Task 1b; Professional Communication Technologies First Draft

Professional Communication Technologies - First Draft



Technology in our world today;

In today's world technology can be seen to control us, nearly everyone has one if not more devices, children are getting younger and younger using technology, and the way we think, learn and live depends on it. I feel I am the last generation to have grown up without technology taking over my everyday life, to now depending on it for nearly everything. How quickly our world has improved technically and how the younger generation has the ability to adapt to this lifestyle so quickly.

Web 2.0 in the workplace;

Professional communication and information technologies are used extensively in society today and throughout the workplace, it has increased the level to achieve and is a quicker and more sufficient way of learning, it also allows people to work or study from anywhere in the world. Schools have unlimited access to resources and tools through easy to use devices they can interact with, this supports teachers and students to work together in a structured, expeditious manor. This takes the idea of hard work out of the children's mind and replaces it with fun learning.
Web 2.0 is encouraged by businesses as it draws colleagues together, sharing information and ideas in the workplace. Skype and other video sharing networks allow conference calls for businesses to connect together over the world instantly. It is also encouraged for the general public to use as much as possible, many shops or places of interest will have devices to get feedback or ask for help.
We use Web 2.0 constantly in our everyday life, but it brings me back to my thought earlier on how I grew up without most devices until a certain age, life today is made so easy we don't even have to leave our homes, with this being said is it improving our future, or making the people of the future inactive?


Reflecting on my own relationship with PCT;

 After researching Web 2.0 I realised I use most communication technologies, allowing me to research and network my business whilst keeping up with my private life. For a freelance performer networking is key, for this I use a number of different ways to grab a potential employers attention. Facebook and YouTube are normally the first places an employer will look to see how you present yourself and the level of your profession. It allows me to interact with with fellow colleagues, video share ideas and photos regarding auditions and jobs. I have instant access to my emails so I don't miss any job requests, updates and news whilst on a current job or keeping social with family and friends. I can quickly interact with the world, sharing my pages,thoughts and style whilst gaining experience from other people anywhere in the world.


Looking at Tim O'Reily an early advocate for Web 2.0's meme map, it shows what is recognised for an application to be classed under Web 2.0. It suggests different concepts and decides and if it comes under communication process or interactive. The diagrams also looks at how an application can transform text from being published to other people being involved. This relates and highlights the "play" and "trust your users" from the diagram and also looks at the behaviour of the Web 2.0 application.

Different positions and interpretations;

There are different aspects to consider when looking at Web 2.0, below I will talk about the 3 main competencies,
Architectures of participation is related to Web 2.0 as it enables the users to interact in an active and passive way, according the English Oxford dictionary the meaning of participation is,
"The action of taking part in something"  (https://en.oxforddictonaries.com/definition/participation)
Web 2.0 allows you not only to take part in something but to also to create it. This being said it is only achievable if you have the right tools provided.
If we don't have time, money, skills, infrastructure, etc then we will be unable to participate in something (Hamilton 2000)
Web 2.0 is created as an easy to use network allowing everyone to use, interact and change information whilst sharing it around the world. It also means the user is free to do much more with the information and customise their platform to their choices and needs.

Web 2.0 is supported by remixable data and transformation, this means the data can be reused and rearranged by its users. It's gives the freedom and encouragement for the people who see the information to participate with it.
"the consumer is also the producer" (Valtysonn 2010, page 205)
A great definition by Valtysonn on Web 2.0 that explains that today information, images, videos etc can be shared and changed by other users. This can be challenging in today's world as people like myself network and promote their business online, for the information to be accessed and changed by everyone means I have no control over where my information is going, but it is also one the key selling points for Web 2.0.

Web 2.0 allows communities to go beyond their networks and into others, changing your space whilst linking your pages with others. Users can interact and support applications such as Wikipedia whilst sharing and discussing information via blogs and social media pages. I can research practitioners, jobs, news on the arts and discuss this on Facebook, Twitter etc with other people in the industry. We are constantly relating information to each other and trying to expand our knowledge on our profession.


Ethical Consideration;


Speaking earlier about how my information can be seen and shared by a wider audience, it is important to consider what you post.
Web 2.0 is an amazing way to market and promote myself as a business however, getting to the right audience is important. Keeping my private and work life separate is key and constantly building a good online reputation for my employers/viewers.
Considering that there is a younger audience always watching and learning from you is also important. In the future I wish to teach and help young people in the industry, in order to do this I already need to create a professional and inspiring environment around me.
"Social media services and apps can also be used as educational tools, but there are important issues to consider including privacy, appropriate content, security and your comfort level with the apps and services". (connect safely.org)
I think teachers are most in danger with social media as you are always being watched not only by student but by their parents and other practitioners around you, it's a tricky business but also so rewarding if you use the tools in the right way for yourself and your students.
When using Web 2.0 your also need to consider where you get your information from and copyright purposes.

Task 1a - Professional Profile/CV First Draft

Task 1a - Professional Profile/CV - 1st Draft



Being a freelance artist means between contracts I work part time to support my everyday life, these jobs are not always related to the industry and I keep them on a separate CV.
My professional CV has a different layout to my work one and also a different style and feel, I will talk about these below.

My original performance CV was not created by myself, I graduated with an agent to help me into auditions and get jobs and the layout was specific to the agency. It was clean, easy to read and attractive and when I decided to not continue on with the agency I used theirs as a template to create my own. In the dance industry castings are usually done based on looks and personality, before you've even danced, If I'm at an audition and I'm number 357, alongside me are girls that share the same qualities, look and dress similar all going for the same job, so anything to help you stand out from the crowd is really important.

This is how my current CV looks today, a headshot can be attached separately from the credits but I like to include mine all together so there isn't more than one paper for a director to flick through. However sometimes casting directors like to see more than one image and maybe including a separate page of 2 to 3 different body/headshots would be helpful. I think my CV is organised and easy to differentiate between my details, work and skills. To improve this I would try different fonts to make the writing clearer, I also would change the colour theme to see if something else worked better.


Moving onto my work CV, this is a lot more basic in regards to layout, I didn't use any colour to separate the sections and made the layout in more of a 'letter' style. I did keep my headshot because most of the work I apply for has a model/character influence and I think it's important for an employer to see what you look like whilst applying, without sounding like the vainest person in the world.

I do think I can improve on this a lot more and have changed it a few times already, I'm unsure whether to include my GCSE's and college qualifications in more detail and whether to put my work experience into a table like my performance CV. My previous version was a few pages longer, with more detailed sections on my skills and included a personal statement. I changed it as I gained more experience as I felt the credits spoke for themselves and I didn't need to babble on.

             

I think I will take some important points from my old CV and include them in the rework of my new one to add more personality and engage the reader, I was reading the Evening Standard and an article on how to improve your CV came up. Niki Chesworth spoke about keeping your CV clean for an employer to read,

" With little time to scan each CV, recruiters do not want to see anything unnecessary on your application. Photos, jargon, hobbies, and outdated employment history and unnecessarily big words were cited as the most irrelevant, according to the CV-Library." Niki Chesworth, Evening Standard.

 

Skype Session on Task 1;

Module 1; Skype call with Paula

Today was our first group Skype session with Paula and other students focusing on Module 1 and any questions we had. We started by introducing ourselves and how far we had gotten with reading and brainstorming the idea of Professional Communication, I found we were on the same page and had similar queries.

After researching Web 2.0 I was able to relate this in our discussion, talking about social networking, video sharing, and the importance of sharing articles and news. An important point made was the advantage of keeping your work profile and personal one separate, which is something I mix together. That being said I was confused with how to apply the Ethical Consideration to my work, but after talking about the separate profiles we discussed keeping our audiences in mind. Mixing both my profiles together means my work photos etc are seen by non performers, which is okay for family members, work colleagues, employers and close friends but what about the other 2000 people who see me half undressed in a costume, it also made me think is the information going to the right people and how can I channel this in the right direction.
This brought me on to Architecture of Participation, a good example was a page that had been created for a up and coming dance school can be shared across social media by the community of people that follow you, this is also putting your trust in social media to get your message across.

I feel a lot more confident about reading on general practitioners and how they relate to my work and continuing with my first draft of Professional Communication Technologies. Paula really helped the areas I was unsure of and it was good to listen to other students ideas and progress.

Alicia

My First blog

My First Blog;


My First Blog;

A big Welsh hello and welcome to my first blog. My name is Alicia, I am 24 and a freelance dancer living in London. Currently I am working as Dance Captain at The London Cabaret Club on their new season show "London Never Dies" whilst working in other areas of the industry.

Writing my first blog is exciting as well as daunting as this is the first time I will working in this way with my studies, I am very excited to be starting the BAPP Arts course today but has made me realise how I need to prepare and organise myself for future work.

A abit about my background, I studied dance in my home town Neath where I trained in Latin and Ballroom, Ballet and Jazz, continuing onto College I completed a BTEC and ALevel in Dance whilst getting my first insight into Singing and Acting. Unsure whether to go to University or Musial Theatre school I applied to both and decided to go to Cambridge Performing Arts for 3 years. Over the course of my training I found myself as a performer and what type of future I wanted in the industry and I'm very happy with how far I've come 3 years later.

I initially wanted to start the BAPP when I graduated, but work and London life took over and I found myself pushing it back until I had some more free time. I'm at a place now where I'm ready to invest myself into the course and with the guidance of my academic tutors and other students/bloggers achieve my degree.

I'm very excited for what's ahead and to share it with you all,
Alicia