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8/4/2019 Student Experience in World Dance Program
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Student Experience in
World Dance Program
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Student Experience in World Dance Program
Rohini Dandavate, Ph.DSeptember 15, 2001
Universities in the United States of America (U.S.) are increasingly seeking to
help students develop cultural sensitivities by offering courses that allow students
to understand diverse cultures through the arts. It is observed that the ability to
grasp meaning and interpret diverse cultural beliefs and practices can be initiated
through the experience of dance movement and the other streams of the arts.
World dance Programs in departments of dance in universities like the Ohio
State University (OSU), Denison University, University of California Los Angeles
(UCLA), the Wesleyan University in Connecticut to name a few, provide courses
that combine theory and practice of diverse cultural artistic expressions, offering
opportunities for performance, movement studies, dance theory and arts
pedagogy. Practicing artists and scholars from nonwestern countries are invited
to teach. The world arts and cultures concentration emphasize cultural studies
through visual and performance arts and the dynamics of creativity in globalperspective. This paper presents and discusses the observations of a study
conducted to understand the student experience of learning Odissi dance, an
Indian classical dance form in one of the colleges in the U.S.
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Background
The Association of American Colleges and Universities has drawn initiatives to
ensure that every undergraduate student experiences a relevant and challenging
general education curriculum. The General Education Curriculum (GEC) is a set
of requirements for all students pursuing undergraduate studies. It is an integral
part of the undergraduate curriculum that both complements and supports the
students’ preparation in their field of specialization and helps students maximize
their individual potential. Students develop understanding, appreciation, and
acceptance of multiple “ways of knowing” (i.e., artistic, literary, philosophical,
historical, scientific) through the acquisition, organization, and analysis of specific
bodies of knowledge. They are encouraged to acquire aesthetic and appreciative
faculties, to explore and test their own values and ethical frameworks, and to
demonstrate sensitivity to diverse perspectives and cultures.
Under the purview of the GEC initiative, a college in Ohio offered two courses in
Odissi dance to undergraduate students as a part of the World Dance Program,
in the Department of Dance for a period of 15 weeks. The parameter of the World
Dance Program is “to expose students forms beyond American Modern dance
and Ballet Students. Because knowledge is culturally contextualized, we believe
the body and its physical practices serve as indicators of cultural identity. To this
end it is vital to study not only the physical practice (which is described as
technique class), but also to study the analytical practice which is represented in
academic lectures, discussions and adherence to mainstream theories and
methodologies”. In sync with this objective, one of the courses offered students
the experience of the Odissi technique. The second course led students to
investigate the historical, aesthetic, religious, social, political, economic and
ecological foundations and accomplishments of Indian culture through its dance
forms, both classical and folk. The investigation occurred alongside the study and
experience of the Odissi dance technique.
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Participant Information
There were 14 students in the Technique Course and 8 in the Honors Course. All
the 14 students from the technique class and 5 students from the honors class
participated in the assessment. From the group of nineteen students, two were
dance majors while three had dance as a minor. The non-dance majors chose to
enroll for these courses to fulfill the General Education Curriculum requirement.
The students who had enrolled for these courses had varied hobbies and
interests like playing both outdoors & in-doors games, practicing music, learning
other dance forms, participating in community involvement activities & helping in
after school activities for school children, travel, photography, reading and
writing. The non-Indian students opted to take the Odissi courses to learn about
India and its other dance styles, to try something different and unique, for fitness
purposes and to broaden their horizons of information and to understand their
own physical abilities and limitations. The Indian students wanted to learn more
about India and its dance forms.
Method of Research: Each student was given a scrapbook to record feelings
and thoughts at different times during the course of fifteen weeks of training. The
idea was to observe the progression of the student experience of learning Odissi
and analyze its impact on their thinking, feelings, and change they observed in
themselves at the end of the 15 weeks, on the completion of the course.
Findings
Curiosity about a different culture was a primary driver in students for selecting
this course. According to Dr. Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally
recognized authority on brain development, curiosity is the fuel for development.
The process of development as he describes begins by being curious and
progresses in the following manner:
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This diagram illustrates how curiosity motivates exploration, which in turn leads
to discovery. Discovering something new gives pleasure and so the human mind
aspires to repeat the experience. Repetition aids in gaining mastery of new skills,
raising confidence, and self esteem. High self esteem of oneself provides a
sense of security and this propels further exploration. I chose to use Dr Perry’s
model to explain the findings of the study because the responses of the students
fell in line with this process.
Responses in the scrapbook indicated that majority of the students enrolled in
these courses because they were curious to learn about a different culture. This
trait can be attributed to the changing demographics of America. American
communities are becoming more and more multicultural. In classrooms,
neighborhoods, workplaces we find a wide variety of cultural representation and
people are curious to know about different cultural practices. It was alsoobserved that though these courses were offered in the department of dance,
majority of the students who enrolled were non-dance students. They came from
varied fields of study namely Social Sciences, Humanities, Formal Sciences,
Profession and Applied Sciences. The students were curious about another
culture, its philosophy and the psychology. Most of the students reported that
curiosity
exploration
discovery
pleasure
repetition
masterynewskills
con5idence
selfesteem
security
moreexploration
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they did not see a direct connection with their major/minor program of study but
were looking for broadening their cultural understanding through the study of
Odissi dance. The desire to know something different inspired students to
participate.
The other commonly cited reason for taking this course was to fulfill their General
Education/Honors/Elective requirement. The GEC provides a foundation for
professional success. Courses offered under GEC are designed to aid students
in learning to think critically, make rational decisions, and communicate
effectively. These skills support their ability to acquire, evaluate, and use the
specific knowledge in their field of specialization and also ensure that they will be
adaptable and flexible in changing circumstances in their careers. In the process
of learning Odissi students got the opportunity to think about their own values
and perspectives while comparing it to the Indian values and practices. They
learned to use their bodies differently, which also revealed their limitations and
abilities. The desire to explore led to developing appreciation for the Indian
culture.
Most of the students noted in their scrapbooks that they were overwhelmed and
confused at the end of the first class and yet decided to continue learning. By the
seventh week, students felt challenged and frustrated by the complexity of
learning the new style yet they tried hard to keep up. By the end of the course
almost all felt pretty good about themselves and about what they learned. This
comfort level towards the end of the class showed that repetitive lessons helped
them master the skill. Like Dr Perry suggests regular rehearsals led to mastery.
Acquiring proficiency in the novel skill of Odissi dance raised their confidence
level and self esteem. Students wrote that “Overall the value derived from this
experience was the ability to understand and accept the unfamiliar”. Most
students said they would be less hesitant in seeking unfamiliar experiences from
other cultures in future. While students experienced the technique of Odissi and
learned to recognize and interpret cultural meanings and symbolism, the
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instructor received the opportunity to understand the needs of the students in the
western world and teach while being sensitive to their curiosities and learning
styles. This response briefly and aptly describes the experience of learning
Odissi. She wrote:
“ The Odissi course experience has influenced me on several levels. First, it gave
me a window into another culture. Secondly, it taught me to be more in tune with
my body and attentive to my movements with a focus on being graceful. Third, I
will be more empathetic toward people who are struggling to learn something
new because I struggled. I will try to think out varying my teaching style when I
instruct people on any subject matter”.
17 of the 19 students felt their personal objectives were met and offering these
courses at regular intervals will help build upon this experience. They also
expressed that fifteen weeks, the time allotted was not enough.
References:
Source:http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/curiosity.htm#bio