Synopsis take 2!

I have redrafted my synopsis following feedback that I should include some information on how my workshops were iterated:

How can teenagers be encouraged to develop their personal identities through creative critical reflection?

My aim was to develop creative, positive and enjoyable workshops where young people can discuss society, culture, values, dreams and aspirations, engaging with their personal identities and role within their communities in a constructive way. 

The physical, psychological and social changes experienced by adolescents lead psychologists to regard adolescence as a critical period for self and identity development (Erikson, 1968; Marcia, 1987).  Identi-tee workshops are designed to encourage young people to reflect on their sense of self and community, enabling them to become confident individuals and responsible citizens who make a positive contribution to society. 

Although there has been some recent interest in the development of social identity (e.g., Bennett & Sani, 2004), most research has been conducted with children, and researchers have assumed adolescents to be equivalent to adults (Ruble et al., 2004; Sani & Bennett, 2004). 

Personal wellbeing is currently a non-statutory part of the National Curriculum for 11-16 year olds, and crucial issues - including elements such as personal identity, relationships within the community, and diversity – are not explored in many schools.

Dewey (1933) talked about the value of critical reflection in education: it ‘gives attention to one’s experiences and behaviours, and meanings are interpreted from them to inform future decision-making… reflective action is an extremely useful tool for addressing social and emotional issues, especially those relating to race and culture.’ 

Identi-tee explores how creative critical reflection can be used in contemporary society to help teenagers build an awareness of self and identity in relation to both their culture and their community, in turn it looks at ways for teenagers and their communities to work collectively to produce work that reflects their experiences and the places they live. 

During the workshops, young people collaborate to discuss themselves, their relationships, their society and their environment, and how all these components affect sense of self.  The key theme of personal wellbeing is developed and explored through creativity and reflection exercises:

CREATIVITY Producing artefacts, experimenting with ideas, materials, tools and techniques, taking risks and learning from mistakes.
REFLECTION Exploring the visual, tactile and other sensory qualities of their own and others’ work, identifying how values and meanings are conveyed, developing views and expressing reasoned judgment, analysing and reflecting on their work and the work of others.

The exercises work differently on both a group and individual level, with certain topics and related exercises resonating with different individuals depending on their needs.  This was easy to tell from the depth of their responses.  The workshop iterations were therefore very intuitive - exercises were adapted on the spot and at the end of sessions from feedback received.  The young people were extremely vocal about what they enjoyed and what they didn’t - teenagers are very honest with their criticisms. 

I hope that these workshops could lead to developments in the field of personal identity in adolescents, help recognise its importance and lead to widespread use of the workshops in schools and youth groups.

Identi-tee is on going, there are further workshops in 2012, using drama, singing and dance to aid critical reflection, as well as workshops on other key topics, such as relationships or diversity. 

The workshops can also be tailored to help the homeless, people who can suffer the most from a lack of identity caused by a feeling of ‘hearthlessness’ and inability to identify with society. Feelings of isolation, rejection and alienation are extremely common with homeless people, these in turn can lead to psychological problems in relation to identity.  I feel there is room to help homeless people explore and stimulate their feelings of identity using a variety of exercises from my findings to date.

My exhibition has been inspired by the Fluxus movement.   Maciunas defined Fluxus products as ‘work that would occur as a result of performance activities, or as elements of participation environments.’ This resonates with what I am trying to represent; I have filled drawers with objects that represent the different workshop exercises involved in Identi-tee, reminiscent of the Fluxkits in which Maciunas collected performance-related cards, games, and ideas.

Artefact iteration

My initial artifact looked at ways of combining modern technologies and traditional crafting techniques in order to explore how people and groups pass on their cultural identity through crafting, and whether technology can help to facilitate this process.  I initially created woven lights made from LED tape.  I quickly realised I was more interested in the interaction of people with products, and created kits that encouraged craft-based cross-generational interactions.  To this end, I started investigating crafting as a social network - I spent a lot of time at crafts groups and also investigated how people were searching for and learning new skills online. 

At this point I had 3 very different artifacts, all of which used traditional techniques in a modern setting. These included a chandelier kit for parties, BBQs, music festivals etc., a knitting based artefact, and an Olympic Games based artifact.  After testing all of these I found I was still more interested in finding out about the people using these kits and their relationship with crafting. What I wanted to explore was the demographic of the people and groups, and in turn how to encourage more people to get involved, pass on skills, and to really interact and explore their sense of self and community. Attempting to find a way for young people to get more involved with crafting and the community, and ways that this could help them explore their identity, became my prime focus.

My next artifact focused more on this: an activity based workshop for young people. My aim was to encourage encounters between teenagers and designer makers and local people of different generations.  These encounters led to extremely rich experiences and helped the young people develop a variety of new skills. Whilst volunteering at the local youth club, and testing these activities with the local teenagers, I came up with Graffi-tee – activities to encourage young people to investigate their sense of self through creative critical reflection. 

Through testing this I moved onto Identi-tee, a crafts-based workshop that I have been using with the Girl Guides in North West London since the Summer.  These workshops have been iterated a number of times, after feedback from youth workers and from the teenagers themselves post-workshop. 

The above artifacts have been tested in groups and with experts in their field.

Whilst carrying out testing on Identi-tee and Graffi-tee I noticed another way of engaging with the teenagers, which I hope to develop in 2012.  A number of the young people I worked with would have preferred activities that involved music, dance, and singing.  I have found a number of appropriate practitioners in my area, but have not as yet been able to fully design and test this workshop, although I have adapted a number of improvisation techniques from those I have come across in my research. 

I also spoke to the charity Depaul and the Willesden Hostel as whilst I have been researching teenage identity I became extremely interested in the identity issues that young homeless people suffer from.  I have prepared some exercises for a workshop with them in the New Year, which I will be doing with the support of the appropriate case workers from Depaul. 

Gatekeepers

Artifact 1 Research and Development team, Crafts Council Sarah Hewett, Professional Development Manager, Craft Central Tessa Damer, Studio Manager, Craft Central Craft Central Interns Helen Batley, Minnie Bats Design iGuzzini, lighting designer The Make Lounge team Jane Friend, Craft Residencies Coordinator, Farnham Maltings

Artifact 2 Marsha Oza, jewellery designer, community projects director Chloe Haywood, Milliner, experienced in carrying out workshops with adults and children Karen Hobbs, Costume Designer, experienced in carrying out workshops with young people Josie Boyce, writer, illustrator, art director Jodie May, Crafts enthusiast, new mum Natalie Wiggins, crafts enthusiast Nicola Barron, Founder, Homemade London Jane Gois, Founder, Tea & Crafting Claire Heafford, Founder, The Papered Parlour Jackie Woosnam-Savage, Founder, Create Boutique

Artifact 3 Graffi-tee: Keith Lunn, Director of OK Club, Kilburn Stuart, Youth Worker, OK Club Kilburn Youth workers at the Granville Plus Arts Centre Dan Thompson, Empty Shops Network, has carried out an arts programme in my area Sharyn Farnan, MakeSpace, co-design with commmunities to transfrom empty spaces Over 30 teenagers at the OK Club from ages 12-22. 10 teenagers from the American School of Dubai.  Held an identity brainstorm with 5 adult respondents.

Artifact 4 Identi-tee: Girl Guide leader, Sandra Kitchen Brown Owl, Patricia Rose Vanessa Jarrett, Therapist, regarding identity issues and young people Over 15 Girl guides from ages 12-17.  Ami Ghadia, Youth Worker, Clapham, currently completing an Art Therapy Masters. Musical Arts Workshop: Viola Newbury, Actor and Educational Performer Simon Porter, Performance Poet Identity and Homelessness: Depaul UK Willesden Hostel, Steps House and Crash Pad

Feedback from the Guides

Last night was my last workshop with the Girl Guides, at the end of the session, I asked each girl to write something on 3 different post-its:

Green: Something they enjoyed about the workshop
Red: Something they didnt enjoy about the workshop
Yellow: Something new they learnt during the workshop

They were all extremely complimentary, as were he guide leaders, they said their wasnt any aspect of Identi-tee that they didn't enjoy.

These notes will be displayed in the exhibition.

Tutorial - First of the last term

Identi-tee - further iteration post feedback

This weekend I ran another workshop, which has led to some further iterations of the Identi-tee project, which I would like to implement on Wednesday for the Girl Guides, and then get their feedback on the changes. I have removed a number of exercises that werent very popular, and also every exercise takes so much longer than anticipated that I need the extra time. 

Session 1
 
Introduction and name labels - Whole Group

I will introduce myself, explain I am interested in people, how they see themselves, how they portray themselves and how they interact in their communities.  Explain about my course and the exhibition briefly.  Explain about the creation of the T-shirt, show examples, explain we will only start this today, not finish it.  I will be helping them develop some ideas that they will use on their t-shirts through a series of exercises, to which there are no right or wrong answers.  Any questions?
I will encourage the group to make their own sticky name labels, with felt tips and stickers, as individual as they want.

(10 mins)

Warm-up - Pairs

In pairs, the young people must say 1, 2, 3, back and forth within the pair.

Person A) - 1
Person B) - 2
Person A) - 3
Person B) - 1
Person A) - 2
Person B) -3
...
etc...

Then Person A) replaces 3 with their name, and Person B) does the same when they get number 3, they both say 1 and  normally, try getting faster and faster.

At the end of this discuss how their names just become sounds once repeated this many times, and so what do their names actually mean to them, what does it say about them?  Ask them what they think my name says about me, what assumptions do they make?  Do they identify with their names, is it really who they are?

At this point we will create some name labels for their actual T-shirts, they can do this in anyway they like.  This allows them to start their T-shirts, as I have found some of the younger members of the group are quite eager to do this. 

(20mins)

Who am I? - Whole group

As a group we discuss what they understand by the word Culture and the word Identity.  They write the ideas down on post its and I put them up for the group. Hand out A3 sheets with T-shirt outline, which allows them to note down anything on the paper t-shirt that they might like to put on their real t-shirt.

Discuss how people's self image can be influenced by other people.

Finally ask the group to shout out and write on post it notes elements that they feel make up their identity e.g. family, friends, interests, ethnicity, appearance, beliefs, values, choices etc.  What makes them who they are?

(10mins)

Break/Quick game - Whole group

Give each person a post-it note and pen, explain they have 30 seconds to draw a picture of themselves on it.  Give them 30 seconds.  Stop them and then share with the group, discuss who different everyone's picture is, some people will have drawn their faces, their bodies, discuss how everyone sees themselves differently and how we all interpret instructions differently.  

(5mins)

Brand Identity - Whole group collectively 

Show the group the brand alphabet, see how many they recognise.  Discuss how brands have an identity and what do they associate with some of these brand identities?  Apple, cool, IBM boring etc
Top 3 brands, coolest brands, favourite etc...

(5mins - optional exercise depending on length of workshop)

Break/Quick game - Small groups

Mix the groups up again, give them each a pile of magazines and speech bubble post it notes.  Each group is to look through the advertisements, and examine one of the following topics: how men's grooming products are associated with toughness, how women's products are associated with femininity or how age is treated in our culture.  Use the bubble post its to write remarks on the people in the adverts about what they are portraying.  Share with the group.  Guide the discussion on why these messages are set this way, what it means and how they feel about them. Discuss airbrushing and fake eyelashes etc.

(5/10mins)

10 Things you love - Whole group individually

Hand out worksheets, then ask the group to list 10 things they love, these can be people, objects, belongings, food, music, anything... no right or wrong, no silly answers.

(5mins)

Near end of first session, end with everyone choosing some pieces they would like to put on their T-shirts, and putting them in a labelled envelope.  Ask them all to bring in anything they would like to add to their T-shirts.   


Session 2


Hopes, Dreams, Aspirations - Whole group

Ask everyone to write down an aspiration on a brightly coloured tag, these can be shared with the group or be private.  Then tie them onto a helium balloon and go outside to release them. 

(10mins)

Main Activity : Identi-tee - Whole group individually

Each person to create a T-shirt that visually and externally represents their sense of self, their communities, families, hopes, dreams and aspirations.   Provide all the necessary equipment, materials, help and support.  Show example T-shirts created by other creatives, discuss the elements they see.  Begin session and ensure everyone is spoken to individually to help with progress. 

 (45mins)

Share work - whole group

Reflect and discuss together


(5mins) 

Clarify achievements - whole group


What have we achieved, what skills have we built? Everyone to say one thing they have done in the session they are proud of.  

(2-5mins)

Feedback

Ask the group to give feedback on which exercises they enjoyed and why, and what ones could be changed etc.  

(2-5mins)

Girl Guides

Tonight I met with the local guide leader in my area and have confirmation of the dates I will be carrying out the next phase of my workshops in October, so I have time to practice and iterate from the feedback I have received so far....

Further feedback and iteration

Today I got some more feedback on my workshop plan from a secondary school teacher, some really great points to remember and some exercises I might tinker with further now I have read this: 

 

Great to have lots of good interactive activities to do.

a couple of bits of advice...

- ensure you explain the tasks very clearly and maybe do a demonstration

- the starter will prob go on for 10 minutes - esp if there is like 30 students in the class

- with the warm up - I think that's a great idea, make sure when you want to get the kids attention back you have a clear signal.

- always make sure everyone is quite when you are talking, don't talk over them - get them to be quite for you.

- the who am I discussion will prob go on a bit longer - I think when kids are expressing their views you don't want to stop them especially when they really get in to it and come up with good ideas

All in all you have lots of activities, be careful not to over exert yourself and also when you ask them questions, get them to think for a minute without writing anything then pick up their pen - gets them using their brain.

Watch out for the loud kids who don't want to shut up - if this is for kids u have never met - try to get sticky name labels so you can call their names. pick different students to get their points of view.

Give them an aim of the lesson, whats it for? Always go back to it at the end of the lesson.

Workshop Structure - Iterated

Identi-tee

Ice Breaker - Whole Group

Everyone in the group introduces themselves and shows the group an item they have bought with them, the item is to be something they love, this can be anything, or an image of anything.  At the end I try to go round and remember everyone's name and their favourite thing...

(5 mins)

Warm-up - Pairs

In pairs, the young people must say 1, 2, 3, back and forth within the pair.

Person A) - 1
Person B) - 2
Person A) - 3
Person B) - 1
Person A) - 2
Person B) -3
...
etc...

Then Person A) replaces 1 with their name, Person B) replaces 2 with their name and together they come up with a noise instead of saying 3 e.g. clicking fingers, clapping etc.

At the end of this discuss how their names just become sounds once repeated this many times, and so what do their names actually mean to them, what does it say about them?  Ask them what they think my name says about me, what assumptions do they make?

(5/10mins)

Who am I? - Whole group

As a group we discuss what they understand by the word Culture and the word Identity.  I write the ideas down for the group.

Discuss how people's self image can be influenced by other people.

Talk to the group about ethnicity and nationality, do they understand the difference, how do they see themselves.  Discuss how complex this can be, and the problems that can arise if you try to label people.

Finally ask the group to shout out elements that they feel make up their identity e.g. family, friends, interests, ethnicity, appearance, beliefs, values, choices etc.

(10mins)

Break/Quick game - Whole group

Give each person a post-it note and pen, explain they have 30 seconds to draw a picture of themselves on it.  Give them 30 seconds.  Stop them and then share with the group, discuss who different everyone's picture is, some people will have drawn their faces, their bodies, discuss how everyone sees themselves differently and how we all interpret instructions differently.  

(5mins)

Soap Life - Small groups

Each group is given a soap opera name, Eastenders, Coronation Street, Hollyoaks, Emmerdale etc.  They are asked to discuss in a group the cultural values reflected in the soap.  Do they reproduce the cultural norms and values of our society? Ethnicity, age, sexuality, attitudes towards crime and violence etc.

(10mins)

Break/Quick game - Small groups

Mix the groups up again, give them each a pile of magazines and speech bubble post it notes.  Each group is to look through the advertisements, and examine one of the following topics: how men's grooming products are associated with toughness, how women's products are associated with femininity or how age is treated in our culture.  Use the bubble post its to write remarks on the people in the adverts about what they are portraying.  Share with the group.  Guide the discussion on why these messages are set this way, what it means and how they feel about them.

(5/10mins)

10 Things you love - Whole group individually

Hand out worksheets, then ask the group to list 10 things they love, these can be people, objects, belongings, food, music, anything...

(5mins)

Brand Identity - Whole group collectively 

Show the group the brand alphabet, see how many they recognise.  Discuss how brands have an identity and what do they associate with some of these brand identities?  Apple, cool, IBM boring etc

(5mins - optional exercise depending on length of workshop)

Visual Communication - Small groups

Give each small group an image and ask them to tell a story about what they see happening in the image.  Discuss how an image can speak a thousand words, and how emotions and feelings can come across through images.  Present back to the group and get feedback.

(10mins - optional exercise depending on length of workshop)

Hopes, Dreams, Aspirations - Whole group

Together the group creates a kite or a mobile, to which they each tie their hopes, dreams and aspirations to.

(10mins)

Main Activity : Identi-tee - Whole group individually

Each person to create a T-shirt that visually and externally represents their sense of self, their communities, families, hopes, dreams and aspirations.   Provide all the necessary equipment, materials, help and support.  Show example T-shirts created by other creatives, discuss the elements they see.  Begin session and ensure everyone is spoken to individually to help with progress. 

 (45mins)

Share work - whole group

Reflect and discuss together


(5mins) 

Clarify achievements - whole group


What have we achieved, what skills have we built? Everyone to say one thing they have done in the session they are proud of.  

(2-5mins)

Feedback

Ask the group to give feedback on which exercises they enjoyed and why, and what ones could be changed etc.  

(2-5mins)

Total length - can be split over 2 sessions

Short workshop - 2 hours

Long workshop - 2.5 hours

Core values, beliefs and ideals...

Everyone agreed that their core values were integral to their personal identity, the below are the kind of things people felt were their core values:

Honesty
Diligence
Dedication
Being loving/caring
Having a sense of humour
Integrity
Empathy
Intelligence
Creativity
Stay positive
Use your imagination
Don't bitch
Always try and see the opposite side of the problem
Don't worry to much about a single situation
Treat people the way you want to be treated
Don't get jealous
Accommodate and be flexible
Love yourself
Be true to yourself
Be happy
Be open minded
Avoid passing judgement
Help those in need
Family
Help the world
Stand up for things you believe in
Stay in touch with people
Religious values, even though I am not a church-goer
Respect

Some people felt doing things to make others happy was very important, instead of looking after themselves and putting themselves first.  Others felt the only way you could feel liberated was by keeping your beliefs and ideals in every situation, this helps you feel grounded.   Two thirds of the group think about their values, their identity and beliefs a lot of the time, whereas the others felt it wasn't really something they spent much time on.  Some people said that when they meet bullies it causes them to question the above, they think and worry about their personal identity more in these situations. 

We then discussed their hopes, dreams and aspirations, and considered if they had done this kind of workshop at school whether it would have helped them.  Did they enjoy the workshop and find it useful? Some felt this wasn't really something that they needed to think about until they were at university, they felt that was when they would begin to plan their future.  This was very interesting as this was a message they seemed to be getting from their educators, and surely these elements need to be develop much earlier than university.  Then discussion moved to reflection and meditation, and whether these techniques could help facilitate self awareness.  Some young people thought this was a little too 'touchy feely' they felt there was no point encouraging things that might disguise the disappointment in the real world. 

10 things I love exercise feedback

For this exercise we started talking about interests and hobbies and moved into compiling lists of 10 things they loved.  This was one of the first exercises but it has taken me a while to work through and write up the different workshops and exercises, these are some of the key interests:

Photography
Reading
Fashion
Writing
Drawing
Painting
Cooking
Craft
Films
Music
Computer Games
Digital and Fantasy Art
Roleplaying
Socialising
Eating
Hanging out with friends
Horse-riding
Fencing
Shopping
Going to the beach
Playing the Piano
Ballet
Dancing

For 10 things I love, we got some of the following responses, and to be honest I was pretty shocked how many times texting and Facebook came up!

Culture, ethnicity, nationality

From the last workshop I have noted down how the conversation around culture went...

Culture is the interpretation of everything that surrounds you

Attitude, beliefs, goals, knowledge, behaviour, values

A pattern of knowledge and behaviour

A common way a group of people communicate and share (e.g. food, language etc)

Multidimensional - can encompass beliefs, tradition, fashion, food, music, language, body language...

Usually built over time but can also change

Where you come from and how the people are/act in your country


Something a group of people follow - the same type of principles

What each country follows

Traditions

We then discussed whether people felt that they were part of a specific culture, did they identify with a specific one etc?

About half the group didn't feel that they could identify with a specific culture, the remainder identified with the culture of their parents as well as that of the communities they live in now in the London. 

This led the discussion to ethnicity, and whether those tick boxes of white, white other, black African, black Caribbean etc were really that easy to tick!  Out of those who understood what ethnicity meant, most found it very easy to chose, others felt there ethnicity had no impact at all on their identity. 

Discussing nationality was a lot easier, people didn't have an emotional connection with this, it is literally what their passport or passports say on the cover. 

Feedback from workshop

During the workshop I asked what 5 things people felt influenced their perosnal identity, I have compiled a list of most of these, great to see the differences and the similarities in these:

1	Presence
2	Happiness
3	Intelligence
4	Opinions
5	Dress sense
1	family
2	friends
3	school/education
4	nature
5	nurture & upbringing
1	family
2	music
3	friends
4	relationships
5	life experiences, both positive and traumatic
1	morals/ideals
2	open mindnesses
3	immigrant
4	in a committed relationship/married
5	politeness
1	Environment (people who surround you i.e. family and friends)
2	Culture (i.e. British, English, etc...)
3	Time (i.e. my generation)
4	Space/Geography (i.e. where I come from)
5	Sorry can't think or anything else :/
1	Friends
2	Family
3	Community
4	school/university
5	Background
1	my looks
2	personality
3	behaviour
4	where i socialize
5	what kind of people i socialize with
1	culture
2	religon
3	friends
4	ethnicity
5	family
1	my culture
2	my name
3	my family
4	my height
5	my weight

Graffi-tee/Identi-tee workshop findings

What do you understand by the word identity?

 How you look, feel and behave in relation to other people

 What or who you are, a definition of "self"

Personal Label

It's somewhat under your control but really what other people perceive of you at that moment and time of absolute labels - for instance if you have 2 children and you are 50 you will have a different identity than having 2 children and being 18 though the 2 children and the age are probably small parts of that person


A construct that is created through space and time in order for a person to feel they belong by attaching themselves to a certain identity

Who you are

Being able to have your own characteristics and being yourself. what people can identify you by 

What a person is

The sense of self


From the responses above it is great to see that there is a real understanding personal identity and sense of self.  It's interesting to see there is only a small proportion of young people talking about other people view of them, how they are perceived by the outside world etc.

 

Workshop development

Warm-up exercises and breaks
Further to my conversation with the young people involved in Graffi-tee I have developed some little exercises to break up the workshop.

Firstly, the warm-up exercise, this is a fun exercise, but slightly relative to the identity theme, and the meaning of words and names!

The young people organise themselves into groups of 3 people, person A, B and C, they then each take it in turns to say the numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4.  Person A begins and says the number 1, then person B says the number 2, person C says the number 3, and then person A says the number 4 and so forth, they try to keep a rhythm going.  After a few moments, they then have to replace some of the numbers with a word they think of or a name, and repeat the process.  As they do this the sounds and meanings of what they are saying become distorted as they try to keep up the process.  We can then discuss how we attached meanings and feelings to words and names, but that these can be removed very easily. 

Secondly a quick break exercise, again a fun exercise but with interesting results, each person is given a pen, a post-it note and then they are asked to draw a sketch of themselves in 30 seconds.  This exercise is not related to artistic talent but is another great example how we all see ourselves differently.  Even small elements like some people will draw their whole bodies, others just their heads!

Identi-tee and Musical workshops

One very simple and easy to change piece of feedback from the young people involved with Graffi-tee, is it's name, they felt Graffi-tee as a name was misleading, the workshops don't really have anything to do with Graffiti, and a lot to do with Identity, so I have amended the title to Identi-tee.

Although the Identi-tee project is going really well, and I have developed that already, and tested it with a variety of audiences.   My musical workshops idea is dying a slow death.  I haven't really been involved in any orchestra's or musical groups since school, and so I don't seem to have the contacts to help develop this.  I would love to work with a rapper and a musician, to develop something that would really appeal to the young people in my area.  We have a recording studio in the Youth Club that isn't really used that much, so we could utilise that space there, may need to book it in advance or pay something towards it.  I have contacted some friends at school who were very musical and some actor friends, to see if they know anyone, even people in musical theatre, as that would be great.

Feedback and Iteration

The workshops evolve with each group, group dynamics vary so much.  I always ask what I should change in their opinions, how I could do things better.  I always ask what they are most proud of at the end too, it helps me understand what exercises work the best.

June 2011 - Last tutorial of the Summer Term

We've just had our last tutorial!  I felt like I was in a good place, as I presented my workshop ideas, updating the group on my interactions with different groups in my area, and went through my time plan for the summer break.

I discussed my worry that I hadn't yet actually carried out any workshops, and how daunting the whole experience was, although I do feel a lot better prepared since my workshop with Simon Mole.  But teenagers are scary, they are bigger than me for starters, they are loud, and hard to pin down!  The advice was basically to get on with it, which I will as I want to start back next term in the best position I can be in. 

We discussed my artefacts, and whether they were the processes I have gone through to get to this point, the workshop exercises themselves, or the t-shirts made by the respondents.  Obviously they are not the t-shirts, as I can't be judged on something other's have created.  Next I wondered about how best then I could dimensionalize the workshops for the purposes of the exhibition... luckily I have a few ideas brewing...

I was also concerned about presenting the diary, there have been numerous comments over the last few months about the preference to a hand written journal over a blog printed out.  Which I feel is a real shame, I see my blog as a very real and accurate log of my entire journey through MADS, and yes I do have a sketch book full of ideas, but it is also full of flyers I found interesting and articles I have read, which are not really needed in full. I really hope that as I have put actual written notes from my sketchbook into my blog this will be considered as a good way of combining the two. Richard said that I really must ensure that the relationship between the information gathering and reflective passages does not become disjointed. 

I have decided to use this entry as a monthly reflection also, as I seem to be flowing quite well here.  This month has yet again pushed me out of my comfort zone, meeting a lot of new people, young and old, and really having to sell myself and my workshop idea.  I have also had to take on a lot of responsibilities as part of the marketing team for the exhibition.  I have helped write a plan on how to promote the exhibition, prepared a huge PR contacts list, and really feel I am contributing to the team. 

I really hope over the summer period that my project moves into its final phase and that the workshops, and the exercises within then develop through the iterations from the young people, to create something that really helps them understand themselves better and have some positive experiences.

Then I can come back in the new term and start planning a way of dimensionalising the whole process for the final exhibition, and I have to keep remembering it's all about communication... I need to think about it being a sensory experience, and not rely on a high level of interaction or technology.  Clarity is the key, less can be more, it's all about a narrative!

I would like to work on the 650 synopsis too over the break as I can imagine it will be a process that is quite fiddly and time-consuming.  It must show and explain the genuine new knowledge that I have created in the subject area as well as for my own personal development.  The HOW will be very important, and the WHAT and WHY are kind of looking from the opposite direction now, with my conclusion hopefully fulfilling my IF.

The artefacts must be a means to an end, not the end itself, the vehicle for the research I guess.  The only problem I may have is how I actually display the evolution of my workshops in response to feedback.

I do not see the bibliography being an issue as I have been updating this regularly, although I haven't for the last few weeks, but will next week when I have some time, need to add in a few exhibitions I have been to lately, as well as the great articles I have read on teenagers and their sense of self, which have all shown that the psychology models used for them are just those of adults, there is a lot of research and numerous theories for children, but adolescents seem to have been ignored strangely enough. Surely, that teenage years are the most complex as far as personal identity is concerned!

I am still trying to get the music and theatre workshops underway too, I have been contacting a number of people, as well as existing groups, to see if I can observe the work they currently do, to see if I can work with some existing programs.  The reason I would like to also get these underway and test them with the young people in my local area is that I feel young people should have access to activities that excite them, and through this we can really work on the key themes of identity and commmunity.  They are difficult topics, and through something young people are passionate about, I feel we can really investigate them. 

Feedback

Hi Annahita

The new question: "How can teenagers be encouraged to build their awareness of and develop their own identities and their cultural identities through the use of crafting?"

I like this, mainly becasue it is more open-ended, and so gives you the opportunity to let the rssults of your reserch determine the way in whichyou continue to address your question.

"I am also working on a new idea that I would like to present to theheadmaster of a local school that is currently refurbishing, in which I have a workshop with the teenagers about identity (key questions outlined in myblog), and then each teenager is given a piece of a puzzle on which they need to visually, and texturally represent who they are and the culture theyfeel they belong to. I would like these pieces to be joined together tocreate a large installation for the school. I have spoken to a therapistabout the issues that may arise from investigating such areas and feelingswith young people, and have come up with a series of exercises that build onthe positivity of hopes, dreams and aspirations. "

This sounds like a very valid experiment. Again, you seem now to be findingways in which to discover how the teenagers themselves are best able toexpress themselves through craft, rather than arriving with a pre-set
agenda. I think this has to be a good thing.　

"Getting access to the teenagers is very difficult, they are naturally less likely to get involved in craft activities and are not usually organised bytheir parents, have their own lives! The studio I was hoping to work with
are still setting up, I will still keep in touch with them, and hopefully I can set up an evening workshop with their apprentices. But I have found a youth club who would like to participate of the summer holidays, so fingers crossed!"

Good luck with this initiative. I have the feeling that regular, low-level access to teenagers over the summer period will really drive your project forward. Remember that, in the final analysis, it is the quality rather than
quantity of the evidence that you adduce in response to your question which is of the greatest value and importance.

See you at the next tutorial - but do please get back to me if any of the above is not clear (or helpful)!

With best regards as ever

Richard

Student Peer Feedback

Year 2 - 10 May 2011 feedback proforma

FEEDBACK TO (STUDENT): Annahita
FEEDBACK FROM (STUDENT): Joseph A

IN YOUR OWN WORDS, PLEASE PROVIDE COMMENTS THAT YOU THINK WILL CRITICALLY SUPPORT YOUR COLLEAGUE’S PROJECT.

I think working with the school is a good idea because you could have a wide audience to work
with. The idea of the large installation for the school is a brilliant idea and could provide you with
a snapshot of how your final exhibit could be like. It could not only be your journey. The cultural
journey of the youth would also be highlighted. Are there any respondents from the migrant
communities? Maybe a visit to a community centre and interviews could introduce an important
strand to push this research further.

IN YOUR ESTIMATION- WHAT ARE THE STRENGTHS OF THE PROJECT?

Annahita’s passion and organisation. Narrowing the question down to involve teenagers fuels
the potential to grow. As teenagers are pack oriented, getting a core group involved will let the
project continue its own direction.

WHERE ARE THE GAPS IN, OR WHAT COULD BE THE THREATS TO, THE PROJECT AT THIS
STAGE? (no more than 3 of each, please)

I agree getting the teenagers is difficult, but this threat could be made a challenge. Maybe
you need a hook or an aspiration quote to emphasise the coolness factor. How can this be
sustained once an individual gets involved?

March Tutorial

I had a one on one tutorial with Richard on Tuesday which was extremely positive.  I discussed with him my interest in engaging younger people/teenagers with my project.  At the start of the tutorial, the other members of the group were around and one piece of feedback given to Joseph that I thought was really interesting was:

Use feedback from users to get gatekeepers on side.

So I am now thinking about re-inventing craft for the new generation, rather than preserving it.  The generation that probably doesn't know about the Slow movement.  They have had and want everything instantly.  They use the internet no an hourly basis to find information, to entertain and to communicate.  Can my project teach them how to slow down, enjoy a project, learn from each other, face-to-face, appreciate finer things, show that brands aren't always best?!  I would like to use my project to help the participants build an awareness of their identity and diversity.  My projects will need to be interactive and interesting enough to keep their attention.