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Ballroom Dance

J M (Mike) Nelson
Email:jmnelson@cloudnet.com
Phone: 612-810-0157

Ballroom Basics: Critical Comparisons

The following chart compares several critical aspects of dance instruction in Ballroom Basics with traditional dance instruction popular in dance studios, community education, and itinerant dance teachers. For more detailed arguments regarding these and other related issues, see the links at the end of this article.

Ballroom Basics
Traditional
Detailed lesson plan freely disclosed No disclosure of lesson plan
Extensive resource material on line No resource material provided
Nominally five, overt items per lesson Twenty or more covert items per lesson
Detailed action plan with a list of major items for retention Verbal encouragement, no action plan or resources
Antecedent conditions for each lesson Disregards antecedent conditions
Incorporates ongoing assessments Rarely incorporates assessments
Pace consistent with contemporary research No evidence of awareness of related research
Equitable emphasis on primary skill set Inequitable attention to primary skill set
Emphasis on systematic progression Emphasis on steps and style
Emphasis on transfer of learning Little attention to transfer of learning
Subsequent learning more easily mastered Subsequent learning equally demanding
Minimal redundancy Extensive redundancy
Significant emphasis on problem solving No attention to problem solving
Clear, meaningful definition of terms Vague or nonexistent definition of terms
Research-based credentials Teacher-centered credentials
Student-centered lesson plan Teacher-centered lesson plan


For an overview of how this relates to dance lessons, see Why Our Ballroom Dance Classes are Better. At least why I think so.

For a summary of some related learning theories, see Learning Theories.

For an outline of the task analysis, see Dance Instruction Assessment

For insight into how facts about short term memory influenced the design of Ballroom Basics, see Applied Theory.

For more about how this approach evolved, see: Teaching Ballroom Dance: A Rationale For an Alternative Approach

 


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