Daily Danai

Art & Design Education

How We Can Learn to Listen

The value of listening is undeniable in education, leadership and communication. But what makes active listening so challenging? Bohm (2004) suggests that it’s our tendency to continuously repeat our own thoughts and filter out any information that doesn’t align with them. This is a defensive reflex, steering us toward confirmation during conversations rather than open […]

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How to reach goals

I visited the presentation of Ray Klaassen 12th of June 2023. As a former special forces operator he challenged his comfort zone by organizing his first public show in which he collaborated with different artistic disciplines such as; dance, music and song. He introduced the principle of the ‘learning pit’. I think he referred to […]

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How to deal with “ongezellig”

 “Stick your ears out the door because something is about to happen” Earlier this month, I had the privilege of attending the Inclusivity Pathway Training (IPT) conference initiated by Aminata Cairo. Representatives from various Dutch art academies, including AHK, ArtEZ, CodArts, Fontys, HKU, and WdKA, gathered at Amsterdam Hogeschool for the Arts for this event. […]

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How to stay Resillient

Last week I visited a college-lecture by Dai Carter. Based on his book Mental Resilience (mentale veerkracht) he shared stories about his life lessons as a special forces operator and how to deal with adversity. From an educational perspective it was an interesting to observe his preparation, way of story-telling, his interaction with the audience […]

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How to implement programmatic assessments

Mini conference Programmatic Assessments Hogeschool Rotterdam Tuesday 28 March 2023 Supported by: Laura Lobert (facilitator), Peter Schouten & Dominique Sluismans     The mini conference on programmatic assessments at Hogeschool Rotterdam (HR) was organized in response to the growing interest and discussions around the topic. The event was initiated by the chairman of the executive […]

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How to overcome crisis

There is a crisis at work. A situation I have not experienced before. Our dean, who is my direct supervisor, has decided to step aside in times of turmoil. Reason for this were different reports that indicated issues with staff. I am familiar with the challenges  as outlined in the report. I am trying to […]

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How to survive AI

How new tech will change higher art education in 2023 keywords: Online video’s, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence Danai Fuengshunut and AI As the world continues to evolve and technology advances, art academies and tutors have had to adjust their teaching methods to keep up. I believe 2023 will be a turning point due to the […]

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How to: Graduate Artschool

A few days ago I provided a meeting for our graduate students. It was based upon the idea that graduation can be a special kind of obstacle for students. The challenge of graduation is often not graduation itself, but the story we tell ourselves about what graduation means. I had designed a meeting that involved […]

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How to: Get Creative

Just finished the War of Art by Stephen Pressfield. I liked his concept of Resistance. Resistance for him is a destructive force that disables you from being creative. In his words: ‘with ever tree of creativity that grows; comes a shadow. Being creative for him is about finding ways to overcome that Resistance. In his […]

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How to: overcome yourself

Words I often hear from students during reflection-moment are distractions, procrastination, anxieties, and imposter syndrome. Studying on itself probably would not be half as difficult if it was not for ourselves. There is a title of a book that I often think about: ‘You Are What You Do’. Sometimes we perceive studying as a ritual […]

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