Reflective Practices Reader - Mind boggled and only at page 13!

I thought I would blog on the Reflective Practices Reader and try to make sense of it by putting pen to paper. I feel this is reflective practice and I hope to gain more knowledge by doing so.

I am however only up to page 13 and have already found my self emerged with new terminology and concepts. I agree with the statement "Learning a new idea is not as simple as it seems"

I have answered the thought provoking questions along the way and have discovered many things about myself and the way I reflect and learn. This in turn has enlightened me as to the type of learner I am and the one I would like to become.

I often try to reflect on events as they arise and try to gauge my success within each experience. From this I begin to discover elements that have worked and more importantly the factors that have disabled my progress. This type of reflection has helped to establish my business and enhance my reputation to its current high status

I am sure we all say we have learnt from many experiences both personal and professional but do we always use these lessons to their full potential?  Often I had thought I had learnt a lesson only to dismiss the idea as it seemed easier than  reviewing the findings head on. I will certainly be looking to change this negative attitude. I have now discovered the benefits to be gained from analysing and reflecting on my previous actions.. Rather than learn a lesson but then become afraid of its new meaning I am prepared to take on the information learnt and apply it straight away in its new context.

Reading the next section (McFee, 1992) I could relate to his description. I have always found myself knowing more than I know? Let me explain... Words that I have stored in my memory bank often pop to the forefront of my mind but I have no idea how to use them. Therefore I try to remember where I heard the word and whether this source was reliable. I often recognise words but do not know their meaning or how to apply them in the correct context.

I found myself drawn to John Dewey’s theories on Education as an experiential action. I agree with his thoughts on the quality of the education being linked to the level of engagement with, and consciousness of the experience. One of the main aspects of my company is to go into Primary schools to teach pupils KS2 topics through the art of Dance. Yesterday for instance I taught the Jai Ho Indian themed dance day to over 350 children. This captivated the children and encouraged them to learn about modern Indian culture through a fun physical experience.

Kolb’s cycle helps us recognise our own learning style.  I entered the cycle at Reflective Observation but questioned why I chose to learn by observation.  Although I did very much learn from observing others’ work I was also using this strategy to ascertain whether my own ideas were good enough.  Was this my true learning style or was I just doubting my own ability?   I would love to enter the cycle at Active Experimentation especially where my choreography is concerned.

Finally the reader led me to consider how and if I used Gardener,s multi intelligence's theory and VAK 

Here are my thoughts....

When I teach a dance class, especially to children who have been told they have to attend rather than chose to attend, I use Interpersonal Intelligence. This style of teaching helps me to evaluate how best to interact with the children which enables me to get the best from each individual pupil through differentiation which in turn will  maximise the learning process for both myself and the students in my class. I would most certainly approach a group of boisterous boys with a different teaching method to say a shy girl at the back of the room. Using these multi intelligences makes us aware of different ways of engaging therefore ‘turning experience into learning’.

When I think about the VAK process  I conclude that this system is only a guide to maximising the learning process.  My preferred learning style depends on what I am trying to learn. If I use this module as a starting point  I am  inclined to say that  I have had to gain my knowledge through Visual methods i.e. the reader and having to read. I have found it a struggle to stay focused hence only getting to page 13!  I feel I would possibly retain more information if I was able to learn via Audio as having been out of education for 10 years I am more familiar with being told information via TV and radio than I am having to read a text book. However, as a dancer, I have been using Kinaesthetic learning and appreciate that VAK in general will be a skill I have to become acquainted with now I am well and truly back in main stream education!