6d - is for Delicious

Discovered delicious! Great for storing research articles, websites and data. 
I particularly like that you can tag similar items to make groups. 
It is an easily accessible tool and can be added to your favourites bar. 
Here is a link to my account, please follow me and we can share resources.

https://delicious.com/bettywells

Betty xx

Help with the Researching Research Bit:)

I have been struggling to find good research articles, but, have just found Summon on Uni-Hub. I can really recommend it. You just type in what it is you're researching and it searches and displays any relevant articles :)

Betty xx

6a PILOTING RESEARCH TOOLS

Task 6a

It's about to get serious ........

6a is all about finding the most effective research tools for carrying out my inquiry. I will pilot the various strategies suggested in Reader 6, analyse my findings and select those methods which I find most suitable.

The research tools will need to be valid, reliable and representative.  My aim is to provide "good quality" primary data.

My approach will be "the view from within" – Phenomenology approach as I do not believe a Positivist approach would give me the insight I need to fully explore my inquiry.  I believe I need to 'get inside' the mind set of the teacher and the student, I also want to be able to ask direct, pertinent questions.

Pilot Observation

I plan to observe a dance class. 

I will look at the learning strategies used.
 

I will listen closely to how the tasks are introduced and how the instructions are delivered.

I will make notes on what the pupils are expected to do.

I will observe whether the pupils are working independently or in groups.

See how the teacher measures the success of their learning strategies.

Observe how pupils understand the tasks given to them.

Observe how well they engage with the task and their progress in the wider context of the lesson.

Observe how well the students engage in the tasks.

I will be particularly observing the behaviour of boys to see which tasks they enjoy and which task they show an aptitude for.  

I will hold a debriefing session with the teacher after the lesson.  

Pilot Survey

I have a survey on survey monkey, this is still active and I have had some great results to date. I feel confident in using this tool and I am interested in comparing the findings from my other research tools. These are the questions I asked in my survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/26G2JRJ

 

1. Do you set class rules?

2. Do you involve students in setting class rules?

3. Do you explain the importance of rules to your students and let them know the consequences of breaking them?

4. Do you encourage your students to get to know each other?

5. Do you think it is important to set students tasks that are achievable or tasks that challenge?

6. Do you reward students when they succeed?

7. Do you give immediate feedback to your students?

8. Do you encourage students to set specific learning objectives for themselves?

9. How do you create a supportive environment, so students feel able to take risks?

10. Do you make yourself available after class to discuss issues with students?

Pilot Interview

I intend to interview individual teachers.

I will use the questions I presented in my survey to form the basis of the interview.  My rationale being that I will be able to compare data collection tools and thereafter compare the findings. I will also focus some of my questions on their methods of motivating boys as this will aid my inquiry.  

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/26G2JRJ

Pilot Focus Group

I plan to conduct a small focus group of teachers.  I am again going to use the questions I originally asked in my survey on survey monkey.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/26G2JRJ

However, I am also going to devise a selection of questions specifically related to motivating male students to ask alongside these questions.  I will post these to my blog and also share with my SIG community. 

Betty xx

Motivation

A great motivation lecture from TED

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aH2Ppjpcho

It explores the human psyche on motivation and is a great resource for those of us looking at Motivation for our inquiries.

Betty xx

5d ETHICAL STANDARDS FOR MY PROFESSIONAL INQUIRY

Shared with SIG group - https://groups.google.com/d/forum/danceteacherssig 

My proposed inquiry is to research further:

"What learning styles and activities inspire boys to achieve?"

I aim to start my inquiry by looking at research that has already been conducted regarding the disparity between boys' and girls' academia. I will then look at learning styles/activities specifically geared towards boys and look at the evidence base for applying them to practice.

I will need to give a rationale for the inquiry and explain why I have chosen to look at boys.  For example, the brief research I have already conducted has shown disparity between the academic achievements of girls and boys and has suggested that boys learn in a different way to girls.  Because of this I have asked the question:

"Would certain activities and learning styles work better for boys?"

The C.D.E.T.. Code of Conduct, Standards of good practice, challenges the Teacher 

"to use adequate and flexible teaching skills to create a productive learning environment"

and

"recognise physical differences and limitations and different learning styles and modify the teaching"

In relation to my professional practice, I have in my dance class several boys who can be disruptive and do not appear to respond to my teaching methods in the same way as the girls.  Therefore this inquiry will help me to discover whether adapting my teaching methods/activities as advised by C.D.E.T. will inspire boys to learn.

Initial inquiry – look at existing research regarding gender differences in learning styles/activities.

In order to carry out this inquiry I will need access to students and with this in mind I am aware that I will need to follow the correct regulations and procedures to ensure safeguarding and the well-being of participants.

"Act in such a manner as to safeguard the interests and well-being of children and ensure that confidential information obtained in the course of professional work should not be disclosed without pupil or parent consent."

I have looked at the guidelines of the C.D.E.T. code of conduct and decided to use their guidelines as a framework by which I will ensure my inquiry is ethical, unbiased and non-judgmental. The code uses the following components: 

Integrity.  Objectivity.  Confidentiality. Data Protection.

Integrity

I will discuss fully my inquiry and gain support from my employer.

I have a responsibility when conducting my inquiry to be honest and ethical. I will follow the guidelines outlined in B.E.R.A.'s Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research.

I will obtain informed consent from participants in my study, using consent forms designed by Middlesex University who will be overseeing my project.

My inquiry will be my own work (unless referenced) and will be conducted honestly without plagiarism.

 

I will research any laws and regulations that will affect me carrying out my inquiry, i.e. The Children’s Act. I will act in accordance with all relevant laws to ensure safeguarding.

I will not pick and choose data to prove a point

I will ensure that all interviews conducted will be represented in their entirety.

I will take on the role of researcher with respect for my participants.

Objectivity

I will have clear aims and objectives about what I am hoping to achieve from the project.

My inquiry will be valid and reliable.

I will need to be able to explain my rationale for the topic I have chosen.

My results will be thoroughly researched, be non-judgmental and unbiased.  To do this I aim to collect a wide range of data from students, teachers and individuals.  I will conduct interviews that are open and honest and use open questioning, thereby, allowing participants the freedom to express their own opinions, without prejudice. I intend to do this by conducting interviews and surveys, with open questions (rather than leading questions) allowing participants the freedom to express their opinions.

I am aware that, as a researcher, I must avoid influencing participants by not asking leading questions.

I will respect the decisions of the interviewees, even if I don’t agree with their choices.

I will respect each individual’s rights not to participate and will not question further their decision.

I will avoid influencing the participants, ensuring I am clear about what I am choosing to achieve from the project and have clear aims and objectives.

Confidentiality

I will acquire the necessary consent, verbal or written through the correct channels, ensuring that consent is informed.

Ensure I have a fair representation of students and teachers and not just "cherry pick" those who I feel would give me the "correct" answers.

I will need to protect the participants and ensure that they are able to participate fairly amd confident that all answers will be confidential.

Data Protection

I will ensure that I adhere to the Data Protection Act 1998. Before conducting interviews I will discuss the Act with the participants and make them aware of its requirements.

I will select the appropriate methods of data collection to produce a complete piece of research ensuring that whatever method I use is designed to fit my objective.

I will use the information I collect solely for the purpose outlined in the study.

I will ensure that any information and data collected is not disclosed to a third party without prior consent from the student, individual or parent.

I will protect the data I collect, ensuring that is not accessible to others. I will do this by storing all the information in a folder on my own personal computer that will be password encrypted.

Dispose of the data after my research in the correct manner required by law.

5C...

ETHICAL THEORIES

I have looked at professional, personal and organisational ethics within my own practice.  The Reader encourages us to take this further and look at ethical theories that affect our moral and ethical decisions.

I have discovered such a huge amount of information  - fascinating, thought-provoking, and a challenge to my preconceived ideologies. 

Professionally, I had already looked at my own personal ethics. I then researched the code of practice of the R.A.D and C.D.E.T., which proved to be a valuable exercise and something which will now benefit my practice. I was introduced to new aspects of professional conduct that I had not previously considered. 

  

Initially, I began my research on theoretical approaches to ethics by looking at the word - "ethics". I discovered that the word derives from the Greek word "ethos" meaning "character" and from the Latin word "mores" meaning "custom". Together, they combine to define how individuals choose to interact with one another.

Reading further, I discovered that from a philosophical point of view, ethics is defined as governing the conduct of individuals as to what is good for both an individual and society as a whole.

Rosemary in her blog on Ethics introduced us to ethical proposals by various thinkers.

http://rosemarymcguinness.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/ethics-campus-session-2-module-2.html

Purely because of the contrast in ideologies, I decided to research further the ideas of the consequentialist and deonotology approaches to ethical dilemmas.

The consequentialist approach to ethics is to do whatever brings about the best result in a situation.  They advocate a common sense approach.

I found a great example of this by Patrick Button in his blog on a lecture given by his College Dean - Dr. Kimberly Shankman.

http://patrick-button.blogspot.co.uk/2011/03/consequentialists-in-classroom.html

"Three British sailors were adrift in a lifeboat on the open ocean, without water and dying of thirst.  One of the three was near death and his comrades killed him and drank his blood.  The two survivors were later rescued and charged with murder.  The reluctant cannibals were sentenced to prison instead of death due to the extraordinary circumstances of their crime.  The response of some of my classmates to this nautical horror story was almost as distressing as the act of cannibalism."

Immediately I felt that the act of cannibalism in this case was disgusting and morally wrong, but then, as Patrick points out, if the sailors had not eaten their ship-mate, all three would have died. In that situation, is it still morally wrong to kill? 

The consequentialist would say that what they did was for the greater good. The man would have died anyway and because of the act of cannibalism two survived instead of none.

A deontologist believes there are never any moral "grey areas". There is simply right and wrong.  The sailors were murderers and should be treated as murderers.

This deontologist approach seems a far simpler code of ethics to follow. However, personally, I would argue that until I was actually faced with the situation I really don’t know what I would do.

Karen Murdasi in her article on Consequentialism and Deontology (http://suite101.com/article/deontology-and-consquentialism-a91650) invites the reader to carry out what philosophers call a thought experiment named "Would you shoot the hostage?" It is designed to personally discover whether you are a consequentialist or a deontologist.

"While trekking in the Andes you come across a guerrilla leader who has captured 20 local villagers. The guerrilla says if you will shoot one hostage he will let the other 19 go free. If you refuse to shoot, he will kill all 20. In the thought experiment the guerrilla leader is telling the truth and you have only two choices: to shoot, or to refuse. Choose to shoot, and you are a consequentialist, motivated by saving the 19 innocent people. Choose to refuse, and you are a deontologist, motivated by the fact that it is always wrong to kill an innocent person".

The deontologist would argue that it was the guerrilla that shot the villagers. The consequentialist would argue that this was selfish and that one person losing his life meant that 19 lived.

From researching both approaches, I really don’t know what I would do faced with this dilemma - I think I would just ask them to kill me!!!

Applying set ethical principles to my role as a dance teacher is difficult and I totally agree with Nicole Carman who in her blog on Consequentialism writes: 

"If I look at the concept of Consequentialism within my profession, would I ever tell a student he/she could not be in a dance performance because she was not as technically strong as the other dancers and was letting the group and the overall vision and concept of the piece be compromised because of this. I personally could not live with the fact that although the piece would look stronger, one child would be left feeling inadequate and isolated... The complete opposite to why I think participation in dance is beneficial. I understand that utilitarianism maximises the overall happiness but at what cost?"

I know that I could not tell a child that they weren't good enough, even for the "greater good".  I also believe I would be breaking the C.D.E.T's Code of Practice ("communicate a love of dance and encourage the art of dance") if I was to do so.

Applying the Deontolgist approach to my practice, the principle of an action being either right or wrong regardless of consequences, would prove difficult in some scenarios.  For example, we have a Santa that comes and gives out presents to the children at the dance school Christmas party - could I tell a child that there was no such thing as Father Christmas? The Deontologist would say I was lying to the children. 

I believe that you should always look at the consequences of your actions and be able to give an account for the decision you have made, both morally and ethically.

Ethics certainly has proved to be a fascinating subject, I have changed my mind so many times about my own ethics with each scenario researched.  

Ethics certainly does have an important place in the dance class. I truly believe for me it will never be just black or white, butI will strive to evaluate the consequences of all of my actions within the class.
 

Betty xx

'Boys will be Boys'

Researching further my inquiry questions on motivation, I am trying to get some sort of focus and direction to what I want to achieve and what interests me.

In my blog I wrote about a boys gymnastics class that quadrupled in size just by the teacher changing the name from "gymnastics class" to "free running". I found this fascinating and wondered if this was solely because it was a boys class. This led me to research some activities and learning styles that predominantly motivate boys. 

http://www.eduguide.org/library/viewarticle/33

https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/RR636.pdf

I am considering looking at what motivates boys with a question something along the lines of:

'What learning styles and activities motivate boys to achieve?'

Any thoughts would really be appreciated.

Betty xx