Session Information
20 SES 09 A, Creativity and Pupil Participation
Paper Session
Contribution
The research undertaken was concerned with the influence of dance education on the learning and teaching of students in multi-cultural educational institutions. The perspective of the learner, learning process and teaching taking place in any learning environment should be of primary importance. The cultural context in which education takes place will have an influence on all of these factors. Communication is paramount between participants in the classroom if learning and teaching are to occur. It usually takes place by the use of verbal language. In fact the necessity of sensitive language was recognised by Jerome Bruner and Lev Vygotsky as paramount for the success or failure of teaching and learning. Margaret Donaldson (1978) also advocated that teachers must be capable of understanding and listening to the individual learner if the necessary guidance required for further learning is to be established. Learners need also to be able to share their ideas and any learning difficulties. However, in multi-cultural classrooms problems concerned with the understanding of the spoken teaching language in use are not seldom. Furthermore even when the the language used in the classroom is understood this does not insure that the semantic concept of words are interpreted and understood by all learners in the same or similar way. This applies also to native language speakers in the classroom, which Donaldson also recognised in her research studies. It is here that Dance Education may play a major rôle to assist communication in the classroom. Also other relevant educational areas in the changing cultural classroom landscape may be positively influenced, thus enabling a more inclusive cultural classroom . Dance is perceived as a form of non -verbal communication a form of body language. Research studies by Feldman and Orchowsky (1982) concerned with the use of non-verbal behaviours in teaching contexts showed that successful students received a more positive body language behaviour from their teachers. In fact Argyle (1969) argued in his studies that 60% of the information gained in communication between individuals was non-verbal. This has implications for education and particularily for multi cultural classrooms, where the spoken word is not always comprehendable and non-verbal cues may help to overcome these problems. However they are not to be overestimated in their application. Dance goes beyond body language. It enables the individual a much wider basis to express and explore emotions and ideas, through a diverse individual and cultural variety of movements. Learning in any setting is not only a cognitive activity but also an emotional one. Frustration, satisfaction, fear, enjoyment etc are just a few of the emotions which are intrinsically intertwined with learning. Dance enables learners not only to express these emotions, but influences the co-ordination of all the senses which in turn positively influences cognition. To test the theory that dance education influences readiness of communication and if this has impact on learning in the cultural classroom, a pilot study was undertaken.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Argyle, M (1969) "Social Interaction. New York: Atherton Press. Bruner, J. (1986) "Actual Minds, Possible Worlds". Harvard University Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts. Donaldson, M. ( 1988) "Childrens Minds" Fontana Press. Feldman, R. S. and Orchowsky, S. (1982) "Race and Performance of Students as Determinants of Teacher Non-Verbal Behaviour". Contemporary Education Psychology, 4, pp. 324-33. Vygotsky, L.S. (1978) "Mind in Society". Harvard Univerity Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts. Vygotsky, L.S. (1987) "Thought and Language". MIT Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts.
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