Compassion Matters
☙ Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel. ❧
~ Socrates
Learning offers many opportunities to facilitate growth, and teachers are the most prominent advocates.
Learning is the act or process of acquiring knowledge and skill, but it can be a vastly different experience for each student.
There are 4 types of learners*.
Visual Learners, who prefer to see the information and visualize relationships and concepts
Auditory Learners, who would instead process instruction by listening
Reading/Writing Learners, who learn best when they can read the information and write it down
Kinaesthetic Learners, who like hands-on or full-body experiences for a better understanding
*Learning Types are different than Natural Intelligences.
Stay tuned for more information!
It may seem like dancers have strong kinaesthetic learning capabilities because they are interpreting ideas through their bodies. Nevertheless, being able to express information is a little different than how it is best received.
For the most part, we have more than one type of learner in us, and we get by in certain situations with more ease than others, depending on how information is presented.
A common phrase in the studio after a demonstration is, “I don’t get it.” These four words have brought up some strong emotions and reactions for me over the years.
Embarrassment & shame
From: “Maybe I didn’t demonstrate that very clearly.”
To: “I must not know what I am doing, I am a horrible teacher.”
Nervousness & insecurity
From: “What they mean is they don’t like it.”
To: “What they mean is they don’t like me.”
Frustration & anger
From: “Maybe they weren’t paying attention.”
To: “They are NEVER paying attention; It’s their own fault if they don’t get it.”
As instantaneous as these feelings and reactions can be, there is rarely any truth to them. What is much more likely is the student literally doesn’t get it, because something hasn’t translated based on their learning type.
I could approach the student with the question, “What didn’t you get?”
However, as helpful as I’m trying to be, this might elicit the same feelings of embarrassment, insecurity and frustration in them, and then everyone feels bad - so, what to do?
First of all, remember, everyone is doing their best. Even if you sense there is some resistance to what’s in the lesson plan, I don’t believe many students go out of their way to be difficult in class for no good reason.
▷ How did you teach it?
▷ Did you face the students, or away from them?
▷ How close physically to the students were you?
▷ Did you use mirrors?
▷ Did you verbalize counts, or use words to describe the sequence?
▷ Can they hear you?
▷ Have the students seen the words you are using written out before?
▷ Are you using a lot of ‘lefts’ and ‘rights’?
▲This is a particularly distressing trigger for students with dyslexia.
▷ Have the students heard the music before?
▷ Is there music?
Consider how you have transmitted the material, and if there are any alternatives that you can try in the moment.
If you have been facing away from the students, try turning around so the dancers are in front of you. Similarly, if you have been facing them, turn so your back is to them.
Use your body and voice as percussion to count the beat, and ask the students to do the same.
Ask them to take a moment and either write or draw the sequence down in their dance journal.
Repeat the demonstration without any judgement. Do it again, and again. It’s not going to hurt the students who have already understood it, and the repetition may be all the dancer who had difficulty needs.
The point is, if a student doesn’t ‘get’ something, you’ve done nothing wrong, and neither has the student. There should be no offence taken from someone who is learning something, maybe for the very first time, and not grasping it immediately. Learning is a process, and it is seldom instantaneous.
These moments are perfect opportunities to practice compassion; for your students, and you.
Teachers and students spend vast amounts of their lives together. They share the most intimate and vulnerable parts of humanity - bodies and artistic expression. The conveyance and acquisition of knowledge and skills does not have to be an experience where anyone feels personally attacked or defensive. Removing the ego of how ‘good’ you are, or how ‘good’ they are, leaves what should be left, learning, which is a truly beautiful thing.
And this may take some time to learn. 😁
How do you show compassion for students learning new things? How do you show compassion to yourself? Leave a comment!