This weekend we had our first Skype
sessions back: Friday and Saturday. Skype sessions are an opportunity to discuss
with other members of the MAPP Learning Community.
Shinny and new: The MAPP course has just
been revalidated. We have three routes now MAPP DTP, MAPP Dance and MAPP
Somatic Studies. There is a new MAPP UniHub page (for those who are in Module Two
and Three you will be ‘migrated’ over), read the most recent Handbooks. So this
skype we had a mixed family group of MAPP DTP and MAPP Dance people.
What’s-what
-
Got questions about the course,
dates, directions, word-counts etc… go to the Handbooks and UniHub folders
-
Got ideas to share, explore,
practice writing, reflect…go to the blogs
and post and comment on others
-
Practice talking about your
work, your practice, what you are learning and doing …go to a Skype discussion.
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Up-dates and current thinking
across the MAPP learning community check Advisor’s
blogs.
What are one to ones with Advisors for?
These are to discuss feedback, ideas and developments in your work. So, having a
one-to-one at the start of term before you get any feedback seems like you
actually need Handbooks and UniHub. Likewise getting feedback and thinking
about it but not communicating with your Advisor in Week 9 sounds like you should
book a one-to-one!!
In the discussion groups, we talked about
different aspects of starting, starting back, study, emotions. Here is an
overview of some of the things that were talked about people attending are
posting on the different points so have a look at what they say.
Notes from discussions:
- It is good to hear other people’s feelings
and realise I am not alone…
- Time management is key – creating your own
framework of deadlines is important. The Modules do not do this for you because
they are designed for people with very different schedules and as professionals
it is assume you are better at organising yourself and your work than someone else
imposing on you would be!
- The blogs have been very useful for keeping
in touch – thinking of ways to keep them active and being active on them is
important.
- Work load balance…
- Use resources – engage with the handbooks
(read them more than once and keep notes), on-line library, each other your
practice…
- Be brave and share ideas - as professionals
we are used to having to be ‘right’ all the time and not knowing seems scary
- Have courage to learning something new – if
nothing new seems to be manifesting it is not because it is not there – it is
more likely you need to be more open and brave about not knowing. Not knowing
is the vacuum that knowledge will fill. If there is no vacuum then it is hard
to fit more into what is already organises and fits together. If you don’t know
something the response does not have to be to get angry or assume it is because
someone has been remiss in telling you what to do.
- Recognise and own emotions: enthusiasm
lifts the group – your confidence not to be down on yourself actually helps
those around you. It is not their job to convince you, you are ok.
- Time management again!!
- Organise your equipment – book mark blogs,
keep a pocket notebook etc…
- As professionals it might be the fear of
starting into something you have less experience of, rather than the actual
work that you feel strongest now. Now is the time to shelve that and just get
on with things as best you can, knowing you are in a learning community and not
alone and that you have a personal history of success that brought you to this
moment.
- Think about how you want to contribute to
the learning community.
Keep
blog post to 400 words max so people have time to
read and reply. Therefore, I am going to stop here…
Have a look at what people on the
discussion said. If you were in the discussion and your blog address isn’t here
or you are still making it please add it to the comments so people can click on
it and visit you.
When you visit a blog post leave a comment
even if it is just a word. But try to make it a critical reflective productive
comment! Please note in the recently validated MAPP we have now put more emphasis
on engaging with the blogs. Contribution to discussion and community is
considered a post-Graduate skill.
Also use the word tags at the side of my blog to look at other posts I have done about starting back.
Comments...
Adesola
