Tools for Assessing Teaching Methods in Physical Disciplines — Part 1

I do not believe in definite or objective truths and I try to make my actions reflect that.

Observing some of the teachers I know and encounter, most seem to comply with the same belief. However, subsequent actions and discourse does not seem to reflect this attitude fully.

I speak as an observer and teacher of several physical disciplines (contemporary dance, parkour and acrobatics among others). As soon as we (we being teachers of movement) move into the world of teaching physicality, from the world of my experience, many teachers often turn their methods and techniques into dogmatic truths that their students have to learn by heart.

This obsession with teaching our students (and ourselves) to perform in the “right way” makes it difficult for us to take a step back. We become less apt at assessing our own teaching tools and techniques as to what they truly offer. It also becomes even harder to tailor our tools to specific students or situations, limiting the true potential of what our students can achieve.

I truly believe that setting parameters for success and establishing clear terminology is important for physical development. However, I propose that we (again, all teachers of physical disciplines) remind ourselves often that we invented that terminology and those parameters. In that way, we can discard them, repurpose them and improve them, to get the most out of our tools. There are ways of “learning by discarding” and technique is not finite.

This premise is the most important part of this essay. From here, you are free to drop out of the conversation. But reading onwards might clarify the importance, depth, and complexity of this theory. Everything is man-made, if you understand this, you will understand how to improve, erase, and reevaluate your own process as you are doing it.

As banal as this may seem, ask yourself: how are you teaching in a way that improves you, your students, and your own teaching capacity? Are you able to assess and adapt your tools to the ever-changing landscape of physical education?

To be continued.