The present study uses a qualitative approach to focus on dance improvisation and flow. Dance instructors with wide experience in performing and teaching dance improvisation took part in semi-structured interviews that featured questions about dance improvisation and flow, including issues of flow in dance education with children. The data were…

Dance teachers use a wide range of methods to communicate effectively with students. Amongst the many possibilities, movement demonstration is often a salient, even expected, tool in dance classes. But when the teacher's body undergoes an injury or other significant physical change, what effect does the altered physical experience have on…

This article presents a critical consideration of the ways in which specialist dance teachers in New Zealand state secondary schools respond to curriculum expectations to incorporate Maori arts content into their lessons. Disparity between Maori and non-Maori achievement is evident in the state schooling system. More than 20% of students in New…

This article investigates and discusses Swedish preschool teachers' work with and understanding of teaching dance. Preschool teachers should teach aesthetic expressions such as dance, according to the curriculum. This study depicts how preschool teachers, in semi-structured group interviews in 18 preschools, describe their work with teaching…

Whilst the fight for the inclusion of dance in schools has been an ongoing struggle, current government directives and educational policies present an even greater threat to the future of quality dance education in schools and this needs to be addressed. This paper begins to explore the certificated dance education currently on offer in the United…

In internationalised dance education, many teachers undertake inclusive philosophies and identify themselves as inclusive educators. But there may be possible differences between theories in minds and practices in studios, leading to the research inquiry: How might dance teachers' teaching practices for international students extend from their…

The political hierarchies and assumptions built around tenure and promotion processes across U.S. postsecondary institutions are fraught with complexities and have a significant effect on eventual outcomes. A tenure case's success or failure could depend on many factors, possibly including circumstances out of a candidate's control such as the…

Dance holds a unique place in academia. The creative, embodied, collaborative activities typical to dance learning offer fresh insight to cross-disciplinary literature on the graduate attributes -- both visible and 'invisible' -- all graduates from a given institution are expected to hold. This article presents findings from the research project…

What can we learn from K-5 science teachers who have integrated science and creative dance for a five-year period? In this paper, the preliminary findings of the qualitative research conducted by a constructivist elementary charter school principal, a university dance professor, and an educational researcher is presented.This research highlights…

The purpose of this action research is to explore the value of 'touching' when teaching in a ballet studio-based class. This method, as part of cultural heritage, is traditionally used and preserved to correct students, but in today's society, this could become challenging and problematic in Higher Education. Is this way of teaching still…

What constitutes African dances as valid knowledge? Do the learning processes of African dances in local communities entail rational consciousness and epistemological interpretations of the learner? How do the processes of dance practice double as frameworks of construction of meanings? The foregoing questions provided parameters for critical…

Discussions about tenure among postsecondary education dance faculty elicit a spectrum of perspectives and emotions ranging from excitement to confusion to fear. Faculty carefully weigh the potential for academic freedom and job security against the sometimes unclear and potentially unreasonable expectations regarding how to achieve tenure. These…

In the 'Western' world, dance is generally considered a feminised activity and gender traditionally tends to be drawn along binary lines. Traditional notions of idealised gendered bodies in dance are often valorised. Psychologically, girls are expected to be passive, by unquestioningly accepting the instructions of the dance teacher, whereas boys…

This qualitative case study examined the definitions, structure and pedagogical approaches that constituted a creative movement program as part of an artist-in-school-scheme for pre-schools. Data was collated through audio-recorded interviews with teachers, the school principal and dance instructor. Creative movement classes were video recorded…

Examining practice, within education, is complex and never straightforward. It is not a surprise that when we conduct research, we discover new and contrary meanings. For the last 16 months we have been examining different means for supporting teaching and learning of the arts in primary schools. Our aim was to better understand how to teach the…