Dancing in the time of Corona
The coronavirus pandemic changed the world in ways that were unexpected. The advent of the phrase, 'new normal' caught up rapidly. These days, we enter a bank with our faces covered in masks, offices have online meetings and work from home options, and educational institutes conduct online classes and exams. Similarly, dance classes also shifted online.
Dance, by design, is performed to be seen by an audience. Since the 'new normal' invaded our lives, dance took on a passive form. But how beneficial is an online dance class for something as interactive as teaching remains a concern.
Online dance classes started with the notion of a 'quick-fix' approach to keeping students in touch with the art form's educational and learning aspects. Kolpotoru, a prominent dance school located in Banani, started their online dance classes in the first week of the countrywide shutdown.
As a dance teacher, I have been taking Kolpotoro's online classes for the last eleven months. This is quite a different experience than taking classes physically. Recently, the principal of Kolpotoru, eminent dancer and researcher Lubna Marium arranged an online meeting with all the parents and decided to resume classes at the premises from the first week of March 2021. In the last 11 months, my students and I have faced challenges during the online classes, but we have accomplished a lot too.
Quite surprisingly, the students are much more responsible and attentive throughout the online interactions. Since it is a challenge to stay connected, whenever they have a class, they listen to me and try to follow all my instructions, despite problems such as camera fixings, muted microphones or connection losses. At the premises of Kolpotoru, they used to talk more amongst themselves, which is not a significant problem, but it makes things relatively challenging for a teacher. Now each student is focused more than before and more willing to take responsibility on their own to stay connected, till the end of a class.
We are also using the online resources efficiently. The students can be connected with me after a class, by sharing their practice lessons and videos, which is a great way to keep up with the dance routines throughout the week. Before the online classes, most students spent very little time practicing their dance routines before the dance class, but now it seems they are practicing more often.
At the same time, some issues can be frustrating, like when poor or interrupted internet connectivity ruins the class time. The children also want to chat with their peers, but that can hardly be possible since the time is brief, and a lot needs to be done.
At the end of last year, the students were asked whether they had learned more in the online classes or whether they prefer the conventional class set-up. Everyone provided positive feedback, advocating for online courses. During these critical times, they have learned a lot more and they have received private lessons.
But in all fairness, they miss going to Kolpotoru, especially now that they cannot meet their friends in person. They will be much happier if they can go to the institute, and sit in the classes. They also miss the events that used to take place at Kolpotoru occasionally, such as Falgun Utshab, Classical Fest, art events, and many others.
The author is a dancer and dance teacher at Kolpotoru and Shadhona. [email protected].
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