LAYER 1 – Coding to Disassemble and Reassemble
I identified my codes by utilizing art verbiage. I feel that a student is to a teacher what a piece of art is to an artist and that a pedagogical practice can be regarded as just an extension of a studio art practice. MODE (highlighted in yellow) is defined as action, method or approach. MOOD (highlighted in blue) stands in for phrases and is defined as atmosphere, attitude or group feeling. SYMBOL (highlighted in pink) is defined as metaphor, representation or figure.
To view my coding process click on the following link:
Reoccurring Ideas, Relationships and Exposed Ideologies
In order to expose reoccurring words, phrases and general ideas within each of the three categories, I went through and re-typed each highlighted area on separate documents. Then, I used Wordle to reveal which words where most frequently highlighted. The Wordle algorithm assigns each word a font size proportional to its count, the more appearances the larger the font. To signify which “word cloud” belonged to which code group, I included the name of each group on the graphic. Below each graphic is a list of the most frequently reoccurring words and some considerations of each grouping as related to the research questions.
MODE – action, method or approach
Reoccurring words: process, questions, new, technology, reflection, students, learning, sculpture, blog, video, ideas
The patterns in these modes show ways to communicate. I did find that most of these actions do relate back to the research questions in terms of communication of ideas between the group members i.e. blogs, video, technology, questions. But, what I found fascinating was not necessarily related to communication between the group members. It was the reoccurrence of sculpture. It is certainly a visual form of communication but one that is relayed between artist and viewer or in this case, student and teacher.
MOOD – phrases, atmosphere, attitude or group feeling
Reoccurring words: different, spontaneous, uncertain(ty), possibilities, department, time, excited, similar, ideas, relate
Here I find patterns of commonality amongst the differences between group members. Though all teaching art, some on different levels and one in particular a different department (music) they all share similar levels of uncertainty and excitement toward the possibilities. This relates back to the research questions as they engage in dialogue; each individual situation can shift the thinking of the other despite differing circumstances.
SYMBOL – metaphor, representation or figure
Reoccurring words: ideas, picture, question, student, bouncing, pivotal, portrait, big, island, stealing, take
The pattern here relates to collaboration through corroboration. As it relates to the research questions, each group member finds through documentation that their situations are not unique and that by examining a portrait of the others’ situation and bouncing ideas of each other, each individual can steal some new ideas and apply them.
Relationships across data sets
Across the data sets, I found that commonalities were prevalent on a few fronts. The first is the ways in which individual experiences were documented. The second is in the realization of common cause. The third is in the methods utilized to inform practice.
Exposed Ideologies
Amidst different circumstances arises common cause. Each of the group members came from disparate situations whether it be grade level, classroom size, or even in one instance, subject. But, by embracing similar documentation processes such as blogs, videos and student work, each individual group member was able to find ways to enhance and advance their own teaching and learning methods. Their situational differences became their greatest strengths.
LAYER 2 – Inquiry Prose
Art teachers may choose to regard their students as a continuation of their own art practice; a canvas to paint, clay to mold or notes to play. With that in mind, I chose to label my codes as words that are often used when speaking about art. Applying this principal to the narrative inquiry Meier presents about her observation of a group of art educators draws parallels between a group of artists coming together to discuss current studio work and processes. Then, in the process, they are informing each other’s practice.
When examining mode within the text, I found that there was certainly a commonality amongst the participants in terms of how they documented and communicated their findings. In the very first scene, it is revealed that Meier “added a new post” on a blog that was set up for the entire collaborative inquiry group (CIG). Blogs, video and other new technologies are modes that are often referred to throughout the text. For example, Kay discusses her wikispace website and goes on to show a video of a student showing his peers his artwork (Meier, 2012, pg. 14-15). Also prevalent in my examination of modes was the word, sculpture. In the same discussion, Kay mentions sculpture centers and it leads to a story of how the students are “spontaneously working together” (Meier, 2012, pg. 14). I find this fascinating because it seems that the members of this CIG are also collaborating on a sculpture. In this case, the sculpture is their individual teaching practices and by extension their classrooms and students. So, through common modes of documentation and communication the members of the group are also pedagogical and artistic collaborators.
Next, I considered the text with mood in mind. It was clear that many of the group members were uncertain about their ideas or techniques. In one example, Rachel is uncertain because she is changing grade levels (Meier, 2012, pg. 8). This mirrors the uncertainty an artist has when approaching a new medium. The artist may approach his peer group to find someone with experience in that medium, much like Rachel did in the example. Her uncertainty is met with enthusiasm as Jason had made a similar jump between levels two years prior (Meier, 2012, pg. 8). This leads me to another mood that was common, excitement about new possibilities. It echoes the artist’s excitement when they begin a new piece or discover a new technique. It is demonstrated in conversation when Jason is discussing using the idea of student wikis in a S.T.E.A.M. grant he is proposing. The response from the entire group is, “Good idea!” and from Emma, “Possibilities!” (Meier, 2012, pgs. 18-19). Ultimately, the group shared similar moods when approaching new experiences and responded by revealing that despite their differing circumstances they were able to shift each other’s thinking.
Symbol is a well-worn word when applied to art and it was also my last level of data analysis. There were apparent patterns among the metaphors in the text. The first was a reference to being a type of outcast, to which artists can relate. In reference to a discussion of end of year in-service and training, Emma says, “You feel like a lonely island.” and Jason quips in response to “meeting with your department,” “I am my department.” (Meier, 2012, pg. 6). This example highlights the camaraderie apparent in the group that ultimately opens each individual to collaborative discussion. This leads directly into the second example of reoccurring metaphor, “stealing” ideas. “Stealing” per-se is not necessarily something encouraged amongst artist groups, but borrowing ideas and applying them to individual practice is common. As it applies to the data set, Rachel is discussing a portrait project utilizing document camera technology and Jason remarks, “I am thinking about stealing that lesson!” (Meier, 2012, pg. 13) It is obvious here that by identifying with each other through the symbolism of the “lonely island” that the group was able overcome any apparent circumstantial differences to metaphorically “steal” ideas from one another to apply to individual pedagogical practice.
LAYER 3 – Reflexivity and Encompassing Metaphors
According to the assignment, In Layer 3 I am to… “Weight codes to form a larger concept (metaphor) that will subsume the initial category.” In hindsight, it seems to me that my use of the art terms MODE, MOOD and SYMBOL as representative of the notion that teachers are artists and students their artwork may have been a bit pre-mature. So here I will re-iterate how my codes have been weighted first as the original coding and followed by other interpretations that were used to reinforce the metaphor of the teacher/artist:
MODE = action
Also: method and approach
MOOD = phrases
Also: atmosphere, attitude and group feeling
SYMBOL = metaphor
Also: representation and figure
“Shifts in thinking about teaching” is the key phrase in the research questions. Applying ideas of personal reflexivity to this question opens the door to enabling these shifts. Social reflexivity allows individuals to walk through the open door. The group in question came together as individuals reflecting on their own theories of how to teach. They all utilized similar methods to document their reflections. This modal similarity was the first step. In step two, they all expressed similar moods of uncertainty and excitement in possibility. And finally, after recognizing their similarities they symbolically expressed their willingness to share ideas. These three steps lead them all to shifts in their thinking in regards to teaching art.
Returning to the teacher/artist metaphor, I believe you can apply these principles to a group of painters, poets, musicians or actors and get the same results. In fact, historically when this occurs among artists it is referred to as a “school”.
Layer 4 – Seeing Patterns as major themes
Throughout history, artists have come together to learn from each other. The resulting ideas and subsequent artworks form the framework for what we identify as “schools” of art. It is no surprise that after examining the data presented in excerpts from “Narrative Views of Experience: Art Teachers Documenting Teaching Practice in Collaborative Inquiry-based Professional Learning” by Mary Elizabeth Meier (2012) that one can find similar results when applying these ideas to art pedagogy. Utilizing three art-related terms, mode, mood and symbol we can identify how seemingly different individuals can shift one another’s thinking about teaching art. What for artists may be just a gathering of creative makers to discuss studio practice is in an academic setting called Collaborative Inquiry-Based Learning.
It begins with documentation of self-reflection or what I define as, mode. In the presented research, it was apparent that each member of the group had been using similar methods of documentation. These methods included blogs and videos. The use of these similar documentation methods opened up dialogue between individual members. This was the first step in moving from a personal reflective mode to a socially reflective mode. Next, more similarities are revealed through shared emotions or as I define it, mood. The participants all shared an anxiety in the uncertainty of their teaching practice. But, through the sharing of these uncertainties were able to discover the excitement of new possibilities and thus the mood shifts. When both modes and moods have been shared, the group is no longer a disparate gathering of teachers. Rather, they are collaborators in thought, a collective of educators educating each other. The end result is symbolic of a new “school”, just not of artists, but of teachers.
References
Meier, M.E. (2012). Narrative views of experience: Arts teachers documenting teaching practice in collaborative inquiry-based professional learning. The Pennsylvania State University. University Park, PA.