EDUCACIÓN VIAL Y ESCUELAS DE MANEJO

As indicated, this thesis concerns reflective practice in art-making among female adult solo art-makers from various ethnicities and art-making areas. Therefore, in this section, I review existing literature on reflective practice in art-making and then bring together the areas of reflective practice, adult learners, adults as reflective practitioners, spirituality, creativity, embodied knowing and art-making.

In an earlier study (Bright, 2005a, 2005b) I established that while there is a growing body of work concerning reflective practice in other areas, there is little literature on reflective practice in the creative and performing arts. Therefore, I explored the value of reflective practice in my own dance-making. I concluded that reflective practice encourages the dance-maker to systematically observe, analyse and reflect on her/his dance-making through both verbal and non-verbal means. In addition, “purposive and intentional” reflection can assist the dance-maker in becoming more aware of the outside influences impacting on her/his work, including socio-cultural, historical, spiritual, educational, literary and dance influences (Boud et al., 1985a, p. 14; also Barbour, 2002, 2004, 2005; Coe, 2001, 2003; Foster, 1986, 1995, 1996; Halprin, 2003; Hayes, 1993).

In order to achieve purposive and intentional reflection in my own dance-making, I developed and tested an initial four-phase model for reflective practice in dance-making over a single five-month period of my own dance- making. In order to develop this four-phase model (Figure 2), I brought together the diagrammatic summary of key theorists in the area of reflective learning and also key concepts contained in the literature of reflective learning in dance that are not evident in the work of educational theorists.

In the literature on reflective learning in dance, there are similar strategies employed to those suggested by the educational theorists in the area of reflective learning. However, there are also strategies that are unique to dance. While the elements of description, analysis and judgement (Gibbs, 1988) appear in both education and dance literature (Hanstein, 1999b; Sheets, 1966),

interpretation (Adshead, 1998; Sheets, 1966) is missing from the elements listed by educational theorists. Further, non-verbal means of thinking and learning are important elements of dance-making and also do not appear in the literature of education. Non-verbal elements of dance–making are variously identified as

“thinking in movement” (Sheets-Johnstone63, 1999, p. 486), kinaesthetic sense (Hawkins, 1992; Stinson, 1995) or “body-thought” (Grove, 1999, p. 138). However, the term embodied knowing (Barbour, 2002, 2004, 2006a; Bright, 2005a, 2005b) gives a more comprehensive understanding of the non-verbal. Inclusion of embodied knowing in my model for reflective practice in dance- making (Bright, 2005a, 2005b) allows for the possibility of embodied and non- verbal findings during any phase of the model. In addition, a model for dance- making needs to take into account visual elements, such as images, since dance is a visual medium. It also needs to include auditory elements such as the voice, the breath, clapping, slapping or stamping, since these may be vital elements of the dance (Bright, 2005a). Thus, the resulting model includes interpretation during phase 2 and the non-verbal elements of visual, auditory and/or embodied knowing during any of the four phases (Figure 2).

Note. Any phase of this cycle may include verbal, visual, auditory and/or embodied

knowing

Figure 2. A model for reflective practice in dance-making (The Bright Model, Bright, 2005b, p. 19)

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Sheets (1966) and Sheets-Johnstone (1999) are the same person.

Phase 2: Reflection-on- dance-making Phase 1: Dance-making Experience Illumination Reflection Re-evaluation Phase 3: Re-evaluation Phase 4: Illumination

It was my experience that a model provided a structure for focusing my

reflection, which, in turn, enriched and added to the scope of my learning during that experience. I established that my adherence to the discipline of a reflective learning cycle led to a great deal of learning about my own dance-making practice. The implication here is that, if a learner does not engage in intentional reflection, then many opportunities for learning may be lost. The Bright Model (2005b) proved to be a useful guide for my own reflective practice in dance- making, encouraging me to systematically observe, analyse and reflect on my dance-making.

In the same way that there is a lack of literature in the area of reflective practice in dance-making, there appears to be limited literature concerning reflective practice in other areas of art-making. Reflection is acknowledged as important in the area of arts education for children (Henderson, Fraser, Cheesman & Tyson, 2007; Price, 2007) and for adults (Buck & Barbour, 2007; Ewing & Gibson, 2007; Gibbs, 2007). Reflection is also acknowledged as important for adults in such areas as painting (Gibbs, 2007), graphic and digital design (Gardener & Wilkinson, 2008), fabric arts (Graham & Stalker, 2007) and for collaborative artistic practice among art- makers of different arts areas and different cultures (Barbour et al., 2007). However, there does not appear to be literature which focuses on reflective practice per se in other areas of art-making.

Conclusion

In this chapter, my assumption is that reflective practice is useful in dance- making and is also likely to be useful for adults in other areas of art-making. In addition, since the Dance Model was useful in the study of reflective practice in dance-making (Bright, 2005a, 2005b), a similar approach to reflective practice is likely to aid the learning of other art-makers. Finally, since reflective practice is useful for a single experience of dance-making, then further learning can be gained through ongoing reflective practice in dance-making. However, discussions in Chapter 2 and in the above sections indicate that a broader approach to reflective practice is important in any study of reflective practice in art-making among female adult solo art-makers from various ethnicities and art- making areas in Aotearoa New Zealand. Thus, a study of reflective practice in art-making needs to include awareness of a wide range of ways of knowing, as

indicated in Chapter 2, understandings of the interwoven nature of culture, creativity, spirituality and embodied knowing and of worldviews of indigenous peoples, particularly Māori. The importance of such an interweaving is

reinforced by understandings of indigenous ways of knowing and Māori models for health and wellbeing such as Te Wheke (Drummond, 2004; Love, 2004; Pere, 1988), Te Whare Tapa Whā (Durie, 1994) and The Four Cornerstones of Māori Health (Drummond, 2004). Finally, the lived experience of adult art- makers may include elements that are unique to art-makers and therefore, inclusion of such areas as embodied knowing and presentational knowing may be important. Thus, any approach to the study of reflective practice in art- making needs to take into account the interwoven-ness of art-making with ways of knowing, cultural understandings and influences, creative processes and spirituality.

In the next chapter, Chapter 4, I discuss the methodology and methods underlying this thesis.

Chapter 4

Methodology and methods

In Chapter 3, I discussed relevant literature across the broad interweaving threads which inform this thesis. In this chapter, I present my approach to the methodology and methods of the study. First, I discuss the philosophical approach to a methodology for studying reflective practice in art-making: