strathspey@strathspey.org:27654

Lee Fuell

Re: What do you think about this?

Oct. 2, 2001, 12:43 p.m. (Message 27654, in reply to message 27652)

Anselm,

Re:

Date sent:      	Tue, 02 Oct 2001 10:32:05 +0200
From:           	Anselm Lingnau <xxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxx.xxx>

> Everything else that comes on top of that is, at the end of
> the day, a luxury that is up to personal ambition, of which some
> dancers seem to have much more than their fair share and others none
> at all; it's usually the former who you're going to find at workshops
> and other venues of self-improvement but the latter can be just as
> sociable, fun to be with, and important for their groups/clubs/...

Excellent points all, especially the above.  My concern lies with the 
potential for "disconnects in perception" between teachers and 
social dancers, leading to diminishing participation due to classes 
with too much footwork & other technique practice, not enough 
dancing (it's happened here).  I think the very nature and rigor of our 
teacher certification process causes our teachers to come from the 
"more than their fair share of personal ambition" end of the the 
spectrum (not a criticism, just an observation - it has to take more 
than middlin' ambition to go through the process).  (Note to 
readers:  please don't interpret "ambition" used in this context as a 
perjorative; it's not.)  The potential result is that teachers, given this 
predisposition for personal improvement, may have a different 
perception of what constitutes a fun, balanced class than do the 
socially-oriented class members.  

So the challenge remains - how do teachers balance the need to 
maintain the fundamental character of SCD (i.e., proper technique) 
with the need to develop (or keep) lots of dancers on the floor 
dancing SCD?  Striking the right balance is, I expect, far from 
easy.  

Happy dancing,

Lee