How DasArts improves the quality of feedback

Maika Knoblich (25): ‘I was excellently prepared’

‘Feedback is a gift’, says philosopher Karim Bennamar who was invited by DasArts to implement new tools for giving more effective feedback. Do the new tools work? ‘Definitely’, says DasArts participant Maika Knoblich (25): ‘They greatly helped me to present my ideas in order to acquire a prestigious DAAD grant from the German Academic Exchange Service.’

Feedback: when you work in the arts field, it is a daily and necessary instrument for improving the quality of your work. That is why in 2010 DasArts started a course  to enhance the quality of professional feedback. Managing director Barbara Van Lindt: ‘The aim is to create a culture in which feedback is considered a valuable tool during the learning process. No longer something to fear, but something to wish for.’

No critique
And indeed, for DasArts participant Maika Knoblich, feedback is now something to look forward to. ‘Very often, for instance at my former university, feedback was phrased as critique. It was like a slap in the face, people pointed out  what you had done wrong. Their comments were  overshadowed by their own viewpoints. During DasArts’ Feedback Sessions, Karim Bennamar taught us how to give and receive constructive feedback. His basic point: feedback is a gift. It’s something to be very grateful for.’

Philosopher Bennamar is one of two specialists invited by DasArts to lead a workshop on feedback. Both him and theatre maker Siegmar Zacharias, are also active on a regular basis in the business world. At DasArts their input has led  to new ideas and techniques that are now used during so-called Feedback Sessions. In these sessions, all students present work and give and receive feedback.

Scholarship
During the Feedback Sessions, Maika Knoblich presented her proposal for the DAAD grant (Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst), a prestigious German scholarship for directors. Maika: ‘The feedback really helped me to conduct myself very well during my actual presentation for the German committee. I was excellently prepared for the questions they might ask me. For instance: why I thought I was entitled to a director’s scholarship for my studies? I am not a ‘director’ in the classic  sense: I make site-specific work, I have never directed a group of actors. There were 30 applicants; most of them came from directing or drama schools. So during the feedback session, they made it clear I would have to explain  why I consider myself a director. Because I rehearsed and thought through my replies, I was able to answer the committee clearly and logically.’

Different perspectives
The Feedback workshop are well structured, says Maika. Her peers, the educational team and Bennamar were present. Especially the tool ‘feedback from different perspectives’ worked very well. ‘It really teaches you to assume certain roles. For instance, Karim would say: As a fellow director, I wonder what kind of director you are. Another person said: As a funder of a German institution, I wonder why I should give you the grant instead of someone who studied to become a director at a traditional theatre school. Or: As a very old, traditional theatre maker, I cannot imagine what your work looks like.’

Self-discipline
Another tool that is used during the sessions, is ‘affirmative feedback’. According to Bennamar, feedback should help you improve. So, the feedback in this format is phrased affirmatively which is something else then just saying you liked it. It’s about learning from those aspects that function well. You start affirmative feedback with the phrase: What worked for me was … This kind of affirmative feedback demands  a lot of self-discipline from those giving the feedback. Maika explains: It’s very different from regular feedback. ‘You don’t just say what pops up in your mind, share your particular thoughts and opinions, or just say something because you like to hear yourself talk. No, you always ask yourself: does my feedback contribute to the learning process of the other?’

Too many slides
Maika also received very practical tips. ‘My first presentation contained far too many slides. I wanted to show as much of my projects as possible. During the session, I was advised to show a maximum of 4 slides per project. So I had to shorten the presentation a lot, by making  a careful selection.’ Funnily enough, Maika didn’t use her power point presentation during her meeting with the committee. ‘They just wanted to talk. I brought my laptop, so at a certain point I could show them some of my work.’

High quality
The result? She was one of two applicants selected from a total of 30 from all over Germany. ‘Last year, I had to work as a lighting designer to support myself, while following the DasArts programme. I am really happy that next year I can focus fully on my artistic development and that of my work.’

Text: Petra Boers