sociology is the study of human behavior; dance is “rhythmically organized” human behavior (A5).
Connection may be the essential social impact dance has on people. Julianna Flinn describes this connection in a
religious sense, calling it the “flow experience,” that relates to American country dance as a transcendental
awakening or a way of encountering something beyond the ordinary, conscious individual self. This makes it
something akin to a religious experience by subsuming people, connecting them to something elemental. By
focusing on music and movement all other concerns become absent and the complexity of the dance reduces
anxiety.
The experiences dancers describe are not limited to this “flow experience.” The connection with community and
heritage, dancers feel, is also considered part of a religious experience. Therefore, although it has no theology, it
has many elements of a religious experience (67).
The social aspect of dance education is equal to the physical in importance. Teaching children good manners in
social dance situations should be a part of the curriculum. The main reason for a social dance is to meet other
people and relate to them within a frame work of rules. Knowing what to do when someone asks you to dance is
difficult, without some guidance.
For self-expression and communication dance enhances every aspect of well-being be it physical, social,
emotional, spiritual, and intellectual. By connecting the mind and body dancing lets you tap the energy of the
music and the people around you. The stress relief comes from having all this energy channeled into your body
and minds go out to your hands and feet. You don’t have time to think of anything but the next step (Krucoff 82).
Psychology
Dancing is an expression of culture. The struggle of life to raise itself into fertility is its theme (Updike 192). When
men and woman dance together the man must lead and the women must follow. The partnership forms a
powerful unity. Demanding that life give life, and love give love, in return. The struggle is found in the pulse of
the rhythm. As the man leads he invites the women to twirl around him until he closes with her. Only a moment or
a beat goes by before he sets her in motion again.
The fondness for conjoined rhythmic motion relates perhaps to a gender trait a female somatic
unity, a sense of the entire body as an expressive and erotic means. Men are compartmentalized creatures,
and in dancing the part-the feet, the tongue, the libido, the diagrammatic brain-go flinging in different directions
(Updike 192).
The motive people feel for dancing is a powerful need to express feelings about their bodies. These feelings are
part of their personal body image (Jacob 26). Through dancing these images become clearer. They become more
aware of their potential as they test and expand their limits. By being aware of their body image they learn that
they can dramatically change it. Changing this image is a process of imagining their ideal body. Their fantasy
image is as important as their realistic body image for realizing their potential.
Dance gives children and teachers self-esteem, motivates them, and makes learning a joyous experience. In
using dance in the curriculum, teachers express a new vitality in their teaching. While a dance residence is taking
place in a school student attendance went up, and when they test them on ideas they explore through dance they
score higher on written and oral exams. Students gained confidence and self-esteem which made it easier for the
reluctant ones to participate in class room activities (Lee 45).
Wanting to know how students experienced the dance classes they took in school, Susan W. Stinson observed six
dance classes taught by three teachers at two schools. Using open-ended questions about the differences between
dance class and other classes, and their dance teachers, and other teachers, she interviewed 36 students. They
responded that they felt a release from worries or freedom in dance class that their other classes lacked.
Though she was not looking for relationship responses specifically, the theme of the “caring teacher” emerged.
By being more responsive to students they thought of them as friends. This affective approach to teaching may
point away from the current trend in arts education (55).
Educators are continually told to emphasize the cognitive more and the affective less (Stinson 55)- written and
spoken language and mathematics as opposed to personal knowledge-if the arts are to be considered essential
disciplines. Exclusion of the dance discipline from basic curriculum shows a lack of awareness and understanding
of the intricacies of learning. It is not enough for a child to have only information about his or her world. All
children need to feel empowered through personal action and discovery about self, with others in the world
(Bucek 41).
Issues that a creative learning environment, applied to dance education can adapt to include: student diversity,
integrated curriculum, disciplined-based dance education, and parity with other subjects in public schools (Yoder
51). Unfortunately, caring for students is not enough if we are to educate them for the world today, in dance or
anything else. However, it is an essential ingredient in education that is often over looked (Stinson 55).
Summary
In the history of dance education I discussed the rise of dance in higher education to its current level. It seems
that with all that’s been done we still have much to do to make dance education a viable subject for degree
seeking candidates. In the high school, middle and elementary levels of education little has been done to
promote dance because of the pressure to concentrate on cognitive studies. In the physical area I’ve shown how
positive the effects of dance as exercise can be. In the sociology section I gave many examples of how dance can
increase skills in social settings and give children a much needed lesson they will utilize throughout their lives.
Finally, I discussed the psychological effects of better self- esteem.
There is a need for dance in the schools, if children are going to learn to relate to themselves, their teachers,
families, and peers in a way that is beneficial to society.
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