Task 2D: Inquiry

What in your daily practice gets you really enthusiastic to find out more about? Who do you admire who also works with what makes you enthusiastic?

Children get me enthusiastic just by the way they are. I love there imagination, open minds and their own enthusiastic to life. When working with children there isn't one day the same and they are developing and learning each day with me by their side. This excites me as I want to develop my own skills and knowledge on how learning through play how does this help and how each child learns differently and what works best for them, as everybody is an individual.

I admire psychologist like Jean Piaget and Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky towards there theory towards learning through play as they consider "play to be an important part of childhood as a path to the learning process." (Cyrus, n.a) Piaget sees that learning through play can be "movement through practise play, imaginative play, and continuing on to play with a set of rules." (Cyrus, n.a) Whilst Vygotsky thought that "the zone of proximal development was created through play which was when children could, 'operate at their highest possible cognitive level'" (Cyrus, n.a)

what gets you angry or makes you sad? who do you admire who shares your feelings or has found away to work around the sadness and anger?

One thing what gets me angry and sad at the same time it bad teaching. Especially when bad teaching can cause problems for the student. Or even when the student isn't naturally made for something they get left behind and not as much attention is put on them as there is on the "natural dancers" as you would say. It happens in all sorts of education not just dance take a look at TED Talk: Help for kids the education system ignores.

https://www.ted.com/talks/victor_rios_help_for_kids_the_education_system_ignores

This talk inspired me to accept everyone for who they are and don't give up on them whether its in public school environment or in a dance class, like I've said before everybody is an individual. Some peoples bone structure doesn't allow them a wide range of movement to another student but this doesn't mean ignore them but embrace who they are!

Another thing that gets me angry and sad is photo shopped images of young women that the media post giving an unrealistic body figure to young girls, especially adolescents.

What do you love about what you do? who do you admire who also seems to love this or is an example of what you love?

What I love about my job the most is seeing a student grow in confidence and develop their skills and knowledge. For example when a student first comes in pre-school class and can't skip but them after few months something just clicks or the penny drops as you would say and they manage to skip for the first time it makes me feel so proud and excited that after all the hard work has paid off. 

The person I admire the most is my first dance teacher who taught me from the age of 2 and a half to the age of 19. I feel like sometimes in my lessons I find myself doing things what she has taught me in the past. She has been a big influence in my life as she was the one who put the idea forward of me being a dance teacher and I have never looked back since. Her enthusiasm and dedication to every pupil and the opportunities given to them are out of this world. She has always concentrated on every pupil and has never given up on anyone, no matter their ability.

What do you feel you don't understand?

I feel that I don't fully understand the best approach to teaching to see the most improvement as I'm new to it this school year. I'm questioning at the moment is it best to be very strict that the students are scared and have a clear line between teacher and student or is it to make that line more faded and be more relate-able, friendly and open, so that the students have the confidence to ask questions. 

Which do you think will help to see the most improvement?

How do you decide the appropriate ethical response in a given situation? To what extent are disciplinary responses different to that you might expect more generally in society? 

I feel like spending most my life in a dance studio that there is a lot more disciplinary as there would be in general society. My decision for the appropriate ethical response giving in a situation in a dance studio will all depend on the child. For example I wouldn't shout at a student who is known to kick off, I would simple have a calm worsd with them. Some students are more afraid of being sent out and explaining to there parents why they been sent out. I always try to learn what best of discipline works best for each student. Sometime I give forfeits out if the child isn't listening or messing about, such as jack-knives, plank and press ups this always seems to work as well as they don't want to be doing more. I feel that being a dancer, teacher, student in a school, interviews for work and meeting new people are all different situations that have to be dealt with in a different professional manner. 

Future inquiries...

1. Does learning through play have a good impact on children learning and retaining information better?

2. what is the best approach towards students to achieve the most progress from them is it being strict so that they are scared of me, or is it to be more friendly so the student isn't as scared?

3. Is social media and the media itself putting eating disorders more at risk, when publishing photo shopped unrealistic images of young women?

references

Cyrus. (n.a). Learning through play. Available: http://www.cyrus.net.nz/musing/23-learning-through-play.html. Last accessed 05/04/17.