Task 4A

This time last year I asked the question,

 

·In order to sustain a successful dance company, do I need to offer more than just dance?

 

In life you continue to learn, (The reflective practioner, Dec 2010) and since asking this question I’ve concluded that, No, I don’t need to offer more than just dance, I need to discover a teaching method that engages my students, understand how each individual absorbs information so they can take away the best experience which in effect will keep them coming back.

http://aliciaandrewa3dance.blogspot.co.uk/search?updated-min=2010-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&updated-max=2011-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&max-results=9

 

Last year, I stated that I found it hard to hold onto my older students and I asked if it reflected my teaching methods or was it just the age group. I think both. You need a different teaching approach for children of different ages once again this leads back to what methods of teaching are best.

 

In my close knit circle of friends I am lucky enough to have two who are now teachers although both took different routes to get there and both work with different ages, one in secondary education and one in primary.

I asked friend “a” who started out as a teaching assistant, what she felt the best methods of teaching were. She told me that because she had started out as a teaching assistant, she had the opportunity to observe. She was able to look in on many different lessons taught by a variety of different teachers with different teaching methods. Friend “a” came to the conclusion that the best teaching method was being able to manage behaviour.“The key to most effective teaching is being able to manage behaviour and gain the respect of your students.”

 

·Do different age groups need different methods of teaching?

·How do I make myself a better teacher?

·What teaching methods are best?

·Does the way you teach determine the longevity of a dance company?

·How do I discover my own unique style of teaching?

 

Every Thursday I teach a programme called Steps Together at Irie! Dance theatre, before my class last week, I had the privilege of watching Connecting Vibes, Irie's resident dance company rehearse for the upcoming Re-Generations conference 2012.http://www.adad.org.uk/metadot/index.pl?id=24157&isa=Category&op=show I found myself unconsciously watching Beverley Glean, the artistic Director. What stuck in my mind was the fact the she didn't have such a "hands on "approach as it were, to her teaching technique. Don't get me wrong, she moved but it was like she didn't need to. Her words carried through the studio and her directions were so clear, the dancers didn't need her up front going through every movement, the jumps the undulations and the leaps. Her direction and the odd wave of the arm to clarify were enough.

Earlier this week I damaged my leg badly, after days of agony I decided to take myself to a&e to get it sorted. The funniest thing was, instead of worrying about what was wrong with my leg i was more worried about how I was going to teach come the weekend. I panicked to the point of tears, if my leg didn't get better, how would i teach and how would i get the best out of my students?

I thought back to Beverley’s teaching method and decided that maybe the “hands off” approach to teaching is a technique I could try. I will be using this week’s class as a trial and I will blog my findings!