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Ausdance National news, November and December 2009by Julie Dyson This report crosses November and December, so before getting started on November adventures, I would like to encourage everyone to participate in the following forums and discussions happening this month: World Alliance for Arts Education online forumDance education in the Asia-Pacific region is being discussed right now at http://waaeasiapacific.ning.com/, where you can have your say about dance education issues and feed in anything for consideration by the UNESCO arts education summit to be held in Seoul in May next year. Further details are below, but it’s important to have your say before December 22. National dance qualificationsTo register for the online discussion forum go to http://mc2.vicnet.net.au/home/verve/index.html. Once you have given yourself a username and password you’re into the forum. Read more about this project below under the Performing Arts Training Package heading. International networksNovember was marked by Ausdance representation at three major international conferences where I had an opportunity to present some of our work, share ideas with other dance organisations, work on plans for the future and, of course, see a fantastic array of international performances! Tanzkongress 2009Tanzkongress 2009 was held in Hamburg, Germany from 5 – 8 November, and the breadth of its program, the quality of the speakers and the wonderfully efficient organisation made it one of the most significant conferences I have ever attended. It also provided Ausdance with a rare opportunity to look at various countries’ Dance Plans, discuss strategies for implementation and learn from the German experience in particular. Tanzplan Deutschland is a major initiative of the German Federal Cultural Foundation, which has funded the plan to the tune of €12.5m over five years, enabling the growth of choreographic centres, more regional touring, development of new work, and international cultural exchanges and performances in cities throughout Germany. Led by Madeline Ritter, Tanzplan Deutschland encouraged cities to negotiate their own financial contributions and then apply for projects that would contribute to the development of dance in their regions. The success of this strategy has seen an enormous growth in dance innovation and creativity in Germany, and we’ve just been informed that the German Federal Cultural Foundation is considering awarding same amount of funding for a further five years, from June 2010. These and many other strategies were shared in Hamburg, and dance education – from early childhood to professional career development – was a major topic for all countries with a dance plan. It was agreed that under the umbrella of ‘education’ priorities, we must continue to be concerned with Safe Dance practice, teacher accreditation, programs such as SCOPE for Artists (an Australian first), and issues such as insurance, superannuation and wages parity for dancers. The training of dancers was also on the agenda, with much interest shown in ways in which collaborative work between training institutions could be encouraged. Countries represented in these particular discussions included Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Denmark, Canada and the UK. The next meeting of ‘dance plan’ countries will be hosted by Dance UK in London in September 2010. The World Alliance for Arts Education (WAAE)The WAAE hosted a major international meeting in Newcastle, UK in early November to prepare for the UNESCO-sponsored 2nd World Conference on Arts Education in Seoul from 25 – 28 May 2010. A dance delegation, led by Dr Ralph Buck, chair of the Education & Training network of the World Dance Alliance Asia Pacific, provided representation for dance. This meeting of the WAAE was focused on preparing for Seoul through a series of workshops to which we were all assigned according to our interest and expertise. The three networks were 'Advocacy', 'Research' and 'Networking', and each group had to come up with strategies for advancing arts education through specific action plans. Time (or lack of it) was an issue in such an intense four days, and not all groups were able to fulfil the brief as well as they would have liked, although much valuable information was shared and excellent contacts made for the future. The WAAE executive team, led by Dan Baron Cohen and including Ralph Buck, met the following day in Paris with UNESCO representatives to share the WAAE’s recommendations for the Seoul conference. You have until the 22 December 2009 to contributeyour feedback! Follow these steps:
The World Dance Alliance – Asia Pacific conference and AGMThe World Dance Alliance – Asia Pacific(WDAAP) conference and AGM were hosted by WDA India in New Delhi in late November. Held at the India International Centre near the beautiful Lodhi Gardens, the conference, ‘Re-searching Dance’, was stimulating and at times provocative, and where many younger researchers were able to share their work and ideas with the wider dance community. WDA India is now very active, and it was a privilege to have two distinguished Indian politicians present at the opening, Dr Karen Singh, variously described as a philosopher and educator, and Dr Kapila Vatsayan, President of WDA India and an eminent dance scholar. Both gave inspirational speeches about the value of dance and networks such as WDA, reaffirming in particular the work of WDA India, led by luminaries Dr Urmimala Sarkar Munsi and Dr Sunil Kothari. Two WDAAP publications were launched at this conference, Beyond the Aspara—celebrating dance in Cambodia, edited by Stephanie Burridge and Fred Frumberg, and Dance Dialogues: Conversations across cultures, artforms and practices, edited by Cheryl Stock and Denise Richardson and published online by Ausdanc. Both are major achievements of the organisastion, and we look forward to collaborating with Stephanie in 2010 on Celebrating dance in Australia, as part of the new Routledge series. Full reports on both the conference and the meetings of WDAAP can be found in the new edition of Asia Pacific Channels Performing Arts Training PackageVerve—Knowledge and Skills is managing the development of new competency standards and skill sets for the dance industry on behalf of Innovation & Business Skills Australia (IBSA) and consulting with Australia’s diverse dance practitioners. They are now calling for feedback on the recommendations outlined in the discussion paper on draft qualifications and skill sets The purpose of the project will be to develop units of competency, qualifications and skill sets in performance, teaching, community dance and management. After a consultation process across all States and Territories in November, a national dance qualifications discussion paper is now being circulated for comment and feedback. It is important for everyone to participate in this process, especially those teaching dance at all levels of education and training. Ausdance skill set for Teaching DanceThis new short course will provide dancers in all areas of dance with the skills to successfully teach in schools (with supervision), in the community and for recreation and enjoyment. The course focuses on three areas of learning: Dance Teaching Methods; Safe Dance, and Ethical and Legal issues, and recognition of prior learning will, of course, be available. The skill set will provide a stepping stone to more formal qualifications which will become available through the Performing Arts Training Package. All State and Territory Ausdance offices are committed to delivering the skill set in the next 12 months. Ausdance’s role as a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) has been questioned in this process, and we have therefore posted a statement on our website which clarifies that role. Ausdance Victoria is an RTO, and some concerns have been expressed about its ‘right‘ to deliver accredited courses as a government-funded organisation. Australian Guidelines for Teaching DanceAs part of its publications program, the 1998 Guidelines are being revised and will be published online early in 2010. We are also preparing information sheets to complement the guidelines. They will include topics such as dance floors, nutrition, occupational health and safety issues, assessment, copyright, etc. National Advocates for Arts EducationThe NAAE has been working with the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) to find a way forward in the implementation phase of the arts in the National Curriculum, given that there are five artforms vying for space in school timetables. NAAE has developed a position and advocacy strategy and has participated in the reference group meetings, with dance well represented by Jeff Meiners, Nanette Hassall, Ruth Bott and Julie Dyson. Lead writers in each art form are now being appointed by ACARA, with an advisory panel members to be announced in January. Treading the PathwaysIn exciting news for the Indigenous dance community, it was announced in November that Treading the Pathways—a strategic partnership between the Australia Council and Ausdance National—had been awarded key organisation status by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board of Council. Congratulations to Marilyn Miller, the National Indigenous Dance Coordinator, who has worked so hard with us over several years to make this a reality, and to her steering committee and other supporters in the Indigenous and non-Indigenous dance communities, including the Ausdance network. Marilyn has achieved an enormous amount in these years, as her regular reports to the Australia Council attest. She continues to work with Torres Strait Island elder Denis Newie to complete the Torres Strait Islander Playdance kit for schools, in consultation with dance curriculum expert Lesley Graham, and it is anticipated that the kit will be launched and piloted next year. In a new partnership with Reeldance, Treading the Pathways artists participated in a dance film project involving 18 Indigenous artists—6 dance makers, 6 editors and 6 composers. All the artists are working around the same theme or concept, and once completed, the short dance films will be screened at the Reeldance International festival in Sydney in May 2010. Brolga—an Australian journal about danceA reminder that a subscription to Brolga will make a wonderful Christmas present for people interested in all kinds of dance and dance performance. Go to the Ausdance website for subscription and contribution details, and to see some wonderful new information about these biannual publications. Happy Christmas and New YearAll at Ausdance National wish members and supporters a happy Christmas and New Year—we are looking forward to continuing some great work with the dance community in 2010, and to seeing many of you in person at forums, meetings and performances across the country. |
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Copyright 2009 Australian Dance Council—Ausdance Inc. Acknowledgements |