Paola Napolitano

The best analogy that best fits my process of data analysis is ‘stumbling in the dark’. To start with, I had no idea of what a research methodology is, when I had to pick the best one for my inquiry in Module 2. I found this website  How to Write a Research Methodology in Four Steps (scribbr.com) quite illuminating, as it explains in concise, useful, practical ways how to draft a research project and how to go through its different stages. I came up with thematic analysis as my chosen method, within narrative inquiry as methodology. Despite the clear explanations on how to retrieve themes, I must admit I started off with a very schematic mindset in doing so. Firstly, I excerpted few bits of the interviews. These were not easy to select. Especially, I was conscious of not adding my own meaning to them, but I tried to keep an objective approach when opting for the ones which would be relevant for my inquiry. Then, I reviewed the excerpts and organized them into an excel sprea...

One takeaway from the MAPP programme for me is cultivating reflective practices. It is a process of learning new self-questioning behaviors that make you open to new views. I still remember when Liz Lerman’s Critical methodology was introduced to me during an improvisation class at Independent Dance year ago. I found this process provoking, almost irritating, as I did want to have a right or wrong feedback. That was not the point. I was not used to carve out answers from my own reflections, hence the difficulty of a new learning framework. Comparing myself now and the beginning of this journey, I can clearly see the change I have made thanks to the ongoing self-reflective modalities MAPP proposes. Tutorials and feedback have been nourishing places for me to be in. I have gradually allowed my rational, pragmatic mind to enter into a constructive conversation with my tutor and the students community. Creating the space for a real dialogue exchange with my tutor first, then taki...

I feel I might explore this theme over and over again and come to newer insights each time. Since Module 1 my constructs in regard to knowledge, information and learning have radically shifted, and keep molding into new visions which constantly support my journey as a student and a common person. Looking at my journey since the beginning of this MA to Module 3, I can see my approach to learning has changed and been enriched with greater curiosity, flexibility, and perhaps with deeper wisdom in asking myself the right questions. In this process, I have learnt to let go of my control on my predictions, and expectations about my learning goals and leave room for self-reflection which has enhanced my free independent thinking. ‘Step back from a philosophy of ideas and looking at different narratives’ Mike stated. Helen said diversity still supposes there is a norm to compare the diverse stream to the main one. If we look at the history which has imposed a truth so far, this is incred...

I still remember the editions of ‘’Il Corpo Umano’’ (the Human Body) back in the 80’s. I used to collect each piece of the body that came with the weekly magazine and VHS cartoons illustrating the workings of this fascinating machine that is the human body. I was looking forward to completing this big puzzle, and being able to complete this little plastic statue. I soon developed a passion towards dance, music and singing. It was not until a very long break that my conception around the body started to mold around various professional experiences and movers I have met along the path. I got fascinated at the idea we could experience movement rather than interpret movement through our body. For the first time in 2015, I started to contemplate the idea of movement rather than dance, of agency rather than executor, of attending rather than controlling, of stillness as an action rather than an absence. I gradually landed in the fields of somatics, which although still considered con...

Our Sunday MAPP meeting on Sep the 26th gave us space to discuss on Knowledge, Information and Learning. One of the points that stood up for me concerned the definition of knowledge which, unless shared with others, it remains just a personal opinion. This made me think of the definition of performance I heard long time ago, by which it has to involve the presence of public in order to be classed as performance. So in a way, knowledge can be identified in relation to others e.g. students and teachers. This led to expand Dewey's view on 'transactional learning' and the un-learning needed sometimes in planning or delivering dance classes. A few terms that were mentioned to describe teachers are vessels, channels, means, which I associate to the general idea of a flexible container that alternatively becomes content according to the time of and the role in the conversation. Starting Module 2, I am deepening my understanding about positivist and non-positivist standpoints. As a...

One of the most interesting features of somatic practices is the absence of the mirror in class which is much used in other contexts as a checking tool for one’s body appearance and physical outcome. Why is that? As a commercial dancer I got used to train while watching my body or the perception of my body at the mirror, and to compare myself with others’ performance all the time. By studying the concept of ‘Dualism’ and how this translates into mind-body separation, I have recently reflected on how many body practices still use external props for self-assessment. Not to mention, how many professional environments completely deny the unification of the material, psychological and spiritual aspects of a person. Leonardo Da Vinci’s quote ‘One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself’ encapsulates the essence of challenge and self-mastery as opposed to basing one’s performance on external value scale. Yet again, what is the perception of ourselves in our dail...

I was really lucky to be able to attend the session this afternoon with the academic team of MAPP. As I took a break from my working schedule, this moment was just the right treat for me, especially in this chaotic moment in time. A few concepts that stood out for me were non separation between artistic research and personal endeavors, starting from any points for research, leaving the assumption of correctness and give space to personal freedom in research, giving and feeling joy in approaching creative realms. I was particularly struck by the research about theatre, translation and sound by Pedro De Senna, as I conducted a similar research for my final dissertation in Laban/Bartenieff Movement Studies in 2017. Looking at life and artistic investigation, I appreciate they’re both part of the same whole. Personally, I find it quite challenging some times to integrate completely unrelated daily activities into my artistic research, while I tend to spend more time for reflection pu...

  Image  free of copyright restrictions, downloaded from  Pinback button reading Teach the Children the Truth | Smithsonian Institution (si.edu) By reading Decolonizing Methodologies  I have reflected on the concept of research from different angles. Ethics is the dominant theme in the book and plenty of insights are offered in regard to the application of research methodologies. Before understanding what academic writing implies, I much relied on presenting a topic with a one-way approach which would support my ideas. During the past two years, we have been confronted with an abundant flows of fake news, mis-information and conspiracy theories which seem to have something in common, a mono-directional perspective, pushing themselves forward in order to prevail over other streams. But what’s the effect of this modality of information sharing? The impactful resonance of imposing one view only is that it may significantly influence, or better diminish, the r...

Theory and Practice have always sound as a dilemma to me.  I have always found theories so fascinating. My tendency to over-theorize has sometimes led my creativity to get stuck, as wanting to back it up with logical reasoning and prove it was 'right' or 'wrong'. In the attempt to bypass theory, pure movement based research, in the studio, often felt directionless and so energy consuming to me.  As a seeking spirit in nature, theories are just my cup of tea. However, I wonder if the theory gets lost in the translation from one medium into another, therefore if it is fair to talk about theory application, or it is just our interpretation of it, so a trans-creation.  What was/is the compass for my movement research? Theory or body experience, or both?  With this doubt in mind, it is incredibly inspiring to observe HOW other artists start their research from a theory and apply it to their artistic projects. It is the case of Angela Woodhouse, Senior Lecturer in Dance at...

Information, Learning, Knowledge – where/when does the process happen? Are we serving ourselves teachers or learners? My friend suggests to listen to the podcast ‘How to do what you love and make good money | Derek Sivers’. The presenter introduces the guest, mentioning a long list of many different job titles he has. The guest says that was an old biography, now he IS something else. He says words do not define what we are and what we do. I remind of someone who at our Sunday’s discussion said he has always associated his CV’s titles to his knowledge, giving to his experience the meaning of knowledge. My question is, if learning changes continuously, how can words best represent our evolving Self? How can our changing architecture of learning be expressed through a limited conventional system of verbal communication? In explaining the limitation of semiotics, in Philosophy and Human Movement, David Best, an English philosopher, observes most of times, we attribute symbols and meaning ...

  Getting used to selecting the right hashtags on social media to catch the right audience, has possibly helped me locate a few subjects for my AOLs today.  It may take a multi-perspective analysis to ponder over and select the right words or labels that define your practice. At least for me it takes time, reflection and learning. During our first Zoom call yesterday, we talked about our practice.  As a visual learner, and not a fun of public speaking, I tend to simplify my thoughts by jotting bullet points before it's my turn to speak. Thanks to time constriction, I quickly managed to summarize key concepts depicting my current practice and future areas of focus.  What is my practice? This is probably the reason why I am taking the MAPP. Since I have welcomed the opportunity to gain new insights on experiential learning , I have been trying to absorb every single notion about this subject, learning from self-reflection, re-evaluate reflective conclusions based on ne...

I had always considered my innate introspective nature sufficient to demonstrate my capability of reflecting and being deep in my observations. This was excluding the inclusion of others in my process of learning. One term that opens a new world to me is ‘frame of structure’ which in the book ‘A Handbook of Reflective and Experiential Learning’ by Moon, Jennifer A. is not only referred to as personal beliefs and opinions, but also as our past reference system of previous experiences of learning. The book puts the emphasis on the incidence of individual attitude towards learning, as means to complete and enrich the learning process itself. This may appear a constant flux of achievement stages, subordinated to constant external inputs that unravel new learning experiences. The building of knowledge is therefore a stratification of processes, a continuous layering of learning and adapting information, rather than a definite acquisition of sets of tools. The key to this ongoing growth ...

Here I am: a new beginning, a new title, a new logo, a new website, a fresh new set intention. Openness, flow and curiosity are probably the words that mostly apply to this brand new re-start. A simpler vision is now accompanying my journey, acting as a clear map helping me navigate through the darkness of thick expectations and assumptions. As my colleagues replied to one of my previous blogs, uncertainty is the essential tool for learning as it gives you the privilege of discovery and growth. I can now label myself with 2 new professional titles, however these are not conclusive of all of my capabilities, rather reflect my engagement into learning and development so far.  After completing my Sports Massage training course in December, and having deferred my MA to Jan's start, I finally had plenty of time to go through the reading material of the life coach course I had purchased back in March last year. Weirdly enough, I started finding concepts that the MA programme would enqui...

Last week we had a really great conversation over Skype. I was introduce to so many new concepts about research methodologies. As I am trying to find a new rhythm between daily life and studying, I am attracted by different resources available but feeling disorientated at the same time. During our discussion, something that resonated with my learning experience was the term ‘’kinesthetic empathy’’. This reminded me of kinesphere, used by R. Laban to refer to the Space surrounding an individual and used to map human movement through observing how the Body moves through Scales of Movement. I found, according to Theodor Lipps’ theory of ‘Einfühlung’ (Lipps, 1851-1914) ’kinesthetic empathy’’ occurs ‘‘When observing a body in motion, such as an acrobat, spectators could experience an ‘inner mimesis’, where they felt as if they were enacting the actions they were observing*. ’’ This concept made me question about the functionality of the Greek theatre catharsis. Catharsis was first c...