. So we present under the brightest light and sit as audience under the dimmer lights. The lights still need to be fixed--contact Tony, surely this has been noted before?
Dim Out Out
Dim Med Med
Bright Dim Out
Door Wall Door
Cultural engagement whirlwind tour: Too little time; Superficiality and Appropriation vs Depth, Learning, Appreciation. Del'Arte California: similar idea school. ITI Singapore, Asad Singapore? Models to be studied. ISTA: International School of Theatre Anthropology. Travelling University of Theatre Exchange (now defunct).
IM is honest and clear even when it hurts: The Dangers of Appropriation. You run the risk of making a franken-performer who only apes other cultures, borrows, rather than developing herself taking inspiration from these, or developing within one or a few. Whatever speaks to them. Provides points in which to develop thinking: re-direct forward engagement, if they intend to engage further.
Fight against box-ticking: personal loathing subtly revealed. How perfunctory is our paperwork here at school?
Observational aside: several students in this class speak with distinct accents but they do appear to understand the language of tuition. Does this represent progress among the MA courses or does this merely reflect the scope of recruitment for this specific course?
Are actors the best people to theorise about and teach engagement with stage management, lighting and production? Why is lighting many actors' mental default for "the rest of the show" but props and costumes are secondary? What is the relational flow from performer to each other department?
"We Literally didn't site this geographically."
"That's okay, let's have a go now." -subtle dismissal of self-deprecating impulse that also serves to promote momentum forward. I'm not judging or marking you downward, let's take this as an opportunity to discuss this among the wider group. Everyone is now invited to come on board.
This class is picking ideas to celebrate and explore further from the textbook we have fought with all term. Are they engaging critically with selected training theories, or just listing them and demonstrating that they understand them? No. They are specifically referencing the idea that they are employing a training technique, not teaching the theory of said technique (paper-based understanding). Learning by doing, just doing and not worrying about the desired outcomes identified by the theorizer? Are actors recipe-hungry?
How do we site thinking and critical engagement within the experiential learning structure?
Three different presentation styles employed here: Chair Group: Write As We Talk. Desk Group: Refer to pre-written (paper, prepared in class). Telly Group: refer to multimedia PPT and video with sound (ehhh?) pre written yesterday by one tech-engaged student (who not only particularly enjoys this sort of thing, but feels that he thinks best when doing it), performance-shaped presentation. Guidance supplied by tutor for audience thinking as well as encouragement for presenters. Remember why they are presenting to you: this is for feedback, not assessment.
We are gathering under the lights like mole people.
Limits on time: students respond to this limit in different ways. Some are fearful, some relaxed--some fear they will go over, others fear they do not have enough to say to fill in the time.
Telly Group is struggling with a lot of internal clashes: one student really wants to sell the fact that they don't have a plan, and that's the plan: they are artists. Another has gone into detailed, over-considered administrative work and planning, but has no idea of the desired over-arching structure or rationale for the school. Why do they feel the need to engage in this way? Is this presentation relevant to another class? This group has put days of consideration into this, while the other groups have only had a few hours at best. What was the different motivation for this group?
Other thoughts: Why is actor training history limited to the past hundred years or less? But theatre history is considered ancient and richly studied, despite the fact that for most areas of the world all we have is ruined buildings and a few plays? How is fifty years of Stanislavsky relevant to ancient Greece? Why do we try to imply that the vast majority of theatre history is in any way connected to modern performance?
Why don't these Asian students have any awareness of Asian or Eastern actor training technique? Have these English-speaking students had a western-facing education? What did they study at undergrad? Does Singapore engage with Chinese performance at all? How do get to become bilingual in China? Japan? India? Why does this class not engage with the cultures of the students in the room? Stanislavsky. Lecoq. Meisner. Gretowski. Nobody relevant to Asia, nobody relevant to any layer of history deeper than the Golden Age of Cinema. Is there older, documented actor training technique? Named? Or theatre- or dramatist- specific? Why have I not heard of anything besides bunraku?
Do we want to be engaged with the community around the theatre school, or is this a monastery? Mmmm. Universities. The best way to pretend to give back while only serving to market yourself.
End of class. Summary. Response. Space to decompress, to breathe.
Essay Ideas
UKPSF Areas of Activity for focus:
A2: Teach and/or support learning
Multiple ability levels in one class: how to ensure everyone's time is being used productively when you have to focus more directly on a student or students at an earlier level of learning
Just Giving Them the Answers: challenges surrounding engaging with pedagogy in a busy workshop, when you know their tutor asked them to do some research and all they managed to do was just ask me. Students such as EM, who have no patience for question-based engagement, RM who questions your motives at all times, SM students who would rather ask you than look it up or even think about it.
Identifying levels of starting ability among learners (or Please Hammer This Nail into the Table): advanced skill level (what do I do with you?), developing skills, ready to learn skills, unready to learn skills (resentful) (unaware) (unwell)
A4: Develop effective learning environments and approaches to student support and guidance
Equality and neurodiversity in a hazardous environment: two specific examples of challenging students due to attention deficit, find not necessarily answers, but identify approaches that have been successful, and the extent to which they have been successful.
Recently-obtained access to relevant documentation to allow for tailored teaching and pastoral support where necessary for diverse students (and finding out why they honoured the request this time! how it has already impacted our relationships with students).
Supporting student groups when readiness to learn is unknown: starting things gently, seeking cues from students.
Students who have no patience for pedagogy: Quite a lot of the time by the time a student gets to asking me for or about something they're done with being asked to think about it and just demand answers. EM
Noise control (equipment upgrades, ear defence, implementing clear lines of communication among students and staff with regard to sudden, loud, and harmful noise, my prohibition on workshop radio advertising and encouragement of MP3 players and music subscription services so the students hear what they find most motivating)
The Kataba: a Japanese hand saw that works on the pull stroke, allowing students to cut cleanly and effectively at waist-height, using your core (abdominal) muscles instead of your shoulder and neck, with reasonable-to-moderate effort. In Layman's Terms: a women-friendly saw that looks like a katana. Physical diversity can be not just accommodated for, but enjoyed.
Title Graveyard:
Mechanical Pedagogies: A Holistic Approach to Hands-On Learning in a Hazardous Environment with Specific Reference to Safety, Pastoral Care, and Dyspraxic Students
Beyond Safety: Teaching and Maintaining an effective Learning Environment Full of Spinning Blades and Toxic Chemicals
Learnshop: Practical and Analytic Skills Development in the Scenic Workshop
Please Be Careful Around the Tools: The Immobilising Fear of Marginalising a Dyspraxic Student Who is Nevertheless About to Hurt Herself
A2: Teach and/or support learning
Multiple ability levels in one class: how to ensure everyone's time is being used productively when you have to focus more directly on a student or students at an earlier level of learning
Just Giving Them the Answers: challenges surrounding engaging with pedagogy in a busy workshop, when you know their tutor asked them to do some research and all they managed to do was just ask me. Students such as EM, who have no patience for question-based engagement, RM who questions your motives at all times, SM students who would rather ask you than look it up or even think about it.
Identifying levels of starting ability among learners (or Please Hammer This Nail into the Table): advanced skill level (what do I do with you?), developing skills, ready to learn skills, unready to learn skills (resentful) (unaware) (unwell)
A4: Develop effective learning environments and approaches to student support and guidance
Equality and neurodiversity in a hazardous environment: two specific examples of challenging students due to attention deficit, find not necessarily answers, but identify approaches that have been successful, and the extent to which they have been successful.
Recently-obtained access to relevant documentation to allow for tailored teaching and pastoral support where necessary for diverse students (and finding out why they honoured the request this time! how it has already impacted our relationships with students).
Supporting student groups when readiness to learn is unknown: starting things gently, seeking cues from students.
Students who have no patience for pedagogy: Quite a lot of the time by the time a student gets to asking me for or about something they're done with being asked to think about it and just demand answers. EM
Noise control (equipment upgrades, ear defence, implementing clear lines of communication among students and staff with regard to sudden, loud, and harmful noise, my prohibition on workshop radio advertising and encouragement of MP3 players and music subscription services so the students hear what they find most motivating)
The Kataba: a Japanese hand saw that works on the pull stroke, allowing students to cut cleanly and effectively at waist-height, using your core (abdominal) muscles instead of your shoulder and neck, with reasonable-to-moderate effort. In Layman's Terms: a women-friendly saw that looks like a katana. Physical diversity can be not just accommodated for, but enjoyed.
Title Graveyard:
Mechanical Pedagogies: A Holistic Approach to Hands-On Learning in a Hazardous Environment with Specific Reference to Safety, Pastoral Care, and Dyspraxic Students
Beyond Safety: Teaching and Maintaining an effective Learning Environment Full of Spinning Blades and Toxic Chemicals
Learnshop: Practical and Analytic Skills Development in the Scenic Workshop
Please Be Careful Around the Tools: The Immobilising Fear of Marginalising a Dyspraxic Student Who is Nevertheless About to Hurt Herself
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
29 November: Digital Pedagogies
I work in a very hands-on area of study so naturally I have a hard time finding too many forms of digital teaching relevant. While the interwebs can be useful for helping students remember techniques that they've learnt in the workshop, the practical learning usually needs to happen in-house, in person, with steel toed boots on.
The timing of the Balkanized Internet article couldn't be more relevant. Just as the American FCC moves to make Internet access more expensive, more limited, and more specifically-oriented toward websites and services that are profitable for the ISP (regardless of their utility to or desirability for consumers) we are reminded that access to Internet and computing hardware is already polarised and becoming more so as ISPs limit access to the cables themselves to the poor, the rural, and the already-underserved. Of course!
Okay, Marc Prensky's Natives-Immigrants article is downright obscene. This Web 1.0 guy from 2001 pretending that his students are digital natives because they watched MTV? He was a passive consumer of TV from childhood just like everyone else. That making people play games to learn key skills, try to piece together learning out of hundreds of thirty-second sound bytes, and tolerate advice from an anthropomorphous paper clip was going to benefit more than four per cent of the population? Oh man. I've got a skill you might try to teach over the 'net, but probably shouldn't. We've learned that you really shouldn't have your only skills training for power tools come from videos. At the very least, if you're going to learn how to use your circular saw from YouTube make sure your flatmate is a First Aider. Or at least has an ambulance on speed dial. Oh the digital millennium. How clever we all thought we were.
I'm on board with the Critical Digital Pedagogy article's crux--the interwebs, the computers, the VoIP and video conferencing--these things are tools that can either facilitate or support learning. Ultimately we still learn the way we always did, but now we can do it from further away, or at least in the comfort of our own homes. For some things. If we want to.
The timing of the Balkanized Internet article couldn't be more relevant. Just as the American FCC moves to make Internet access more expensive, more limited, and more specifically-oriented toward websites and services that are profitable for the ISP (regardless of their utility to or desirability for consumers) we are reminded that access to Internet and computing hardware is already polarised and becoming more so as ISPs limit access to the cables themselves to the poor, the rural, and the already-underserved. Of course!
Okay, Marc Prensky's Natives-Immigrants article is downright obscene. This Web 1.0 guy from 2001 pretending that his students are digital natives because they watched MTV? He was a passive consumer of TV from childhood just like everyone else. That making people play games to learn key skills, try to piece together learning out of hundreds of thirty-second sound bytes, and tolerate advice from an anthropomorphous paper clip was going to benefit more than four per cent of the population? Oh man. I've got a skill you might try to teach over the 'net, but probably shouldn't. We've learned that you really shouldn't have your only skills training for power tools come from videos. At the very least, if you're going to learn how to use your circular saw from YouTube make sure your flatmate is a First Aider. Or at least has an ambulance on speed dial. Oh the digital millennium. How clever we all thought we were.
I'm on board with the Critical Digital Pedagogy article's crux--the interwebs, the computers, the VoIP and video conferencing--these things are tools that can either facilitate or support learning. Ultimately we still learn the way we always did, but now we can do it from further away, or at least in the comfort of our own homes. For some things. If we want to.
Monday, November 27, 2017
November 15: Pedagogical Persona critical reflection
PC: Counterweight Flying Exercise. Challenged and maintained the interest of specific students for whom classroom exercise was relevant.
Tone was relaxed, playful, with a touch of snark that the students appeared to appreciate when they screwed up.
Did not appear to take safety as seriously as exercise indicated.
Did not attempt to engage the attention of the greater majority of the class, who spent most of the day standing or sitting around being annoyed with each other, not paying attention, and getting in the way.
NM: Semiotics Lecture.
The lecturer covered the topic's key points quickly but with warmth and humour. He sought repeatedly to relate the content to the assembled students' areas of study.
The lecture was fast and very light-touch. This was by necessity and design: the class was only an hour long, and it was an introductory overview for first years who may or may not have a genuine interest in the field of study.
Students were not afforded more than cursory opportunities to participate or contribute to the content of the lecture; questions posed to the group were either rhetorical or the lecturer answered them for himself before the students had a chance to digest the question. This may have been due to time constraints, but it felt as though the windows to invite the students to respond were largely perfunctory. He had no real desire to hear their thoughts or even check that they comprehended, which was all the more ironic in a class about communication and understanding.
The space was small, warm and airless. Students started nodding off at about the 40 minute mark. It was difficult to measure attention. Some people actually pay attention quite well when staring off into the middle distance, which I find disconcerting.
The lecturer's tone was warm and engaging but some content was objectionable and led to a palpable disconnect between him and the students. The lecturer referred to theatre as 'pretend' and indicated that the dual usage of the word 'play' to mean 'piece of theatre' and 'children's imaginative activity' was relevant and deliberate. I find the shared usage of this word frustrating and avoid it, as do many theatre and performance makers who find the term infantilising and trivialising. As a way to introduce semiotics it may have felt apt, but it was distracting and may have engendered distrust. Particularly among crafts makers, for whom much of their work and skill is decidedly not pretend.
The overall impression I received was that the tutor was ultimately disgruntled with the subject and found teaching this particular lesson trying. This may have developed out of a former enthusiasm for semiotics that was not shared by a class, or several classes' worth of students, but while he understood the material to a significant depth he didn't seem to have it in him to give much of a hoot about it. It was difficult to tell where this struggle originated, if his attitude today toward the subject caused or was caused by the miasma of apathy that hovered in the room.
Tone was relaxed, playful, with a touch of snark that the students appeared to appreciate when they screwed up.
Did not appear to take safety as seriously as exercise indicated.
Did not attempt to engage the attention of the greater majority of the class, who spent most of the day standing or sitting around being annoyed with each other, not paying attention, and getting in the way.
NM: Semiotics Lecture.
The lecturer covered the topic's key points quickly but with warmth and humour. He sought repeatedly to relate the content to the assembled students' areas of study.
The lecture was fast and very light-touch. This was by necessity and design: the class was only an hour long, and it was an introductory overview for first years who may or may not have a genuine interest in the field of study.
Students were not afforded more than cursory opportunities to participate or contribute to the content of the lecture; questions posed to the group were either rhetorical or the lecturer answered them for himself before the students had a chance to digest the question. This may have been due to time constraints, but it felt as though the windows to invite the students to respond were largely perfunctory. He had no real desire to hear their thoughts or even check that they comprehended, which was all the more ironic in a class about communication and understanding.
The space was small, warm and airless. Students started nodding off at about the 40 minute mark. It was difficult to measure attention. Some people actually pay attention quite well when staring off into the middle distance, which I find disconcerting.
The lecturer's tone was warm and engaging but some content was objectionable and led to a palpable disconnect between him and the students. The lecturer referred to theatre as 'pretend' and indicated that the dual usage of the word 'play' to mean 'piece of theatre' and 'children's imaginative activity' was relevant and deliberate. I find the shared usage of this word frustrating and avoid it, as do many theatre and performance makers who find the term infantilising and trivialising. As a way to introduce semiotics it may have felt apt, but it was distracting and may have engendered distrust. Particularly among crafts makers, for whom much of their work and skill is decidedly not pretend.
The overall impression I received was that the tutor was ultimately disgruntled with the subject and found teaching this particular lesson trying. This may have developed out of a former enthusiasm for semiotics that was not shared by a class, or several classes' worth of students, but while he understood the material to a significant depth he didn't seem to have it in him to give much of a hoot about it. It was difficult to tell where this struggle originated, if his attitude today toward the subject caused or was caused by the miasma of apathy that hovered in the room.
Monday, November 6, 2017
November 8: Ways of Learning
Biggs And Collis Structure of Learned Outcomes: This looks and feels just like Bloom's taxonomy. How is it different? Very familiar, I'm comfortable with this one.
Costa and Callick: Critical Friend. This is fraught with peril. This does not describe a friendship, it describes maybe mentorship or just being a wiser and not-very-nice older sister. Anyone who has the ability to criticise you but who you can't give back a taste of their own medicine isn't a friend. Friendship must go both ways or it is disingenuous. I don't like this one, or trust the intentions of the authors. At best it is what I do at work--I am friendly and not in a position to grade the students, but I have helpful feedback and can be playful and silly with the students. I hope that they can grow to trust me. But I am not their friend.
Whitmore's Grow Model: we engaged with this to an extent at the beginning of class, and it is something I have to encounter periodically in professional appraisals and development. The idea of motivating a staff member to set clear, specific, measurable and time-bound goals is at the core of annual appraisal. The idea of finding or creating the willpower to achieve the objectives she has set is where it all falls down.
Caine and Caine: Brain-Based Learning. I'm not sure how I engage with this one. The author appears to indicate that he doesn't either. I guess at its core is a reminder that learners have brains too, and they're probably a lot like yours and need to be stimulated in the right way in order to not only learn, but retain, and have a drive to learn. Ask questions. Pose a challenging but not overwhelming learning environment. Allow the learner to have some autonomy in how and what they learn, if possible.
Gardner: Multiple Intelligences. This seems silly. It lacks substance, either because Gardner's thinking lacked substance or because Bob Bates didn't take it particularly seriously. It doesn't help people learn what they signed up to learn, certainly, and doesn't appear to have a whole lot of use in the classroom if ultimately you have specific concepts and skills you wish to teach to everyone. Yes we can appreciate that everyone has their aptitudes and range of interests, but how can we tune each intelligence toward learning the thing that needs to be learnt? ("The answers to questions of this nature are not easy." HA!)
Montessori: The Absorbent Mind. I can take a lot of the advice to heart: people thrive where there is order and everything has its place. Facilitate learning rather than dictate teaching. I think the workshop is a much saner place now that we have a tool room. Everything has its place--it may not be the most specific place, but it is much more specific than it used to be, and the space makes more sense. Things don't get lost as easily. I also appreciate my permission to encourage students to make mistakes and learn from them. It's difficult for the students to appreciate just how beautiful a feeling that can be.
Bruner: Discovery learning. Ask students what they want to learn. Help them learn it. Figure out if they understand it. Ask them what they want to learn tomorrow. Great for drop-ins. Not great if the students don't actually want to learn what you are tasked with teaching them, but never mind.
Vygotsky: Zone of Proximal Development. Break the concept down into smaller chunks, and allow the learners to feed them to themselves, or get students who other students pick things up from easily to help feed it to them. Makes concepts sound a lot like soup.
Costa and Callick: Critical Friend. This is fraught with peril. This does not describe a friendship, it describes maybe mentorship or just being a wiser and not-very-nice older sister. Anyone who has the ability to criticise you but who you can't give back a taste of their own medicine isn't a friend. Friendship must go both ways or it is disingenuous. I don't like this one, or trust the intentions of the authors. At best it is what I do at work--I am friendly and not in a position to grade the students, but I have helpful feedback and can be playful and silly with the students. I hope that they can grow to trust me. But I am not their friend.
Whitmore's Grow Model: we engaged with this to an extent at the beginning of class, and it is something I have to encounter periodically in professional appraisals and development. The idea of motivating a staff member to set clear, specific, measurable and time-bound goals is at the core of annual appraisal. The idea of finding or creating the willpower to achieve the objectives she has set is where it all falls down.
Caine and Caine: Brain-Based Learning. I'm not sure how I engage with this one. The author appears to indicate that he doesn't either. I guess at its core is a reminder that learners have brains too, and they're probably a lot like yours and need to be stimulated in the right way in order to not only learn, but retain, and have a drive to learn. Ask questions. Pose a challenging but not overwhelming learning environment. Allow the learner to have some autonomy in how and what they learn, if possible.
Gardner: Multiple Intelligences. This seems silly. It lacks substance, either because Gardner's thinking lacked substance or because Bob Bates didn't take it particularly seriously. It doesn't help people learn what they signed up to learn, certainly, and doesn't appear to have a whole lot of use in the classroom if ultimately you have specific concepts and skills you wish to teach to everyone. Yes we can appreciate that everyone has their aptitudes and range of interests, but how can we tune each intelligence toward learning the thing that needs to be learnt? ("The answers to questions of this nature are not easy." HA!)
Montessori: The Absorbent Mind. I can take a lot of the advice to heart: people thrive where there is order and everything has its place. Facilitate learning rather than dictate teaching. I think the workshop is a much saner place now that we have a tool room. Everything has its place--it may not be the most specific place, but it is much more specific than it used to be, and the space makes more sense. Things don't get lost as easily. I also appreciate my permission to encourage students to make mistakes and learn from them. It's difficult for the students to appreciate just how beautiful a feeling that can be.
Bruner: Discovery learning. Ask students what they want to learn. Help them learn it. Figure out if they understand it. Ask them what they want to learn tomorrow. Great for drop-ins. Not great if the students don't actually want to learn what you are tasked with teaching them, but never mind.
Vygotsky: Zone of Proximal Development. Break the concept down into smaller chunks, and allow the learners to feed them to themselves, or get students who other students pick things up from easily to help feed it to them. Makes concepts sound a lot like soup.
Friday, November 3, 2017
November 1: Constructive Alignment
Gist: If you want people to learn a thing, ensure that the process of teaching them that thing involves doing the thing, or engaging with it. Best example: if you seek to teach someone to drive a car, do so in the car, with them driving it. People don't learn to drive by listening to a lecture, and they don't demonstrate automotive competence or ability through a written test. The mode of teaching, the environment for learning and the method of assessing should all relate back to the intended learning outcome. ILO: student becomes better driver. Mode of teaching should be hands-on and practical. Environment for learning should allow the student to practice under realistic conditions. Method of assessment should be a demonstration of practical competence.
I'm not sure how well this can really apply to the more theoretical philosophies which may not have obvious applications. Maybe I'm missing something? It's all well and good to teach chemistry though opportunities to do your own practical demonstrations of chemical interactions and behaviours, but how do you do the same without a practical objective? How do you, for instance, teach Introductory Philosophy, the stated goal of which is to just provide the student information, and the only real point of assessment is to ensure that the content was absorbed? Can this be taught with Constructive Alignment? Or is the suggestion of CA that in order for learning to be meaningful the student must engage more thoroughly, and the desired learning outcome is not "to be full of facts" but to have some meaningful engagement with the facts, for the student to apply one or some of the concepts to something else in her life? (Ahh, the authors reject the idea of a class existing to 'cover' a topic.)
Of course it is a valid way to teach teaching. The whole point of raising issues, sending part-time learners back into their classrooms to explore them, try them out, and feed back on them is to help them engage critically with their practice, and hopefully improve upon it. It is absolutely applicable to This class. I can also see it being useful to much of what we do in drama school, where we train students rather than teach in the traditional sense.
----
In class we discussed some of the concerns I raised above. The idea of meaningful engagement with the facts is more advanced than the original text-writers indicated. At the BA level students should be able to identify, describe and explain concepts that have been imparted to them in class, but while they may as individuals be able and willing to engage in higher-level criticism and synthesis within the subject, it is not within the parameters of a BA to expect or assess this level of engagement. Sometimes you stop at Identify. When you get to the MA you may critique and analyse. When you reach PhD level you may theorise and create.
I'm not sure how well this can really apply to the more theoretical philosophies which may not have obvious applications. Maybe I'm missing something? It's all well and good to teach chemistry though opportunities to do your own practical demonstrations of chemical interactions and behaviours, but how do you do the same without a practical objective? How do you, for instance, teach Introductory Philosophy, the stated goal of which is to just provide the student information, and the only real point of assessment is to ensure that the content was absorbed? Can this be taught with Constructive Alignment? Or is the suggestion of CA that in order for learning to be meaningful the student must engage more thoroughly, and the desired learning outcome is not "to be full of facts" but to have some meaningful engagement with the facts, for the student to apply one or some of the concepts to something else in her life? (Ahh, the authors reject the idea of a class existing to 'cover' a topic.)
Of course it is a valid way to teach teaching. The whole point of raising issues, sending part-time learners back into their classrooms to explore them, try them out, and feed back on them is to help them engage critically with their practice, and hopefully improve upon it. It is absolutely applicable to This class. I can also see it being useful to much of what we do in drama school, where we train students rather than teach in the traditional sense.
----
In class we discussed some of the concerns I raised above. The idea of meaningful engagement with the facts is more advanced than the original text-writers indicated. At the BA level students should be able to identify, describe and explain concepts that have been imparted to them in class, but while they may as individuals be able and willing to engage in higher-level criticism and synthesis within the subject, it is not within the parameters of a BA to expect or assess this level of engagement. Sometimes you stop at Identify. When you get to the MA you may critique and analyse. When you reach PhD level you may theorise and create.
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