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Dance Education Blog

NDEO's "Dance Education" Blog features articles written by NDEO members about dance and dance education topics as well as periodic updates on NDEO programs and services. This is a FREE resource available to ALL.

Archive by author: NDEO StaffReturn
By Naima Prevots, Professor Emerita at American University and current Professor in NDEO's Online Professional Development Institute (OPDI) ~~ In 2021, I developed a course for NDEO’s Online Professional Development Program called OPDI 122: “Celebrating Voices of Contemporary Choreographers: Applications to Teaching, Learning, and Appreciation.” In this blog post, I want to share ideas about the last unit in this course, “Voices of Immigrant and Indigenous Artists.” In this two week cou...
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By Heather Harrington, Dance Faculty at Kean University ~~ The first time I heard a student of mine refer to dance as “the industry” was in 2015. Maybe she saw me physically recoil before saying, “not all dance falls under the category of industry.” My recoil was rooted in my reluctance to see the pursuit of dance as “a manufacturing activity or a distinct group of productive or profit-making enterprises” (Merriam-Webster). During feedback sessions in my composition classes, as I began to ...
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By Deepa Mahadevan, Research Scholar ~~ Is there something like pure aesthetics untainted by politics? This article explores the discomfort faced by researchers immersed in practice when critical research apparently conflicts with content. The author reflects on questions that arose when she participated in the choreographic process of Maya Kulkarni, New York based award winning choreographer...
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By Caitlin Barfield, Independent Dance Instructor ~~ Let’s talk about teaching philosophies. It has taken me years of training and teaching to come into my own pedagogical style. You must understand that as a young dancer, I was pushed to my limit and then some. While I was training to be a professional dancer, I found myself at the end of my rope time and time again. Overworked, burned out, and beaten down - not to mention the psychological trauma of it all, too...
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By Emily Enloe, Dance Educator at Oakbrook Middle School in South Carolina ~~ Like many educators, COVID-19 accelerated my tough daily load of teaching. I struggled with turning my program on a dime to meet new COVID-related protocols while remaining focused on what was important—the students and their needs. Although the changes gave me some time and ability to experiment in new ways with my dance program, it also took a toll on my mental and physical health. After being stuck at home during...
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by Cheryl Johnson, Adjunct Lecturer, Dance - University of Rochester ~~ I perceive jazz dance as a creation of people: people that I have met and who have influenced my life, and people of the past who have revolutionized American culture: Charles Sherwood: my uncle, percussionist with the U.S. Navy Band in Korea, who turned me on to jazz chord progressions: Steve Porter: dancer in the Company of Man, Buffalo, NY a Vietnam War Veteran who turned me on to the music of Nina Simone and dancing from...
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By Luke Kahlich, Professor Emeritus, Temple University ~~ While I understand the complexity of charting new territory in assessment, I am concerned that the value of the content in the arts is not sacrificed for expediency or structure. I believe that we have entered a new age where the only certainty is change and that the future success of students will depend on flexibility in thought, knowledge of access procedures, and tolerance and respect of multiple perspectives. To address this new worl...
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by Pascal Rekoert, Assistant Professor and Dance Education Program Director at Central Connecticut State University ~~ If one thinks about teaching and learning in dance education, the realization dawns quickly that, like the art form, dance education is a gendered field. As a nation, the U.S. upholds rigorous and conservative beliefs and values towards gender norms, especially the expectations towards men. While dance has become increasingly accepted for males, especially in progressive regions...
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By Elizabeth McPherson, Professor and Director of the Dance Division, Montclair State University ~~ Historically, US dance has stood in comparison to European dance, often striving to emulate Western European aesthetics. Dance forms seen as lacking in these aesthetics have been deemed less artistic and less refined. While Western European influence on much of US culture including dance remains strong, there are many, many more influences and dance histories that comprise US dance. Perspectives o...
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By Maria Haralambis, M.Ed., NASM CES, FMT, The Dance Scientist, LLC, PhD Student, Entrepreneur ~~ The field of Dance Science is an excellent way for dancers to learn about their bodies, anatomy and biomechanics from a young age. These lessons on anatomical awareness impact dancers for the rest of their lives and are unique to dance. One of the biggest ways I believe we can make Dance Science more normalized is by having a consistent curriculum for young dancers, who I believe are left out of dan...
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By Danielle Lydia Sheather, MFA, Assistant Professor of Dance, Southern Utah University ~~ Following the remarks of Kentucky’s Governor Matt Bevin in 2018, "If you're studying interpretive dance, God bless you, but there's not a lot of jobs right now in America looking for people with that as a skill set," I found it urgent to study the relationship between dance, higher education and the stigma that surrounds majoring in the subject...
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By Demi Agaiby, M.S., Dance Psychology Consultant and Director of Beyond Horizons Performance ~~ As dance educators, it seems as though there is constant pressure to create. Whether it's choreographing the group piece for the spring showcase or putting the final touches on a competition solo - we've all been in a situation where we are rushing to beat the clock. Although we might have a plan in place to get those things done, life happens. Perhaps a snowstorm cancels a much-needed rehear...
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by Pascal Rekoert, Assistant Professor and Dance Education Program Director at Central Connecticut State University ~~ After two adventurous years that feel like a century due to COVID-19 pitfalls and pratfalls, I am learning to prioritize self-care. As a perfectionist and chronic overachiever who has had difficulty separating work from family life while working remotely, the importance of to-do's, have-to-do's, and overdue-do's ...
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by Jennifer Meckley, Assistant Professor of Dance at Ball State University ~~ As a gender non-conforming pansexual dance teacher in higher education, I have been conversing with colleagues and students about the challenges LGBTQIA and genderqueer students experience in academia and ways we can create safer and more inclusive spaces for these students. I will offer tips on how I have been proactively creating these spaces and will provide some insight on how everyone can contribute to creating he...
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by Nancy H. Moses, Professor Emerita, Bridgewater State University ~~ What do MADEO, MMEA, MAEA and METG have in Common? This fruit salad of initials is a group of Massachusetts Professional Arts Education Organizations; they are all concerned with Advocacy; and they are all a part of a collective impact coalition called Arts for All in Massachusetts gathered together with other organizations by a group called Arts|Learning. Arts for All was created partly in response to the realization that STE...
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