Journal Writing Experience

I have had quite a few weeks to write in my journal and reflect on lots of things i have learnt in classes I  participate in and classes i  teach, Because i am still training and auditioning whilst teaching I feel I am in two different worlds being a teacher then going to the other side of becoming a student again. 
I decided to write two journals looking at theses two different aspects of teaching and being a student again.
I am going to discuss my journal of being a student in a acting class.
After my acting classes a few weeks back I thought to myself  I should write a journal on these classes as I was asked a question which I couldn't remember the answer to which I learnt in a previous class. I decided to make a journal of everything we do and new things I learn in the lesson, and it wasn't until I read  "Melanie Brown's" journal writing experience, that I realised exactly the same as her of  "how rewarding and beneficial writing a journal can be."


After looking at the techniques to support my writing and reflective practise in my journal, it  helped me reflect and remember every detail I learnt in the class so I wouldn't be caught in a situation where I didn't know the answer again (which I have now learnt..)

I found it really fun and easy to read  when using illustrated pictures,graphs,spider diagrams and charts. It was a great way of reminding myself of significant  words and their meanings, which I found really useful and eye catching. .Due to me being dyslexic I found that when writing the journal, using  pictures and a highlighter to colour certain words and titles reminded me that the information written  were important facts and I knew this was a technique that would allow me to remember significant information, so was very useful to me and I found is my best way of learning and reflecting.
Writing  lists of things in bullet-points and numbers of thing that I needed to do at home so that I wouldn't forget, which I found visually stood out on paper and was easy for me to understand and read

I found that I couldn't stop writing when expressing my feeling and initial thoughts in my journal , which I felt was my initial reflection. I found that although I would be able to understand it easily, however if someone else was to read it, it probably wouldn't make sense until I explained it to them in detail. Overall this technique allowed me to tune in with the lesson and my emotional encounter on the day, and also what I learnt in the class from my own perspective.


I also found that I described the events in the class in great detail and the emotions I felt at the time, this was a great  way to write short  sentences for e.g. emotion: (feeling sad) in a character based play but I wasn't able to expand on it to a great deal.

In my journal I added my own view on what I learnt in the class and realised that I started to use my imagination by stepping out of the box and I reflected on scenarios which might happen to me and things that I could try out in an audition which I didn't actually learn in the class itself, but learnt the grounding methods for. This technique has allowed to grow as an actress and become more knowledgeable in my chosen subjects.

In my journal of the acting class I wrote down some important names of actors and teachers for e.g.: "Stanisvlansky" and "Shakespeare." In my reflection process I explored these people and learnt that they were very inspirational practitioners to actors all over the world . Looking at these practitioners named in my journal allowed me to research through "Wiki and Google" to get a better understanding of how important these people were and allowed me to expand my knowledge and learning. This technique I found really useful as the source of information I received I could use to my advantage at anytime to research and get another persons view other than just one person. 

I felt that when evaluating how the class went and what I learnt it allowed me to get a better picture of the class from beginning to end and re-live what it was like again. It allowed me to sum up important points and facts that all came together which I learnt,. I felt like the evaluating part was  like "layers" building up through the journal to conclude to  the main point as the summary. It also gave me an opportunity  to show my point of view and allowed me to find areas in the journal that I could explore,  if i didn't feel it made sense, without any restrictions.

earning without even realizing.

TASK 2 Reflective Practitioner

I have started my journal, and after reading the reader the way I am thinking and reflecting is a lot more observant now. I teach part time whilst auditioning and attending class myself for extra training, so I thought the best way I could write a journal would be through following my classes I teach myself,  and how I feel when learning in a dance class when training.

I have always loved dancing since a young age and I never get bored when in a class because I am continuously learning in a kinaesthetic way and I am always active. However when in a class where I am writing or taking notes my attention spam seems to drift and after the class I can only remember about 50 percent of what I learnt from beginning to end. Although in a dance class I can remember everything. After researching and looking back on my journal I have realised that 90 percent of the time I am kinaesthetically learning which I have always been used too and is an easy way for my brain to take in new things that I learn.
After attending a contemporary dance class looking back on my journal, I was aware that I was going to be learning kinaesthetically, thinking that this was a bad thing but after looking at Howard Gardner's idea it didn't seem such a bad thing as everyone learns differently and can be intelligent in a number of ways. Although dancing is a very kineasthetic based learning style, I realized that in the class I was using a number of different skills to enhance my ways of learning for e.g. spatial awareness when dancing among others, musical awareness, logical awareness when counting beats or counts for movement and audio learning through understanding instructions and visual from watching what movement should look like before attempting the movement myself.

This made me aware that as humans we learn in many different ways in order to turn experience into learning, and it is not bad if one style of learning only suits you and not another person. It will always work in your favor as it expands your intelligence in a number of ways in learning without even realizing.

Kolb's Learning Cycle

After looking at Kolb's learning cycle the diagram was easy to read and was a great way of capturing the reader visually to understand the process having it been broken down. It involves a concrete experience which is doing or having experience, Reflective Observation which is reviewing /reflecting on the experience, abstract conceptualization concluding/learning from the experience and active experimentation planning/trying out what you have learned. I couldn't help but identify this diagram with an experience I had when teaching a dance class, which I wrote about in my journal.

My "Concrete experience" was watching a music video and the style of dancers in the background was "house dancing" this gave me a great idea to choreograph a routine for my class."The reflective observation" was me researching you tube videos of "house dancers" and how they moved. "The abstract Conceptualisation" was me trialing out house moves to music and choreographing a dance in the style of "house" to teach my students  "The Active experimentation" was me planning my teaching material and counts in order for me to teach my students.

Overall the class went really well and the class was really enthusiastic to learn this new style of dance I taught them. Until looking at Kolb's way of learning I didn't really acknowledge my process of learning but I have found this a great tool for reflecting on my experiences, and how I approach them in the future.

Isla Jane Showreel

Isla Jane Performing Showreel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3ZjwwGUK-0

Flickr Performing Photo-Reel of Isla Jane

http://www.flickr.com//photos/89797777@N08/sets/72157631942428389/show/

TASK 1 B

TASK 1 B
Professional Communication Technologies and how it has impacted  on our everyday lives and communication skills.

After reading the readers I had a better understanding of Web 2.0, and in a way I didn't realize how much communication has actually impacted on everyone's everyday lifestyle, and I found that I have never thought outside the box as we take advantage of what has been developed around us.
Web 2.0 allows the reader to interact with the creator to which the reader then becomes the creator.
After reading many blogs on the BAPP page I already feel I have learnt a lot as has widened my approach to using blogging as an important business skill through communication and everyday learning.

I recently set up a website which I now understand is Web 1.0 in its simple terms. My website was to advertise my classes which I teach locally and gives my clients a bit more of a idea of my background training and styles I teach. However I set up a Facebook page in which I added contact and clients I knew, this page was purely for business purposes in order to advertise my classes. Although my website is great it costs money and time to create , whereas my Facebook page allows to me to post comments, ideas and class details quick and easy. I also can add video clips via Youtube, updates and pictures to give my clients a bit more of an idea of who I am and what I teach in my classes. My clients comment and also share related fitness and dance ideas on my page, so it is free for anyone to see and explore. I feel that this also enthuse clients to come to the class and share with others who may be interesting in joining.
I feel that the difference between my website and Facebook page is that people may only visit the website once which limits them to future references and updates, whereas on Facebook and blogging it allows me to continually stay updated and is an area where my clients and I can communicate on a daily basis and share ideas and thoughts and information. Hamilton (2000) implies participation as an active way to taking part in something as well as creating it and allows participation to be cheap,easy and quick. This allows more people to get involved and collaborate through sharing and interacting.It also allows your business to grow as saves you time and can become instant and from a business point of view this saves you money as becomes a daily routine.

Web 2.0 not only allows you to interact with people in your specialized subject but others from around the world and with different expertise. I found that when reading other peoples blogs it allowed me to step inside their everyday life and see their views from their perspectives which shows as a human race we are all very different, and can learn a lot from each other along the way. From this it pushes you as an individual to step outside the box and interpret your expertise, thoughts and  feelings in a way that others can understand and relate to, which enables them to become interested, and simply allows you to re create texts in a way that can encourage you and others to read accessible.  (O Reilly) It allows them to extract information and re-create it through editing which transforms the texts from being published to participatory.

I do feel that although technology and communication technologies are always growing, there is still an importance for the skills of 21st century learners at school. We must't forget we need to learn how to learn which is from a young age and how to deal with communication face to face rather than through communication technologies, but on the upside communication technologies are important to learn  as a tool for the future and should be incorporated more in education itself.(Justin Reich 2008) These technology reform efforts, however, would need to be driven by a desire to reshape the goals of education, rather than the desire to simply integrate technology. Technology can abet school reform, but it cannot replace it.
.
There is also proof that web 2.0 is continuously growing and is always being updated. (Bruno) there is continuous uploading of apps and updating software. This show that it is improving. However we must remember that it not always reliable but we can take what we have learnt and continue to research through our learning. 
It just proves how much the times have changes and how communication technology is an everyday habit and without realizing we are using technology for practically everything starting with the Bapp course as an example.  I certainly agree with Jessica Hay as she agrees as a summary " It seems to me that we are relying more and more on computers as it isn't just technology anymore, it is a way of life".

TASK 1 A RE-WRITTEN

I started dancing since I was three. At the  age of fourteen I auditioned for the Brit School for Performing Arts. I studied here for four years in dancing and acting. During this time I gained experience from dancing in the "Harrods parade" as a character, and shows where I choreographed and danced in. 
From then on I auditioned for a performing arts college and received a scholarship at the Italia Conti Arts Centre. Throughout my training I worked on various jobs and was sent out on many auditions. My first job I did was on the film "The Boat that Rocked" directed by Richard Curtis. I then went on to doing short films, and was featured in a Pot Noodle Commercial. I also worked on Harry Potter as a Slyltherin school girl. 

During my training I gained experience from doing lots of shows in the theatre and worked with various choreographers and directors in the industry along the way, who I felt inspired by.

After graduating from performing Arts college I worked on a series called  "Pop Girl TV" as a dancer/actress. I then auditioned as a soloist dancer for a performance at the Royal Albert Hall and I choreographed a solo contemporary piece which I performed in front of Royalty .

Along the way of gaining my teachers qualifications I have had experience from working among different institutions such as the fitness industry; working at local gyms, higher education colleges; working with young adults, government funding performing colleges, sports centers  private dance schools and public dance schools. Throughout this I have gone on many courses and taught workshops with my knowledge. I have gained my Zumba Fitness qualification to teach adults to keep fit in a Latin based dance style, and have taught range of workshops from teaching young children aged three to five years old in creative dance. I teach teenagers and young adults different styles of dance, fitness and street dance courses. This taught me how to promote myself as a teacher and how to run my own classes privately and publicly, liaising with arts and dance organisations.
Although I have a heavy part of dancing on the performing side of my career, I am very passionate about acting, and after performing the "Grandma" in Adams Family performed at Wimbledon theatre, I new that I wanted to become an Actress, as I felt a real buzz. I am continuing my acting career by attending private and group classes and meeting new casting directors along the way. My next step is to find a good agent that will cast my type and help my acting career get started. As well as this I will carry on dancing and teaching as I have been dancing since I was three at a local dance school. Dancing has been a big part of my life whilst growing up and I still have a strong passion in entertaining others and performing on stage, and also teaching my skills to students in a dance class.


During my training I took all of my ISTD dance and teacher's exams and qualified as an ISTD teacher, teaching under the "Imperial society of theatre dance." The qualifications I hold enable me to teach and enter students for exams with syllabus and free work, from a Primary level up to Intermediate and advanced level in modern, ballet, jazz and tap. As well as this I hold a Professional Certificate in Education which allows me to teach students in higher education. I teach classes in the public sector and privately such as ballet, contemporary, dance performance, musical appreciation, jazz and Urban dance.