Re-thinking the way we teach dance

In This Article

Creative uses of technology are the focus of two papers in this section. A thorough investigation into the complexity and challenges of on-line learning and teaching in dance, and the ultimate rewards and bringing together of geographically spread dance communities through virtual platforms is both instructive and persuasive. On the other hand, the rewards and challenges of ‘dancing’ doctorates—a growing area of dance research—tackles the inverse problematics of examining ‘liveness’ and the valuing of ‘performance mastery’ in a research degree environment that continues to privilege more traditional approaches.

A surprisingly welcome number of papers focus on the changing nature of dance pedagogy from teaching primary students through to the tertiary sector. Predominant issues explored are new models of teaching to include cultural identity and inclusivity from a non-Eurocentric perspective, such as adopting Maori ways of knowing and learning in New Zealand, to embodied learning as a way of teaching dance theory and conversely eliciting theory from embodied practice.

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