Embodied Reflection – Exploring creative routes to teaching reflective practice within dance training

This paper draws from a collaboration between Rambert School of Dance, University of Kent, and University College London Institute of Education and an anthropological filmmaker. Together we took a creative and embodied approach to teaching reflective practice within a conservatoire to second year dance students. In this paper we explore where this somatically inspired pedagogy sits within dance training. We discuss the nature of reflection for dance training, and in particular consider embodied reflective practice. Finally we offer effective methodologies for drawing out and capturing embodied practice

Ableism in Academia: Where are the disabled and ill academics?

Recent coverage in relevant Higher Education newspapers and corresponding social media platforms, imply that chronic conditions, illnesses and disabilities are becoming more prominent amongst academics. Changes to funding structures (Thompson and Bekhradnia, 2010), increased globalisation, marketisation and bureaucratisation of Higher Education (Tilak, 2008; Gewirtz and Cribb, 2013) have resulted in a performance-driven working environment where teaching workload and pressures to publish are further intensified due to excellence exercises in teaching and research. The result is low morale (Sutton, 2017) and an ever-rising number of reported mental health issues, burnout and stress-related illnesses within academia (Abouserie, 1996; Taris et al., 2001; Opstrup and Pihl-Thingvad, 2016; Darabi et al., 2017). To an extent, this heightened coverage and interest is linked to an increased awareness, acceptance and tolerance of disabilities and chronic illnesses within society in general, and the Higher Education sector in particular. Specific illness experiences are becoming more openly discussed, which results in increased numbers of disclosures. The proportion of staff in universities disclosing conditions or impairments rose from 2.2% in 2003-04 to 3.9% in 2012-13 (HESA, 2017). However, according to government demographics 16% of working age adults (GOV, 2014), and nearly 13% of undergraduates have a known disability (HESA, 2017). Considering these statistics, there is a stark underrepresentation of disabilities, chronic conditions, invisible illnesses and neurodiversity amongst academic staff

Afterword

As we finalise the last edits to this manuscript, the context of higher education has changed suddenly and unexpectedly due to Covid-19. By the end of March 2020, in the UK and across the world, people and governments are scrambling to control and contain a pandemic. Governments have mandated that the population practice social-distancing, work remotely, and stay home wherever possible to reduce the spread of this novel coronavirus, and to protect the vulnerable – that is those who are elderly or who have underlying health conditions. Higher Education Institutions move to provide teaching and assessment online, with academics and students having to quickly learn how to work and use new technology and introduce different pedagogies and research approaches

Embodied Inquiry as a Research Method

In this post Jennifer Leigh and Nicole Brown introduce Embodied Inquiry, including a discussion of how to analyze data collected through this approach. Also see this interview with Nicole Brown, for more about choosing to conduct research with creative methods. Embodied Inquiry is an approach to research that privileges the lived, embodied experiences of the researcher and the researched. A fairly simple sentence to write for us, who have lived, breathed, worked on and in Embodied Inquiry, and utilised it as a research approach for years. However, for the uninitiated we are very aware that even in that one sentence there are many words that seem like jargon, or have ambiguous meanings, with the result that it is hard for a researcher to know if what they are doing is actually Embodied Inquiry or not. This is true even more if you are new to the whole idea of doing research and what research actually looks like or feels like

Spectropolarimetric observations of the transiting planetary system of the K dwarf HD 189733

With a Jupiter-mass planet orbiting at a distance of only 0.031 AU, the active K2 dwarf HD 189733 is a potential candidate in which to study the magnetospheric interactions of a cool star with its recently-discovered close-orbiting giant planet. We decided to explore the strength and topology of the large-scale magnetosphere of HD 189733, as a future benchmark for quantitative studies for models of the star/planet magnetic interactions. To this end, we used ESPaDOnS, the new generation spectropolarimeter at the Canada-France-Hawaii 3.6m telescope, to look for Zeeman circular polarisation signatures in the line profiles of HD 189733 in 2006 June and August. Zeeman signatures in the line profiles of HD 189733 are clearly detected in all spectra, demonstrating that a field is indeed present at the surface of the star. The Zeeman signatures are not modulated with the planet's orbital period but apparently vary with the stellar rotation cycle. The reconstructed large-scale magnetic field, whose strength reaches a few tens of G, is significantly more complex than that of the Sun; it involves in particular a significant toroidal component and contributions from magnetic multipoles of order up to 5. The CaII H & K lines clearly feature core emission, whose intensity is apparently varying mostly with rotation phase. Our data suggest that the photosphere and magnetic field of HD 189733 are sheared by a significant amount of differential rotation. Our initial study confirms that HD 189733 is an optimal target for investigating activity enhancements induced by closely orbiting planets. More data are needed, densely covering both the orbital and rotation cycles, to investigate whether and how much the planet contributes to the overall activity level of HD 189733.Comment: Accepted in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 12 page

Making sense of cultural bumps: supporting international graduate teaching assistants with their teaching

This article reports on a study with over 100 Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), 69 of whom were international GTAs. We explore their experiences of "cultural bumps" in their transition into one UK University. Following the principles of practice-based enquiry, data collection combined interviews with data generated in workshops, including transcripts, fieldnotes, student feedback and LEGO® models. We focus on three themes of starting teaching, essay marking and classroom boundaries to explore "cultural bumps" where GTAs experience adjustment stresses transitioning into UK higher education teaching. We connect "cultural bumps" to challenges reconciling teaching and researcher roles for GTAs. We conclude with an agenda for research work to further develop our understanding of international GTAs' experiences

Making Academia More Accessible

Academia can be a challenging place to work and academics who have a disability, neurodiversity or chronic illness are further disadvantaged, as non-stereotypical ways of working are not necessarily supported or catered for. The remit of this paper is to provide practical ideas and recommendations to address accessibility issues in events and conferences as a first step to improving existing working conditions. We start with providing a brief overview of and background to the issues of ableism, disabilities, chronic illnesses and neurodiversities in academia. We then offer a detailed description of the organisational and developmental strategies relating to the Ableism in Academia conference to practically demonstrate how accessibility can be achieved. Despite vast literature available on theorisations of reasonable adjustments and some individual handbooks on conference accessibility, noted the absence of a systematic write-up of a case study that would demonstrate the thought processes required for the organisation of a fully accessible and inclusive event. This paper provides almost a step-by-step rationale and rundown of the decisions that had to be taken in order to facilitate an accessible event. After a brief consideration of challenges we encountered along the way, we share personal reflections regarding the event and future developments

Predictors of Burden in Carers of Patients with Impulse Control Behaviors in Parkinson's Disease

Background: Impulse control behaviors (ICBs) are problematic, reward-based behaviors, affecting 15% to 35% of patients with Parkinson's disease. Evidence exists of increased carer burden as a result of these behaviors; however, little is known about the variables mediating this effect and their management. Objective: To identify factors predictive of carer burden in a cohort of patients with Parkinson's disease with ICBs to enable the development of targeted therapeutic interventions for carers. Methods: Data were collected from 45 patients with clinically significant ICBs and their carers, including levodopa equivalent daily dosage, motor and neuropsychiatric symptoms, cognitive function, and ICB severity. Carer burden was quantified by Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI). Univariate analyses were performed using the Spearman rank correlation. Linear regression was used to create a multivariate model for predicting ZBI. Results: Univariate analysis identified significant correlations between ZBI and patient total Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) (rs = 0.50), 4 NPI subscores (agitation/aggression, rs = 0.41; depression/dysphoria, rs = 0.47; apathy/indifference, rs = 0.49; and irritability/lability, rs = 0.38; all P < 0.02), and the carer 28-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) (rs = 0.52, P < 0.0005). Multivariate linear regression retained total NPI and GHQ-28 scores and were collectively predictive of 36.6% of the variance in the ZBI. Conclusions: Our study suggests that depressive symptoms and aspects of executive dysfunction (apathy and disinhibition) in the patient are potential drivers of carer burden in patients with ICBs. Such findings suggest the presence of executive difficulties and/or mood disturbance should point the clinician to inquire about burden in the caring role and encourage the carer to seek help for any of their own general health problems, which may compound carer burden

The Mississippi delta health collaborative medication therapy management model: Public health and pharmacy working together to improve population health in the Mississippi delta

© 2020. Introduction The Mississippi Delta has high rates of chronic disease and is known for its poor health outcomes and health disparities. University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy (UMSOP) and the Mississippi State Department of Health partnered in 2009 through the Mississippi Delta Health Collaborative to reduce health disparities and improve clinical outcomes by expanding the UMSOP\u27s evidence-based medication therapy management (MTM) initiative, focused in Mississippi\u27s 18-county Delta region, to federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) in 4 of those counties. Methods Between January 2009 and August 2018, the MTM initiative targeted FQHC patients aged 18 years or older with a diagnosis of diabetes, hypertension, and/or dyslipidemia. Pharmacists initially met face-to-face with patients to review all medications, provide education about chronic diseases, identify and resolve drug therapy problems, and take appropriate actions to help improve the effectiveness of medication therapies. Clinical parameters evaluated were systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). Results The analysis included 335 patients with hypertension (n = 287), dyslipidemia (n = 131), and/or diabetes (n = 331). Significant mean reductions occurred in the following metrics: SBP (7.1 mm Hg), DBP (6.3 mm Hg), LDL cholesterol (24.9 mg/dL), triglycerides (45.5 mg/dL), total cholesterol (37.7 mg/dL), and HbA1c (1.6% [baseline ≥6%] and 1.9% [baseline ≥9%]). Conclusion Despite the cultural and environmental disadvantages present in the Mississippi Delta, the integrated MTM treatment program demonstrated significant health improvements across 3 chronic diseases: hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes. This model demonstrates that a partnership between public health and pharmacy is a successful and innovative approach to care

Creative and embodied methods to teach reflections and support students’ learning

Dance education in the 21st Century within UK conservatoire environments generally lives under the umbrella of Higher Education Dance, but its roots lie in more vocational or professional training-based approaches. In this paper we discuss the rationale behind, and an initial critical evaluation of an innovative embodied and creative approach to teaching reflective and reflexive practice to dancers. Skill acquisition, discipline, professionalism and creativity are at the core of vocational dance training. The acquisition of practice-based knowledge is not new. The idea of “learning through doing” in dance goes back centuries. This notion has traditionally been based on mimesis and repetition, frequently entrenched in traditional (and inherited) pedagogic practices based on a master-pupil hierarchical model. However, the focus of dance pedagogy in the 21st Century has started to shift. Higher Education provision in dance has moved towards a more student-centred model, whereby the learner dancer’s ownership of the training process is encouraged. In this paper we will first consider how dance education has evolved, the importance of reflective practice, the philosophy behind bringing a creative and reflective approach to dance education before considering critically how this approach worked in one specific context – Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance. The evolution of contemporary dance techniques and the introduction of more holistic somatic practices into dance training has altered the landscape for dance educators. There is an implicit practice that embraces the notion of knowing existing within the doing, and therefore embodied practice is at the core of the conservatoire environment. Significant shifts in the philosophy of dance pedagogy are now represented within dance conservatoires. According to Jones & Ryan the idea of developing “professional self-sufficiency” (Jones & Ryan, 2014, p.51) is at the heart of the learning experience for young dancers in vocational higher education. But does this pedagogy actively promote “professional self- sufficiency” (ibid.) or is the hierarchical relationship of master-pupil contributing towards “filling a perceived gap” (ibid.)? Are we assuming that our young dancers are equipped (alongside their evident technical/creative talent) to evaluate their own decisions and engage with their own learning, or are we relying on the perceived notion of an “…implicit, self-evident and “natural” process of improving practice”? (Jones & Ryan, 2015, p.51). Can this “natural process” be re-contextualised or cross-fertilised with other disciplines in order to provide more empowerment through the doing? We believe that in response to these shifts there is a need for a renewed focus on theoretical approaches and academic engagement; a focus reminiscent of and aligned with the conceptual frameworks commonly associated with social sciences and education, in which the process of arriving at “professional self-sufficiency” is inextricably linked to reflective practice