Alison Lonsdale BA (Hons) - Professional Practice, Arts & Creative Industries Blog

Starting Module 1? Totally lost? Yes, I was too. I thought that the first Skype session was going to be one big answer to all of my questions, however I felt like I left the session with even more questions than I started. Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing as it gave me a good starting point for my blogs. I am currently starting Module 2 and after the first Skype, the mist descended and the feel of nostalgia crept up. The feeling of not knowing where to start and the thought of "what am I doing?". To avoid the panic, I thought back to what I did to ease my self into Module 1. Once I read, reread and double checked the handbook and started blogging, I knew I was on a journey of exploration but I didn't know if what I was doing was right. My advice to you would be to start with blogging as soon as possible. Your ideas flourish and it also gives you an opportunity to share with the BA PP community on blogger.com. It provides the chance for you to write your ideas down...

Do you ever feel that you don’t use all of the material and resources available to you and absolutely ring it dry of any information possible? Before starting BAPP this never crossed my mind but lately, I have pushed my self to use the internet as a starting point rather than an aid to develop an idea, by changing the way round I normally do things I found that I can take in a lot more information and broaden my knowledge before I make a judgement or decision. I watched the clip on TED Talks “what a digital government looks like”, which explains how Estonia has turned totally digital. Imagine being brought up in a world where your first port of call is a laptop or digital aid. A labyrinth of answers and ideas at your fingertips. As positive as the internet can be we as practitioners need to also efficiently use our bodies and creative minds to develop innovative and new ideas, but why not use Web 2.0 to help you get there. Getting into a habit that you are not used to doing can so...

Before starting on the BA PP course I didn't know how critical group Skype sessions were going to be for me. They bringing forward new questions that you have never had to answer before and also expanding the questions that you bring to the table. I have recently started working in a school for specialist needs and I wanted to analyse 'how I started my new beginning'. This came from the group discussion when the question was raised; 'When is the beginning the beginning? How do we know it has started, or is this just part of the evolving journey?' Prior to working in a school, my time was split between teaching ISTD grades in tap, ballet and modern and dancing on cruise ships. Upon starting my new position I almost felt like I had to start again. This was very daunting for me and also felt that I didn't know what I was doing. But it also allowed for a moment of reflection. Starting these new classes I had to simplify dramatically but this also made me critic...

How are these linked? I have come to learn that everything is linked in some way. The Rhizome learning model was introduced to me in the handbook, dance is something that I have done my entire life and the concept and word Hippocampus was mentioned by Cathleen Limerick (Module 2 student) in one of the group Skype sessions. But the links are deeper than this. The Rhizome learning model is mentioned on page 6 of the hand book. It is not explained in masses of detail, but stated that we are "looking at our Professional Practice", "and making connections between knowing, information, doing and theory (a rhizome learning model)". But how are we meant to know how to do this, or if we are doing this, without learning and knowing about the theory? So I decided to research into this.  "Rhizomatic learning is a way of thinking about learning based on ideas described by Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari in a thousand plateaus. A rhizome, sometimes called a creepi...

When criticising your own professional practice, it is very hard to know where to start without critiquing every detail of your work. I see reflective writing as problem solving, so I decided to work through my day noting the problems I came across. At the end of the day there were a few things that either didn't go to plan, need improvement or certain aspects that need more thought and planning. Some issues came hand in hand with a very straight forward solution and some not so much. Reflecting on your own practice almost gives you an overview of your performance but it doesn't always give you straight answers. We know within our working day when things don't go to plan, we sense that something needs adjusting or more attention, but we don't always know how to correct it and how to better ourselves. The way I decided to tackle problem solving is via approach. How did I approach the situation? What alternative approach could I try next time? There are so many types an...

I have been thinking a lot about the little things and how much they contribute towards my student's learning process. If you haven't read any of my blogs before, I have recently started a new journey as a dance teacher at Birtenshaw school and college, teaching children and adults with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). In some of my classes, I feel that I am not doing a lot with the students and not making a huge difference or progress. Lately, I have realised that this is a very egotistical way of thinking. The journey is not about me, it's about the young person. Their journey and their progression. At the beginning of each class I read up on their flight paths and what they did last week, what worked and what didn't. This helps me structure my classes and helps to build on areas they show improvement. These areas range from catching a ball to remembering a certain step or routine I taught them last week. After realising that coordination was somethi...

Skype session - Monday 30th September. The Skype session was a journey through reflection. The idea of being surrounded by the same entity (the internet and social media), but it having a different effect on people, positive or negative. How have you come to being at this stage in your practice? What is your practice? Have your teachers influenced how you are in your professional practice today? The question of influence mostly hit home for me as it is something I have recently thought about. I asked myself so many questions. How have my teachers influenced me and what can I take away from my learning experience as a positive? What negatives do I need to shed? Has a bad experience been made into a positive and influenced the way I carry our my professional practice? Or has that experience been blocked/shed, and maybe overlooked what positives could have been taken away from the experience? I think the reality of it is, we do not realise how much we are affecting the thou...

Wednesday 25th discussion brought forward a question that I have never thought of before.   Does somebody require a qualification in order to work within a specific role, or is experience justifiably as good as a qualification? This is something that I have never had to answer before. I have always thought that they go hand in hand but was slightly swaying towards qualification, because it is what I have been told and taught. But starting in my new position, as a dance teacher in a specialist needs school, experience is outweighing any form of exam that I could take. This is when I realised that I have started my new beginning (if there is such thing), or is this just an on going journey of learning? I qualified as an ISTD teacher in classical ballet, modern theatre and tap dance with a DDE in each subject. This gave me insight into the growth of a child, health and safety in the work place, why the ISTD syllabus is structured like it is to fit growth patterns, different w...

On Friday I tuned into my first Skype session with other students enrolling on to the course and also some that are entering further modules. I didn't know what to expect and at 6pm I was eagerly waiting with my laptop, iPad, phone, note pad and pen. On the dot the call came through and we were off with a chassé pas de bourrée. It was good to finally speak and listen to others on the course and to get an insight into their journey so far. New students like me who were eagerly listening to Helen and others chatting away, and I'm sure just like me they were frantically jotting down notes. As I see it, when I am studying I am at my best. My mind is active and time management comes a lot easier as my study falls into place with my work and home life. I am not saying that this is going to be an easy journey and is definitely going to challenge my self motivation. A lot of will power, research, reading and blogging is going to help me through it and I'm sure others feel the sam...

This is my first post and I thought the best place to start, would be to introduce my self. So here goes. My name is Alison Lonsdale and I have been dancing since I can remember and have always wanted to pursue a career within the industry. After finishing sixth form, I attended Merseyside Dance and drama centre so that I could attain my DDE's with the ISTD. Once completing my qualifications I started to work for Princess Cruises as a dancer and stayed there for 6 years, performing on various ships taking me across the world. Climbing from dancer to assistant cast manager and then progressing on to cast manager made life at sea exciting and a huge rollercoaster, but I loved every second. After my career at sea I came home to teach and begin my forever. Until I became a teacher I always felt that something was missing. I qualified with a DDE from the ISTD in Imperial Ballet, Modern Theatre and Tap Dance, and have been lucky enough to teach in a vast amount of schools and teachin...