The purpose of the study was to gather information on the history of line dancing and research how line dancers use technology. The personal interviews sought information of long time dancers so they could paint a picture of what line dancing was like in the early days and how it progressed as technology emerged. There is great interest in dance in currently as we can see by the popularity of shows like Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance. Unfortunately, there does not seem to be as great interest in dance research and practically no academic research for line dancing. Although line dancing is a hobby, there are dance programs in higher education and I have always felt that line dancing had something to offer toward our understanding of learning.

 

Learning line dances involves constant repetition. Beyond memorizing the actual dance steps, a dancer must coordinate their body movements, and focus their mind on the dance as well. Since line dancing is a hobby, there isn’t a time limit on learning the material as there often is in other types of learning. Perhaps in this age of open access learning where anyone can take courses from elite universities or participate in self-paced IT courses such as with Udacity there is going to be a shift in the way education is presented.

 

I began this project believing that technology advanced line dancing because line dancing in 2016 is very different than line dancing in 1995. I have encountered many people who have gone beyond the basic level of learning line dances and synthesized their interests, personalities, and lives with their love of line dancing to enhance it. When people know something, they have a very basic grasp of it. When people understand something, they are able to synthesize and integrate various aspects of their interests, personality, and lives (Henrisen, et al. 2015). After conducting my interviews with people who have been dancing for over 20 years I have changed my opinion. I see that technology has given line dancing more breadth and depth, but I have learned that line dancing evolved as prominent couples dancers devoted attention to creating an avenue for individuals to be able to participate. I have interviewed a very small sample of dancers, I admit, and I hope to expand my study by interviewing other dancers and also the pioneer line dance choreographers.

 

I do think it is possible greater number of people are aware of line dancing because of technology than would have been in the past because they may see or hear something that prompts them to look up a dance online or may see a shared post on social media. In 2009, YouTube was the fourth most recognized web brand in the United States (Nicholson, 2010). According to Nicholson (2010) having educational content available online allows access to materials motivating the recipients to better understand a topic and pursue additional resources. Also, materials are presented to a greater number of individuals. In the interviews dancers shared how they have used YouTube to supplement with they learn in class and how they use the internet to connect with other dancers across the country and even across the world.

 

We see that technology has in impact in academic programs as well. Technology employed in college level dance programs has allowed teachers to make more effective use of class time. Teachers can post music on a class website for students to familiarize themselves with the music before class, instructional dance clips can posted for students to watch before class instead of using class time for these passive activities, and students can also practice outside of class since music is so readily available (Lepczyk, 2009). iPods and similar gadgets allow students to choreograph and practice anyplace and time they want  (Lepczyk, 2009). We see this mirrored in the line dance world as well.

 

It is interesting to me to consider what someone conducting this same study ten years from now would find. What will be the significant events of the second decade to shape the history of line dance and what surprises will technology have brought about?

 

References:

 

Henrisen, D., DeSchryver, M., Mishra, P., & the Deep Play Research Group Michigan State University (2015). Transform and Transcend: Synthesis as a Trans-Disciplanary Approach to Thinking and Learning. Tech Trends, 59(4), p. 5-9.

 

Lepczyk, B. (2009). Technology Facilitates Teaching and Learning in Creative Dance. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 80(6), p. 4-5.

 

Nicholson, S. (2010) Inviting the world into online classroom. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science. 51(4), p. 233-240.