Dance Education in today´s classroom: Perceptions and training of Primary and Secondary teachers

Abstract

The main objective of this research was to analyse the perception and understanding of the concept of Dance Education of teachers of Primary and Secondary Education in Spain. The sample consisted of 198 male and 107 female teachers (N = 309) of Primary and Secondary School. For the collection of information, an ad hoc questionnaire was designed which includes three dimensions: (1) descriptive and training data, (2) understanding of the concept of Dance Education and self-perception of teaching competence to perform movement and dance activities; (3) implementation, uses and benefits of dance in the classroom. The results revealed that three quarters of the participants received no or very little university and further training in movement and dance, although half of the sample had a good understanding of the Dance Education and felt they had the necessary training to implement it in the classroom. The results showed significant differences depending on the age of the participants, the speciality studied and the educational stage in which they are teaching.