Jen Cooper - BA Professional Practice Blog

When I first started working as a dance teacher Web 2.0 wasn't  part of my practice or society.  On reflection it is quite unbelievable how the world (and my practice) has changed in such a short space of time and how Web 2.0 has allowed the individual almost infinite access to an array of information. Communication is instantaneous which makes life/our practice easier and benefits our time.   Just as an example I remember as a student teacher having to cancel classes as there had been a leak in the studio. Every student had to be called individually (mostly on home landlines as not everyone had mobiles!).  This took a lot of time.  If that happened now I would most certainly use a communication app such as WhatsApp or Flexibuzz to relay this information knowing everyone would have pretty much instant access to it even if they weren't at home and I'd be able to see that the message had been read. If I couldn't access these tools could I still continue in my pract

Until our Skype call I'd never really thought about ethics and my practice together.  Of course its obvious they go hand in hand but my ethics in the classroom are more of an unconscious instinct. I don't consciously go into my classes  thinking about ethics - its already in me and is who I am.  As it is with everyone - it's part of what makes us individual. It got me thinking how I came to have the values I do?  What impact do they have on my students and how important is it we teach with good ethical standards? Parents/ caregivers are the biggest influence to us in early life but as we grow sources outside the home contribute to our own individual ethical standards.  Certainly for me my dance teacher was a huge role model in my formative years and shaped a lot of the ethics I have in my practice. Life experiences develop our sense of what is right and wrong from a early age. In the home, at school, with friends and then later from the people we work with to the compan

As the author Manoj Arora said 'Coming out of your comfort zone is tough in the beginning, chaotic in the middle, and awesome in the end... because in the end, it shows you a whole new world.'  As I embark on the BAPP course and read many of the blogs written by peers in the group these words ring true.  I am reminded that I am not alone in feeling overwhelmed by the journey that lies ahead but am reassured by those further on in the course that it will be a journey of self discovery and development. As a dance teacher it can be very easy to become comfortable in our methods of teaching.  The more we teach the more we learn and the more we learn the better (in theory) we become. But, if we allow ourselves to become comfortable in our practice how can we develop as teachers and inspire the people we teach? As a latecomer to the course I have had an anxious week playing catch up.  Listening to the recorded Skype call that took place at the start of the course, reading the h