Group skype session with Adesola (18th March)

The group skype this week was really beneficial for me because it got me thinking not about the 'tasks' as an add-on to my working day,  but tools for reflection that we can use throughout the day.  People came up with different ideas for ways to record our journal.  I think it was Granger said he uses voice notes, and then sends them to himself to listen back to later.  This is a great idea for me and I used it after I taught my classes on Friday night.  Came back to the notes today to write my lesson plans for next week - thanks for that!  We also touched on what we react to when creating / learning.  Adesola made a point that the writing styles are tools to come about ideas that might we might not record any other way... so perhaps if we take a photograph a day maybe we'll see a recurring theme.  This might generate an awareness of something maybe we are thinking about subconsciously.  For example, Adesola mentioned how she always comes back to the theme of light in her work and how this idea of light is not just in a literal sense but also what that could mean metaphorically; giving light on a subject, light on what someone else is thinking.   I came away thinking about what generates creativity in me and what I'm effected by.   I think at the moment I react to music and listen to so much music every day when I'm choreographing or teaching.  In my journal I have now listed different tracks that I might have found that day.   So many emotions and ideas can be revisited when listening back to.  In regards to Gardner's learning styles, maybe I am a musical learner?

Another theme we spoke about was the idea that all of the tasks we have in the handbook are like a constellation of ideas that we can call upon as learning tools.  Adesola pointed out that the course should be seen as a way of having the opportunity to reflect on our professional lives in a way maybe we didn't have a chance to in the past;  we were all probably thrown straight into our professional careers and have leanrt a lot of the skills we have 'on the job'.  Now,  we can use the course as a way of developing our thoughts and ideas and that the tasks set should be means to carry out perhaps inquiries into ourselves as people and professionals that maybe we haven't had the chance to do before.  Probably the most prominent point for me that Adesola made was the course as a whole is giving us an opportunity to reflect and experiment with the ideas put forward to us.  Maybe we won't come to an 'answer' on many things but to be ok with that.  It's helped me understand the nature of the course a lot better and I find it more exciting actually.  Now I can not worry about 'understanding' all the ideas given to us in the resources. But they are ideas to call upon as a process of learning that will continue throughout the modules and also my life!

This links in with Adesola's recent blog:  http://adesolaa.blogspot.com/2015/03/step-gently-on-line-campus-session-with.html  'making sure you are not narrowing your ability to engage with events to what you expect to find.  – also ties in with Module Three: using reflection to support yourself not having to know the ending of the inquiry at the beginning! (see my last post) – its all connected.'