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Hello C, C, G, J, and S.

I hope you are all keeping well.  I have just finished my paper which included a bit of writing about the research question for which I interviewed you all.  Thank you all for your participation, I could not have done it without you.

I have been thinking a lot about the conversations I had with each of you and the things that emerged as issues in our work.  The lack of a peer support was mentioned by some, and I did talk with you all about wanting to set up a peer support structure. As part of my paper I wrote about what such a  structure might be, and I have some ideas about have to create a little one, but one that could be open to having more people join.

This is what I imagine a peer support group might be:
* A group of people who meet once every three months to talk and discuss issues in their teaching practices. Initially, however I would suggest three monthly meetings to set ourselves up.
* It can have an online support site.  I have created a blog for this potential group: www.peerresource.wordpress.com

This below was written in my journal on 27.09.2010.

I am preparing for my classes, they have all started ot kick in now as the Autumn settles. Last week in Upper Mount Street Dave Kilmartin from the careers centre in DIT gave a talk on the idea of employability in relation to curriculum. We had a lot to think about in this class, and it was an opportunity to reflect on one’s more idealistic wishes and ideas around being an educator. Dave asked us to describe our ‘ideal graduate’ and then asked us think how we might incorporate more things into curriculum in order to facilitate people growing toward that ideal.  He spoke about the holistic nature of ‘employability’ and how life, play, giving and work feed into each other.

During the session we outlined a few key issues, including defining employability, which my group refused to define – rather we found it a problematic term.  More useful to think about was the ‘ideal graduate’. The qualities that I thought my ‘ideal graduate’ might have included:

* Someone who has learned or experienced something positive within their creative self.

* Someone who grows in self-confidence and creativity and someone who will take creative risks.

Dave recommended a few approaches to incorporating ideas of employability into teaching.  The one I thought was the most useful for me was the ways in which we could gauge non-assessable qualities in learning and teaching.

The ‘rate this on a scale of 1 to 10′ is very useful for me and I intend to use it in my classes.

Curriculum Design was the topic under discussion in last Wednesday’s session in Upper Mount Street.  Taught by Marian, it covered a few ideas about education and curriculum. We spoke about very concrete things such as the role of validation panels in approving curricula, who might sit on them what kind of partnership with industry that the presence of certain people might imply.  Employability emerged as one of the key aspects of that influence curriculum design, whether or not desired by the teacher, institution and student.

A nice way of looking at curriculum was offered by Marian :

Content + purpose + organization.

Another trinity Marian spoke about about was :

Knowing + acting + being.

These as ways in which curriculum could be applied, structured or activated.

I felt quite lost through this – off-the-map so to speak – not able to really see where my teaching incorporates curriculum, and eventually deciding that it cannot and probably should not incorporate it.  In light of this I arranged to talk with my head tutor, Martina, on how to approach this major topic on the PG Dip.

Martina was very helpful – having done some research she offered me an article which outlined issues about curriculum and four main perspectives on defining it: syllabus, product, process and praxis.  This article she  found on www.infed.org.

Martina suggested that I take a critical approach to this topic – that it will stand to my future teaching experiences and also will allow me to contextualize my work in this light.

The same question emerges for me this week as did last week – if there is no curriculum in the teaching I do, what then is there?  I asked this question of myself last week and have had it in the back of my mind while I prepare for my autumn courses.

I suspect that the answer to this lies in collaborative/participatory arts practices, visual arts practices (and a smattering of activist theory perhaps)?   I was at The National Networking Day for Collaborative Artists run by CREATE in The axis Centre, Ballymun last Thursday.  Such practices were outlined and spoken about but education never raised it ‘ugly’ head over the course of this day – it was as if it was a shunned and taboo word there.  It was alluded to only indirectly, and the idea of teaching was treated with disgust by one or two participants.  Other areas, such as arts & health and arts & community and arts & business were married together for collective exploration, but not arts and education.  It seems that, in the eyes of those who attended the day, arts and education is in opposition to the path that they have chosen.  Yet I disagree.

Participatory arts practices step, often away from pedagogic ideas of students and teachers, away from learning, even.  What did emerge in the networking day were notions of surprise, collaboration, quality, astonishment and the search beyond known ways and structures.

Education, framed in the idea of ‘curriculum’ somehow does not really address the unknown, and does not allow the unknown to be unknown and still be present.  This kind of education shuns the unknown, to a point where all is towards knowing, curriculum reflects this desired orderliness of knowledge, while participation, community and arts embrace the chaotic muddledness of the unknown.  The space of the unknown is where art lies, even though the results in my classes can be predictable and visually repetitive.  There is always possibility for the unknown quantity that is arts in community (education).

I now have to plan at least two of my courses for the autumn. The idea of curriculum of something I will leave out of the mix, because of the need to not-know.  I feel confident to plan in this light. Martina spoke about curriculum as the boundary between formal and non-formal education.  Curriculum seems to be for me, now, writing this, the very fuzzy cloud in which knowing lies and begins to be ordered.  The space of not-knowing the smooth, unmodulated space in which direction is not really an working concept feeds into what I am doing.  So, around the areas of knowing-acting-being is a huge space of not-knowing, of blindness, exploration, experiment, creativity and even ignorance and unawareness to be in.

Soft knowledge

This lovely phrase was used at the Networking Day to name the knowledge that lies is a rural community, creating its connections and fabric.  I do not know the term’s origin, but I like it, it decategorizes the educational and indeed overly theoretical models of knowledge to suggest something squishy, half-formed, flexible and sensitive energy that exists between people.  My teaching practice lies in this area, where harder, framed words such as curriculum are too fixable to serve what I do. Soft knowledge has permission to remain unstructured, to be anti-methodological and subtle, ecological like weather-formations.

The Infed article that Martina gave me ‘Curriculum theory and practice’ includes a quote from someone called Lawrence Stenhouse on curriculum, using cookery as a metaphor for learning, and recipe for curriculum.  If I play with this metaphor, what I’m currently doing is nowhere near recipe, it’s more like collective wandering in the forest, foraging for berries and mushrooms that might be underfoot, watching the weather and the trees as you do so, enjoying the experience of being in the forest; even if you do not find anything there, the walk exists… and there are things we can never know.

‘Smooth space’ as opposed to ‘Striated space’ from Deleuze and Guattari “A Thousand Plateaus”.

‘The space of not- knowing’,  used in contemporary discourse on visual art but I do not know its origin.

My favourite of all the educational theorists…. so far!

16.07.2010

“…students learn in different ways. The differences may be slight, but also may be significant.”

p139, Teaching. Training and Learning.

Reece and Walker go on to outline four main ways of learning, as proposed by Honey and Mumford.

“Activists enjoy the present, like the immediate experience and respond to short term issues.

Reflectors prefer to think about things and explore all aspects before coming to a conclusion.

Theorists like principles, theories, models and systems. Logic rules!

Pragmatists look for new ideas and are keen to experiment.”

p 140.

They go on to suggest that a teacher should strategise their teaching in respond to the fact that their students have different learning styles. They list  some teaching strategies: group work, games, simulation, self-directed, assignments, discussion, buzz groups, lectures, case study, field trips. p.140.

The students I teach have, because of the nature of community education and its position to bring learning opportunities to people who are outside of the education system, their own ways of learning that feel much different to the list above. Many are active learners, and learn through doing, demonstration and assignment are very effective ways to teach these learners. Some of my groups have responded to group work very well, which was something the H. Dip. learning gave me the confidence to introduce into my teaching practice.

Vincent Farrell distributed a larger list of learning styles as proposed by Richard Felder: reflective, active, verbal, visual, sensory, intuitive, sequential and global. I understand my students to be  mix of all of these things

I graduated from art college in 2000 and since then I have been teaching in various capacities, in a loose workshop way where the artist comes in to workshop with a group, a club or a school, in which case my identity as an artist was integral to my approach to the workshop and the reason the people who employed me to run workshops saw me. Teaching was part of the structure of the workshop, but I wasn’t teaching, I was leading as an artist. Then as time went on workshops became less sporadic and more consistent, and issues about the teaching of them arose for me but only when I got my first teaching job in a high school did I feel that I had that responsibility of a teacher, with all that implies: lessons, discipline, knowledge, exams, punctuality of students etc… and I experienced a huge learning curve in the first year of teaching in this capacity.

Now I teach in adult and community education, and I find that some of those issues are not relevant here: discipline, punctuality and exams are not major concerns with the groups I teach. Deep issues like personal development, group integrity and self-direction and the practice of community values have come to the fore. I respond to these issues as both an artist and a teacher, as the traditions (if they are to be called ‘traditions’) of the artist working in participation and the art teacher in community education overlap and I see the philosophical basis for both these traditions as coming from places that use similar logic: both aim to break down elitism and encourage access for all, and to incorporate the respective discipline into cultural societal fabric of the contemporary notions of communities.

The redevelopment of Fatima Mansions (see: http://www.fatimagroupsunited.com) in Dublin is an example of this integration of both learning and art into the fabric of notion of community in area. I attended a seminar there recently which I found hugely informative on the way arts and participation were trying to situate themselves in times of national economic hardship.

The work I did  as an artist with Co-operation Fingal years ago in Balbriggan was similar, the work I did in Finland also. I feel this background informs my current teaching practice, the philosophy that I bring to it.  However, I do feel that as an artist in education I was very much left to shoot in the dark in my early years, and that I have become aware of the weight my discipline holds on my teaching practice:  I have felt, until recently, that my colleagues or peers are other artists rather than teachers of other disciplines in adult education as our disciplines seemed to divide us.  This, I find is actually more common in adult education that I originally suspected.

“The traditional authority of academics teaching in higher education stems form their disciplinary and professional subject expertise. They were historians, mathematicians, structural engineers, radiographers and sociologists before they became higher education teachers. … However, while their authority and self-image stem from their subject expertise, the principle occupational identity of most is as teachers.”

p.28.

Bruce Macfarlane “Teaching With Integrity”, 2005, RoutledgeFalmer, New York.

Macfarlane on values in teaching:

“Developing a sense of common values is the glue that holds society together. Values are also essential to teaching in higher education. Misconceptions about the role of values in a higher education context contribute to their neglect. One of the biggest barriers is the perception among some teachers that values are tangential, or worse, irrelevant to their subject area.”

p.29.

This analysis of what makes an expert has proven really useful to me… I can see in it things that I recognise in my own teaching practice, and things that point me toward a better, more professional stance in my practice.

The Adult Learner

Malcom S. Knowles, Elwood F. Holton III, Richard A. Swanson.

1998, (5th edition) Gulf Printing, Houston.

“Expert Solutions to the Twelve Most Common Training Delivery Problem of Novice Trainers.

1 FEAR

A. Be well prepared. Expert trainers have a detailed lesson plan, understand the material, and practice their presentation.

B. Use ice breakers. Experts use ice breakers and begin with an activity that relaxes participants and gets them to talk and become involved.

C. Acknowedge the fear. Experts understand that fear is normal, confront what makes them afraid, and use positive self-talk of relaxation exercises prior to presentation.

2 CREDIBILITY

A. Don’t apologize. Experts are honest about the subject matter and explain that they are either experts or conduits.

B. Have the attitude of an expert. Experts are well prepared and well organized. They listen, observe, and apply what they know to what the participants know.

C. Share personal background. Experts talk about their areas of expertise and the variety of experiences they have had.

3. PERSONAL EXPERIENCES

A. Report personal experiences. Experts tell their personal experiences, sometimes asking themselves probing questions to uncover them.

B. Report experiences of others. Experts collect pertinent stories and incidents from other people and/or have participants share their experiences.

C. Use analogies, movies, or famous people. Experts use familiar incidents or situations in order to relate to the subject.

4. DIFFICULT LEARNERS

A. Confront problem learner. Experts use humour. They may also talk to the individual during a break to determine the problem or to ask the person to leave.

B. Circumvent dominating behaviour. Experts use nonverbal behaviour, such as breaking eye contact or standing with their backs to the person and inviting others to participate.

C. Small groups for timid behaviour. Experts find that quiet people feel more comfortable talking in small groups or dyads. They structure exercises where a wide range of participation is encouraged.

PARTICIPATION

A.  Ask open-ended questions. Experts incorporate questions into the lesson plans and provide positive feedback when people do participate.

B. Plan small group activities. Experts use dyads, case studies and role plays to allow people to feel comfortable, to reduce fears, and to increase participant.

C. Invite participation. Experts structure activities that allow people to share at an early time in the presentation.

6. TIMING

A. Plan well. Experts plan for too much material, and some parts of the material are expendable. They prioritize activities so that parts may be deleted, if necessary.

B. Practice, practice, practice. Experts practice the material many times so they know where they should be at 15-minute intervals. They make sure there’s a clock in the training room.

7. ADJUST INSTRUCTION

A. Know group needs. Experts determine the needs of the group at an early time in the training and structure activities and processes based on those needs.

B. Request feedback. Experts watch for signs of boredom and ask participants either during breaks or periodically during the session how they feel about training.

C. Redesign during breaks. Experts find it helpful to have contingency plans and, if necessary, to redesign the program during a break. Redesigning during delivery is not advocated.

8. QUESTIONS

Answering Questions

A. Anticipate questions. Experts prepare by putting themselves in the participant’s place and by writing out key questions learners might have.

B. Paraphrase learners’ questions. Experts repeat and paraphrase participants’ questions to ensure that everyone has heard the questions and understands them.

C. “I don’t know” is okay. Experts redirect questions they can’t answer back to the group’s expertise. They try to locate answers during breaks.

Asking Questions

A. Ask concise questions. Questions are a great tool for experts. They ask concise, simple questions and provide enough time for participants to answer.

9. FEEDBACK

A. Solicit informal feedback. Experts ask participants, either during class or at the break, if the training is meeting their needs and expectations. They also watch for nonverbal cues.

B. Do summative evaluations. Experts have participants fill out forms at the conclusion of training to determine if the objectives and needs of the group were met.

10. MEDIA, MATERIALS, FACILITIES

Media

A. Know equipment. Experts know how to fully operate every piece of equipment that they use.

B. Have back-ups. Experts carry a survival kit of extra bulbs, extension cords, markers, tape, etc. They also bring the information they are presenting in another medium.

C.  Enlist assistance. Experts are honest with the group if there is a breakdown and ask if anyone can be of assistance.

Material

A. Be prepared. Experts have all materials ready and places at each participant’s workplace or stacked for distribution.

Facilities

A. Visit facility beforehand. Experts visit a new facility ahead of time, if possible, to see the layout of the room and to get an idea of where things are located and how to set up.

B.  Arrive early. Experts arrive at least one hour in advance to ensure enough time for setting up and handling problems.

11. OPENINGS AND CLOSINGS

Openings

A. Develop an “opening file “. Experts rely on the many sources for ice-breaker ideas. Through observations and experimentation, they develop ideas and keep a file of them.

B.  Memorize. Experts develop a great opening and memorize it.

C. Relax trainees. Experts greet people as they enter, take time for introductions, and create a relaxed atmosphere.

Closings

A. Summarize concisely. Experts simply and concisely summarize the contents of the course, using objectives or the initial model.

B. Thank participants. Experts thank participants for their time and their contributions to the course.

12. DEPENDENCE ON NOTES

A, Notes are necessary. Experts recognize that no one completely outgrows the need for notes.

B. Use cards. Experts scale down their presentations to an outline or key words, which they write on note cards to use as prompts.

C.  Use visuals. Experts make notes on frames of transparencies and on their copies of handouts.

D. Practice. Experts learn the script well so that they can deliver it from the keyword note cards.”

p.2333-236