Reflective learning.
Although I quite enjoy writing, I have never been one to write consistently in a journal, or come to think of it... I don't do anything consistently. My sleep schedule is all over the map from going to bed between 9pm-2am, to waking up at 4-10am. It depends on the day. Some days I work 14 hours, some I work 1. Some days I eat 3 meals, some days I eat 2, and some I eat 5. Depends on the day. Some days I listen to soft jazz and lay on the ground, some days I blast techno and scream around the house.
The most consistent part of me is my inconsistency. I am a juggler of many jobs, a wearer of many hats, and a feeler of many emotions.
When it comes to learning...I am the same way. Some days I can listen and learn, other days what you say goes in one ear and immediately out the other. I am a note taker- but on paper, never digital. I learn by observation but some days I just have to feel it in my body. So when it comes to reflection of my learning I find myself agreeing with one theory one day and then not the next. Consistently inconsistent.
I have been aware of reflection in my own practice, and a feedback forward environment is one that I have always been a part of. At the end of each day at the dinner table my family would go around and say one thing that went well, one thing we would do differently, one thing we learned, and one thing we were grateful for. Reflection of our daily lives was integrated early on.
As a dancer or performer, I grew up being told exactly what I did wrong or what I could work on. It gave me a thick skin and the ability to draw on feedback as motivation. As a teacher I now look to my boss' and colleagues for feedback. This MA has given me an opportunity to not only reflect but put this reflection both into action and into further reflection through theory. Here are some of the theory's that have resonated with me and that have helped to form my AOL's.
First AOL: "A holistic approach to dance curriculum". My main theory centered around Gagne's theory of learning and his 9 stage approach. I found that I could draw a straight line from these 9 stages to how I teach and the curriculum's that have or have not worked for my practice.
Second AOL: "Empowerment through effective language and communication". Kolb's cycle of learning was where I began but I resonated more with Cowan's theory of Sequential Work which incorporated some of Kolb's cycle and some of Schon's reflective theory. The Sequential work theory looks at goals and objectives and begins with reflection prior to action.
Third AOL: "Cultivating positive psychological movement practices". The main theory explored here brings together the ideas of pairing science and art and more specifically the psychology of the brain with the somatics of the body. As someone who is often tied to both science and art and straddles this line I felt these theories resonated with me most.
Fourth AOL: "Creating and integrating safe spaces in movement arenas". In this AOL I dove into the theory of "safe spaces" in a general sense and the theory of embodied cognition.
Dancer: myself
Photo: Dyana Sonik-Henderson
Lighting: Emma Dickerson
I can resonate with this so much - it made me think about the people in charge of continuity on film sets for some reason. The difference between continuity and consistency. I love the idea of being consistently inconsistent. I guess it sounds like you have so much direction as you describe your journey, there's a beautiful clarity in the continuation of your journey. But it also sounds like defining the zig zags you takes makes them meaningful, or purposeful or something.
ReplyDelete'Consistently inconsistent'. Love this. I resonate with that. But there seems to be something wonderful and empowering about that. It means that everyday you have the chance to connect with the world slightly differently, to see things differently and to begin again. It feels like there may be so much opportunity within this way of learning.
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