This article focuses on the development of a theoretical framework for jazz dance in which researchers hypothesized how motif notation concepts from Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) and Language of Dance® (LOD) could be used to help learners understand how the roots and branches of jazz dance styles are related. We began by investigating the…

The following paper seeks to show how Somatic Education is a usual practice in the classes researched and, at the same time, how it places the body in places of dispute at schools. Notions present in the classes studied such as, for example, the relationship between surveillance and silence and between the latter and listening are thus analysed,…

Originally published as a special issue of "Research in Dance Education," now with an added chapter, this text acknowledges and celebrates the increasingly diverse careers and employment networks in which dance professionals and dance educators are engaged. Addressing issues and developments relating to the workplace of dance, the text…

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…

Proprioception is an ongoing topic of interest in dance research. Yet 'proprioception' can have a wide range of meanings, and therefore is studied in many different ways. This research presents a review of existing studies of proprioception in dance. The review comprised 4 main stages: stage (1) background research; stage (2) proposing a working…

This article provides clarification regarding "the what" and "the why" of mental imagery use in dance. It proposes that mental images are invoked across sensory modalities and often combine internal and external perspectives. The content of images ranges from "direct" body oriented simulations along a continuum…

The dance world is dominated by instilling technique and discipline in the dance training. Technique and discipline have been inculcated through training regimes that are dogmatically transferred through the generations -- from teacher to dancer --and who in turn perpetuate technique and discipline in their teaching. Within a multicultural…

By critically reviewing and discussing existing scholarship, this article considers how individuals construct their embodied performances of gender while navigating the diverse teaching--learning paradigms experienced within dance discourses. The inherent relationships that exist between dance education and gender have been substantially…

The focus of this study was to understand undergraduate students' experiences of gymnastics and dance education within the scrutiny of modular learning in Higher Education. A phenomenological position was adopted in order to understand the wholeness of students' experiences whereby identities are constituted through their lived lives. This allowed…

This article explores the dynamics of Gaga, a contemporary movement practice developed by Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin, as an emergent methodology for embodied research. Deploying Gaga as a case study, this article argues for the relevance of knowledge generated through lived, felt experience as well as ways of knowing grounded on bodily…

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…

Creative dance is an engaging and empowering educational medium. Creative dance provides children with a comfortable, noncompetitive arena where they can explore, discover, and share what they think and feel in the purest of bodily expression. This manuscript highlights a standards based creative dance lesson designed to educate elementary…

Principles of responsible citizenship that can contribute to the development of a pedagogy of collaboration in dance making contexts are examined. Philosophical ideas about relational being and what it means for people to be, think, and act together contribute to a framework for investigating communication and habits among dance makers. Rehearsal…

This article outlines a somatic-based class that illustrates how the integumentary system can be introduced to dance students to further their understanding of their physical instruments. It justifies why incorporating information about specific biological systems into dance teaching is apt and beneficial for dancers, and it describes how guided…

A high frequency of mental health challenges and injuries in professional dancers necessitate a better understanding of the complexity of such symptoms, and to explore differences according to sex, academic year and performance levels. Professional dance students were recruited to evaluate symptoms of depression and anxiety (SCL-10), resilience…