In September 2013 I was asked to write a guest blog for Candoco Dance Company, who are world leaders in inclusive dance practice. I participated in their Teacher Training Intensive in 2010 and it has had a significant effect on shaping my pedagogy as an early career academic

Preece, Kelly Louise

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This work has been submitted to NECTAR, the Northampton ElectronicCollection of Theses and Research.ArticleTitle: On the value of Candoco's Teacher Training IntensiveCreator: Preece, K. L.Example citation: Preece, K. L. (2013) On the value of Candoco's TeacherTraining Intensive. Candoco Dance Company. [Blog post]It is advisable to refer to the publisher's version if you intend to cite from this work.Version: Published versionOfficial URL: http://www.candoco.co.uk/2013/09/on-the-value-of-candocos-teacher-training-intensive/http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/7437/NECTARON THE VALUE OF CANDOCO’S TEACHERTRAINING INTENSIVEBy Candoco Dance Company (http://www.candoco.co.uk/author/candoco/), 25 September2013Kelly Preece is a Higher Education Lecturer at the Universities of Northampton andLeeds. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and an Executive BoardMember for DanceHE (formerly Scodhe). She is actively engaged in research aboutemerging dance pedagogies. More information about her teaching practice is availableon her website at www.kellylouisepreece.wordpress.com(http://kellylouisepreece.wordpress.com). You can also follow her on twitter@Preece_Kelly (https://twitter.com/Preece_Kelly).In September 2009 I began my first academic post atthe University of Leeds. As part of my induction I wasrequired to attend training sessions that coveredmany aspects of teaching in Higher Education. Onesuch session focused on Equality and Diversity, andinvolved discussions of the ways in which we couldensure our teaching was accessible to students with arange of disabilities and learning difficulties. Whenasked about my own potential preparations, Iattempted to explain that the way in which mydiscipline is traditionally taught is inherentlyinaccessible. This realisation set off a train of thought about my own dance teachingpractice and how it should reflect my social and political beliefs about inclusivity. A shortGoogle search later, I was booked on to the Candoco Teacher Training Intensive inFebruary 2010.When I arrived on the first day of the intensive I wasn’t sure what to expect – despite thefact that I had seen Candoco’s work, read about their practices, and even done somework with students in special needs education. If anything I thought we might be taughtspecific exercises, and perhaps a choreographic and pedagogic strategy for working withwheelchairs. What I experienced was an introduction to an emerging teaching practiceabout how all dance should be taught. Taking part in an inclusive technique class was arevelation – largely because it wasn’t that different from my previous experience oftechnique. The opportunity to work with the Candoco youth dancers was invaluable –they really know what they’re doing, and are direct, open and honest with their feedback.Shortly after I finished the intensive I began working with an inclusive dance group inLeeds who were interested that I had done the Candoco training course. I happilyattended for several sessions, eager to ‘try out’ what I had learnt with Candoco. It quicklybecame clear to me that my presence wasn’t needed – there was enough choreographicthinking and leadership in the group itself without my input. I was somewhat disappointedthat I couldn’t put my Candoco training in to practice. However when I began to thinkabout it, I realised that I already was. My training with Candoco wasn’t just applicable toworking with inclusive groups – it was permeating the development of my teachingpractice much more generally.What stays with me about the Candoco philosophy is an attention to individualexperience. It engenders thoughtfulness about ‘how’ and ‘why’ we use different teachingmethodologies in dance – and how we might challenge traditional teaching structures inthe discipline. For me, Candoco’s approach is important pedagogically whether or not youwork with inclusive groups.  

On the value of Candoco's Teacher Training Intensive

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