5b. The broader view on ethics

It was impossible for me to find specific free lance choreographers 'codes of conduct' as they tend to tie in with personal morals and so instead of being written down for the public to view, they are ingrained in each individual person. So I decided to look at a range of theatre's and teaching boards instead. I have selected the following 5 different codes of conduct to study and compare.The reason for this is these 5 are very varied in their history and style, but they all made me think in some way.

Under Polka Theatre's artistic values the following three points are written:

* Resonant – to provoke ideas, thoughts, questions about yourself and the world

* Engaging – to stir your emotions & spark your imagination

* Fun, exciting & entertaining – serious purpose, but with a playful, light touch

The reason I have highlighted these values is because I didn't think about what I wanted my students to get out of my sessions. I was so initially concerned in what I should be doing, and how I should act that I didn't think about desired outcomes of each individual session. By bringing to my attention the idea that each session should be exciting as well as informative, it may alter my approach to how I deliver the material. However I think it is very important to note that this code of conduct comes from a children's theatre company, and that if I was choreographing for a adult professional show I probably wouldn't focus on this. This sparks an awareness in my head- do my ethics alter depending on who I am working with? In general I think nothing should change, however some points my be added or taken away depending on the situation.  

When looking at Chickenshed Theatre under the Inclusive Child Protection Policy, I found the importance of focusing on the progress of the individual very interesting, and also how they approach it.
The conduct reads:

Chickenshed will ensure that there are strong Staff to Child and Inclusive Support Worker to Child Ratios in workshops. Staff and Inclusive Support Workers will offer a range of direct and indirect support experiences to ensure children are able to both progress steadily to managing their own inclusion with as much independence as possible – while at the same time being as “safe” as possible.

Chickenshed will ensure that all children are treated as individuals with their progress, welfare and needs monitored and planned for on an individual basis

I think it is particularly interesting that Chickenshed talk about direct and indirect support. What does this mean to me? I guess direct support literally means having a hands on approach to the work and being there to help with the material, something I think I naturally do as a choreographer and teacher. However indirect support is a bit more complex. I think it partly means that you should encourage the student to find their own way of approaching the material by being an open supportive member of the class. I also think it means you should be sensitive to the individuals personal life and asses whether extra emotional support is needed. I think this is an important element to consider when choreographing as sometimes the vision you want to create cannot be achieved for whatever reason. Rather than just criticising and getting frustrated it may be more appropriate to work through the problem by utalising the individuals talent.  

In addition to this thought, I think the fact that Chickenshed take so much care in the individuals progress really inspiring and something people can forget when choreographing. Sometimes my profession can become selfish as it is all about the choreographers vision and what they want, rather than the overall experience for the student/ company member. I think this is something that should be reminded to people.

The Chichester Festival Theatre's Holiday Activity Assistant guidelines state the following:

The needs of the child must come first – not the workshop activities or the sharing performance at the end of the week.  

This idea really made me think about the practical side of putting together a workshop and about how as a practitioner you have to constantly be aware of the needs of the people you are working with, even if it means compromising the workshop and sometimes affecting the others in the room. I need to as a choreographer, be constantly aware of the health and safety risks especially when working with young people.

The Royal Academy of Dance under the Code of Professional Practice talks about their vision as

Leading the world in dance education and training

I have highlighted this point as it is very contrasting to Polka Theatre's theory of fun and entertainment. The R.A.D conduct does later go on to talk about how classes should be fun, but it is very obvious that the R.A.D's expectations are to train students in dance from a practical and educational perspective. Adapting this to myself as a free lancer, this point has made me aware that I have to be aware of what my desired outcomes are for each individual project. For example, this month I am covering classes at Chichester University and I will be preparing them for their assessments. I must be aware that when I cover these classes it is expected of me to be informative and concise in what I am teaching so that I give the students the best possible chance of doing well in their assessments. This completely contrasts to a workshop I am taking this Friday for the Chichester Festival Theatre which involves me choreographing a fun routine to One Short Day from Wicked,as the workshop is a fun half term activity.

The R.A.D conduct also states that teachers must at all times:

*act with honesty and integrity

*have secure subject knowledge

*keep their knowledge and skills as teachers up to date

*engage in self-evaluation

*forge positive professional relationships, and

*work with parents and guardians in the best interests of their students

*Misrepresent their qualifications, experience or professional status

I have highlighted the two points above because one challenged me to think about myself as an ever evolving choreographer and to be open to adapting my methods of choreography and teaching and the other challenged me how I present/ sell myself. The latter point is something I had't thought about at all but is something I can see is very important. I must always be honest with my skills and qualifications so that I don't mislead anyone or put anyone in a compromising position.

Finally the I.S.T.D conduct was very similar to the R.A.D conduct but just not as detailed. I just wanted to bring up this point purely because it could be argued that a few simple ethics are easily to keep and put in place than too many that you can't remember or practice regularly. I must make sure that the points I put in place are realistic and important to me so that I can keep to them as much as possible.

When looking at all 5 of the conducts there were some common points in all which I think are worth mentioning. They are as follows:

* The importance of communicating with parents/ carers

*The importance of monitoring and planning each individual's progress

* How important it is to be well trained in your area of work

The importance of confidentiality

From studying these 5 conducts I have found that rather than changing my original ideas, I want to add a couple more points, but also I have become very aware of the fact that some situations require me to alter my perspective. This shows how 'grey' ethics can be. There is never a right or wrong, rather a way to help you in different situations. I would like to add the following to my original points: 

* Under professionalism I would like to add that I must be honest with my qualifications and experience. 

* Under prepared I would like to add to alter my sentence to I must take the time to prepare appropriately for the project I am working on. I then want to add I must always be aware of the desired outcomes for the session and try to always fulfill these outcomes.

*I want to add a section called progress so that I make sure that (when appropriate) I am making sure the progress of the students is the fore front of my mind and that I do everything I can to tailor their progress individually. The reason I have put when appropriate is on certain projects this is not. For example when choreographing for the Union Theatre my job was very much to help get the choreography taught and onto the stage, not to improve and help the dancers as they were already professionally trained. 

WOW! I feel so drained yet so excited by all that I have discovered! That was one epic blog!