3d An honest Reflection.

Now I have come to the end of Module 1 I am faced with some quite tricky questions that I have to be honest with myself about, here goes:

• ·      I have realised that my sources of information are infact quite limited, I tend to use the same search engines and feel on reflection that I need to search deeper in order to gain knowledge of various opinions that differ from the normal, to really broaden my horizons and to truly be critical about differing opinions. Going forward I will try to source deeper and further reading on topics covered in future modules.  I feel like my engagement has been appropriate although seemingly sporadic on my blog. I will make a conscious effort to make a consistent effort to blog my feelings and observations however small. I am very focused when it comes to my career and development but could plan more to help me even out the workload. I also understand now that reflection is an ongoing thing and I didn’t have to leave it to the end to complete this task, I could have reflected at intervals throughout the course.

• ·      Over the course of this module I have seeked the opinions of peers, family members and colleagues to see if they feel the same about reflecting and networking. My findings showed that people trained and pursuing a career in the Arts networked a lot more than those where in more of a corporate environment. I also found that those with performing or teaching careers learned in more of a ‘cycle’ constantly refreshing their training and learning new ideas and therefore being more open to the idea of reflection.

• ·      Sharing ideas is a great way of learning, as it broadens your view.  I have had a varied career up until this point but still benefit from different views. It helps sometimes to think outside the box and better than that to look inside someone else’s thought. By communicating using the blogs we all benefit from a range of opinions, understanding, findings and research. We can be advised on further readings, web links and also see Academic advisor feedback.

• ·      Critical reflection has helped me move forward learning from mistakes in the past. Like anything through practice it becomes easier, I am now seeing what information and experiences are truly relevant and which I can put to bed. Using a journal, graphs, photos and books I am remembering good and bad experiences and seeing why they were good and what made them bad. As a teacher they have an added purpose of being able to pass on to my students my findings and experiences and encouraging them to make mistakes in order to learn and develop.

• ·      I have always been a reflective person, I am blessed with the ability to accept mistakes and do always strive to correct errors, at this point I am encouraged to continue to do that in all walks of life particularly my career path.  I will continue to reflect, write and blog throughout the summer and am looking forward to starting Module 2 with a clearer mind.

Kolbs learning cycle.. different people/different styles.

Different professionals use differeng methods, to learn, practice and reflect and this is shown visually in these different styles of Kolbs learning cycle. 
These also show how there is no "rule" to how we develop as individuals, choosing different rules and methods to achieve our goal. 

Visualising networking..

Some diagrams I did a while back to try and visualise networking...


From these diagrams you see that Networking is interlinked.

3c Cont... Evidence.

Here is one of the questionnaires I recieved back, from this questionnaire it shows that Linkedin is now the site for prossional networking.

Socialisng and Networking? Do we keep it personal? 3C

The different tools I use are quite similar for both social and professional needs:

Social:

·      Facebook

·      Twitter

·      MSN

·      Facetime

·      Skype

·      Phonecalls/Texts

·      Parties/ Social Gatherings

Professional

·      Facebook

·      Twitter

·      MSN

·      Skype

·      Phonecalls

·      Industry Events and Parties

·      Newspapers

·      TV

·      Castingcall Pro

My main social networking site (facebook) is very personalised which is different to how I would come across on Castingcall pro.I am now thinking about the amount of profesional people on my facebook and that maybe i shouls infact make it more of a professional platform for me.


I have asked people in various different work enviroments to fill out a questionnaire that I have complied to see if this is the same for most industries.(Evidence to follow)

Reflecting on Reflection.

From journals to graphs to cycles, the ways of adding imagery and sense to the ways we reflect as individuals is endless. The reader gives us a few ideas and "tools" we can use for our development. 
I feel a bit like I've had theropy these past few months, expressing what I'd like to change about my career and thinking what I could do to change it. Pin-pointing the beginning and re-travling my journey up till now. Feeling fresher and more focused ready to move on to the next step.

Remembering the early days...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0


These are the notes I wrote on the first ever campus session, moving forward I will write as many notes and feelings as I possibly can as they really help us at a later stage. Just a few months ago i had no idea what lay ahead or indeed what web 2.0 really was. I've attached a Wikipedia link as even though not always entirely correct, I find Wikipedia easy to understand

Choosing my words wisely...

When should an old idea be thrown out? When piecing together the information for my supporting evidence I found it hard to choose what was relevant and what wasn't... with only 750 words we really do have to choose our words carefully...... This is infact a form of reflection, reflecting on what we have learnt and the knowledge we have gained and prioritising them for our final essays.

Is social networking the career ladder of the 00"s? Task 3a

I think it’s safe to say that without a laptop/smartphone/computer at home it’s pretty hard to function nowadays, especially if you are pursuing a career and trying to be a networked professional. I have a laptop and an Iphone and still struggle to keep up with all my email sometimes.

Networking sites like facebook, Youtube, linkedin, twitter and myspace are quickly becoming platforms for our careers rather than “fun”. Even instagram (a photography app) now has the function that we can network and look at each other’s photos. This is yet another example of Web 2.0 giving us the opportunity to show our work. 

I regularly use Facebook to upload photo’s scan the pages for my friend’s news and communicate with friends. These are all tools that are available to me free of charge that I could and should use in a professional manner. I could upload C.V’s and headshots, scan the pages for auditions and communicate with industry professionals.

With social networks there is the motivation to catch up with friends and family, share pictures or present times and memories, express your feelings and keep in touch with people who live at a distance, I believe that most people use networks for good reasons, I know I genuinely love to catch up worth old friends but there are unfortunately some people who use and abuse the internet and its dangers.

My ideal professional networking sight would probably be similar to I.M.D.B (Internet, movie, database) it provides pictures past and most recent, a recent jobs list in chronological order, with a link to see more about the film/play/TV program they were in.

Realistically as someone who isn’t very computer minded my most likely way to develop my own network would be to really work on my blog, during and even after BAPP, to try and gain some more public interest. The tools I would need to use would be the Internet networking sites that already exist but I would use a different method to gain interest and try to use some advertising. I don’t know a lot about blogging and cyber networking, but have started to read a lot more blogs and posts since doing the BAPP course.

Enquiring about my Personal Reflection 2D

·      Talent!!! New, old any talent makes me enthusiastic. I love to spot talent and teach them more or help to point them in the right direction or introduce them to the right people. I am inspired daily by the children I teach and the quality of work they produce. Holly Smedley who I work for on a Saturday is a huge inspiration for me, she wants so much for her pupils and gives them everything she can in terms of her time, knowledge energy and belief. She wants them to succeed and encourages them in a way that inspires me. My work gives me an energy that I find hard to switch off from which makes Bob Fosse an inspiration to me as apparently he could never switch off and was deemed a workaholic.

·      I get sad when opportunities aren’t given to people, when they want something but aren’t able to pay for the tuition or haven’t got the support from their families. I get angry when people have talent but throw it away, on reflection this could be a personal issue as I have a tiny bit of doubt in the back of my head that I didn’t perform for as long as I maybe could of. I am inspired by The Urdang Academy and how it offers scholarships and bursaries to those who are talented and who maybe can’t afford the large tuition funds.

·      I love it when I can see I have made a difference, when I teach something and can see it making an effect on the work a student produces. There are many great teachers in the world too many to mention, but I hold close to my heart the ones who I know personally I will never forget.

I wouldn’t say I don’t “understand” but I haven’t  yet gained the contacts or the knowledge to take my casting ambition further. I am inspired by all the leading casting directors in the WestEnd especially Ann Vosser and Elaine Murphy who have offered me ad

Views on Reflection 2c:

Reflection before this course was something I thought of as a past time, used in our personal lives to learn from the past and move on from it. I have never before thought of it as a professional technique. Which is strange considering we should do the same in our careers as we do our personal lives. Look back at the past and learn from it, improve, grow and try not to make the same mistakes again!

But just what should we reflect on? The day to day? The past? It’s hard to decipher and sort our experiences into some kind of organised pile, which we can dig through and decide what is relevant and what is not. I suppose the easiest answer to that is “we learn from ALL experiences”

“We are saying that being out in the world, having experience plus reflecting are the

means by which you can start to come across new ideas, the means by which you can learn something new.” Reader Page 4

The above paragraph is very relevant I think to students doing the BAPP course.

Dewey commented, “The quality of the education was linked to

The level of engagement with, and consciousness of the experience.” I tend to agree with this comment as most students perform better after being taught by a capable teacher and have more of an interest for the subject as teaching is not only about teaching the knowledge of certain subject but a passion and understanding aswell.

Kolb’s learning cycle is an interesting tool, as it has no beginning or end, it doesn’t define where you start or finish your learning. I also agree with this as learning is continuous, it’s hard to pin point where you started, your studies, experiences and reflection are all vital parts of the wheel.