William's BA Professional Practice Blog

Well no, Not really... We are like the explorers and adventurers of old, setting out to the new world. However this is not the new world it is the world in which we already reside. Instead of a blank sheet of browned paper waiting to be filled with paths and the like, we already have many plotted paths and routes. It is important that we remember that these paths don’t always need to be replotted. In actual fact I am looking for the paths the have changed, or those that are overgrown, and those the are only a few yards longs which the peter out with unknowns lying beyond. In module two we are mapping out our practices by planning an investigation into a small part of it.  To begin this I created some very brief and messy mind maps looking at my practice; what makes it up, and how one aspect will effect another, with many crossing and inter connecting lines, as paths cross on a map. It is these paths that I have been trying to find those that are overgrown and ...

Module 2 has begun... This first week has mainly been consisted of getting back into the swing of my study. We began last weekend with the introductory Skype sessions. This was very similar to process to the beginning of module one, outlining the basics of the course, the resources and utilities we have at our disposal. I found both helpful and reassuring, it was a good way of getting back into the swing of the course. Although I have already completed module one, I still found out some new things about Unihub. Another thing I found useful was at the end of the session was everyone took turns in saying hello and a little on what they do and what they were hoping to get out of the course. I enjoyed getting to know these little nuggets of info on my fellow students as even though we have contact through blog comments and in Skype sessions, it can still feel little isolated doing distance learning.  The remainder of my week has been given to mostly reading. Of course star...

This is based upon that task, think of an idea you like, and my idea is: "The best teachers weren’t the best dancers." This is something that have thought about increasingly as I reflect on my training moving into a professional career. Over the years I have been fortunate enough to train at a vocational school under some of the ‘top teachers’ in the country. I have also experienced working under other teachers as a began my dance training and later as I gained work experience with various professional companies.  When I was younger I didn’t question my teachers, their knowledge, their training or what they achieved when they themselves were dancing (or not as the case may be). As I grew older I spoke more with my teachers and began to find out more about their backgrounds, and further down the line I began to see how this shaped the way in which the taught me.  Looking over all those that have taught me in the dancing field I notice that many, if not the maj...

Web 2.0 how it has changed practices forever... On first thought I wouldn’t consider that I use Web 2.0 a huge amount in my professional practice, I see it as more old fashioned, and from speaking to colleagues not a lot has changed from ore and post the internet and Web 2.0. In actual fact I considered my use of Web 2.0 as a completely external thing to my practise, using it purely for social and personal times. However on deeper reflection I can see now that I actually use Web 2.0 a surprising amount in what I think is a fairly historically unchanged profession. Using Web 2.0 in my practice specifically Facebook Group, I use it everyday as it is where my company communicates our weekly schedules and updated information we need to know. This is by far the most convenient way to communicate as the whole group can see the information and anyone can ask questions or respond, and then everyone else can see that and any subsequent information relayed. This means that the ...

Looking through the handbook and decided to start working through the tasks, beginning with... Describing you and your practice - Rewrite you CV as a Bio for the blog As I am still fairly new to the industry in a professional sense so this task didn't take too long as I haven't got great volume of experiences and jobs to talk about, also I have done a similar task recently, creating a bio for my companies show programmes.  Comparing both I notice some differences, and I think this is mainly down to the different platforms that these bios will be read on. For the show programmes readers will know where I are working and what my job is, as they are there watching me dance, so the bio is tailored more to explaining my training, previous roles within the company, and other stage experiences I had prior to joining the company. Whereas writing the bio for my blog readers don't necessarily know what my profession is, so going into...

Here are my some what belated reflections on the first week of course. I wrote this last week but have just got round to posting now, not a great start I know but its all up from here. So here we go the beginning of the course is underway and I’m ready to get into it. I have to say before the Skype inductions I was feeling a little stressed about it all, however now my mind is somewhat eased hearing from those already well into the course and those in the same boat as me. This stress was added to in part, it being the first few weeks of the season at work. Learning lots of new choreography, and getting ready to start the course feeling a bit like my brain might explode. On top of this i have been dealing with a slight injury which has been worrying me somewhat, so I have spent a fair amount of time at physiotherapists and trying to get past it. It’s all calming down now and I’m looking forward to the challenges ahead.