About the BCDEA
The BC Dance Educators’ Association is an association of teachers dedicated to supporting and promoting quality dance education for all British Columbia students. It is a PSA (provincial specialist association) of the B.C. Teachers’ Federation. The association provides a network for dance educators at the Primary, Intermediate and Secondary levels, and provides opportunities for professional development, collaboration, awards, and grants. As a BCDEA member, you will join a network of K-12 dance educators in BC to share ideas and information and be able to participate in the annual conference that offers a variety of workshops and a valuable conference package including notes and videos from all workshops. To become a BCDEA member, you can now register online. Or, register here for the upcoming conference to be automatically registered as a BCDEA member.
CONSTITUTION
OF THE BCDEA
We are always looking for more members to join our executive team! Our goal is to have at least one representative from every district in BC. If you are interested in helping us help teachers please send an email to psac73@bctf.ca
Words from the Team
"Behind every dancer who believes in themselves, is a teacher who believed in them first."
Author Unknown
Why did you become a Dance Educator?
“I became a Dance Teacher because I love to dance. I wanted to inspire students to dance in the education system. I believe if I connect their love of dance to school, then I believe students will stay connected to school. My belief is that the connection to school with a passion will help students stay in school."
- Ginger
What's something you have tried recently in your dance studio?
“I've had students develop their own Dance Films in class, working together to develop a concept, choreography, choose filming locations in the school, and edit the project all together. The result has been creative and have led to strong discussions about how to represent their concept. Groups include members across grade levels and experience levels so groups have also developed community while creating choreography that highlights individual strengths and includes everyone.”
- Ella
What’s one thing you wish you knew earlier in your dance teaching career?
"That students love hip hop! For years I was a studio dance teacher and taught ballet and contemporary. Now I teach in a high school setting, having a good understanding of hip hop is so important, that seems to be what the students want to learn and it is in some ways more accessible to students than ballet, jazz or contemporary, which require a fair amount of technique to do well."
- Bronwen
What's something you have tried recently in your dance studio?
“Like many schools, we have Competitive Hip Hop teams (junior and senior) at our school but this year I added a third hip hop team (off-timetable) that is our hip hop training team. I made this team for students who weren't quite ready for the competitive team or wanted to dance all year long after school without the stress or commitment of being on the comp team. It has been really popular, and we have about 25 students coming after school for this now."
- Bronwen
What have you learned as a Dance Teacher?
"What I have learned over the years as a dance teacher is that it is about creating experiences for your students and to not sweat all the small stuff. Have fun and live today."
- Traci
Why did you become a Dance Educator?
“I wanted to become a dance teacher because I believe everyone should have the opportunity to dance and use their body as a tool for expression and communication. I believe that everyone and everybody can dance. I wanted to help people discover the freedom, confidence, and joy that movement can bring as well as discover how dance can be empowering.”
- Traci