The DOTS Model

The ‘DOTS Model’ was a theory originally developed by Bill Law and Tony Watts (1977/1996). It is a 4 stage model of career planning, however this doesn’t seem to be a logical order to achieve the aims of career planning.

D:  Decision Learning
O:  Opportunity Awareness
T:  Transition Learning
S:  Self Awareness

Before embarking on the ‘DOTS Model’, there are 3 main points you need to consider:

You need to raise you self-awareness. Think about your interests? Abilities? Motivation?

Once you have done this, take the information and consider what opportunities are available to you. Create a short list of possible options of jobs in the field you want to move into and that interests you.

Based upon this list, you need to consider whether you have the right experience and necessary qualifications or whether you need to return to education.

Even though the ‘DOTS Model’ has a lovely ring to it, unfortunately, it isn’t the most logical order. A more sensible sequence would be SODT.

S:  Self Awareness
O:  Opportunity Awareness

D:  Decision Learning
T:  Transition Learning

Self: Self-Assessment is crucial. This step is usually overlooked step in planning for a new career. It is important to know who you are as a person before you can look for suitable jobs. You need to consider your interests, skills and personal qualities.

Opportunities: Having completed the ‘Self-Assessment’ stage. It is now time for the next part of the process. Researching different careers and the opportunities with that field.


Career Exploration and Decision Making: You may need to gain some work experience in that field, either by shadowing or voluntary activities. Ensure you have undertaken a sufficient amount of research, use local libraries, careers fairs before making a final decision. Self-awareness, occupational awareness and instinct can all play a part in your decision-making.


Transition: Lastly, how will you achieve your goal? For example, understanding how the recruitment process works for the career you are interested in. This will give you the best chance of promoting yourself through applications, interviews and at assessment centres.

Let me simplify it!!!

S

Self Awareness    Who am I?

O

Opportunity Awareness      Where am I?

D

Decision Making     What will I do?

T

Transition Skills      Where will I do it?

John L. Holland – The Vocational Choice Theory

Before you read any further – have a go at this quick quiz!!! - http://www.truity.com/test/holland-code-career-test

 

John L. Holland, born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1919, was an American Psychologist and Professor at John Hopkins University. During his lifetime he developed many theories, perhaps his most famous was Holland's ‘Theory of vocational personalities and work environments.’

He believed that people could be categorized into different personality groups. He concluded it was made up of six which were originally labeled as, ‘motoric, intellectual, esthetic, supportive, persuasive, and conforming.’ These were later developed and renamed to: ‘Realistic (Doers), Investigative (Thinkers), Artistic (Creators), Social (Helpers), Enterprising (Persuaders), and Conventional (Organizers).’

His research showed that personalities seek out environments where they can use their abilities and skills to flourish, Investigative types search for Investigative environments. Where there is a match, they tended to be more successful and have more job satisfaction, for example an Artistic personality, such as a performer, likes to work somewhere they can use their imagination and are free to express themselves.

• Realistic (R): Realistic personalities prefer concrete tasks. They tend to like working alone or with other realistic people.
• Investigative (I): Investigative personalities likes to use their abstract or analytical skills to figure things out. They are “thinkers” who strive to complete tasks and similarly to the Realistic personalities prefer to do so independently.
• Artistic (A): Artistic members like to create things. They are imaginative and usually extroverted.
• Social (S): Social people prefer interacting with people. They tend to be concerned with social problems and wants to help others.
• Enterprising (E): Enterprising personalities lean toward leadership roles. They are willing to take on challenges and are extroverted.
• Conventional (C): Individuals who are more conventional prefers structured tasks and tending to details. They tend to be more conservative.

These traits are laid out in a hexagon arrangement. The reason behind this is,

The further away the traits are - the less the types are have in common.

For example:

Conventional                      to                      Artistic

Enjoy working with data                             Likes to be creative and work

and structured environments.                    in unstructured environments.

I felt that this was relevant to my inquiry as it would be a great place to start when looking for a new career. Holland also developed the ‘Self-directed search’ which allows individuals to identify their dominant trait. This again will help my inquiry as it will help those looking to transition who are stuck to know what fields they should explore.

I have listed a website where you can find out more information and see what jobs would suit each personality trait:  https://www.careerkey.org/choose-a-career/hollands-theory-of-career-choice.html#.WEXJHIXXLIW

Nancy Schlossberg

After an interesting Skype conversation with Paula, it became clear I hadn’t researched enough sources of information or theorists.

Ones I had previously explored were:

Donald E. Super, who created the idea of the Career Rainbow.

William Bridges, who created the process of transition.

And Danielle Austen, who took Donald E Super rainbow and created the Double Career Rainbow.

All of these sources are fantastic and have given me lots to think about regarding my inquiry however I needed to find more!

Nancy Schlossberg was the first new person I found. She explored Transition Theory. She defines transition as an event or non-event that results in a change, whether that be in relationships, routines, roles or assumptions. Schlossberg recognised four main elements that help to influence a personal ability to cope with transition, these are more commonly known as the 4 S’s, Self, Situation, Support and Strategies.

Self – she has categorised this into 2 further groups.

Psychological – your outlook on life and the change, commitment and values.

Personal – age, gender, stage of life, health.  Factors like health and age play a significant role in why lots of performers transition.

Situation

This is thinking about what triggered the transition? Is it a permanent or temporary change? How much control over this change do you have? Are you changing roles, careers or moving away? Is it stress related?

Social support

Family, friends, personal relationships – these can provide great support when undergoing a transitional phase in your career.

Strategies or coping resources – again she has categorised these into 3 groups.

Those that modify the situation

Those that control the meaning of the problem

And those that aid in manging the stress in the aftermath.

I found this theory interesting because it breaks the process down into manageable chunks. By taking each segment and answers the questions you can analyse where you are, where you want to be and how to get there? This theory will help within my inquiry. Using the 4S’s, it should help the transition to be more positive.

Progress on my direction for my Inquiry

After having a Skype chat with Paula last week, I have been hitting the books and trawling the internet for inspiration and waiting for my lightbulb moment! This actually struck me whilst at work, I was talking to some colleagues about teaching and how their path to this career. Some of them have always wanted to teach, their parents were teachers, so the decision came very naturally to them. However, some, like myself, had thought of an alternative career and fell into teaching almost by accident – but they love it!

This, again, made me revisit the career rainbow that I touched upon in a previous blog.

Some people do indeed have one career that they start when they leave school, college or university, my dad, for example worked for a bank from 18 until he retired at 58.  But, some of us change our minds, moving from one job to another – career transition. This is especially true for dancers, performers, actors, artists ect.

I began to read anything I could find about career development and transition and stumbled upon a Radio 4 documentary entitled “Why do dancers die twice?” http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1fkwdll6ZscvQtHMz4HCYYr/why-do-dancers-die-twice This was a really interesting listen and if you have any spare time maybe whilst your cooking or baking, give it a listen!

During the article, it highlights how the dancer can lose sight of who and what they are. It also states that “Typically, a dancer’s career transition can be incredibly lonely, isolating, often because you might be leaving a world where everyone’s continuing.” This got me thinking about the negative connotations to career transition. Another quote from the article states, “It can feel - because that’s all you’ve done - that you don’t know who you are outside of a dance studio, you don’t know what you’re good at, you don’t know what you’re interested in… it can be a very frightening place.” These made me look into transition theories and the emotions that people experience during this time.

I found William Bridges, “Process of Transition” and “Transition Curve”. This shows all the stages involved when transitioning, these are, denial, anger, acceptance, exploration and finally, new beginnings. This is particularly true when a performer leaves the industry and to seek a new career. When I left the theatre industry, I was very lost found it quite difficult to deal with, the Martha Graham quote jumps to mind, “A dancer dies twice – once when they stop dancing. The first death is more painful.” I find it very relatable, even though I consider myself a performer not a dancer. When you have trained for something and planned a certain career since shortly after learning to walk, it’s hard to say goodbye to that part of your life. It made me think about how having a plan B is important. I raised this in a discussion with my colleagues and I got a very interesting response for one colleague in particular, one of her sons wants to be a musician his response was, “Mum if I focus on having a plan B then I’ll never achieve plan A”.

When do you start to think about career transitions and how can you make it more positive?

Danni Austen, a fellow BAPPER, had designed a double career rainbow. Whilst interesting, it wasn’t quite accurate for my circumstances. Using her double career rainbow as a base, I added in a “wobble” or transition curve in the middle of the two rainbows – this, I feel, reflects a more accurate representation of my journey so far.

It looks like this:

 

The part between the grey lines is really what I want to focus on during my inquiry.

I feel I have had a small breakthrough and the direction I wish to pursue has become clearer! I have been working on my questions so need to crack on and conduct my interviews J

Here we go - The Final Hurdle!

I can’t believe how fast the final module has come around. It was lovely to have some time off, clear my mind and tweek a few things on my assignment but now I am ready to start my inquiry and make it the best it can be!

I have a meeting with my SIG Group tonight which will allow us to talk through the material given to us already – my brain feels like it’s going to explode already!

I have already carried out meetings with professionals in the area of my inquiry so will be blogging about my findings shortly but for now wish me luck and I’ll see you on the other side.

Task 4D - Literature 2

The second piece of literature I found was an article published in the Guardian. It dates back in 2012, however I still feel it is relevant to my inquiry.

Some questions that have arisen whilst developing my inquiry have been, “Do performers go into teaching as a last resort or because they have a passion for it?” “What makes a good teacher?” Having discussed this point with a few of my colleagues it has become apparent that passion for your subject or teaching is essential to make your lessons both enjoyable and engaging.

I found this article extremely interesting as I felt it touched on some important issues I wish to explore further in my inquiry. She states, “For me, it's the passion for your subject and interest in the success of your students that matters more than how all the acronyms add up. This is what will make you a good teacher. There's still room for individuals but you have to have the confidence and passion for your subject to make it work.” I completely agree with this statement as I believe that the love for what you are doing will bring the subject to life.

Later in the article, the writer states that many people drop out of teaching after only a few years due to the high workload and demands upon them. The article concludes by providing some words of advice to anyone wishing to pursue a career in teaching.

http://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2012/aug/12/why-i-became-a-teacher

Task 4D - Literature 1

Literature 1 – Making sense of Drama, A guide to classroom practice by Jonothan Neelands.

As my idea for my inquiry is the transition from practitioner to teacher I thought I’d look into articles or books that related to this topic. Whilst conducting research in my local library I came across, “Making sense of drama, a guide to classroom practice” by Jonothan Neelands. It was first published in 1984 by Heinemann Educational Books Ltd.

This book is designed to give teachers from all subject areas an insight and confidence to explore the possibilities of drama in the classroom. It helps practitioners to plan and evaluate drama lessons as well as exploring the relationship between classroom drama and performances.

I thought that this book was an interesting find and would be useful when I carry out my inquiry because I want to pursue a career in the education world, whether that be in primary or secondary teaching. As I have mentioned previously, I currently teach a Saturday drama class at a dance school but this book highlights the attitude of a teacher in an educational setting.

A direct quote from the book is, “Drama (in the educational context) is not as concerned with the transmission of theatre-skills as it is with the construction of imagined experience. Imagined experience (controlled by the conventions of game and theatre) is seen as being particularly efficient context for children to try out and experiment with new ideas, concepts, values, roles and language in action (i.e. in the situational context in which they would naturally occur). Drama is to do with the child experiencing rather than with the child performing.” This also relates to my inquiry as I wanted to explore if a performer had any skills that could be transferred to a teacher role. It states that though the skills are important it isn’t as important as imagination.

Task 6B - Tools of Inquiry

Reader 6 introduces us to the available tools that may help us when we actually carry out the inquiry in module 3. Throughout module 2, I found it very important to remember that I am collecting evidence not ‘proving’ a theory.

There are 4 main research methods: interviews, observations including participant observation, focus groups and surveys. I intend to experiment with all 4 options, record my findings and use this information to determine which method is the most effective for my specific inquiry.

Within my inquiry, I will always have to consider the need for confidentiality. I believe that pupils and teachers are more likely to provide frank and honest answers when they know that their responses are anonymous. I will assure them that, even if any interviews are recorded, they will only be referred to as “Teacher A” or “Pupil B” for example, should their comments be included in my submitted documentation. It is also important to remain non-biased, you should not let your feelings affect any data and, when interviewing, the questions must not be “leading”. The reader also recommends the collection of data from different sources and viewpoints to ensure a well-balanced inquiry.

Method 1 – Observations

This is simply watching, recording and analysing events of interest. This is considered to be the most time consuming as it involves attending a class, taking notes and then completing further analysis. However, the results obtained provide the most information and gives a real representation of what happens. Ethics, permission and confidentiality are all vitally important when conducting observations. Videoing, writing notes even taping are all acceptable ways to fully record your observation but you must ensure that the correct forms are filled out to ensure confidentiality. Ensure you have obtained consent from any higher authority such as, the head teacher or manager, before conducting your observation.

Method 2 – Interviews

This method does what it says on the tin –you collect what people say and use it as evidence. Interviews can be conducted out in many different formats, one to one, face to face, on the telephone, via an exchange of emails, in small groups using pre prepared questions or merely having a “starter” question and seeing where the conversation goes from there. You need to consider how you phrase your questions. Closed questions are fine when you just need to establish a quick response but for the purpose of this exercise about  I would prefer to use open ended questions as they give the participant more opportunity to expand their views. They can also open up avenues to more questions that you might not have considered. It is important not to lead the participant to give the answer you think but allow them to answer freely, use starters like, ‘In your experience’.

Method 3 – Focus Groups

Focus groups are more about the interaction between the participants. Bell comments “focus groups are more likely to include members who either have similar characteristics or experience… or are known to have a professional concern about and knowledge of the issues involved.” (2005, p. 162) Due to having more people asking participants to identify themselves might help when recording information and accuracy. You need to be careful to keep the group on track as the conversation can very quickly go off at a tangent.. Strong personalities can also influence the group and make the outcome less informative A seating plan can prove quite effective in that scenario but, in any event make sure that everybody gets the opportunity to air their views and it is not monopolised by a noisy few.

Gatekeeper – head teacher or manager

Method 4 – Surveys and Questionnaires

The main purpose of these are to gather data from a large amount of people. You need to think about the sequence of questions, the wording, whether the questions make sense and are visually well presented. Each question should be relevant to your inquiry.  A letter explaining the purpose of the questionnaire and thanking all participants should be attached when sending the document in the post.

Development of inquiry questions

After chatting with my SIG I chose to link together some of my questions because I felt that there was an element of overlapping and the answers provided addressed more than one question. Consequently the revised questions are:

·         Is there a difference between teaching an academic subject and an arts subject? Please clarify your answer?

·         What skills are needed to become a good teacher? Are there any skills that a performer may possess that are transferable?

·         If recruiting a drama teacher, would you prefer to hire an ex performer with no teaching qualifications or a teacher with a degree but no performing experience?

·         Do performers go into teaching as a last resort or because they have a passion for it?

·         Do you think that performers should give up performing when they become teaching? Do you think it should be kept separate from their practice?

Any help will always be appreciated! Let me know if you think of anything I have missed that you feel may be of benefit.

Task 4C - First draft of questions

The initial question that popped into my mind when considering the transition from practitioner to teacher was,

 “Does being a talented performer necessarily make you a good teacher?”

With this in mind I thought about my existing skills and those that I would need to develop, what makes a good teacher, what makes a bad teacher and my vision of the type of teacher I aspire to be.

Most of the questions that I raised were very wide ranging with too many potential responses so I decided that I needed to be more specific and hone down the field of inquiry to provide a database that would be more useful when conducting the research during Module 3.

These are the first set of questions to which I will seek feedback from my SIG group and colleagues. Based upon the feedback I receive I will then adapt them to ensure that I cover all necessary areas and phrase the questions so there is no ambiguity when consulting the final focus group.

·         Which route did you follow to become a teacher? Traditional – B(Ed), PGCE. Alternative – Schools Direct, Teach First, Other.

·         Did you enjoy this route?

·         What made you decide to teach?

·         What makes a good drama teacher?

·         Is there a difference between teaching an academic subject and teaching an arts subject? How?

·         Does having a degree mean you are more qualified for the job?

·         What is more desirable, experience or a degree?

·         Does having more experience within the performance industry mean you will be more respected as an arts teacher?

·         Do all performers go into teaching?

·         Should performers give up performing when they start teaching? Why?

·         What preparation would you ideally have done in order to prepare for the transition? Any advice to those wishing to do so?

Ethics with my Inquiry

I intend to speak to current performers and teachers who have already transitioned into the education industry. I will need to be aware of confidentiality as well as obtaining any parental permission to observe lessons and record notes.

I also feel that arts teachers aren’t ‘traditional teachers’. They need to create a space where pupils can express themselves freely and have creative ownership over their work. This can sometimes disrupt the student/teacher dynamic e.g. always maintaining a professional relationship and teachers ensure their personal information is kept private.  

I will also need to discuss with my current colleagues and SIG for other areas or ethics that I may need to consider.

Finally line of Inquiry has been decided!

I have changed my line of inquiry numerous times – it has been one of the hardest decisions I have needed to make on this course. I have spent hours upon hours researching, making notes, finding literature, only to conclude it’s not what I want to explore further.

For the last two years, I have been working in a Primary School trying to figure out what I wanted to do in the future. I love working in a school but it has certainly opened my eyes to the negative aspects associated with teaching in the current climate where the focus is so heavily influenced by testing.

Performing has and always will be my major passion. I have taught drama on Saturdays for the last few years and enjoyed every second of it. I love setting out on a project, nurturing it, watching it blossom and bringing it altogether for the final result. I have pondered long and hard and concluded I would have more job satisfaction from drama teaching so this is now the route I intend to follow.

Consequently, I decided I will focus on the transition from a performer to a drama teacher.  I want to explore the steps that need to be taken to prepare myself and others for teacher training. I want to find out which, if any, of my existing skills are transferable and what I still have to learn.

Rainbow Career Theory

The other day, I was reading some of the other BAPPers’ blogs and came across this one by Danni Austen. I think it has a link to the line of inquiry that I am considering. I have left a link at the bottom of this blog if anyone is interested in learning more.

She writes about the “Life Career Rainbow”. This is a concept was thought up by Donald E Super, a career theorist. His main focus has been self-concept (or self-identity) and how it develops over time due to our experiences. 

Super has five life and career development stages: Growth birth-14 years old, Exploration 15-24 years old, Establishment 25-44 years old, Maintenance 45-64 years old and Decline 65+.

Danni and I have contrasting views on this as she doesn’t believe that this is relevant to a performer’s career. Most performers don’t have a career that lasts more than a couple of years (except the lucky ones!) so will need a secondary career as a means of insuring regular income between roles. From the age of about 14 – 25/30 you are pursuing performing, however this is not a career with a stable income and isn’t physical manageable forever. From about 30+ you start to think about settling down in a suitable position with a slightly more stable income. Personally, teaching is where I see my stable future.

This chart shows how you are continually working and exploring throughout your life.It also shows the developmental tasks at these different stages.

 He took the original idea that was developed in 1951 by Eli Ginzberg, an economist, who proposed that there were three main stages of development; fantasy, tentative and realistic.

http://danniausten.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/super-life-career-rainbow.html

Task 5B - Codes of Practice

The process starts with the Department for Education (DFE). They are responsible for creating laws, which are mandatory and have to be passed through Parliament, and guidelines that protect children in England. It then passes to the local councils, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire etc. Once the councils have approved the guidelines they are sent to the local authorities, e.g. HSCB, Herts Safeguarding Children Board. They then use this information/law to create a policy such as the Herts Safeguarding Toolkit to which all schools must abide. This policy is then passed to schools and other workplaces to be put into practice and they are responsible for following the procedures in their everyday work. These new rules and regulations are monitored by Ofsted as part of their inspection visit.

Childcare practice is a term used to describe those that work with children whether that be, children’s homes, schools, nurseries, child-minders etc. Before being allowed to work in an environment where you will be in contact with children a DBS check will be required as well ensuring that the proper training has been completed. The professionals working within childcare must adhere to the guidelines and policies set out by the organisation. They must also ensure correct safeguarding and report any concerns they may have regarding the welfare of the children. 

Child protection is a huge responsibility for all those who work with children.  To make sure that this is executed correctly, you need to be aware of the schools policies regarding reporting and recording suspected abuse and neglect. If a pupil reports anything that could be a cause for concern, then the school has to ensure that it is recorded correctly. If the school has a meeting with other agencies then any notes, times and dates must be documented. Schools are required to inform the parents, in advance, if any photographs will be taken of their children for child protection purposes.

Risk assessments are a crucial part of working with children and should be carried out daily to reduce the chance of injuries. Before carrying out an activity, an individual risk assessment has to take place again to eliminate potential injuries. Each year the school will also do a risk assessment on the buildings and the grounds.

Ensuring the child that their voice has been heard is essential, as it shows them that someone is listening to them when they are experiencing something difficult or potentially distressing. Advocacy services such as The National Youth Advocacy Services are also there to provide support for the children and to ensure that their voices are being heard.

When a child or a young person is expressing concerns it is important to listen carefully to what they need to say. Once they have finished, you should reassure them that they have done the right thing by telling an adult and inform them of what action will be taken. It is important that the child tells you in their own words what has happened and do not push for any further information. It is imperative to inform the child that this information cannot remain confidential and they may need to talk to other adults about what has happened. 

The Data Protection Act 1998 states that all professionals working within a setting will treat each child’s file as confidential, however the information can be shared with the parents/guardians of that child. Parents should only be allowed to see their own child’s file, school books, and progress but never any other. Other agencies or receiving schools will have access to the files, and parents/guardians should be made aware of this information. 

Protecting children’s’ or young people’s files is extremely important and there are many forms of protection in place to ensure they are kept confidential. In my setting, we have locked filing cabinets which contain all of the children’s files. These are kept in the school office. The school office is always occupied and, in the unlikely event that it isn’t, the door is locked to prevent anyone from gaining entry.  Another way of protecting the information is to ensure that any data held on computer files is protected by way of a secure password that is subject to a mandatory change every 6 weeks.

At the start of each academic year my setting sends a letter to all the parents asking if there are any changes to the information they previously supplied. This includes emergency contact details, allergies, address. This is done to ensure that the school files are always up to date.  

There are many policies and procedures in place to try and protect children and young people; they also help the practitioners that work with them. These policies are designed to provide a safer working environment for the children or young person but also to protect the adult from any allegation of wrongdoing 

The policies and procedures for a safer working environment include:

Working in an open and transparent way; this mainly helps to protect the professionals from any allegations. If you need to take a child out of the room for any reason inform a member of staff where you are going and what you are doing; that would be working in an open way. It also means not to be left alone with the children. If necessary leave the doors and the blinds open so it is clear what is going on. Another approach to working in open way is to explain to staff why you are working in a particular manner. 

Listening to children and young people is incredibly important as they might reveal something to suggest they are being harmed or abused. You should always record what they are saying accurately whilst informing them they have done the right thing. Providing support and reassurance is vital, as this will often be a traumatic and difficult time for them. 

Physical contact is something that most practitioners are concerned about as it is different in every setting. Younger children are affectionate and will often give you a hug or want to hold your hand. Ensure that you are acting sensibly and not instigating the physical contact. If you are alone, try not to have any physical contact with the child or young person. There are some circumstances where more physical contact will be need especially if dealing with special needs and you have to attend to their personal care. If you are unsure of anything just refer to your settings policy and ensure you are abiding by the guidelines at all times. 

Duty of care is something that all professionals working with children or young people have. We try to provide a safe learning environment and always act responsibility. Children have a huge amount of trust in us as members of authority and we should remember to always listen and comfort them about any concerns they may be experiencing 

As teachers or support staff, we will all be in a position of power and trust. The children will look to you as a member of authority for guidance and support. It is important to always listen to what they have to say and treat it with respect. If they have any issues they are concerned about it is important they have enough trust in you that they can talk to you about it. 

Sharing concerns/ recording and reporting incidents; this plays an extremely important part in safeguarding children and young people. If a child discloses to you that they are being harmed or abused it is important to record this information accurately and report it to the DSP. If you have any concerns about a child due to something they had said or you’ve seen then it is important to share these concerns with other members of staff or the DSP. 

As a professional working within a school, propriety and behaviour are extremely important as we could be seen as role models. Whilst working with the children, we should always act responsibly, sensibly and appropriately. We should set out clear examples of accepted behaviour by own interactions with others and show the children what is expected of them.  Every child and young person has the right to privacy and respect; this includes Intimate personal care, changing clothes. There will be some circumstances where a member of staff may need to step in to assist; adults need to be aware about their own behaviour. Adults should make sure the supervision is appropriate to the ages and the individual needs of the children. 

Off site visits are a big part of school learning however they can present a huge number of new potential dangers. A complete risk assessment needs to take place, before the trip can take place, to assess all the potential risks and how best to reduce/eliminate them. A few of the things you will need to take into consideration are; transport, adult to child ratio, planned activities and parental consent. The facilities are also a huge factor as if travelling with a disabled child then special requirements may need to be taken. 

Photography and video are being used more and more in schools. If you wish take photographs or videos of the children, to use in their learning journals or on the school website then permission slips should be sent out to all parents/guardians to give consent or not. If a parent/guardian denies consent it is important that you abide by this and make sure they are not included in any of the photographs. 

Task 5A - Ethics

Working in a school there will be many rules, policies and regulations to follow. The schools policies must adhere to the guidelines set out by the government and National standards. This task stipulated that I rely on my own thoughts and do not refer to any documents. I have recently completed Level 3 in Supporting Teaching and Learning and, as part of that course, I needed to look into the policies and procedures of my establishment.

Safeguarding

During school hours, the school and staff are responsible for the welfare of their students. You must report any suspicious behaviour to the senior management team to ensure that it is correctly logged. This could include unexplained bruises and comments that may indicate the child is suffering from abuse or bullying. Safeguarding also includes making sure the environment is safe and hazard free.

Privacy

Confidentiality is a vital part of working in a school. Privacy covers a wide range of areas such as keeping information about pupils confidential, to not having parents or pupils “as friends” on social media, e.g. Facebook, Twitter. Adults who work in an educational setting must keep their relationships with the children strictly professional at all times. All information held on pupils including SEN files, medical records and child protection documents are to be kept confidential and only shown to those that have direct contact with that child, e.g. class teacher, teaching assistant.

Health and Safety

Staff are required to follow their school’s health and safety policy and make sure each incident is dealt with correctly. Risk assessments are usually carried out to find any potential hazards. Risk assessments also need to be carried out on external venues prior to taking children there on a school trip. First aid training is usually given to a few members of staff especially within the early years setting to make sure correct treatment is given and all incidents are fully recorded in the accident book.

Appropriate Behaviour

Teachers are in a position of power and authority so it is vital to maintain appropriate relationships with the children. Teachers shouldn’t abuse this status to engage in any relations which would be deemed unfit and inappropripate with pupils. Appropriate behaviour also means the language you use, music, videos even resources need to be age appropriate and checked before use.

 

 

Task 4A - First ideas for Inquiry

Having studied Reader 4 and discussed inquiry ideas with my parents, friends and colleagues, it became clear that there were a few topics of interest that strongly appealed to me, specifically; children’s behaviour, effects that performing arts have upon children and whether a degree is more important than experience.

In my job, as a teaching assistant, I never really appreciated that I use work based learning on a daily basis, which is what the BAPP course is all about. I am continually learning on the job and developing new skills through observing the class teacher and adopting and adapting them into my daily routines. I have worked in several schools as well as my old dance school so have built a significant network of practitioners both within the education system and the performance world. This will be helpful when it comes to my inquiry as I have a bank of people from whom I can obtain a variety of responses. Teaching in both a traditional mainstream school and also teaching in dance school gives me an insight to how children behave within both settings. I really want to investigate whether their behaviours different in mainstream school and dance school and why that is? I also want to explore whether performing arts has an effect on the child’s progress and academic performance. Having the connections with many different practitioners will assist me if I went with this line of inquiry.

Attending dance classes and being involved in the performing arts from an early age taught me discipline, time management, memory, social skills and how to be a team player. These are skills that have helped me right through to adulthood and I continue to benefit from them in my professional life now. It would be interesting to investigate, ‘Whether children who partake in performing arts have a different mind-set?’ ‘Does learning these skills at a young age help them, in school, to adhere to the rules and what is expected of them?’ Again, working in a school with a pool of professionals and working in the industry myself will hopefully help me to find more evidence to either support or disprove this idea.

Having taken dance classes since the age of 7, obtained a GCSE and A- Level in Dance and Drama, attended a prestigious theatre school for three years, received a Diploma in Musical theatre and worked in the performance industry. I believed that I would be qualified to teach drama in a non-vocational school, but sadly not! I am considered by many as under qualified because I do not have a degree. I feel that my first-hand knowledge would lend itself to my teaching and I could share my experiences with the pupils. Instead, I would be overlooked in favour of someone with a degree, maybe not even relevant to the subject, therefore deemed ‘Competent’. I would like to investigate this topic further. I am currently deciding whether to teach Drama at primary or secondary level so another question that arose whilst discussing lines of inquiry with my colleagues was 'Does having a performance background provide an advantage when working in a primary school classroom?'. This was a very interesting point and I would love to investigate this further to see the outcome.

Some questions that have come from reading the Reader and areas I’m interested are:

Do performing arts schools and extra-curricular activities promote a different mind-set in children?

Does partaking in Performing arts have a noticeable effect on children’s behaviour and progress? Promote positive behaviour or distract? 

Do children who partake in performing arts behave better in school? Why?

Can having a background in performance be an advantage when working in a primary school classroom?'

Let me know your views and if any of you are thinking of following a similar route for your inquiries.


On a side note, I read an article late last year about how schools are getting so caught up with league tables and stats that we are not educating the child as a whole. I found it to be a really interesting read and they touched on some points about the performing arts and other creative subjects so I thought I'd add it at the bottom of this post.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/andrew-fitzmaurice/reject-league-tables_b_8608316.html