Projects

With the arts now part of the Australian Curriculum, we are promoting dance as a key artform in alongside music, visual arts, drama and media arts.

Did you know that ABC management is planning to axe or combine several of its key arts programs on both radio and television in 2012? These programs are where dance is profiled through previews, interviews, panel discussions and opinion pieces.

Identifies four ambitions for 2012, with a list of achievable objectives. These ambitions reflect the diversity and dynamism of dance in our communities. They require our energy and attention to ensure that dance, as an artform and an enjoyable form of recreation for all, remains at the heart of Australian life.

We are working to ensure that the new dance curriculum (now part of the Australian curriculum) is high quality, provides every Australian child with a sequential and developmental dance experience, and that teachers are well resourced to teach it. We will help dance educators and students by highlighting successful teaching models and best practice, and give teachers the support they need to run a successful dance program.

The Australian Government has committed to producing a National Cultural Policy, and a discussion paper was released for comment in August. We organised for 30 national arts service organisations to meet with Arts Minister Simon Crean at Parliament House in Canberra on 17 August. The Minister heard our collective views and provided a briefing on the dicussion paper and the role of the National Broadband Network. Most arts organisations, including Ausdance, ArtsPeak and the National Advocates for Arts Education, have made submissions.

This, the fourth book in the series Celebrating Dance in Asia and the Pacific, explores the current dance scene in Australia from a wide perspective that mirrors the creative engagement of artists with Australian culture and the landscape.

Some of Australia’s most exciting dancers, choreographers, curators, critics and collaborators met to discuss and reflect on the state of dance practice in Australia now, and to chart a course for the future.

SCOPE’s aim was to ensure that dance artists proactively participated in and effectively managed their own careers, education and personal development. Each of the artists worked with a professional career counsellor to develop their own career action plans. The program aimed to capture, transfer and adapt the creative capital of the individual artist to other areas of work and productivity.

We want dance part of every young person's education. The current popularity of dance with young people, evidenced by rocketing attendance at dance classes in studios across Australia, offers huge potential for developing creativity and innovation across the curriculum. The opportunity is huge for dance to be a valued part of every person’s education, offering creative, healthy and stimulating experiences for all Australians throughout their lives.

This, the fourth book in the series Celebrating Dance in Asia and the Pacific, explores the current dance scene in Australia from a wide perspective that mirrors the creative engagement of artists with Australian culture and the landscape.

After nation-wide research, Innovation and Business Skills Australia concluded that 'there is strong industry and community demand for national qualifications to help lift standards across the profession and set clear national benchmarks which promote consistency while maintaining flexibility'.

The 2011 Dance Education in Australian Schools (DEAS) roundtable focused on providing feedback to the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) on the Draft Shape Paper: The Arts. The roundtable also heard from several speakers and organisations about their role in advocating for dance in the curriculum. The roundtable was facilitated by dance educator and author David Spurgeon.