In need of advice!!!

I would love advice from all of you fellow MAPPers...

I have been struggling this week to be inspired and motivated to read and dig into literature around my topic of the relationship between Ballet and Modern dance technique. I have been doing lots of thinking this week and am realizing that my passion is for the area of mentorship. 

So, I am now wondering if this is an area of inquiry I should consider for my research instead of the relationship between Ballet and Modern technique? 

I can see clearly how I could go about researching the Ballet/Modern relationship - I already have ideas for questions etc, but am feeling a bit unmotivated.

I cannot see clearly how I would go about researching Mentorship in dance. So I am hesitant to go this direction. 

I would love your advice about this dilemma as I feel I am now in a time crunch and need to decide asap in order to move on with this module! 

Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated :) 

Thank you,

Ainsley 

Task #3

Task #3 - Qualitative Research Methods

Thinking about Positivism in regards to dance research I can understand how this method would not fit. Dance research involves looking at the human body. The body is an ever-changing, dynamic, diverse, unique, living being. There is no "fixed reality" when it comes to the human body.
The logical side of me sees aspects of positivism that make sense for some things in life. However in terms of dance research I let go of this because I understand how human dance is. While reading through my notes on Positivism I decided to Wikipedia the term for a quick definition. Wikipedia explains Positivism as rejecting "introspective and intuitive knowledge". So much of dance training and instruction involves these two things, so it must not fit within this approach.
In all of my readings on the Positivist approach I realize that Science is the King! It is through science, mathematics, reason, and logic that knowledge is gained. Experience can be "exactly determined" (Wikipedia). This is not the case with dance. As a student or instructor you can not predetermine the experience that you or your students/dancers will have. Each body and class offers a completely different experiences and outcome. Non-positivism focuses on diversity, experience, humanism. Human experience can not be replicated, it is an ever changing, growing, developing thing. It is not predictable, instead it responds to it's surroundings and feedback.
This information has made me fully aware of how important the Non-Positivist approach to dance research is. Each body, class, student, learner, teacher, studio, environment,  etc… creates a completely different experience then the next. There is no "fixed reality" in dance. While some outcomes may be expected, you can not say with certainty what the outcome will be. As dance instructors/choreographers, we often have desired outcomes when it comes to teaching technique or choreography to our students. But each student's body is going to receive and embody that information differently.
When I translate this to performance or technique class this Non-Posivist approach makes more sense to me. In performance you have a desired or expected outcome - the dancers will perform as instructed/rehearsed, they will mesmerize the audience, there will be no mistakes. Unfortunately it is not that simple. Dance performance is a live art, presented by humans. Humans are unpredictable. The performance could be more amazing then expected or it could be a complete disaster! This goes for technique class and rehearsal as well. As the teacher I come in to class with a plan and expectation of how it will go. However, I am dealing with living beings that change frequently, and I as well am a human. I believe dance and the human body are impossible to predict and impossible to replicate. This is life!
I also feel that as a researcher in an area that is so familiar with me, it is impossible for me to be objective - which is an aspect of Positivism.  I will have biases because of my own experiences with dance. This may hinder me in some ways, but in many ways I feel it will deepen my understanding of the research and ability to observe and notice details within the research that others may not pick up on.
Knowing that Positivism relates to Dualism in that they both focus on the mind being the source of knowledge - I see how these do not fit in dance or human research. In order to view, critique, experience or research dance one must experience the body in movement. Dancers receive their information, knowledge and experiences through their bodies. They are the perfect example of Embodiment. There are no external tools in dance. The teacher/choreographer directs the student/dancer in movement by demonstrating with their own bodies or verbalizing physical movement through terminology and imagery. The student/dancer then physically translates that message into their own body. Then the teacher/choreographer gives feedback by viewing/observing the students body in movement. It is a completely embodied cycle of giving and receiving information. Even the language used is body focused. I believe the body and mind work together to understand what they are seeing and experiencing and to respond to feedback. Because of this relationship I can not see how dance could ever be done, taught, or researched from a dualistic perspective.

New discoveries

After a busy and inspiring few weeks I have finally been able to sit down, re-read the Module 2 Handbook and try to understand not only what I need to do but also the theory behind what I need to do. During our Skype on Sunday I realized that I had gone about this Module backwards. I read the handbook over Christmas, but to be honest, I didn't really pay attention to what I was reading. When this term began I dove into trying to pick a research topic. I took 40 books out of our local university library all on dance education, ballet, and modern technique. I browsed over each, categorizing them and pull out potential areas of research. Then our studio got busy and I left my MA work for a few weeks. And then the Skype call where I realized I had completely ignore the handbook and wasn't even aware of the theory behind research.
This past week I have focused on the handbook, digging into Positivist vs Non-Positivist approaches to research and attempting to understand the different research models and data collection tools. I re-read the handbook, making notes along the way, trying to grasp hold of a understanding of research. Through this short process I have come to realize that I am a task oriented person, give me a list of tasks and I will do them in order and finish in the given amount of time. Give me a bunch of reading and information and I feel overwhelmed, especially when it is a topic that I have no experience in and vocabulary that is brand new to me. Having read Helen's blog and hearing Helen and Adesola reassure us via Skype, I realize that going into this I do not need to be a master of research theory, nor should it be a stumbling block for me as I begin this journey. However, this past week definitely brought out insecurities in me, I began to feel almost like a fraud. What education and life experience do I have that even compares to what is being asked of me. After talking this over with some close friends last night and re-reading Helen's blog, I have come to believe that although this seems so far beyond my understanding, that is kind of the point of all of this. I am only beginning this journey and have so much learning ahead of me. No, I do not feel like a Masters student yet, but I know that as I work through this material it will begin to make sense and I will feel more and more confident each day. In the meantime, I need to start at square one and build up my "technique" in regards to research and master level education. Almost as though I was learning a new dance technique for the first time.

So… I am going to spend this next week reviewing this material, reading literature about research and working through the "steps" listed in the handbook - in reference to my top choice for inquiry. All the while focusing on the belief that I am capable of this, even when doubt overwhelms me.