For the 22nd November SIP Session
Brief:
For the session, please think of 5 sentences that describe your research project to present in the class. These could be framed considering aspects that your SiP project needs to cover, namely original context/background; rationale for selecting the topic; reflection on research method/s used; summary of project findings (or a reflection on the data you will be collecting). You should have in mind the assessment criteria for the unit: 1) Identify a topic for enquiry, justifying its professional significance; 2) Investigate methods of enquiry appropriate to the specific contexts of the topic; 3) Conduct a scholarly enquiry; and 4) Present project findings in a coherent, context-sensitive manner.
Research question: An exploratory study of an artist’s relationship with their comfort zone during their making process and when learning a new skill. What is helpful and not helpful in a learning context in order to support participant’s exploration of this relationship?
Original context: I have been a studio-based art technician for a year, before that I was workshop based teaching practical metal-work skills. I am now required to support the learning of emerging technologies which as a digital visitor, is a new and potentially challenging area for me.
Rationale: – Whilst learning these skills and also during teaching practical techniques, some of these demonstrating hazardous equipment, the notion of the comfort zone has become something I want to explore further. I recognise that I learn by challenging myself and want to find out if students have awareness about how this mechanism works for them when learning a skill or when growing their art-practice. I also want to know what is helpful and not helpful during the development of this awareness for them.
Intervention: I feel that this concept also applies to developing subject matter and a making practice and choosing whether to travel into unknown areas. I want to explore whether the concept of challenging oneself can be a learned strategy, a tool to enable growth in order to progress an idea or learn a skill.
I found scientific research demonstrating that the brain changes and grows when an outcome is not certain.
Methods I will aim to be reflexive so that my position and the context of the research has clarity when I’m compiling data. I will be interviewing students who may feel that this is some kind of test with a value-judgment attached. I will endeavour to make sure that it’s clear that the study is for personal research. As a technician I have no input on academic assessments for students and I will emphasise this from the outset.
I intend to investigate through qualitative research using a questionnaire and in-depth interviews. I have read that methods require theoretical underpinning and are never neutral even with the best intentions (Dr Glynis Cousin) So I am working on my questions and I am also considering introducing a diagram exercise, asking participants to draw their journey across the various comfort, learning, growth and panic zones. I want to be intuitive about this to allow themes to emerge that I might not be expecting and I am researching how I could present my findings
I am trying to work out how many people to interview and how to frame the questions to avoid any bias on my part. I aim to improve my teaching practice through reflecting as effectively as I can on the outcome of my survey. I think that I will use a questionnaire and interview process, asking students from across BA and MA sculpture pathways to participate. I want to learn what is useful to them and what is not
I will need to be careful to be reflexive so that my position and the context of the research has clarity when I’m compiling data.
Could I make the questionnaire anonymous? Is there a value-judgement being made about students who choose to stay within their comfort zone?
The journey from the known to the unknown becomes a tool – do students use their comfort zone as a catalyst to learning, can they and do they also apply this principle to developing their subject matter and working process.
that Through honing my research question and trying to work out exactly what I would like to learn from the process.
Any data I collect will enable me to support students to
I me to make that transition from comfort zone to a place where I learn.
1)Identify a topic for enquiry – Justifying its professional significance.
I became interested in the idea of being outside the comfort zone so my research question became an exploratory study of an artist’s relationship with their comfort zone when learning a new skill but then I also began to apply this to how to develop the making process.
My intention is apply this knowledge to my instructive technical sessions and also tutorials when the discussion is more process-led.
As a technician and teacher, I want to enable students to know their learning and to ascertain what is helpful and not helpful in a learning/teaching context in order to support exploration of this relationship.
I’m interested in people’s understanding of how they develop their work and whether they have identified or can identify how they deal with challenges when making and learning new skills. One’s relationship with the making process can be fraught with uncertainty and indecision, how do you navigate this in order to move forward and grow. By finding out more specifically about how people learn to manage this, I intend to learn how better to facilitate people’s learning in tutorial and workshop situations. I am interested in how to enable students to know their learning process and develop it. and use this to inform the way that I teach and hold the space for them. How can I facilitate their explorations and support their learning and growth
2) Investigate methods of enquiry appropriate to the specific contexts of the topic;
To understand the concepts, opinions or experiences centered around my research question, I intend to investigate through qualitative research. Through honing my research question and trying to work out exactly what I would like to learn from the process, I am trying to work out how many people to interview and how to frame the questions to avoid any bias on my part. I aim to improve my teaching practice through reflecting as effectively as I can on the outcome of my survey. I think that I will use a questionnaire and interview process, asking students from across BA and MA sculpture pathways to participate. I want to learn what is useful to them and what is not.
I aim to make a questionnaire for students and teachers asking them if they are aware of the notion of ‘comfort zone’ or level of challenge, and how they feel these terms relate to their working and learning process. I plan to interview two staff and two students so that I can go into more depth about their experiences and find out from them what would help them in an education setting. I would like to learn how people feel that they learn and also to find out from other teachers if they are aware of this when structuring their teaching.
I want to look at how teachers/techs use their awareness of the notion of comfort zone/challenge when teaching and I also want to ask students if they are aware of their relationship with their comfort zone when learning.
Present project findings in a coherent, context-sensitive manner.
I currently don’t have findings so I’m not sure how I will present these. The next stage for me is to gather data to analyse.
I have these questions for students:
1) What does the term ‘comfort zone’ mean to you in relation to your practice or when learning a new skill?
I’m beginning to think of ‘challenging yourself’ as a partner-term for comfort zone. I’d like to find out how people relate to either term. I want to keep focussed but I’m also recognising that learning a new skill could mean learning how to trust your own instincts whilst making. First steps as an artist require trusting your own ability and potentially taking what can feel like epic risks in order to do grapple with your idea ‘in the real world’. Manifesting an idea as an object/performance/installation has huge challenges attached to it because what you make is so visible.
A sculpture/installation/performance exists in real space, the process of getting something 3D off the page, from 2 to 3D is challenging. Students can find that step daunting.
2) Can you give an example of a time when you were outside of your comfort zone and how this affected your development? Looking back and plotting your journey as an artist, what is your perception of being inside or outside of it (or challenging yourself) when you are making (important to keep bringing it back to making/process?)
3) What did you learn from that process?
4) Are you able to navigate your learning – are you aware of how you learn best?
What measures do you take to help yourself to learn, can you be specific? For example, do you know that you function best when there’s a deadline, so have learned to generate these for yourself?
5) What is your perception of the challenges you face when making work or learning a new skill.
6) Looking at this diagram (comfort zone diagram from the web), where do you think you need to be in order to develop your skill-set and art-practice the most effectively. Can you explain – Can you give specific examples?
7) What can someone like me do to facilitate your journey – what’s helpful/not helpful ?