Dance Pedagogy

Dance Pedagogy is a comprehensive resource designed for dance students and teaching artists to develop skills and strategies in the multifaceted practice of teaching dance.

This invaluable resource features essential components and considerations necessary for the dance teacher in any setting, including the private and community sector, university setting, and professional venues. Five distinct units provide insight into the paradigm, learning process, class environment factors, planning, and delivery of the dance class in a broad context through the use of examples within the dance forms of ballet, jazz, modern, tap, and hip-hop. Readers intently explore cognitive and motor learning, strategies for developing curricula and lesson plans, and methods of delivering material to students. Basic principles of anatomy, understanding student behavior and participation, the importance of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (IDEA), music concepts for the dancer, injury prevention, and classroom management are included to provide a well-rounded approach to the many challenges faced in the classroom.

Dance Pedagogy provides the most holistic approach available in the art of teaching dance and is a core textbook for academic courses related to Dance Teaching Methods as well as an invaluable handbook for practicing dance teachers.

Unit 1: Exploration of Dance Pedagogy 1. The Development of Dance Education 2. Roles in the Classroom 3. Fundamentals of Human Anatomy Unit 2: Motor and Cognitive Learning Processes 4. Motor Control and Development 5. The Learning Process Unit 3: Factors That Affect the Learning Environment 6. Motivation 7. Understanding the Student Population 8. Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Unit 4: Class Content and Preparation 9. Curriculum Development and Lesson Planning 10. Music Concepts for Dancers 11. Injury Prevention 12. Classroom Management Unit 5: Presentation 13. Instructional Strategies 14. Practice Methods 15. Feedback and Assessment

Amanda Clark is Professor and Dance Program Coordinator at Western Kentucky University, USA, and co-author of Dance Appreciation (Routledge, 2020).