Higher Order Thinking in the Dance Studio

ABSTRACT

The author identifies higher order thinking as an essential component of dance training for students of all ages and abilities. Weaving together insights from interviews with experts in the field of dance education with practical pedagogical applications within an Improvisation and Composition class for talented and gifted youth, this article reveals the author's uncovering understanding of higher order thinking. Emphasis is placed on the higher order thinking skills: critical thinking, analytical reasoning, problem solving, and writing. These skills, which are “thought to be particularly important in the knowledge economy, and shared by most educators as key aims of instruction” (Benjamin 2008, 51), are related within the unique curiosities and objectives of the dance discipline. Utilizing classroom experiences, primarily the author's, complemented by illustrative anecdotal responses from students, this article strategizes ways in which dance teachers can create opportunities for higher order thinking in the classroom and reveals how learning dance can enhance higher order thinking.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Dr. Jenifer Craig and Janice Davenport in preparing this article.