Sorry for the delay in posting something, like everybody else it´s non-stop isn´t it? I have to say that this module is getting more interesting by the week! I am discovering views and opinions that I have never really thought about before. I´ve always thought of myself as having opinions but "going with the flow" not to cause conflict or to sound silly, or uneducated etc. Today, I feel slightly proud as I was in a meeting and stood my ground, I was not going to be "bullied" into being quite or feeling inadequate! This actually isn´t what I said I would blog about but I just wanted to share that with you all!
I have to admit that I have always been a bit wary about dance being an academic subject (yes I´m a product of dance training from the early 80´s!), but I am seeing the rewards of various frameworks. Gibb´s reflective cycle really has opened my eyes, the fact that feelings and emotions are involved in the learning cycle has made me realise that I could have tackled some situations differently. Would I have had a different experience if I was not so emotional myself, should I have been more professional in my actions? Questions that I still don´t know the answers to yet, but I´m hoping to find out.
Kolb´s experiential learning cycle is fascinating (could be intriguing too because I was a student when his book was published) and I see that his model is something that I practice, but only in my later years. I wonder what path my teaching would have taken if I had experienced this tool at the beginning of my practice? Am I a better teacher because I did not have a framework to connect with, or would it have saved me a lot of time and effort? Would love to hear anybody´s views. Samantha

Hi Everybody! After our conversation yesterday, I would like to reflect about dance pupils and their focus on learning dances/performing in relationship to learning technique and having technique classes. I firstly, teach classical ballet which we know has a strong focus on technique. As a pupil, learning dances in classes were only in connection with an exam or performance, so learning a routine weekly was never the norm.  Society has changed, and I wonder if children today do not want to work on the “boring” stuff.  I see my pupils changing from ballet to other forms, could it be that ballet´s progression is too slow or that it is too repetitive? Do pupils today expect results quicker maybe? Have genres such as hip-hop and street, where there is less focus on technique, and certainly more “freedom” and individuality, contributed to pupils´ expectations of a dance class?

Has society today created a generation of “quick fixers”? Pupils today certainly do a lot more activities and swap from one to the other. Could this contribute to the lack of patience to hold out and learn technique? I wonder too, if programmes like “So You Think You Can Dance” also contribute to the focus on performing and not class work.

I know the respect I have for the dance as an art form, but maybe my ideology needs to be more up-dated. I´m wondering if it´s me who needs a shake-up and change my teaching to today´s society and youth….. a lot to think about! Would love to hear some views!

Hi, this is my new blogg! Welcome and I hope that you will enjoy the posts that are to come!