Critical Reflection and Summary: Portfolio
When developing a set of questions relating to my professional practice, initially potential questions flowed with relative ease(Appendix A). They were however general and open, which meant research being too – debatable and immeasurable. How was I going to utilize my knowledge to get maximum output out of appropriate choice of tools to find questions seeking researched answers that would facilitate further professional development and define a beneficial line of enquiry? Mapping my professional knowledge was a useful stepping stone, (Appendix B) Special Interest Groups’ then effectively collaborated opinions thus provoking the intent to let questions develop, rather than trying to find the answers (Appendix C) Blogging a proposed question, then receiving feedback on that question allowed further development into the inquiry topic. From this, I felt a more critical understanding of the type of question needed, and how the construction of the question evokes different types of answers. Feedback received has highlighted how useful and valid the views of other practitioners within the BAPP network are. Establishing professionals contributions were particularly significant (Appendix D), input from those in professions other than dance allowed me to gain an entirely different point of view (Appendix E). Only then was I able to re evaluate my question by thinking about how it may be interpreted differently, and how someone viewing the question other than myself may understand it. (Appendix F) I realized the values one may hold are limited depending on the level of previous professional experience. Sharing opinions (through SIG’s, Facebook and Skype) adds depth to your own critical voice.
This module has highlighted how working ethically combines adhering to rules of an organization and using one’s own set of morals and values to approach daily conduct. Reviewing codes of conduct from my workplace and official online resources made me appreciate how in depth such codes can be (Appendix G)Blogging on these regulations exposed numerous similarities, and highlighted elements that my assumptions had not previously considered. (Appendix H) It seems stepping out of my professional environment and documenting thoughts can increase my understanding of the way I learn, more so than when being consumed in the professional environment itself. Recognizing my power position as a teacher/researcher had determined how I conduct an ethical enquiry, avoiding potential ethical issues lies in the skill of recognizing ‘my position as an insider, and trying to maintain objectivity as much as possible’ , and that my 'insider knowledge' gives me a distinctive position (Costley et al. 2010). Similarly to Stephanie, I do however consider this a positive element in my ability to interpret information as a researcher with practitioner experience in the dance industry. (Appendix I)
Blogs have highlighted how personal morals and professional ethics within the workplace can often conflict (Appendix J)and the consequences of a world without ethics (Appendix K). Now a wear of this, I intend to improve my ability at facilitating ethical professionalism for future professional practice.
Piloting tools and discussing their advantages and limitations gave me a deeper understanding as to how my questions may be understood and interpreted, and which tools will be most effective at gathering valid data. The information I seek is of a personal nature, practising and reviewing pilots has exposed the importance of remaining sensitive and ‘Valuing each contribution’ (Costley et al. 2010). Interviewing a member of Ludus Dance highlighted the importance of creating a format where the flow of conversation content is adaptable to gather the most effective data. (Appendix L) Completing colleague’s pilot questionnaires/surveys informed me much preparation and organization is needed to utilize this tool, (Appendix M) (Appendix N)But, questionnaires are key to my inquiry (Appendix O) because they provide ‘quantitative data, but can also produce answers and responses of a qualitative nature too’ (Black, (2002). (Appendix P) Hitchcock suggests that Observations facilitate means to ‘gather field notes which can be contextualised by background notes and are often supplemented by gathering data by other methods such as interviews to produce the most informed data’ (Hitchcock, 1989: 67) (Appendix Q), (Appendix R), (Appendix S) it seems the combination of the use of observations and interviews will be beneficial. Deciding against using focus groups was due to experiencing their excellent platform for discussion but I require more in-depth data to develop my understanding. (Appendix T), (Appendix U)
Gathering sources of literature using Delicious (Appendix V), the BAPP library resources and Google Scholar has facilitated researching more varying views on three key texts. The texts logically fall into three categories; the research topics and methods themselves, dance in education, and understanding dance philosophy. (Appendix W), (Appendix X), (Appendix Y)
References
Black T (2002) Understanding Social Research, London: Sage Publications LTD
Costley Carol, Elliot, Geoffrey, Gibbs, Paul (2010) Doing Work Based Research Approaches to Enquiry for Insider - Researchers, Buckingham Maidenhead: Open University Press and McGraw Hill Press
Hitchcock (1989:67)
