Having read the course reader on the subject of Reflection practises I found that reflection is a day-to-day activity that we engage in and something that enables us to analyse a situation or experience. However I think reflection takes place more often than we record. Reflecting is a learning experience, you take a situation and you review it, the learning takes place when you start to question what you could have done differently? or what worked well? This means you can start coming across new ideas and therefore results in learning something new which we should all strive for.
I reflect on a regular basis and sometimes I reflect with out even acknowledging it! Even though reflection is something I am familiar with I very rarely put down into words how I felt about a particular event or the outcome. Keeping a journal is a new tool for me however I am sure it will benefit me throughout the duration of the course, it will enable me to look back to now in a few months time and hopefully I will see a change in my thoughts and ideas. It will also be interesting to see how I was feeling at each point in the course and the problems and worries I had to overcome.
Monday, 28 February 2011
Friday, 25 February 2011
CAMPUS SESSION 2 21st FEB 2011
This session was a structured exercise to introduce our group into the theory of reflective practise. Having attended the first session two weeks previously I felt more confident with the work and felt I had a clearer understanding on what the campus session would involve. One of the highlights of the session was meeting new classmates that I hadn't met at the communication task meeting. I found it most interesting meeting and hearing the story of a peer that was working in events management and how it shows the general application of this program to a wide range of specialists skills and how others can use it in their own skill area.
After discussing the importance of reflecting on a regular basis and how it helps us with our everyday lives we went onto a practical exercise in groups and discussed our professional lives and training. This was fascinating understanding others current situation regarding the business. It was quite a revealing exercise and some people spoke more in detail than others. To complete this first task we had to write down everything we had learnt about what our group had said in as much detail as possible. We then used post its to write a sentence on what we had learnt form the experience. I learnt that I shouldn't worry about other peoples views and opinions on the work that we do or shy away from the fact that we are performers and be proud and positive of what we do.
We then Skyped Adesola in Michigan which really opened my eyes to the possibilities of the World Wide Web and what it has to offer. Skype is something I am not familiar with but after seeing first hand how it works I would definitely like to set up an account in the near future as I found the skype session very beneficial and could be a useful communication tool. We then went on to an exercise using foam javellins the only insturctions we were given were to balance the javellins by the tips of our index fingers in pairs and gradually adding more people to the equation and being more adventurous with our movements using levels and moving round the space. The point of this exercise didn't become fully clear til the end when Adesola questioned us on our approach, strategy and thoughts. I found it diffictult not knowing exactly what we were doing without planning ahead. I found from this exercise that I used active experimentation meaning I liked planning/ experimenting what I have learnt. I then went on to Abstract conceptulisation concluding/ learning from the experiance and working out what I would have done differently to make the task even more successful next time. This is Concept was extracted from a cycle formed by David Klob. I found this cycle very beneficial to me as you can identify you had an experience and it gives you the tools to reflect on that experience. learning in action and on action!!!
From this session I went away feeling energised and excited about the next step in the course and look forward to completing the tasks ahead.
After discussing the importance of reflecting on a regular basis and how it helps us with our everyday lives we went onto a practical exercise in groups and discussed our professional lives and training. This was fascinating understanding others current situation regarding the business. It was quite a revealing exercise and some people spoke more in detail than others. To complete this first task we had to write down everything we had learnt about what our group had said in as much detail as possible. We then used post its to write a sentence on what we had learnt form the experience. I learnt that I shouldn't worry about other peoples views and opinions on the work that we do or shy away from the fact that we are performers and be proud and positive of what we do.
We then Skyped Adesola in Michigan which really opened my eyes to the possibilities of the World Wide Web and what it has to offer. Skype is something I am not familiar with but after seeing first hand how it works I would definitely like to set up an account in the near future as I found the skype session very beneficial and could be a useful communication tool. We then went on to an exercise using foam javellins the only insturctions we were given were to balance the javellins by the tips of our index fingers in pairs and gradually adding more people to the equation and being more adventurous with our movements using levels and moving round the space. The point of this exercise didn't become fully clear til the end when Adesola questioned us on our approach, strategy and thoughts. I found it diffictult not knowing exactly what we were doing without planning ahead. I found from this exercise that I used active experimentation meaning I liked planning/ experimenting what I have learnt. I then went on to Abstract conceptulisation concluding/ learning from the experiance and working out what I would have done differently to make the task even more successful next time. This is Concept was extracted from a cycle formed by David Klob. I found this cycle very beneficial to me as you can identify you had an experience and it gives you the tools to reflect on that experience. learning in action and on action!!!
From this session I went away feeling energised and excited about the next step in the course and look forward to completing the tasks ahead.
Friday, 18 February 2011
Internet Addiction a growing epidemic!!!!
Adesola inspired me to post this blog I touched on it in my previous blog "social networking is both useful and dangerous" and figured I would develop it further. The internet has a huge impact on our society today and with out it many things that we rely on and take for granted would not be possible. There are many benefits to surfing the world wide web but in this post I am focusing on the pit falls of regular internet use. I found some shocking evidence to support internet addiction however I was more shocked to find I fit into some of these statistics. Obviously with any kind of addiction there are different levels, in extreme cases you may have to seek help from your GP or Psychiatrists to undergo therapy. "Abnormal psychological dependency" this definition of addiction made the most sense to me. Internet addiction like gambling is an impulse control disorder. I personally feel that I have an abnormal relationship with the internet. I know for a fact that I check my facebook and emails on a far too regular basis every time I pick up my mobile which has access to the internet I feel the need to check for updates or just plain surfing. From what I have read there is no actual figure of how many people suffer from internet addiction so it is hard for me to estimate just how many people fall into this category in the UK. However a nationwide study conducted by a team from Stanford University's School of Medicine had estimated that nearly one in eight Americans suffer from at least one sign of problematic internet use. This to me sounds like a huge figure when you think the population of the United States, in 2009 was 307,006,550.
These Signs of Internet Addiction were found at http://www.netaddiction.com/ : Meeting five of the following symptoms were considered necessary to be diagnosed.
1. Do you feel preoccupied with the Internet (think about previous online activity or anticipate next online session)?
2. Do you feel the need to use the Internet with increasing amounts of time in order to achieve satisfaction?
3. Have you repeatedly made unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop Internet use?
4. Do you feel restless, moody, depressed, or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop Internet use?
5. Do you stay online longer than originally intended?
6. Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of the Internet?
7. Have you lied to family members, therapist, or others to conceal the extent of involvement with the Internet?
8. Do you use the Internet as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood (e.g., feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, depression)?
Other Symptoms Include:
• Failed attempts to control behavior
• Heightened sense of euphoria while involved in computer and Internet activities
• Neglecting friends and family
• Neglecting sleep to stay online
• Being dishonest with others
• Feeling guilty, ashamed, anxious, or depressed as a result of online behavior
• Physical changes such as weight gain or loss, backaches, headaches, carpal tunnel syndrome
• Withdrawing from other pleasurable activities
These Signs of Internet Addiction were found at http://www.netaddiction.com/ : Meeting five of the following symptoms were considered necessary to be diagnosed.
1. Do you feel preoccupied with the Internet (think about previous online activity or anticipate next online session)?
2. Do you feel the need to use the Internet with increasing amounts of time in order to achieve satisfaction?
3. Have you repeatedly made unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop Internet use?
4. Do you feel restless, moody, depressed, or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop Internet use?
5. Do you stay online longer than originally intended?
6. Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of the Internet?
7. Have you lied to family members, therapist, or others to conceal the extent of involvement with the Internet?
8. Do you use the Internet as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood (e.g., feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, depression)?
Other Symptoms Include:
• Failed attempts to control behavior
• Heightened sense of euphoria while involved in computer and Internet activities
• Neglecting friends and family
• Neglecting sleep to stay online
• Being dishonest with others
• Feeling guilty, ashamed, anxious, or depressed as a result of online behavior
• Physical changes such as weight gain or loss, backaches, headaches, carpal tunnel syndrome
• Withdrawing from other pleasurable activities
Sunday, 13 February 2011
Social Networking is both useful and dangerous!
Having done some extensive research on Social Networking I have come to the conclusion that using these sites are both useful and dangerous. I have always had the nieve shaded opinion that these networking sites are designed purely for positive use. However I didn't need to look to far from home to find evidence to support that these sites are dangerous! I like most of you bloggers have most probably experianced negative feedback from these web 2 tools such as youtube and most relevantly facebook but we are exposing ourselves to this by interacting in these kind of sites. The World Wide Web is a very intimidating and suprisingly lonely place. I believe that you can control your on safety on the web by avoiding situations such as internet porn, befriending strangers and internet fraud. We can't always protect ourselves online but we can learn ways in which we can make it a safer environment to work and play in.
Pros of Social Networking sites:
Pros of Social Networking sites:
- With the nature of this business you are contantly in and out of work and contracts are only temporary, very rarely you will get a contract over 12months, this means you will meet a vast amount of people in a short period. These sites enable you to stay intouch with colleagues and family members who otherwise you would loose contact with.
- These sites can help you network professionally and develop in your career. You can access information online such as email addresses, contact info and casting breakdowns.
- Youtube is perfect to promote you and your work. It is a quick and easy way to visually see someone and how they work.Another key point I'd like to make is that with facebook and myspace you can create events and invite a number of people with one click! This event could be anything from a party enabling to network and socialise to a showcase that you might be appearing in.
- I think the biggest and most scary thing about using social networking sites is the growing amount of identity theft. Obviously with these sites you have to share a certain amount of information but how much is in your control.
- Many people will admit that they check their facebook, twitter and myspace on a regular basis but what many do not admit is being addicted to it. I believe if you feel the need to check and update daily you are addicted. I have approached a few friends about this and they deny being addicted even though they log in many times daily they become defensive when I questioned them, this to me sounds like someone who knows it is not right or healthy to spend as much time on these sites as they do.
- I also believe that it takes away a huge amount of communication skills, which are vital if you are to succeed in an interview senario or plain interacting with others.
Wednesday, 9 February 2011
Group meeting 8th Feb 2011
I was apprehensive to what the morning session was going to involve. I had no idea who I was going to be working with or the background of my advisors. I was most definitely put at ease when I saw my advisor from the current week for my induction there Rosemary. We individually introduced ourselves to the rest of the lectures and course members, I found this very interesting finding out others reasons for doing the course and what they intended to do with the end qualification. We went on to play a game where there was one person in the centre of the circle and had to announce a statement about web 2 tools and if you shared the same opinion you go up and swapped seats this always left one person in the middle. I found this game beneficial as not only did I learn other peoples personalities I also learnt some key facts about web 2 without even realising it! Afterwards we went straight into a debate about The social network which I found this most interesting we all came to our own conclusion on wether we thought it was a positive or negative thing in our society today. We moved on to the main activity of the session, this was to devise a powerpoint on different web 2 tools and the pros and cons of each. As a group we discussed our views and jotted down the most relevant arguments. We then choose one tool each to develop and make a slide, which had to contain solid evidence to support our statements or use our own expriences to argue our case. I found this extremely useful as I had never used power point before this session so I got the opportunity to develop a new skill. We concluded the session by summarising the highlights of the mornings events, this was filmed and gave us a chance to voice our own experiance of what we had learnt. I found I was more confident in the course having taken part in the group meeting. I feel I am on track and understand the tasks for this term and how to tackle them. I could only see attending the session as a positive experiance.
Monday, 7 February 2011
Comments on the course reader on "Professional Communication Technologies"
I found the ideas presented in the quite challenging because it contained a lot of communication theory that were not familiar to me. However having thought about it I can see many similarities to the way my own industry works.
Good networking and communication are vital skills at all stages in a project. The central roll of any performance artist is to convey meaning insights and interpretation of the creative artist in music theatre or dance to a receiving audience. The theory presented in the reader and supporting references provides a general framework within which the presentation of a performance fits very neatly.
This complex process is started by the creative artist who conceives and formulates his or her ideas. These are taken forward by a production team and performing artists whose roll is to understand and present the creative ideas to an audience. The production process is interactive as between the creator director and performer and certainly in the case of first productions may result in a different outcome from that originally conceived. Finally the audience provides feedback. At the most basic level this is done by the way it receives the performance [applause] longevity of the production run, or increasingly through blogs, tweets and on facebook walls. The performance maybe reviewed and improved as a result of all this feedback.
The theatrical example outlined above seems to me to perfectly fit the general model as outlined in the course reader.
My next general reaction is that openness and transparently are the key concepts in modern professional communication through from local or family level to international relations. For success these concepts need to be underpinned by the right attitude on the part of all participants in the process. These attitudes include a willingness to present ideas in a way which are intelligible to others and a willingness to provide honest feedback on others ideas. The effort put into such a process will improve the outputs and outcomes for all participants which I believe should be the overriding objective professional communication.
Using this process as a learning tool will be a new and challenging approach for me. But I can see great benefits both to my personal development and in maximising my career opportunities. I found quite challenging because the reader contained a lot of theoretical ideas that were not familiar to me.
Good networking and communication are vital skills at all stages in a project. The central roll of any performance artist is to convey meaning insights and interpretation of the creative artist in music theatre or dance to a receiving audience. The theory presented in the reader and supporting references provides a general framework within which the presentation of a performance fits very neatly.
This complex process is started by the creative artist who conceives and formulates his or her ideas. These are taken forward by a production team and performing artists whose roll is to understand and present the creative ideas to an audience. The production process is interactive as between the creator director and performer and certainly in the case of first productions may result in a different outcome from that originally conceived. Finally the audience provides feedback. At the most basic level this is done by the way it receives the performance [applause] longevity of the production run, or increasingly through blogs, tweets and on facebook walls. The performance maybe reviewed and improved as a result of all this feedback.
The theatrical example outlined above seems to me to perfectly fit the general model as outlined in the course reader.
My next general reaction is that openness and transparently are the key concepts in modern professional communication through from local or family level to international relations. For success these concepts need to be underpinned by the right attitude on the part of all participants in the process. These attitudes include a willingness to present ideas in a way which are intelligible to others and a willingness to provide honest feedback on others ideas. The effort put into such a process will improve the outputs and outcomes for all participants which I believe should be the overriding objective professional communication.
Using this process as a learning tool will be a new and challenging approach for me. But I can see great benefits both to my personal development and in maximising my career opportunities. I found quite challenging because the reader contained a lot of theoretical ideas that were not familiar to me.
Thursday, 3 February 2011
Developing my career
My ambition from being a small child has been to perform in public. Having done a great deal of dance training and obtaining national qualifications in a range of dance styles. I joined Worcester Operatic and Dramatic youth section at the age of eight. I performed a number of roles in musical comedy productions in both youth and adult productions.
This experience has given me a love of the foot lights and at fourteen I secured a place in the Italia Conti school in London. In 2007 a place in the Italia Conti college to do a Diploma course and was supported through a DADA award. Throughout the 3 year program I undertook a number of rolls in Italia Conti productions broadening my skills in singing, acting and dancing. I fully expected to be able to secure parts in professional productions when I graduated in July 2010.
During my final year at Italia Conti I was asked to do some teaching at the associates school based at the Clapham campus of Italia Conti and realised that I had some aptitude for teaching which also gave me a great deal of satisfaction. I found that seeing young children developing in performing arts to be a very satisfying experience. I continue to teach dance at the associates school on a part time basis and am taking up a further teaching appointment with Stagecoach. This also helps me to maintain a level of fitness and technique. It also gives me the opportunity to do some choreography at a junior level.
In order to maintain my vocal skills I also started further singing lessons with a local coach in Worcester. In addition I wanted to build my confidence as a solo performer and with some help from a friend wrote a stand up comedy routine which I performed for the first time in December 2010 at the Leicester Square Theatre.
Despite having a number of auditions and several recalls I had not obtained a casting by December 2010 and decided to develop a possible career in teaching Performing Arts. To do this I realised a graduate degree would be a big advantage in obtaining a teaching qualification and after investigating the options available decided to apply to Middlesex University to join the BAPP program.
I am just starting the first module in February 2011 and having had my induction and read through the outline for the first module am very much looking forward to doing the work necessary to complete it and interact with other program participants over the course of the next 10 weeks.
This experience has given me a love of the foot lights and at fourteen I secured a place in the Italia Conti school in London. In 2007 a place in the Italia Conti college to do a Diploma course and was supported through a DADA award. Throughout the 3 year program I undertook a number of rolls in Italia Conti productions broadening my skills in singing, acting and dancing. I fully expected to be able to secure parts in professional productions when I graduated in July 2010.
During my final year at Italia Conti I was asked to do some teaching at the associates school based at the Clapham campus of Italia Conti and realised that I had some aptitude for teaching which also gave me a great deal of satisfaction. I found that seeing young children developing in performing arts to be a very satisfying experience. I continue to teach dance at the associates school on a part time basis and am taking up a further teaching appointment with Stagecoach. This also helps me to maintain a level of fitness and technique. It also gives me the opportunity to do some choreography at a junior level.
In order to maintain my vocal skills I also started further singing lessons with a local coach in Worcester. In addition I wanted to build my confidence as a solo performer and with some help from a friend wrote a stand up comedy routine which I performed for the first time in December 2010 at the Leicester Square Theatre.
Despite having a number of auditions and several recalls I had not obtained a casting by December 2010 and decided to develop a possible career in teaching Performing Arts. To do this I realised a graduate degree would be a big advantage in obtaining a teaching qualification and after investigating the options available decided to apply to Middlesex University to join the BAPP program.
I am just starting the first module in February 2011 and having had my induction and read through the outline for the first module am very much looking forward to doing the work necessary to complete it and interact with other program participants over the course of the next 10 weeks.
Verity Evans Professional C.V
Verity Evans
Contact Number: 07966195416
E-mail: verity.evans@hotmail.com
Height: 5' 3" Native Dialect: Worcester
Eyes: Dark Brown Hair: Dark Brown
D.O.B: 15-10-90 Playing age: 14-21
Verity trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in all aspects of Drama, Singing and Dance. Verity was awarded the college 2010 Acting Prize.
Experience Includes
Myself Stand up comedy Leicester Square Theatre
Maria Twelfth Night Complete Works Theatre Co
Sister Matzoh Ball Nunsense Avondale Theatre
Student Pot Noodle commercial Mother Advertising
Ally Best Days (short film) Ollie Evans
Company Wimbledon At the Shaw Shaw Theatre Bonnie Lythgoe
Company Legends Wimbledon Theatre Bonnie Lythgoe
Company Héroes and Villains Wimbledon Theatre Bonnie Lythgoe
Dancer Brit Awards ITV
Additional Skills
DIALECTS: Midlands (Native), Birmingham, West Country, London, Standard American
VOCAL RANGE: Mezzo (Eb 2 - G4)
DANCE: Jazz, Tap, Modern, Contemporary, Choreography & Ballet.
TEACHING: Tap grade 1 and 2 ISTD, Jazz and Musical Theatre.
SPORTS: Horse Riding, Swimming, Ice Skating, Netball, Skiing & Tennis.
Verity has a full clean driving licence.
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