Task 4A - To be or not to be, that is the question...or is it?

We've been asked to read and review Reader 4 and develop a set of questions relevant to our own practice. As I began to read through, I thought to myself about how what most of what it talks about is reflected in my work from Module 1 - awareness of theory in practice. Now going into Module 2, I think the base idea of Reader 4 is to get me to take that awareness and start asking the 'right questions' (Pg.5). However, I feel that in order to ask the 'right' questions we sometimes have to ask the 'wrong' ones. This then lead me to ask myself, why do I feel this way? I came to the conclusion that it's because of drama training, if you pardon the cliché 'If at first you don't succeed, try and try again'. I've written about the method of getting up and giving things a go and 'feeling them out' on numerous occasions, we need to find the correct path of questioning by taking a few wrong turns occasionally.

What constitutes a 'right question'? The reader suggests that its a more 'in-depth' examination of my practice. I did some research to see how others ask questions effectively. This website defines the different types of questions you can ask: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_88.htm
The reason I found this useful is because I can use all of these types of questions within my professional inquiry to help me form a better form a more rounded argument. Multiple types of questions induce multiple types of answers.

“Most misunderstandings in the world could be avoided if people would simply take the time to ask, "What else could this mean?”

- Shannon L. Alder

The reader talks about identifying knowledge and skills within the work place, but how do I define knowledge? The reader talks of interdisciplinary and disciplinary knowledge but I also think of practical and theoretical knowledge. This led me to think about how all these types of knowledge are used within my own practice and could this be a possible line of inquiry? Is there a basic set of skills that come from theatre and drama that could be used across all 'categories' (Kreber) of learning? Another possible line of questioning.

Something that I have written about in previous posts, is breaking the stigma that the arts are 'soft' subjects. Again the idea of multiple skills across many different disciplines that can be transferable into situations outside of the arts can be beneficial for all ages. A good example is public speaking or sight reading, I'm fortunate enough to be alright at both but I accredit that to having done drama my entire life. It gave me the skills to stand confidently and talk. For example, at camp we used to tell the kids that they just got up and performed (improvised) without and prior preparation so when they go back to school and have to give a presentation, it will be much easier for them. How can the skills we learn within the arts industry (specifically theatre, speech and drama in my case) help us in every day situations. Something to consider as a line of inquiry.

Perhaps a more ethical question that arose in my mind, is that can we ever truly prepare ourselves for the ever changing world? As Barnett put it '...being equipped with multiple 'tools of learning' may not be sufficient a preparation for a world that is characterized also, increasingly, by uncertainty' before we know it everything we use in every day life becomes obsolete and we need to have the latest upgrade or knowledge to keep up to date with the world. How relevant is the modern day development of technology within my own practice both positively and negatively  - another possible inquiry!

To conclude, the more I read into Reader 4 the more possible lines of inquiry I discover. I'll admit I wasn't expecting to get so much from it but it has definitely got my brain whirring with ideas. From here I would like to write down all the possible options I have written about and explore them further. I need to turn them from 'Pseudo' questions into researchable questions - thanks to Hanstein, I can distinguish them. It makes be think back to Module 1's networking, the imagery of a river all intertwining and connecting, each brook connects to a stream to a bigger river - everything informs something else. I need to look further into things beyond the surface and find practitioners and theories that support and don't support my thinking. A well balanced view.