This thesis is a curriculum development for training Christian dance leaders. Today when Christian dance is being activated and developed as a worship and mission dance I have realized the need for a trained leader educated technically and systematica...
This thesis is a curriculum development for training Christian dance leaders. Today when Christian dance is being activated and developed as a worship and mission dance I have realized the need for a trained leader educated technically and systematically in order that Christian dance may be properly understood and efficiently used.
Christian dance in Korea started as a worship dance in church in form of elementary rhythmic movement or Korean traditional dance. This worship dance contributed to helping the worship and then educational institutions of worship dance were established in the name of seminaries. However, Christian dance as a culture hasn't played its role because it started by non professional dancers who just devoted to Christian religion and have not won the sympathy with the modern dance culture. Furthermore the seminaries built by people without major in dance have a lot of problems in course of study such as educational time and period, curriculum, use of terms. I have looked into these problems and presented a curriculum as a method to develop Christian dance as a culture playing its missionary role.
For this purpose, first, I have examined the ideal and goal of dance education with dance theories and looked into the value of dance as a study and showed what dance curriculum should do as a study.
Second, I have grasped the purpose, activity, genre of 26 missionary groups currently being at work in Christian dance and have studied the realities and problems of current Christian dance.
Third, I have researched and analyzed curriculums of Christian dance educational institutions mainly in Seoul, Kyunggido - 7 private institutions, 2 (4-year) universities, 1 continuing education center. Then I have presented the problems and solutions.
The problems found during the research are as follows.
1. Education time is insufficient.
90 percents of the students learning Christian dance are adults who haven't specialized in dance. Short classes of once or twice per week are not enough to train and express their body.
2. Education period is short.
While the classes (modern dance, Korean dance, Jazz dance, hip-hop, ballet, dance theory etc.) are many, the learning period is one or two years. Time lack causes to ignore building the proper body for dance and learning basic dance skills and therefore the students just learn dance movements in order.
3. Lack of understanding of dance theories
I noticed from the content of the classes that students are dancing without basic research on movements and sufficient understanding on dance theories.
4. Lack of understanding of Christian dance
Christianity should be based on Bible. The students don't fully understand how Christian dance mentioned in Bible has begun and developed and been used.
5. The problems on educators in the training process
The instructors with specialty on each subject should take charge of the teaching but the reality is not so.
6. Lack of religious spirit
Emphasizing on training and popularity too much, there are chances to lose the basic purposes of Christian dance.
7. No content on performance plan
The students are not ready as leaders who can plan and prepare for the performance in the churches and missionary organizations after the graduation.
8. Want of class on costumes and make-up
Churches don't have professional coordinator of clothes and make-up so dance leaders should have comprehensive knowledge on performance.
The curriculum model which can complement the problems listed above for training Christian dance leaders is as follows.
First, the directions of the curriculum are religious spirit and artistry which can fulfill the purpose of Christian dancers, unification of theory and dance talent which leads development of Christian dance, popularity which keeps pace with comtemporary dance culture, specialty which can educate and lead the Christian dance, and capability of creating and planning the performance.
Second, the characters of the curriculum have religious character based on Bible, artistry based on creative expression mediated by movements, and popular sympathy reflecting contemporary culture actively.
Third, the purposes of the curriculum are recovery of worship in the church and playing missionary role in the view of religious, artistic, and popular culture, general goals of dance education such as harmonious development of personality, formation of cultural human, active character formation, and formation of aesthetic value.
Fourth, the contents of the curriculum are mastery of the basic dance skills which make students understand their body and enlarge the sphere of movements, practical knowledge and function which can accept and express modern dance culture, mastery of principle of dance education by understanding fundamental human movements and dance, development of Christian dance as cultural art by a various and systematic training making the best use of each subject's characteristic, and leadership building which makes the student play a part as a leader
Fifth, quest methods of the curriculum are creating dance, performing dance, viewing dance, and dance inquiry.
Sixth, the constituents of curriculum are Modern dance, Ballet, Korean dance, Jazz dance, Hip-hop, Rhythmic movement for children, Creating dance, Make-up, Improvised dance, Workshop etc. and as for theory understanding dance, appreciation and construction of dance, Christianity and dance(dance in the Bible, history of Christian dance), missionary theology, worship theory, stage art theory, dance education and guide, performing art plan etc,
Seventh, training time and period is Christian dance course in 2-year(4-semesters) college and classes are 5 hours per week, 4 hours per day.
Eighth, future courses after graduation are as follows.
After finishing 2-year course, students can get certificate of second degree Christian dance leader and take an active part as worship dance and missionary dance leaders.
Ninth, teaching method of the curriculum should be composed by the principles as follows.
Based on religious spirit, eclectic model emphasizing both result and process equally, emphasizing creativity, individual character, knowledge on stage art equally, emphasizing expression and training equally, emphasizing principle of movement and styled techniques equally, emphasizing artistry and popularity equally, emphasizing problem solving and instructive teaching method equally.
This curriculum model for training Christian dance leaders presented in this thesis has a form of combination of current curriculum of dance course of university and religious theology classes because this research has focused on worship and missionary dance. There is need for trained Christian dance leaders educated with wide latitude but there is limit in actuality because of little understanding of Christian dance and passive measure in the church.