Skype Session

This morning I shared a Skype session with Sophie Jones and Kym Walton. We talked about where we were up to in the Module and what our next steps would be. It was good to discuss our plans and gain new insights from each other. It's also nice to know that we have support from fellow BAPP students and that we can help each other if needed.

We are planning another session within the next couple weeks, so it would be great if anyone would like to join us!

Getting the Buggers to Behave 2...a short review.

The teacher from my first interview lent me a book which she thought I might find useful for my inquiry as it had helped her discover new teaching methods to use within the classroom.

The book is by Sue Cowley and it is aptly named, Getting The Buggers To Behave 2, an updated second edition of the successful Getting The Buggers To Behave, with new chapters on behaviour management.
Cowley is the author of numerous educational books which include the above, along with The Guerilla Guide to Teaching. Cowley has taught children of all ages and at all levels.

The book is really easy to read and I found it just as easy to apply the methods to my own teaching almost straight away.

There are chapters in the book that would be useful when teaching younger children but as my inquiry is focused around teaching teenagers I have only took out the sections that will be useful for me now in the investigation.
I used the techniques that Cowley suggests in my Monday classes last week.This was at the stage school where I teach ballet and contemporary to students around 12-18. I was astounded, pleased and very proud at the end of the evening to have realised I had applied the techniques well enough to have received successful results.

I have took out a section from the book below which are the Control Techniques that Cowley suggests are the core to keeping good classroom management. The fundamental element is remaining calm and consistent.

·         Wait for silence

·         Always be polite

·         Avoid confrontation

·         React from the head

·         Use the deadly stare

·         Use non-verbal signals

·         Control your voice

·         Use repetition

·         Personalise your teaching

·         Know when to be flexible

·         Set the boundaries

·         Set them targets

·         Give them ‘the choice’

·         Intervene early

·         Remove the problem

I'm not claiming to have successfully achieved all the bullet points above but what I did do was remain calm and in control throughout the classes. I also kept the word CONSISTENCY at the forefront of my mind as through reading the book I have learnt that teenagers respond and learn much better when faced with consistent behaviour.

I also focused on the tips below that Cowley explains in the Basic Behaviour Management chapter of the book.

Be definite – ‘I know what I want’

Be aware – ‘I know what will happen if I don’t get what I want’

Be calm and consistent – ‘I’m always polite and fair to you’

Give them structure – ‘I know where we’re going’

Be positive - 'You're doing great'

I think this book is a great guide for me in teaching but I am not going to be naive in thinking that I have read and learnt all I need to. I am going to further my reading on the topic of teenagers, teaching, dance, motivation, disciplining and any other areas that are linked with these and see if what I learn ties in with what I discover in my observations and interviews with other teachers.

Further Interviews and Observations.

So last week I conducted two more interviews and observed several dance classes of different styles.

The first interview/observation took place last Thursday with a dance teacher I have been working for the last two years and who is currently training me through my Modern Associates with the IDTA.

I felt I learned a lot from my first interview and so I knew what I wanted to do differently this time. The most important thing for me was to ensure that I press my questions, that I didn't just settle for the first and quick answer but instead encouraged the interviewees to go into further detail. This way I could feel I had left the interview with valuable and in depth information. I felt when reading the questions out loud the first time I conducted the interview that it might not actually be clear what I was asking for and therefore I might need to give a more detailed description with the question. I thought of this before I conducted my second interview and so was careful this time to briefly explain at the end of each question what it was I was actually looking for, such as giving examples of a classroom situation. This made the interview a lot more conversational based and put the interviewee in a relaxed frame of mind, more at ease in her answers.

I also audio recorded this interview as it was something I regretted not doing in the last one. This should help me clearly quote important parts at a later date. Also, instead of writing out notes this time, I used my netbook to type her answers which I found a lot more efficient as I'm a much quicker typist than writer!

The observation was very useful as the class itself was quite different to the first one I observed. It was a mixture of ballet, pointe work and tap all guided by the IDTA syllabus. As my first observation was at a dance college and this one was at a dance school, I could see the differences between the student and teacher interaction.

Again, I focused on giving brief explanations with each question for my third interview and this really helped to build a solid starting point for the interviewee to bounce off and give in depth answers.
The class I observed was free tap but the class was at different standards and some of the students were working towards their assessments so it was interesting to see how the teacher dealt with the mixed group.

My fourth interview/observation I have booked at a stage school where I work. I am intrigued to find out if the teacher/student interaction is different again to that in the college and dance school as this is something that has stood out to me so far in my investigations.

My First Interview/Observation.

I conducted my first interview and observation for my inquiry on Thursday. This took place at the college where I trained with one of my former teachers.

As she wasn't free to see me before the lesson, I observed the class first and conducted the interview afterwards.

I was extremely pleased with how this first interview/observation went as I was unsure whether my questions were at a level to encourage the interviewee to respond with thorough and detailed answers or also if I could draw out insights from my observations.

The class I observed was Contemporary dance style, with 8 students participating, all between the ages of 16 and 19.

Firstly, I handed out my information slips which were a good start to the class as the students seemed very interested as to why I was there so the information slips were a professional way to introduce myself.

My notes were quite extensive on the observation and I laid them out in a way which I was pleased with so I intend to stick to a similar format on my next observation. I gave myself headings to highlight what I was specifically looking out for in the class and I wrote what I observed below each heading.

The class was an hour and a quarter long and after this I interviewed the teacher which lasted about 45 minutes. The interviewee was extremely positive and went in to great depth with her answers. During the interview, I found that the interviewee when answering a particular question would discuss the topic in a way which also answered the questions that I intended for later and hadn't even asked yet. I think the reason this happened is because my questions are similar and obviously all related to the same topic and I designed it this way to help me draw out detailed answers.  I’m not sure whether this means I should revise my questions or to test them out again on my next interview as I feel that a different interviewee could produce a different outcome and that repetition of questions or similarity of questions may be necessary to draw out their answers and gain a full insight.

I took down notes during the interview but unfortunately for this first observation I didn't take an audio recording. I definitely plan to do this for my next interview as it is necessary to ensure I record and can later recall all the data given and it will make it easier for me to cite.

I felt my first interview and observation went very well and I went away with a good amount of valuable information. Not only this, the interviewee lent me a book on teaching which she thought would help me with my inquiry. I have started to read it and I'm already finding it very useful so I will blog about this when I've finished.

Discussion with Natalie.

Natalie Kirk wrote on the BAPP SIG that she thought it would be useful to have a Skype/phone session with anyone else on the course who would be interested to discuss their inquiries and to give each other advice. 

I thought this would be very beneficial, so on Wednesday we had a phone chat, initially planned for just 45 minutes which actually extended to an hour and a half of extremely useful conversation.

• We shared our interview questions and gave each other advice as to how we would revise them or could improve them.

My advice to Natalie was that her question could be a bit more specific and direct so whoever she interviewed would hopefully provide her with a much more thorough and detailed answer.

In regards to my question, Natalie put forward the idea of asking teachers if they take into account teenage student’s physical changes such as growing bones and also hormonal changes. 

In module 2, during my literature research, I found several articles that were particularly interesting to me which were on the emotional and behavioral changes of teenagers and also the physical changes that can affect the way they act and perform in class. I blogged about these articles as it was something that I realised was extremely important to take into account when doing my inquiry but I must admit I never thought to include this topic in my interview. After Natalie’s advice and further thought I decided to add a question that refers to these changes before my first observation which was on Thursday. Below is the question I added for my interview.

When planning a lesson for teenage students, do you take into account the changes their bodies will be going through, such as growing bones along with hormonal changes?

• We also discussed Natalie’s title and its appropriateness to her topic of inquiry.

• On the day of this session I was writing out the information slips that I plan to hand out to all the students before my observations to obtain consent. Natalie read through this and pointed out sections that I could change and points that I could add.

As I said before, this was an extremely useful discussion and we plan to have another phone chat in a couple of weeks’ time to see how we have progressed.

I encourage others to get involved with Skype/phone sessions as I think it really does help to give advice but to also motivate each other.

Inquiry Advice

About a week ago, I had a phone conversation with my adviser, Alan, and we discussed how I should progress with my inquiry.

The first point that was made clear to me was the question of how many interviews and observations I should plan to do in my inquiry. I had written in my summary a few days previous to our discussion that I planned to conduct 3-4 interviews and observe 3-4 dance classes. I chose this number of interviews/observations as I didn't want to limit the time I would need for analysing.
Alongside this though, I was hesitant and questioning whether 3-4 interviews/observations would actually give me enough data to work with to draw out valuable and well researched findings.
I discussed this with Alan and he suggested that I should aim to carry out 4-5 interviews/observations as this would hopefully provide me with a substantial amount of data to work with and still allow me enough time to analyse.

My second question was regarding how I would be able to obtain parents consent for all the students from each class I would be observing. Alan came up with the idea of writing up an information slip to hand out to each student.
The slip will briefly explain my inquiry and my aims, pointing out that I would have no affect on the class whatsoever and that I was there just to observe. I will also highlight the fact that all information gathered would be confidential. At the end of the paragraph I will put my contact number so if there are any questions/issues then they could discuss this with me.
This information slip idea seems to me to be a feasible way of obtaining parents consent.
I plan to write out this information slip within the next week before my first observation and I will send this to Alan to read and check through to see if I have missed out any important points.

I plan to record the information I gather during interviews and observations by writing down notes. Alan has advised that I should also audio record the interviews as it will be much easier for me to refer to at a later date when analysing and also allow me to site much more accurately.

The above sections I have highlighted for ease of read for anyone else who plan on interviewing/observing and have similar issues - I hope this helps!
All the above I find extremely useful and has enabled me to continue with my inquiry feeling that I am steadily becoming much more organised and prepared and also following an ethical plan.


I am very pleased with the grading I was awarded with for Module 2 but I would still like to keep on pressing further and aim for better results. I asked Alan how I could progress with the module with this ambition in mind. I have quoted Alan's comments below so that I can be reminded by these each time I come to my blog but also because this may help others in a similar position to me on this course.

Work Systematically, follow a design.

Explore all possible, don't accept the first explanation.

Consider alternative explanations.

What level of assurance should we have in any finding? 

 Stay with the question.