How is dance in the education system a valuable tool to those who partake?

Research and Literature- connecting the dots...

Literature

I found this chart in the guardian data blog...it spoke volumes to me as you can see that dance is taught in 96% of schools, the second most consistently taught subject to football.

Literauture- BBC News

Education Secretary Michael Gove announced the English Baccalaureate, would be taught in schools in England from 2015.

A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said:
We have chosen core academic subjects to be part of the English Baccalaureate Certificate, and these subjects will set the benchmark for the whole system.

Other subjects are of course valuable and pupils will continue to study them - the EBC will obviously not prevent any school from offering qualifications in art, design, dance, drama and music.

The BBC article quotes the department of education saying:
We are spending £15m over the next three years to ensure that every child has access to the arts, including £3.6 million for schools to use towards visits to museums and galleries

Sir Nicolas Serota warned that the UK could lose the
Leading edge in creativity. He goes on to say:
There is a real risk that fewer and fewer schools will provide learning opportunities in the arts.
We cannot deprive an entire generation of children of the cultural skills that they will need.

Pupils at schools where the arts were integrated into the curriculum showed stronger performance in maths, English, critical thinking and verbal skills

We know that there is a great body of evidence now that has been gathered over the past 20 or 30 years which demonstrates that, where you have schools which give time to cultural learning, there is benefit both in that sphere and also to the other discipline

February's report on arts teaching in schools written for the government by Darren Henley, of Classic FM. This is what Sir Nicolas Serota was referring to.

My thoughts:
The whole feeling of the article (by Judith Burns) suggests that the arts would be taking a back seat in the education department.  The core subjects are clearly portrayed as the main focus of this new 2015 scheme. This is saddening and also seems unjust that the arts is now deemed as 'other sunjects' already the attitude leads little to the imagination.

Your thoughts?.....

Literature, HELP!

Hey guys and gals...I am struggling with finding literature sources? Where are you people getting your references from, help little me out? Hahaha thank you!!!

The Art of Dance in Education

Who is the author/authors/publisher of the text?

 Jacqueline M. Smith-Autard

A&C Black, 29 Mar 2002

Where was the text written/produced?

1994

 Who is the intended audience for the text?

I find this question hard to answer, who am I to determine who this book is targeted at? The obvious answer would be somebody who is looking at dance in education however, if I look further into this it explores many avenues and as the author is so renowned many people from many different backgrounds may have read this book to enhance their understanding on dance and how it is validated in the education system.

 What are the authors’/publishers’ intentions in relation to the reader?

Well the author is a world renown dance educator.  I believe both her and the publishers intention was to use the multimedia resources to express the points in the book on a wider scale.

What is the writers’/publishers’ own position in relation to the subject being written about?

The book covers dance education from primary years all the way through to tertiary education.  The book takes dance as a concept and shows how the expressive nature of it is educational to an array of students.

I'm BACK!

§  WHERE AM I NOW? This is where you review your achievements and progress, and undertake self-assessment.

I am just starting this next module, throughout the summer I have been going over thoughts and opinions I already have of my inquiry.  Pondering over these thoughts has led me to get confused or muddled up with the intention of my inquiry however, I am looking forward to exploring these thoughts and ideas of mine further!  I have successfully completed the previous modules and am looking forward to building upon my learning and understanding of Dance in Education.

§  WHERE DO I WANT TO BE? This is where you decide your goals.

I want to be working towards the final piece of work with a positive mind frame.  I want to understand fully dance in education and how it can enable all pupils to learn regardless of the age range.  I have previously touched upon family run businesses and this is something that is still on my radar.

§  HOW DO I GET THERE? This is where you define the strategy you will use to achieve your goals, and to break down your goal into the smaller discreet

§  steps you will need to take to achieve your target.

I know that if I do not set myself deadlines with targets I won’t achieve my full investigation.  Being in the arts I have found that we are usually expressive people and not always the type to have strict timetables to work by.  The ideas and thoughts will be floating around my head but, I won’t put pen to paper to communicate them.  Therefore I want to ensure I schedule in time to write down my latest findings for both my professional and personal development.

§  TAKING ACTION. This is the nitty gritty where you implement your plan!

I am currently reading some dance literature to broaden my mind.  I am discovering a lot as it is specific to education in dance and the value that it has on the students and work place.

§  WHERE AM I NOW?

I feel like this is an ongoing question...filling in these few questions has already helped to put things into perspective and enable me to see where I currently am in the mix of things. Onwards and upwards from here...