Teaching Vision
"The one thing that can solve most of our problems is dancing" -James Brown
Photography by Stan Barugh
Dance Education is Essential
My passion for dance education is guided by the vision of American modern dance pioneer Katherine Dunham (2015) who stated that dance is an essential part of our human development. Brain research shows that our first movements in the womb build our brains, forming the neural connections that make possible all our cognitive functions. These reflexes develop in a sequential way, forming our abilities to process information, regulate our emotions, socialize with others and engage in higher order thinking. In the words of Anne Green-Gilbert (2018), “movement is essential to learning." It’s no wonder that in many cultures around the world, the performing arts are regarded as an integral part of life (Dunham, 2015). We are natural movers with an evolutionary need to express ourselves through the body.
Dance Education Empowers Agency
How we move impacts who we are, and who we are impacts how we move. The way we learn movement underlies how we learn anything new, in incremental steps that build on each other. When students accomplish new skills in dance class, they are empowered to try for the next, mastering a balance before they work towards executing a single turn, or rippling through body parts in isolation before doing a full body wave. These accumulative successes give students a sense of agency that translates into other aspects of their lives; students must first successfully add and subtract in a mathematics class before they can multiply and divide. They must identify how they are feeling before they can express their needs to a friend. Every intimidating accomplishment can be broken down into manageable parts. With this mindset, students become practiced at approaching the world through possibilities. Movement training supports empowered, solution-based ways of moving through life's daily feats.
Photography by Stan Barugh
Dance Education Builds Community
My dance classes are a place for students to be physically active, pleasantly challenged and to lose a sense of time because they are having fun together, getting creative and building new kinesthetic skills. By doing so, they also develop social connections and build community. I am also inspired by the idea that “movement is always reflecting what’s happening in society” (George, 2021). When students learn about the social and cultural origins of dance genres, they learn more about dance, more about humanity and more about themselves. Through this process of creating, performing and analyzing dances (McCutchen, 2006), they develop essential life skills of collaboration, creative problem solving, adaptability, interpersonal skills and global awareness. Dance education is unique in that it develops students cognitively, kinesthetically, artistically and socially, all at once (McCutchen, 2006). This integration is vital for the development of self-aware, reflective and adaptable human beings.
Photography by Stan Barugh
References
Dunham, K. (2005). Dance as a Cultural Art and Its Role in Development. In VeVe A. Clark and Sara E. Johnson (Eds) Kaiso! writings by and about Katherine Dunham (pp. 540-547). Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press.
George, M. (2021) Virtual Lecture. Rutgers University.
Gilbert A. (2018) Brain-Compatible Dance Education 2nd Edition. Human Kinetics.
McCutchen, B. P. (2006). Teaching Dance as Art in Education. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.