The Reflective Journey

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The academic stuff

Please note:
This post is really me practicing how to insert and format references, but there are some interesting points and I will come back to my initial reflective questions.

What makes writing and reading so difficult for me?
How does this affect my capacity as an arts facilitator?

Freud’s desk

“When making a decision of minor importance, I have always found it advantageous to consider all the pros and cons. In vital matters however . . . the decision should come from the unconscious, from somewhere within ourselves.”
— Sigmund Freud, cited in Dijksterhuis (2004)

Dijksterhuis, A. (2004). “Think Different: The Merits of Unconscious Thought in Preference Development and Decision Making”. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 87 (5): 586–598. CiteSeerX: 10.1.1.110.3811

The Legacy of Schon

Donald Schon was one of the most influential thinkers in relation to reflective practice. Preceded by Dewey writing in the first quarter of the twentieth century (Thompson et al, 2008, p13)

I really tried to read both Shon, D (1983) The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action, New York, Basic Books. 
and
Dewy, J (1916) How We Think, Boston, MA, DC Health.
It was challenging, I couldn’t relate to the writing style at all, too academic and theoretical for me and I couldn’t find a way in.

Entrance of the Queen
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Personally I ‘m grateful to Sue and Neil Thompson for writing a much more easy to read book, The Critically Reflective Practitioner (2008) London, Palgrave Macmillan.
It has lots of mind maps, images and strategies for incorporating reflective practice.

Floating on Her Wings
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What makes writing and reading so difficult for me?

Writing and reading present a challenge because they are not in my regular practice, so I’m not very good at it. I am really enjoying making more time for it, I must be ready for it now. I get excited by the ideas and the knowledge that are within my grasp.  It’s actually extremely empowering.

As Thomson et al (2008) says:

Empowerment then is about supporting people in having as much control over their lives and circumstances as they can. This involves identifying barriers at different levels- for example:
   • Personal. This will include low self-esteem or confidence; fears and anxieties about failure (perhaps based on earlier negative experiences); and conflicting pressures (p49)
Yin&Yang/The Mirror
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How does this affect my capacity as an arts facilitator?

In a recent discussion about values, it occurred to me that my community arts practice is about freedom.  My ability to improve my writing and reading skills, are now revealed as an important tools in my capacity as a facilitator to share key ideologies about knowledge, imagination and creativity and their relationship to freedom.