Reflection #2- ResLAB

The second class today focused on two specific topics:

1. "What roles do we play" and what are all the different aspects of those roles (do they interact?)

2. A/R/Tography article

In pairs/small groups we focused on our roles of Teacher and Performer. We came up with a list of different aspects that we have to know/think about when in those roles. We then went through our list a second time and connected the same aspects that each role had.

While we were completing this activity, it really made me start thinking about who I am because I feel like I have different roles than just teacher and performer. I started to create a mind map of all the different roles I have and then went further into what I feel I identify with in those roles.

The more and more I thought about this, the more I realised the roles connect with each other from all the sections. Because I identify as these five different roles, I use parts from all of them for any and every role that I am in.

Teacher Role: When I am teaching students (group or individual) here is how I "pull thoughts" from my other roles:

- Knowledge of scores/historical context of specific piece students are working on (Violist)

- I have to work with people who have different perspectives from me (Wife)

- Use the knowledge of family loss and having "difficult parents" when trying to connect with student (Daughter)

- Understand how important communication is with students and the value of keeping it consistent and open (Friend)

All of these connect because it is how I think and process information/situations. So really, the mind map should look like this:

The second part of class was going through the renderings in the A/R/Tography article to find their meaning. These are the six renderings:

Contiguity: "multi-directional", explore topics even if not related, things inform other things

Living Inquiry: idea that everything in your life connects because you are living. All things matter and connect to everything else, they influence each other.

Metaphor and Metonymy: imagery and interpretation-slashes in words used to divide a word or make the word mean two things.

Openings: the "area" in between subjects that should be questioned-or the parts of a topic you don't think about actively.

Reverberations: Repeating doing something to get a new answer or meaning, feedback from something that informs future progress.

I have started thinking about how all of these connect in my research. The main rendering that I understood and connected with first was "Openings." When I first started thinking about my personal project, all I found were areas that I was not going to cover in my research and those would be considered as openings in the subject. The more I found areas my project was not going to cover the more I started questioning how many things was I "taking for granted" and not thinking about in the topics I plan on covering. Through the help of talking about my project with others, I came to the conclusion that my project in itself is an "area in between subjects that should be questioned," or an opening! I have found relief in this because it means that I know there will be questions and in between areas of subjects and I have the choice if I want to include them in my research or not.

The other two renderings that have helped me reflect on my project are contiguity and living inquiry. After understanding my whole project was an "opening" between topics I was encouraged by my education professor Tim Palmer to explore every topic even if not related to the project. I had informed him I kept running into other research areas that confused me and I didn't know if I should take time to look into them or not because I felt they were related but could make the project go down a completely different path. He encouraged me to explore the topics even if they felt wrong-this method makes sure that "no stone is left unturned" and it would give me definite reason to use that area of research or at least be sure I did not want to include that research. After taking resLAB and reading about the renderings, I connected that this method was contiguity. Since this second class period and the article, I feel much more confident about researching and not fearful of looking into areas that may not fit into my topic.

When we discussed living inquiry as a class, I became very excited but also felt like I could not stop analysing every little detail for the rest of the day! I really connected with the idea that life is a living inquiry because you are alive and I started reflecting on the past three years or so and how I came to be where I am today. This then helped me think about my research because the past three years of teaching is what is driving my project. Beyond my project and the class, I like the idea of living my life as a living inquiry. I have always connected with the term growth mindset (idea that we are always learning and never the best at anything-always room for improvement and change) with teaching but also with other people and now this rendering living inquiry feels like it fits right in with my mindset. It encourages me to believe that everyone is always learning and can always improve, but also that everything does matter and can connect to that learning and improving whenever, no matter how insignificant, positive or negative, because some of the best learning comes from mistakes.

Springgay, Stephanie, Rita L. Irwin, and Sylvia Wilson Kind. ‘A/r/Tography as Living Inquiry Through Art and Text’. Sage, 2005. https://doi.org/1077800405280696.