June 15, 2009 at 3:44 pm (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, learning, Student Support)
Tags: blog, blogging, delivery, education, feedback, future, ipod touch, learning, mobile, pedagogy, peer, RSAMD, stage management, student, Student Support, teaching, twitter
I’m having real trouble with Twitter of late. The stream of student consciousness that I am party to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week has revealed a world of stress, confusion and unrest. To be fair, it isn’t all negative but one tends to tune into ‘what’s wrong’ especially where it is relevant to your teaching practice or the course you are part of. Familiarity also breeds contempt and though this may be overly strong, it isn’t far from the truth.
Twitter has exposed holes in our course, that would not have been noticed by us before. Many of the tweets are ‘spur of the moment’, ‘knee-jerk reactions from tired minds, I am sure. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to decide which to act on and which to leave, in the hope they are transient concerns. I find myself constantly struggling whether to take the “ignorance is bliss” option and pretend that I had never opened Pandora’s Box, unfortunately it is not that easy.
Alternatively, I could face the issue more positively and use Twitter as a feedback mechanism. I know have information that could lead to enhancing the programme or improving communications between staff and learner. The ease in which we can know point students in a particular direction (to professional practitioners or hyperlinks for example) has proven to be invaluable. I now feel closer to my learners and more readily able to enagage in a more honest dialogue after the tweets have flown about. Sometimes the tweeting verges on becoming a tutorial, where snippets of guidance can be afforded 24/7. I’m sure that a few of the students actually prefer this type of support.
A great deal of the messages are frivalous and irreleavant to the programme and sifting through these streams can be both time consuming and tedious. I tend now to only read direct messages, @ replies and whatever is on my screen at the time (without having to scroll down). This method seems to work and has cut out a great deal of the open tweets that are wild and trivial.
All said and done…. the jury is still out….
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May 2, 2009 at 9:36 am (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, employability, Flexible Delivery, learning, PG-Cert, Student Support)
Tags: artifact, blog, blogging, Digital Ethnography, e-portfolio, education, employability, eportfolio, evidence, feedback, flexible, flip, future, learning, Mahara, mobile, pedagogy, reflection, RSAMD, stage management, student, teaching, video
A couple of days ago I came into receipt of two flip camera’s, thanks to Ros (TPA Programme Leader) in order to provide another tool for students to use in gathering evidence of their learning. With Mahara trickling out to a small group of students I gave a couple of first year ASMs (Laura and Emily) the option to use them. They seemed enthusiastic to engage with the devices. Stage Management is an ideal subject to record production process footage, we are to be found in most area’s of a production ranging from being in rehearsals to mixing paint in the paint-frame. In order to capture the diversity of the subject I felt that video would be best suited for this purpose.
The camera’s themselves are being used widely in education, mainly due to their extremely simple controls (record, play, stop, zoom and delete) and their price (£70 each). They connect to a computer extremely easily via a pop out USB connector. If there ever was a gadget more suited to ease of use, then this is it. Perfect for web-sized clips to be uploaded to an awaiting e-Portfolio. I was surprised by the image quality, which was very good for the camera’s size and lens. It only stores 60 minutes of video before you have to download the content to your pc, but this should be ample for storing bite-sized evidence to reflect on.
In general the uptake of both Staff and Students towards Mahara has been extremely encouraging, most have commented on how easy it is to create a ‘view’ and share it. All have seen its benefits from the point of view of employability and lifelong learning. With version 1.2 providing a facility to export entire portfolio’s as webpages it bridges the gap nicely between PDP and CPD. Institutions no longer need be the custodians of graduates folio’s as they can take them with them on a pen drive. However, I do like the idea of playing this custodian role, where we can still provide ongoing support to alumni, at least until they are established in their profession. This may be in the form of continuing CPD or simply by providing a server to host their folio’s. The institution benefits from direct graduate tracking, providing employment statistics which can aid in promoting courses or satisfying performance indicators for employability. (Goddard, 1999)
Goddard, A (1999) Times Higher Education. Flawed targets damage access. Available at:[http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=147041§ioncode=26] Accessed on 29.04.2009
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March 7, 2009 at 12:09 pm (assessment, Flexible Delivery, learning, PG-Cert, Uncategorized)
Tags: assessment, assignment, blocking, blog, blogging, brief, concept, delivery, dry run, education, evaluation, experiential, feedback, flexible, ipod, ipod touch, jamie mackay, kirkpatrick, kolb, learning, lecture, lecturer, mentoring, micro, mobile, Moodle, notation, pedagogy, podcast, podcastind, reflection, RSAMD, script, stage, stage management, student, teach, teaching, team, vodcast, Wordpress
The following are links to other pages in my WordPress account that specifically deal with the Micro Teaching Assignment in chronological order:
The Brief
Initial Concepts
Blocking Concept
Podcasting
Contexts
Simplify
Mentoring
Dry Run
The Lecture
Gathering Reflections
Evaluation
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February 17, 2009 at 10:03 pm (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, learning)
Tags: blog, blogging, education, feedback, forums, learning, Moodle, opera, reflection, RSAMD, stage management, student, teaching, team, team building, Wordpress
You can plan all you want before a class, but one thing that is sure to ruin you’re day is resources. I’m not going to dwell on detail here as moaning hardly constitutes critical reflection. Suffice to say, things got a bit mixed up room-wise causing me to think on my feet a bit more than usual.
I began the day with my usual email and Moodle checking before attending individual tutorials with the 2nd Year SM Students. They are nearing the end of a very long module (P4/5) which began last November. The aim of these tutorials was to give the final formative feedback for the module and a chance for the students to respond. I also asked them to think about perceived gaps in their knowledge, so I could facilitate further learning on their behalf and before they progressed to a more senior allocation (next term).
Next term has been designed as an experimental one. All but one of the students are dedicated to one production for the duration of the term with time at the end to reflect. Two are to take on the role of Stage Manager and the remaining pair are allocated as Deputy Stage Managers, all of them are ready to progress and I made this clear to them. Of course there is still work to do, but that is what next term is in place to achieve. It is a time for them to experiment and try things out for the first time, instead of relying on me to tell them what best practice is, I want them to discover this themselves through exploration. In many ways, this is the most important module that they will undertake while at the Academy. They get to set their own standards and goals. I will, of course, be there every step of the way guiding and coaching in context. The A2′s are basic stripped down ‘bare-bones’ productions, an ideal playground for them to learn their craft with enough head-space for them to investigate and hopefully innovate.
I have laid the foundations for this innovation, giving them brief introductions into e-documentation and online collaborative tools, though innovation may emerge in areas other than these digital realms. Perhaps team management or any number of necessary inter disciplinary skills will lead them to develop that factor ‘x’. All of this can be achieved with this forthcoming module, it’s a far cry from the ‘meat grinder’ approach of two years ago and one more conducive to learning.
In the afternoon there was a production meeting for the next A3 studio show, which one of the 2nd Year students were Stage Managing. She (Emma) was to attend, so I requested that the other 3 (Kieron, Vicky & Anne) attend also with the view of using the meeting as a class. We were to sit at the back and observe, making notes on the process for discussion later on that afternoon. However, only Emma turned up for it which was really quite disappointing as we had moved room in order to especially accommodate the extra people. This is the first time that anyone in the Academy has used part of the production process in this way, actually as a direct learning experience, albeit in a completely discrete way. Usually we would sit with the students directly allocated to the production and be part of teh process ourselves. I wanted the students not involved to analyse and evaluate the process for themselves, sadly the opportunity was missed this time. I plan to use this approach throughout the A2 and A3 productions next term i.e. as observation platforms for students at all levels and especially if they are not involved in the show itself. I feel that I may have a struggle on my hands with certain Directors who still see TPA Students as their to purely support their own agenda’s and students. I am determined to see the end of this approach.
The problem I have always found with RSAMD is the ongoing struggle it has with deciding whether it is a producing theater to support the performing courses, for financial gain or for artistic reputation or an educational establishment which provides the best learning environment for ALL it’s students. At times it feels as if this dichotomy will tear the place in two. Thankfully, this attitude is gradually being phased out, with the PG-Cert becoming a grand catalyst in this progression.
After the meeting I had scheduled a ’round table’ discussion for any Stage Management student that worked on Love for 3 Oranges (Opera 1) earlier this module. This included a 3rd year SM & DSM, four 2nd year ASMs, the 3rd Year SM for Opera 3 (who is feeling anxiety about her coming role next term), and four interested 1st Years. The room we were situated in was wholly inadequate, so in a spontaneous decision decided to hold the mini-event in the bar of the Universal. The idea behind this was one that I have harbored for several years, it encouraged a forum for discussion from a varied group of students who ranged from the curious to the informed. It was a chance to unwrap the Opera and ask questions of each other. I was worried that the conversations would dry up shortly into the discussion but I feel that those who worked the Opera found it cathartic. While the others were given an opportunity to hear it ‘from the horses mouth’, so to speak.
The 1st years have a big presentation on Friday which I also hoped would provide a direct and final font of information for it. The OvD Project (Opera vs Drama) has been running for several weeks and cover both last term and this one. See here for more details.
The session lasted for 90 minutes before I had to leave, so I called a halt in proceedings and left them to discuss the topic more in my absence. The reality is that they probably changed the subject to alcohol choices soon after I left!
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February 13, 2009 at 10:05 am (2nd Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, learning)
Tags: blog, blogging, delivery, Diigo, Docs, e-Learning, eDocumentation, education, flexible, future, Google, ICT, ipod touch, learning, m-SM, Moodle, Paperclip, peer, reflection, research, RSAMD, Scribd, stage management, Stephen Macluskie, student, teaching, twitter, Wiki, Wordpress
This morning I had my first attempt at an ICT Class, specifically for Stage Managers. To be honest, I wasn’t happy with it and it is definitely and area that requires further development. I was guilty of under-planning, assuming that I could engage my class simply with the technology itself. I underestimated how difficult it was to engage the Facebook generation with specific online activities using Web 2.0. Give them a fast internet connection and they instantly take ownership of their own browsing and do not completely focus on the task at hand. However, a balance was reached as the class progressed, the time that we lost with ‘distractions’ such as Twitter and Facebook was regained almost instantly with the expertise and speed the class brought to completing the tasks I set out.
Noticing Twitter windows hidden behind behind the ‘task’ windows (which became active when I returned to my own workstation) a realisation hit me, I had openly encouraged the use of these technologies in the past and had reflected about their use in classroom environments, now I was actually engaging in my reflections. Up until that point in the morning I had been ‘instructing’ and that left a bad taste in my mouth. I swiftly changed my tact and was thankful that I hadn’t commented on these ‘distractions’ yet. I started to encourage the students to openly Twitter about the class, which they had already been doing (I discovered later when viewing the tweet streams). Personally, the whole dynamic of the class changed for me, I didn’t mention it as I wanted to see where this openness would take us.
We had started working with Google Docs, for a long time I had been aware of it’s potential for Stage Management. One of my personal goals was to explore eDocumentation and how to distribute and share paperwork electronically. Google had supplied a fantastic tool for this purpose. We set up accounts and began to work on several files I had uploaded. After a brief discussion on the benefits for Stage Managers, it was clear that the students found it useful but only if everyone used it. Collaborations would be fruitless without participants. It was a brief introduction, but a useful one, awareness had been established but further self determined orientation and development was the next stage.
We moved onto to exploring the possibilities behind Scribd, an online publishing web facility that allowed participants to upload files for viewing and scrutiny. I had used this in the past for the purposes of research and wanted the students to glimpse it’s potential. Again, we set up accounts and began to explore the basic premise behind this powerful yet simple tool. I had uploaded our Deputy Stage Managers Handbook and, as with Google Docs earlier, we all linked our accounts in order to share resources. This Web 2.0 tool was more suited to learning and research than to Stage Management, but I wanted this morning to be for both learning and professional practice.
After a short break, we stepped into the world of Wiki. Using PAPERCLIP (Stephen Macluskie’s innovative site for technical theater collaborative solutions) we added our very own m-SM project and began to explore Wiki script. Covering the basic’s; uploading photo’s, hyperlinking and page layouts we build a page for the project. This should now give us a base to expand the m-SM project. Through our explorations we also discovered how to link directly to the iTunes applications store, opening iTunes on the host machine in the process. Creating Wiki’s in PAPERCLIP will become an assessable part of their learning in the near future. This tool will eventually replace the old ‘box file’ system which is traditionally used to archive production paperwork. Another example of RSAMD Stage Management attempt to modernise an industry that still uses archaic paper-based systems, which are less efficient and unsustainable.
The next tool we looked at was Diigo, a social bookmarking site. This is an excellent resource in which web pages can be centrally bookmarked, portions of text highlighted, commented on and finally shared. Highlights and comments are saved with the bookmark, drawing the attention of fellow collaborators to the relevant sections. In turn, comments can be returned and collaborations are built. All of this can be done ‘live’ while surfing, using a series of browser plug-ins, meaning that you only have to return to your profile to review your bookmarks at the end of a browsing session. Another important research tool.
We finished the session with 15 minutes on Moodle and the students filled in a couple of Critical Incident online reports that I had set up earlier. For those who finished (or had already completed the task prior to coming to the class) they were given time to ‘play’ online with any of the tools we had used today.
The general consensus was that, as an introduction to these facilities, the class was useful. Some were more engaged than others and each student had different opinions on the resources we had covered. Each student showed a level of individual expertise and I felt the issue of engagement drifted from student to student as they crossed into thier own comfort zones. This, of course was to be expected. We all agreed that a regular series of SM ICT classes should be in place throughout the course, allowing orientation to take place. I also want to stage similair classes were skills sharing through peer learning can take place i.e. a student with particular interest and expertise using a specific e-Tool or software solution can lead a session with their peers. This would open up a host of learning opportunities, as yet untried, within Stage Management.
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February 12, 2009 at 9:58 pm (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, Uncategorized)
Tags: blogging, delivery, Digital Ethnography, education, feedback, handheld learning 08, ipod, ipod touch, iTunes U, learning, micro-blogging, mobile, reflection, RSAMD, stage management, student, teaching, twitter
At first, I was a doubter.
I just couldn’t see the benefits of Twitter, in fact quite the opposite was true, on a number of occasions I publicly berated it.
So what is it?
Twitter is a free micro-blogging service, allowing you to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?
I see it as a step up from SMS text and not quite blogging, a fast and easy way to communicate and network. It’s also incredibly addictive, a recent tweet I received only the other day described it as “the digital equivalent of popping bubble wrap” which is fairly accurate.
It wasn’t until much later, while listening to a podcast of Clay Shirky, he described Twitter as being a ‘stream of consciousness’ in which you can filter and tap into at any time. This sparked my curiosity and persuaded me to at least install the free software then and there, on the bus, via my iPhone. And… I still didn’t ‘get it’.
After a couple of months of persevering (on and off, more off than on) I was ready to cast Twitter into digital oblivion. It wasn’t until I attended the Handheld Learning 08 conference that I discovered an underground digital world in which tweets were being swapped and shared discretely. Comments from parts of the conference that I couldn’t attend kept me informed of happenings, general theories and feelings riddled the airwaves. I had entered this particular ‘stream of consciousness’ and it wasn’t long before the small band of renegades grew to become a larger network. At the same time, my own tweets were being followed by several members of staff and students 500 miles north of my location in Glasgow. It was also a great way to gauge the ‘mood’ in the room, like passing notes under the table at school, commenting on your teachers poor choice of clothing… This time opinions on the speakers content and idea’s were being discussed, both positively and critically. The hash tag prefix (a way of labeling and grouping tweets to be filtered at a later date) #hhl08 was used and the tweet streams would be made available on the website later. This was a great way to gauge audience reactions and allow speakers to judge what worked and what didn’t. Could a lecturer use this feature to poll the learning experience of their learners? I honestly can’t see why not. This form of discrete evaluation would allow those shy or ‘not wanting to look stupid’ attitudes to disperse. Even though it’s not an anonymous method, there is something to be said for not having to speak out loud for the less confident learners.
At scheduled breaks in the conference I met up with a few of the, until then, faceless tweeters. The power of this relatively new medium began to sink in. In the hotel after the conference I began to reflect on how to harness the potential of Twitter within educational institutions, particularly my own. It seemed to come into it’s own when used as on a mobile platform. It was certainly ubiquitous (the buzz word at the conference) and had a certain amount of kudos with the likes of Stephen Fry an active user.
Shortly after I returned from the conference I made another stride deeper into the Twitterverse, I secured money to implement my m-SM (mobile Stage Management) pilot scheme. We now had 5 iPod Touch devices within the department, a perfect platform to begin using Twitter. Twitterific (an iPod application) was free and one of the first downloads on the scheme. At first the tweets were fairly banal and of a social nature but that was to be expected during this orientation period. The students were getting used to the devices at this stage. There also wasn’t an immediate uptake as neither myself nor my students really knew whether or not Twitter would be of any great use to us.
In a fairly radical move, earlier on this year I decided to experiment with Twitter on a larger scale. This time it was with the 1st Year Production students as part of their Stage Management brief. They were asked to set up both WordPress and Twitter accounts. I wanted to experiment with Twitter as a note-taking tool to help feed their reflective practice. I then asked them to RSS their tweets to a column in their blogs, at a glance they could ‘collect’ their thoughts and idea’s in a micro format and use them to enhance their reflections. For an entire week they Twittered and blogged accordingly and the results went far beyond my expectations. With the exception of about 10% of the cohort, everybody used both mediums to communicate, network and reflect.
With the Twitter streams busier than ever, the 2nd Year SMs rejoined the party. With Twitter it does seem to be the rule that ‘the more the merrier’. I now notice distinct bucks and trends in the student experience from the constant stream of tweets emanating from the student network. They are open and honest about their evaluation of classes and learning sessions. The analysis can’t be that deep with a 140 character limit, but does it need to be?
I am still following all of the delegates I met in the Twtterverse at HHL07 and have built up a network of educationalists and learning technologists, most are on Twitter to collaborate and share. From these collaborations I have gleened many idea’s and useful links, the most significant of which being a tweet from Louise Drumm (Learning Technologist at Napier University) who has asked to use portions of my bog and some of my tweets as examples. I am also meeting Kath Trinder (Learning Technologist at Glasgow Caledonian University) for coffee next week to tap her for idea’s. Neither of which I have ever met in person, only through Twitter. It’s also a great networking tool!
Clay Shirky’s book ‘Here Come’s Everybody’ outlines some of the more serious usages of Twitter. An example he gives is of political activists in Egypt, where having a Twitter account has made the difference between imprisoned ativists being tortured on not. Quite simply, if a lot of people know that you are held captive in jail, then the chance of any human right violation against you is greatly reduced. All it takes is one tweet and the world knows of your plight and if you have sympathetic followers on Twitter then you have a great chance of escaping torture. Corrupt governments can’t shut down a free democratic online system when they aren’t directly hosting it.
In summary (140 characters) Twitter is:
A tool that has great educational potential, promotes networking and communication. Offers simple evaluation in the classroom and it’s cool.
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February 9, 2009 at 8:58 pm (2nd Year Experience, assessment, learning)
Tags: assessment, blog, blogging, education, learning, pedagogy, peer, reflection, RSAMD, stage management, student, teaching, team, team building, technical
Today was the culmination in last weeks classes, a simulated technical rehearsal in which every SM student got a chance to be a Stage Manager, Deputy Stage Manager and an Actor. We also continued our collaboration with the 2nd Year PLX students, in effect their classes and our classes combined at key points. Up until this week, mainly due to the lack of a PLX Lecturer, their experience had been almost wholly production based and had lacked any form of real creativity. The last few days allowed them to design and experiment with Sound and Light. Over the next few days I’ll try and formulate a process to evaluate their experience in it’s own right, rather than how it helped my department.
As for Stage Management and from my point of view, the day was a great success. I was able to assess the potential strengths and weaknesses of the Stage Mangers today from within a controlled environment. More importantly, the students themselves now have time to reflect and evaluate their own performances, something which has been lacking in the past. There was much to reflect on today, a few key questions I shall ask them to reflect on are:
- How did you feel you coped with the pressure?
- Which area’s of the remit are you uncertain of?
- Were you prepared enough?
- Which elements of the acting experience did you find most difficult?
- How did you feel your peers performed?
We began the day with a thorough going over of their prompt copies, marking deficiencies and points for improvement. I chose to do this in the cafe bar over breakfast, which set the pace for the day. After this we set up the venue, preparing it for the lighting plot later on.
The lighting plot was an ideal session in which to test the blocking notation the students had taken down last week. It also finalised any cues that we were uncertain of. The most important factor was how the SMs collaborated with the PLX students and on the whole they were receptive and respective of each others work. I felt that thier was still a few area’s to be worked on in the near future, such as separating social relationships with professional relationships. There was a bit too much over-familiarity which lead to sometimes uncontrolled camaradare.
I invited two 3rd Year Students to the session to peer support the 2nd Years. Both had DSM’d and SM’d productions at the Academy and were well placed to develop their own learning and that of their 2nd Year peers. They attached themselves to both roles which were being tested today and were amazing in their mentoring. One thing that struck me about peer support was how pastoral it is, the students were at ease with their mentors. It felt much less like an assessment and more like a pleasant coaching session. The atmosphere was tangibly lighter and conducive to learning. It also gave me a chance to observe from a distance the students performance and how they positioned themselves within the whole event, rather than focusing on specific microcosm’s of the session. Small details were discussed and demonstrated by the mentors. After the session was over both Gillian and Susan (3rd Year) agreed that this type of learning was beneficial and should be done more. It affirmed their own learning and how far they had progressed themselves. The act of relating skills to others had given their own practice a firm grounding through self analysis. They had to draw on their own learning and communicate clearly in order for others to learn.
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February 6, 2009 at 7:14 pm (2nd Year Experience, assessment, learning)
Tags: assessment, blog, blogging, delivery, education, employability, feedback, flexible, forum, forums, learning, Moodle, opera, pedagogy, peer, production, reflection, RSAMD, stage, stage management, student, teaching, team
As has been the case every morning this week, the students had score reading classes. Today was their last day and they all came back with the usual enthusiasm for the sessions. I must see if I can get the go-ahead to schedule more in. While they were attending the class I set up (on Moodle) a Critical Incident form and notified them that they should fill it in. The nice thing about doing one of these forms online is that Moodle collates al of the answers onto one sheet, making it easier to evaluate group responses. Hopefully I will get a better response than last years paper-based attempt.
I began the class (again in the Chandler) by introducing an old friend of mine from my theater days, Ruth Alexander. She is currently the Company Stage Manager at Pitlochry Festival Theater, the only repertoire venue in the UK. Pitlochry have always been good employers of RSAMD graduates and are a leading voice in FST. The combination of this and it being a repertoire system made getting Ruth involved with my students all the more interesting for them. The PLX students came along to sit in and contribute.
After the complaints of over work and long hours during the Opera from this same group of students, this actually turned our to be timely. Ruth’s talk made it clear that professional theater and the style in which Pitlochry works is not for the work shy or those adverse to working long hours. She brought around a raft of paperwork examples and had a series of supporting Powerpoint slides. This was much more than any other guest lecturer had ever turned up with to one of my classes. The students didn’t have to write anything down as notes were also provided. I was really pleased with the way the session went and on leaving I arranged a venue visit with Ruth for both myself and my students.
After lunch we sat around a table and discussed the paperwork they had produced so far. We discussed corporate layouts and I gave a series of tips and tricks to help them to produce professional looking documentation. We also touched on eDocuments and how we would be exploring this at a later date. This is an area that, if used appropriately could modernise Stage Management. I have never attempted to teach this area before and it is one I am looking forward to immensely.
Later on (after a few minor technical hic-cups) we were joined by the PLX students and ran a Sound Plot for both shows. We agreed on a cue order and added some new cues. We then briefed them on all the LX cues that were required, leaving them with a free reign to design any extra cues themselves.
In all it was a slow and relaxed day. I left the students to rig lighting and continue designing the sound, the SMs were briefed on getting thier Prompt Copies ready for Monday, when they were to cue thier shows, leaving an hour on Monday morning to go over thier weekend homework and make corrections. Another day full of simulations of actual production sessions, but slowed to a crawl. I wish I could use an actual production in this way as a learning environment, but the pressures placed on TPA by other departments agenda’s always makes this next to impossible. My aim is to use 2nd Year productions, such as the A2 Shakespeares as on such purely ‘learning production’ where the schedule is drawn out to accomodate both learning and reflection. A production where sessions can be paused for educational purposes and less emphasis is placed on simpley ‘gettin the show on’. That would leave 3rd Year as a purely production based forum for practise and the honing of skills.
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February 5, 2009 at 11:16 pm (2nd Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, learning, Uncategorized)
Tags: blocking, blog, blogging, delivery, education, flexible, future, ipod touch, learning, mobile, Moodle, pedagogy, peer, reflection, rehearsals, RSAMD, script, simulation, stage management, student, teaching, team, team building
This morning we tackled blocking the first play. It was called “A Growing Problem” and had a cast of two. Vicky and Kieron had chosen it out of several 10 minute plays I had found and had gotten permission to work with. I felt it was important for the students to have a say in every part of this process, including choosing the script. It is unlikely that they will get to do so in the profession, so i felt it important that they felt this ‘Micro-production’ was their own. As a result of this move, I could do little pre-planning for my part in the process i.e. that of Director. I found this blind approach, exhilarating. Having to draw on my experiences as a DSM in rehearsals, and the observations I had made of Directors, made the process thoroughly engaging for me. I had to force myself back into ‘teaching mode’ regularly in order to observe the students work and comment accordingly.
Kieron and Vicky also had to step out of their perceived comfort zones and perform in the play. I had chosen 10 minute scripts as I found using extracts of larger pieces wholly unsatisfying as they gave no sense of completion. Of course, an entire play would be out of the question due to obvious time constraints.
The outcome of both performances was astonishing, Kieron had all but memorised the entire script and Vicky threw herself into the role wholeheartedly. I moved them around the set and gave them direction, while the real focus of the session (Emma and Anne – the DSMs) were busy notating the moves as blocking beside me. This simulation of a rehearsal allowed me to control the pace and in turn, the learning of the team. As the morning progressed, I layered detail onto the students remit.
In the afternoon, we swapped performers and Anne and Emma took on the roles of the characters in their own chosen script ‘Traces of Memories’ with Kieron and Vicky being DSMs. Again, the enthusiasm for performing was evident and the two girls took their roles seriously. There is always a danger of these kind of simulations turning farcical and the whole activity collapsing into hilarity. These situations are difficult to refocus and the learning can be lost, regardless of the perceived fun. I am glad to report that this was not the case and we progressed through the afternoon in a steady fashion.
We had scheduled for the 2nd Year production electricians to attend a run of both plays, at which they took notes for lighting and sound purposes. We then sat down to a meeting with them to discuss sound and lighting provision. I had wanted to include these students all along as it was a great opportunity for both, rekindling collaborations between the disciplines and allowing the PLX students a free reign at designing. There are few opportunities for this type of collaborative learning outside the highly pressurised production process. The students appeared to thrive in this assessment free learning environment.
The classes were supplemented with a handbook I had written for the student DSM, detailing all we had covered in the class (and much more). I had also produced two animations which the students could use to practice their blocking notation, I plan to make a series of animated scenarios which can be downloaded as podcasts. It is hoped the students will download them directly onto their iPod Touch devices that they received last November, allowing them to practice ubiquitously.
With the blocking done, rehearsal notes and call sheets completed, we shall move forward on the production time line, our next learning simulation being tomorrow where we shall deal with cues and advanced paperwork.
I am thoroughly satisfied with this session, considering what it evloved from five years ago and feel that it requires only a few minor alterations in the future.
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February 4, 2009 at 10:08 pm (2nd Year Experience, learning)
Tags: acting, actor, appreciation, blog, blogging, delivery, education, Hamlet, learning, Ophelia, performance, performer, prompt, prompting, reflection, RSAMD, stage, stage management, student, teaching, training
The brief for today’s class (which was a half day) was handed out last week. It involved the students having to learn either Hamlets ‘To be, or not to be’ speech or Ophelia’s ‘on Hamlet’s perceived madness’ speech. I wanted to lay a solid grounding for their performance management skills, which were to come. It has always been my belief that to truly manage the rehearsal process effectively then a Stage or Deputy Stage Manager must also have an insight into the process that surround that of a performer. Too many rifts have been created through the misunderstanding between the two disciplines. Most of which have been caused by an ignorance of each others methods and remits.
This exercise can be unpopular, I have no doubt of that and for very good reason. Not many students (with the exception of the acting fraternity) would choose to give up their evenings to ensure that vast amounts of text are committed to memory. This unpopularity is actually the strength behind the task, after a few hours of reading and reading the same few passages, most get frustrated and commit the text to the bin. Through this process of failure, true appreciation can begin to evolve.
The 2nd Year Stage Managers gave it their best shot and I could see the frustration clearly when lines were dropped or forgotten. The task had been compounded by the addition of having to make a cup of tea in the process of recitation. Remembering lines was one thing, but having to do it while dealing with boiling water, pouring milk, adding sugar etc. was near impossible. A safety blanket was added in the form of a partner (DSM) who would prompt if required, though that in itself can be a trap. Once you ask for your first line it becomes a self-made comfort zone and the urge to ask for more and more as the pressure builds can become overwhelming. As for the prompter, human nature nearly always ‘kicks in’ and too many life-lines are thrown, hindering the learning process.
This simple act of learning lines and support is fascinating. The symbiosis between the actor and the Deputy Stage Manager really come to light during this process. After the students finished their recitals we discussed these points at length and I strongly feel that an empathy towards the performer was at least understood, if not heartfelt.
The remainder of the session was dedicated to preparing a working schedule for the production electricians and finding rehearsal provision for tomorrows blocking sessions, which would culminate in a run. I also received two separate emails from the American authors of the plays, allowing me to use them, royalty free and their best wishes attached. I past these messages on to the students to bolster their morale.
A short but extremely engaging day, which had more value attached to it than was first evident.
Ophelia
He took me by the wrist and held me hard;
Then goes he to the length of all his arm;
And, with his other hand thus o’er his brow,
He falls to such perusal of my face
As he would draw it. Long stay’d he so;
At last, a little shaking of mine arm
And thrice his head thus waving up and down,
He raised a sigh so piteous and profound
As it did seem to shatter all his bulk
And end his being: that done, he lets me go:
And, with his head over his shoulder turn’d,
He seem’d to find his way without his eyes;
Hamlet
To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil.
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