Task 4a
Developing Research Questions
To start this task I looked back at Task 2d to see what my 'Initial lines of Inquiry' were. I have to say that due to my change in direction, these questions did not seem to be the focus of my thoughts anymore. I am now pursuing a career that is primarily teaching based and my main age range will no longer include pre-school children.
My main thoughts/queries focus around the standard of training within young people, particlarly the question...
'How early should children be prepared for professional training?'
As a teacher I need to know how to develop my students in the right way, so that I can make them achieve their goals and full potential, however they are still children and need to develop as people, not professionals. This is always a worry of mine; where is the balance?? I want them to achieve and to be successful, but I don't want to push them too far and I want them to enjoy their childhood, as you only get this chance once!
From this question I brainstormed and came up with the following questions/issues.....
- How Professional should 'after-school' classes be?
- Should the emphasis be placed more on fun or more on training?
- Should their be special classes for people who want to take it more seriously?
- Or would this be limiting the students who haven't decided yet whether they want to pursue it as a career?
- Do children need to take classes in all of the art forms to give them the best possible chance?
- Do full time schools, such as 'Sylvia Young' really give the students an advantage over children who attend normal school and after school training academies?
- Do children from schools such as the above, have more chance of gaining a place at 16+ theatre school or even employment?
- Do they have substantially longer and more successful careers?
- Do children who attend full time training schools lose their identity or individuality?
- Do they actually get to develop fully as a person?
- At what age does a child need to decide if they are going to pursue their hobby as a career in order for them to have more chance of success?
- Do children who have trained professionally from a young age end up losing their passion for the arts much sooner than a child who enters professional training at a later age?
- How important is it to know who you are as a person and be confident within yourself, before attending a full time training institute?
- Are the pressures of full time training too much for children under the age of 16?
- Are they likely to end up resenting the life they had?
- For dance based courses, what is the best age to start full time training?
- Would it be more benefitial to choose a high standard 'after-school' class, rather than attending a full time training school?
- Would you have a more rounded personality if this were the case?
- Do you need life experience to be a good performer?
- If the children don't gain this life experience, are they actually diminishing their chances?
- How important is it to be surrounded by family when growing up?
I would love to know what you think......
Do any of the questions really stand out to you?
Can you relate to the questions?
Did you attend a full time training institute from an early age?
Are you a teacher who has similar worries?
Please let me know what you think and I look forward to blogging with you all :)
ok jo, wow that's a lot of questions!
ReplyDeleteSo firstly, yes, the issue of finding the balance between "fun" and "serious" training is one I consider quite regularly. Although as teachers it's really our job to find ways of making serious training fun, it is still hard to decide how to pitch a class that's full of mixed aspirations. Coming from a professional background myself causes me to naturally expect a professional attitude from my students, but of course that's some what unrealistic as many of them participate for something to do after school!
However, having said all that, I would be inclined to say that it's always better for classes (after school ones or otherwise) to be as professional as possible, because I think it would be far worse to neglect the students who wish to take their training further than to neglect the ones who don't.
Finally, I just wanted to offer you some information on my dance background. I didn't decide I wanted to even try dancing until I was 12 and attended after school classes, but was still accepted at a 16+ theatre school and worked professionally. So for me, late decisions didn't effect my professional life. However, my passion for performing diminished fairly quickly, and only 3 years after leaving college I started to pursue teaching as a career path. Point being that I didn't start until late and maybe this meant that performing wasn't as deeply engrained in me as someone who's done it since they were 3, and maybe they're actually more likely to stick at it?
I'm looking forward to seeing how your questions take focus!
That's really interesting Liam. I had never thought of it that way round. A few friends of mine trained at a full time training school and then went on to train with me at Laine's.
DeleteI think it is fair to say that all 3 lost their passion in some way or another during our time at Laine. I was speaking to one of them earlier tonight and he made a good point. He said that it was not about losing passion, simply the fact that he had a much more realistic view on the industry from a much younger age. Whereas with other graduates the lights are still sparkly, for him the glitter had faded and he saw the reality. His love for the arts is still there, but the reality kicked in earlier. What do you think of this?
Did you 'fall' into theatre school or were you 100% thriving to do it? Did it live up to everything you hoped it would be?
I also think it is very much dependant on the person. I still love to perform and in a way wish that I still could, but more important than this I love my family and my fiance. If I can do a job which I also love (teaching) and have the personal life I desire, then to me this is the best option.
I too also decided to train professionally much later, I was 19 when I really put 100% into attending full time school. I honestly think that if I had gone any earlier I would not have got as much out of the experience. I was 100% ready to take on the milestone that is full time training, I was physically but most importantly mentally ready for the challenge.
Thank you for your input Liam, would love to keep discussing and getting opinions from you :)
Jo your questions have helped me develop my questions further as I want to teach children with learning difficulties so I feel we would be in the same SIG group... Ie teaching/ child development with in dance.
ReplyDeleteCharlie
Hi Charlotte,
DeleteI look forward to reading your questions and seeing what similarities we have.
Hopefully we can help to inspire each other and help to develop each other's inquiries to the next level.
Take care :)
Jo we're definatly on the same wave length!!!
ReplyDeleteI want to give you my views on ALL your questions I've got soooooo much to say ha ha! But I'll pinpoint a view ones that really stood out to me .....
In regards to how professional dance classes should be I completely agree with where Liam is coming from; having trained professionally my expectiontations of the children are so much higher and I sometimes feel myself getting frustrated - but I think now and again we must remind ourselves ... they are only children. Having said that I also agree that it is much better (and I would definatly strive) to have a very professionally run class where children are pushed, than one that is so relaxed where the children who want to purse dance as a career wouldn't be given much of a chance.
In terms of children having an advantage if they attend a full-time stage school from a young age I'm still undecided; and think it depends completely on the individual. When I first started at Bird I remember one of my teachers saying: 'You are all used to being the bish fish in a little pond. Now you are all very little fish in a VERY big pond'. I think this is so true. Dancing at a local dance school no matter how good the standard (I was fortunate to come from a very good school), the pupils who go on to train professionally are always going to be the better or higher achieving students, used to being the best. When starting professional college you realise that everyone there is the best from where they've come from and you are no longer 'the big fish'. This is probably one advantage children from full-time stage school posses; they will have been surrounded by talented children and had a lot more competition before starting a professional college. Will this make them better equipped? I think going to Summer or Easter schools at professional colleges is an excellent way to get a taster of the training. This is something I was very much encouraged to do by my dance teacher and I found it really useful when deciding which colleges to apply for.
Deciding what age to start training at a professional college I think again entirely depends on the individual (obviously with reason). My year at college ranged from 16 year olds to 24 year olds. Some of the 16 year olds were the most committed and professional people at the college and have gone on to achieve great things, others found it extremely hard being away from home and probably (from their own admissions) would have benefitted more form coming a couple of years later. One of my best friends started at 24 after having been to university and working in Disney Land Paris, and his life experience and maturity I think really helped him.
There's so much more I want to discuss. But I'll leave it there for now. Would be really interested to know what you think of some of my questions that are similsr to yours!??!
I think we're definatly going to be in the same SIG :)
Take care Lizzie x