Generally the way I reflect on events is by talking them through with other people. This past Saturday I attended my cousin’s Wedding along with family and friends. On Sunday the topic of conversation amongst the family was about the day and what we thought. We talked about how the day evolved, what went well and what didn’t go according to plan, what we liked and didn’t like etc. Since I am getting married next year we were very critical to see what we might take from their day to help us plan ours.
'I learnt that by experience!'
I think I have said that many times before. For task 2a on Reflective writing, I chose a recent audition I attended. One of the things I realised from that day was that ways I now act in auditions are very different from when I first started out, as I have 'learnt from experience'. I agree with John Dewey's idea of continuity that we learn from experiences from the time we are born and that each experience we have will shape us as a person carrying through to our future. Past auditions I have attended will influence and shape my future ones.
Along with Dewey, David Kolb stressed the importance that role experience plays in learning and developed the idea of a learning cycle. At first I was not very sure where I came in on the learning cycle. I have experienced choreographers asking me to try something out (Active Experimentation) and at other times to just do it (Concrete Experience). When first looking at the reader I thought I was point C (the center) since in different situations I touch some or all of the points mentioned.
I felt that as a professional dancer, learning a particular dance routine or move might go something like this:
1) Reflective Observation: Watching the choreographer demonstrate a move or another performer trying it out (reflective observation)
2) Abstract Conceptualisation: Understanding the technique behind the move and how to achieve that
3) Concrete Experience: Trying the move and receiving tips/critiques from the choreographer/teacher
4) Active Experimentation: Trying new ways to improve the move, having a go at it
So now I started to think I came in the Reflective Observation point of the cycle. This became first evident when we came to creating our blog. Rather than just get stuck in on the task, I looked through other people's blogs not only from this year but last year's class. I observed what I liked, didn’t like and then reflected on what I could learn from observing other people’s work.
To understand the points of the cycle further, I decided to do some more research into Kolb's Learning Styles and found the four styles explained:
Converger- Combines Abstract Conceptualisation with Active Experimentation
These people tend to focus on problem solving, coming up with ideas and theories and enjoy more technical tasks than social issues.
Diverger- Combines Concrete Experience with Reflective Observation
These people tend to observe and are able to see things from different points of view. They are interested in people and cultures and have strong imagination.
Assimilator- Combines Abstract Conceptualisation and Reflective Observation
These people can take a load of information and put it into a theory. They are more concerned with abstract ideas than people.
Accommodator- Combines Concrete Experience and Active Experimentation
These people tend to be risk takers, problem solvers and learn from "hands-on" experience. They tend to go on gut instinct relying on people for information rather than their own point of view.
Now this was making more sense to me. I could now see that I am a Diverger- in between Concrete Experience and Reflective Observation.
As a dancer our learning is more hands-on than text driven. My learning cycle for dance might look something like this:
Nb. I couldn't get my arrows transferred onto this blog, so help with how you do that would be greatly appreciated.
DEMONSTRATION
(watch choreographer)
PRODUCTION DANCE
(it’s show time!) (repeat the moves)
CRITIQUE
(listen to corrections and make any changes)
One of Kolb's ideas was that of perception continuum, referring to our emotional response, which people learn by thinking or feeling. Feeling and being aware of the sensations felt by movement was a key element in my learning to dance and watching others. In the professional world of dance we rely heavily on vision taking in what is being demonstrated before copying the same movement. We have the ability to learn not just by feeling our own body move but by watching others. Professional dancers have the ability to watch someone do a short routine and repeat it.
At Elmhurst, sometimes teachers would have us facing away from the mirrors for us to learn whether the movement 'felt' right. You don’t dance with a mirror in front of you onstage they would say so we would practice without one.
Donna Silva "I try to get them to feel it from the inside out" (Dance Magazine, Nancy Alfargo, 2007)
I think this is an interesting point of feeling from the inside out. As dancers we learn a movement by watching and then doing. It seems to me that as artists we learn from the inside out whereas other professions learn from the outside in. This is an important issue when it comes to teaching students.
By now understanding where I come in on Kolb’s learning cycle and by creating my own I have discovered my strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths: imaginative, understand people, have cultural interests, can see things from different perspectives
Weaknesses: not good at making decisions or problem solving
For teachers Kolb’s cycle can be of great benefit as it allows them to understand their pupils further. However, my only problem with the cycle is that a number of the points can happen at the same time whilst certain points can be missed or skipped altogether.
No comments:
Post a Comment