It is argued that a behavioral objectives approach to dance education is dangerously limited because it is dominated by a particular view of theoretical psychology that attempts to understand skill learning in terms of conditioning and reinforcement. This approach is especially limited in the teaching of creative and expressive dance. (RM)

Well-established summer dance festivals were studied to determine educational trends in summer dance education. Faculty hiring practices, student competence levels, curricular offerings, and other program characteristics are discussed, as is the need for regional coordination of the programs. (PP)

The focus of this special issue is how art facilitates the cognitive maturation of the child. In the last 20 years, the copious research conducted in the field of children's art and artistic development underscores that children's intellectual, as well as emotional development, is of long-standing and continuing interest. (RM)

Examined how elementary students' use of critical thinking in their movement actions was inspired by an "expert" teacher's task design, task presentation, and instructional strategies during creative dance lessons. Data from videotaped lessons and written anecdotes indicated that by presenting sequential, open- ended tasks and learning…

Discusses the success of arts-focused schools in performing and visual arts. Offers examples of outstanding schools. Focuses on the importance of having the best administration, the administrative considerations involved in establishing a successful arts-infused school, and finding the best faculty with a diverse focus. (CMK)

Describes how two proficient teachers of physical education retrained to become proficient teachers of writing. Discusses the plan for retraining teachers; the connections between writing, tennis, and dance; revision; evaluation; and outcomes. (SR)

This paper addresses factors to consider in establishing a healthy learning environment and a satisfying first-year experience for dance educators. Factors include establishing a positive working relationship with principals and teachers, considering students' physical and emotional development, using discipline, fostering self-management skills,…

Despite its relatively recent introduction as part of a liberal arts curriculum, dance education is beginning to be recognized as a serious discipline that fosters a more diversely developed mind and the ability to look critically at cultural symbols. (MSE)

Six articles in this feature section emphasize the value of African dance in all levels of education. The articles address aspects of African dance ranging from its historical and philosophical underpinnings to applications from the elementary to the college level. (SM)

Defines dance education, noting that it enables all children to be expressive nonverbally and to incorporate the physical self as a functioning part of the whole social being. Differentiates dance training and education. Discusses the importance of learning through movement and curricular integration through dance, asserting that dance education…

In this paper I explore the special type of thinking, moving and dancing place which is opened up for decolonisaton when students engage in an embodied pedagogical practice in Indigenous education. I examine what decolonisation means in this context by describing the ways in which the curriculum, the students and me, and more generally the…

The movement meanings of students (n=19) in one fifth-grade class during a creative dance unit focusing on effort (force, time, space, flow) are investigated using a perspective grounded in transcendental phenomenology (Husserl, 1931). Data were collected via videotape, journal, and homework documents and semistructured interviews. Analytical…

The ways in which seven private sector dance professionals in the United States perceive the impact of sexuality in contemporary culture and the choices that they make for their own schools of dance because of these perceptions are explored. This study was conducted through in-depth interviews and a survey instrument. The participants' narratives…

This paper describes new approaches to assessment in dance and dance education. The first part examines assumptions behind traditional models of evaluation in academic and performing arts contexts. I consider whether it is useful to understand human ability as unitary or if it is meaningful to evaluate people according to a single dimension of…

The numerous ways that postsecondary students benefit from experiential education across the academic disciplines have been well documented in the scholarly literature. One exception, however, is in the field of dance, where these effects have not been researched as extensively. Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods,…