Evaluating the impact of incorporating dance into the curriculum of children encountering profound and multiple learning difficulties

Abstract

In 2005, LUDUS Dance, a professional contemporary dance and dance in education company based in the English city of Lancaster, were funded by the Arts Council England to deliver a dance programme to a school for children encountering1 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties2. After a brief description of the project this article will adopt a standard report style to present an evaluation of the impact of incorporating dance into the curriculum of children at the school. The evaluation employs a novel quantitative technique; this is discussed, and some suggestions are made for future research in the area of evaluating the impact of dance when working with children encountering PMLD.

Keywords:

• PMLD
• dance
• education
• dance movement therapy (DMT)
• evaluation
• methodology

Acknowledgments

This article summarises some of the work I undertook for my MA dissertation. As such I would like to thank Andrew Pollard (my dissertation supervisor). I would also like to thank Zoe Lamond and Professor Helen Payne for their support and encouragement.

Notes

1. Instead of referring to participants in this project as having a disability the term encounter will be used. This is because the author considers this less discriminatory.

2. Hereafter PMLD. Following Lacey (1996), PMLD may be clinically understood as referring to anyone experiencing: ‘restricted movement, skeletal deformity, sensory disorders, seizures, lung and breathing difficulties and other medical problems as well as a lack of a formal communication system’ (p. 64).

3. In England, the National Curriculum is split into four Key Stages: Key Stage 1 and 2 principally focusing on primary state education, whilst Key Stage 3 and 4 apply to secondary state education.

4. As per Lacey's definition of PMLD.

5. Dance and the Child International – UK Chapter.

6. Performance Indicators for Value Added Target Setting. A brief description of the PIVATS^© system may be found at www.lancashire.gov.uk/education/pivats