Everyone attending had a starting point for the future inquiry. Inquiry topics can be driven by various forces including:
Place of work
Career Aspirations
Interest / Passion / Curiousity about topic
Some might find drawing out a mind map of all that is known / unknown about topic useful. With a map, connections and links can be made. What is could be tried out is to consider what would the impact be if one node on the map was removed – what impact would this have on the topic and the angle of it.
One topic that was suggested was about the preparation that vocational schools give to students for finding employment in the performing arts industry – e.g. preparing for auditions. This topic raises a whole lot of other questions such as…
Do vocational courses include preparation for work?
How do producers / directors select performers?
Is there a reputation attached to various schools? (For instance, the graduates of certain colleges tend to find work more than others?)
What if anything is included in these curricula?
Are there any broad similarities between those who find work easily after graduation and those who do not?
Who would know the answer to these?
Do vocational schools gather data / information on the destinations of graduates?
If so, does this data reveal anything?
Asking a range of questions and drilling further down into a topic can be revealing and suggest the focus of the inquiry. Another topic of interest yesterday was on Community Dance organizations. Again this raises a whole raft of deeper questions and should be reflected on to give shape to an inquiry.
Who are the range groups /individuals in a Community Dance organization?
Does one have priority?
Are all groups being catered for equitably / appropriately?
How is this known?
Is there a best model of practice / provision for a Community Dance organization?
These questions can be explored with peers and professional contacts (SIG) in order to help shape the inquiry. This then leads onto the inquiry tools which can be used and how ethical principles will be implemented.
Key points made were:
This module is a huge step up from Module 1
There are 3 readers to support each strand of the module
Networks, both peer and professional are essential to progress on this module
Subject interest groups will help with shaping the inquiry and can be useful in piloting inquiry tools
Reading about topics which may be pursued in an inquiry is essential
Showing posts with label Module 2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Module 2. Show all posts
Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Wednesday, 5 October 2011
Campus Session 4th October – Module 2
There was a small group in attendance and at the outset of the session we looked at the Module Handbook and what people are required to submit for the Module. These requirements are set out on p6-7 therein. The substantive piece that is required is a Professional Inquiry Plan accompanied by a Critical Reflection Portfolio. In addition, there are 3 other important things to submit. These are:
Employer Professional Support
Ethics Form
Proposed award title and rationale
We all agreed that there is much to do in this module and in many senses can be viewed as a serious step up from Module 1 in terms of work required.
Clearly, what needs to be focused on is the topic of the inquiry and not everyone present had arrived at this yet. We did an exercise as a stimulant to settling on a topic. Firstly, we considered the Eraut article which has been sent out to everyone doing Module 2. If you have not already read this, please do, as it provides useful context to knowledge in professional practice. A point raised in the article is competency and capability and the distinction between these two. The first, it is suggested, can provide a straightforward yes/no answer. Capability is a quality that has an element of grading about it.
Novice
Advanced Beginner
Competent
Proficient
Expert
We engaged in a spot of reflective practice and evaluated ourselves in our professional practice. No-one in the room claimed to have professional knowledge at “expert” level, indicating that we all have something to learn. This gap in our knowledge / skills could suggest a topic for inquiry.
We then moved on to mapping out our Professional Knowledge and trying to organize it diagrammatically in a meaningful way. To get things started I drew out a table of Professional Knowledge necessary for a University Lecturer. In doing this we could see that there were certain things a lecturer would need to know, to be able to do which is peculiar to the job as well other more generic skills. These are set out on the table below
Professional Knowledge of a Lecturer
Knowing What: Theories of Learning; Subject knowledge; Pedagogy
Knowing How: Curriculum Design; Setting learning outcomes; Assessment
Hence one way into deciding on a topic could be to attempt the above and ask yourself what in particular do you need to know (Knowing what) to be a professional practitioner in your area. Then, what do you need to be able to do (Knowing how) in order to be part of this profession. Focusing on these two areas and doing a self assessment on capability could suggest a topic. So for instance, in the lecturer’s case, it could be that they feel they could learn and develop greater expertise in say, “Assessment of and for Learning”. Hence, doing a professional inquiry on this would deepen their knowledge. That is what we are hoping you will do in this module.
A few there had some ideas about inquiry topics. One suggested she was interested in “Open Mic’s”. This immediately set off a train of questions – what about them, who participates in them, are they used by talent scouts or as “practice opportunities” for aspiring professionals. One simple question could be the start of a spidergram or mind map of ideas.
One way to hone and shape these questions is to be involved in a Special Interest Group and ask them questions. Getting started as early as possible is recommended on this module – there is much to do.
Employer Professional Support
Ethics Form
Proposed award title and rationale
We all agreed that there is much to do in this module and in many senses can be viewed as a serious step up from Module 1 in terms of work required.
Clearly, what needs to be focused on is the topic of the inquiry and not everyone present had arrived at this yet. We did an exercise as a stimulant to settling on a topic. Firstly, we considered the Eraut article which has been sent out to everyone doing Module 2. If you have not already read this, please do, as it provides useful context to knowledge in professional practice. A point raised in the article is competency and capability and the distinction between these two. The first, it is suggested, can provide a straightforward yes/no answer. Capability is a quality that has an element of grading about it.
Novice
Advanced Beginner
Competent
Proficient
Expert
We engaged in a spot of reflective practice and evaluated ourselves in our professional practice. No-one in the room claimed to have professional knowledge at “expert” level, indicating that we all have something to learn. This gap in our knowledge / skills could suggest a topic for inquiry.
We then moved on to mapping out our Professional Knowledge and trying to organize it diagrammatically in a meaningful way. To get things started I drew out a table of Professional Knowledge necessary for a University Lecturer. In doing this we could see that there were certain things a lecturer would need to know, to be able to do which is peculiar to the job as well other more generic skills. These are set out on the table below
Professional Knowledge of a Lecturer
Knowing What: Theories of Learning; Subject knowledge; Pedagogy
Knowing How: Curriculum Design; Setting learning outcomes; Assessment
Hence one way into deciding on a topic could be to attempt the above and ask yourself what in particular do you need to know (Knowing what) to be a professional practitioner in your area. Then, what do you need to be able to do (Knowing how) in order to be part of this profession. Focusing on these two areas and doing a self assessment on capability could suggest a topic. So for instance, in the lecturer’s case, it could be that they feel they could learn and develop greater expertise in say, “Assessment of and for Learning”. Hence, doing a professional inquiry on this would deepen their knowledge. That is what we are hoping you will do in this module.
A few there had some ideas about inquiry topics. One suggested she was interested in “Open Mic’s”. This immediately set off a train of questions – what about them, who participates in them, are they used by talent scouts or as “practice opportunities” for aspiring professionals. One simple question could be the start of a spidergram or mind map of ideas.
One way to hone and shape these questions is to be involved in a Special Interest Group and ask them questions. Getting started as early as possible is recommended on this module – there is much to do.
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