I hope you all had amazing holiday and you ready steady for whatever Module you begin. I wish you all (and myself as I need it too) good luck, productive time on the programme and for my Module 3 colleagues....let us all have amazing final presentations guys, before we know, it will be around the corner!!! Ok ok, no stress, we still have few month to work hard on it!
As the summer break is nearly over for us MAPP students it was time for me to start working on the Module 3. I wrote a letter to the National Ballet School of Poland where I graduated myself, if I could come in and observe some ballet classes as those are part of my research for my final presentation. I was a little bit afraid they will not let me in as knowing the school from the past it is very rigorous and closed environment, but thankfully their respond was very positive. Head Master and all the teachers were very friendly towards me, which made me, shy person quite happy. Nice to see that as it was not like that when I used to go to school. Things has had obviously changed for a better. Within a week I was scheduled to watch classes of the first year, middle year, and graduation year students. I asked for those classes only as they were the most crucial in my research. Fortunately once I was there I was allowed to watch any class I wanted, which was just amazing, I saw about 20 ballet classes, some character classes and Pilates for the little ones. Watched about 10 different teachers, which was just fantastic, it is not only so important and adding into my research, but it is also so inspiring for my own development as a teachers. So many great observations, thoughts, ideas, my head after those 2 days was just spinning. I would probably spend much more time at school as the Head Master and all the teachers did not mind me there at all, but juggling the time of being a mum of one year old and a student of MAPP I could do only 2 full days. Still very happy and satisfied with this, as I achieved a full notebook of notes for my research. I even dreamed yesterday about piroutess and teachers coaching me to do extra suspension in the end, funny as in dreams it is always so easy to achieve great balances and high legs. I used to have those dreams as a child so often. All those observations and talks with the ballet teachers got to me in such a positive way. At school there are many teachers with sometimes 30 years of experience, and there is also a new wave of fresh, new generation teachers. Striking difference between way of teaching between those two, which I will not give away now and will talk more in my paper. As my main focus was the Vaganova technique , I went with the intention of watching the students, their bodies, their technique, but I actually mad many many notes and had some great observations of the teachers themselves, which obviously has a huge connection to the students and their level of technique. I know it is only beginning of the year for them and also beginning of my research but I have noticed already, that students of the teachers who are more stricted and disciplined, achieve better results when we talk about their level of technique. I had an opportunity to experience both ways of teaching, one, where you live very afraid of the teacher and another one, where you communicate with the teacher. I also know by now what works for me personally as a teacher and what way of teaching works for my students to get the best out of them. Those observations gave me sense of direction tho when I talk about "Secret to the Rusian Ballet Technique". It might be not only amazing abilities of the bodies and way of training but it may be lots to do with way of teaching, and teachers approach. I was kind of suspecting it already but those observation confirmed for me, that it is definitely worth searching more into this . I also got some interesting talks with the teachers, one who was a student herself of the Vaganova School, but I will not give anything away just yet :-) Came back definitely full filed towards my research and enormously inspired for myself as a teacher. Now continuing with reading the literature, going through handbooks for Module 3 and looking forward to Skype session on the 21st September!.
Hear you all very soon!!
Aggy
