As long as the advice and information given by the person posting said advice is correct, in this age of anonymous internet usage, I don't think it matters who is typing on the keyboard. I will take all advice with a grain of salt whether from a "seasoned professional" or from someone who is still learning. Obviously if the advice is comepletely outrageous I will not follow it even if it is given by someone who has been teaching since the 1960's! I refuse to blindly accept any information no matter who it is from.

imadanseur wrote:

If you have your own classes technically you are a teacher. If you are teaching 3 year olds and you are 15 years old (which I personally don't agree with, but that is another story), answering a question on how to teach tour jetes is probably something you don't want to give your input about. You may know how to do them, you may know how your teacher has taught them...but you are not currently teaching them and I think there are many other teachers who have more knowledge than you that could help a poster about a question like that.

Use good judgement as a new, young, teacher. Yes we have all been there, but the key to being a really good teacher is knowing what you know and what you don't. Even though I've been teaching 16 years I know there is so much I will learn through the years to come. Listening to other teachers has helped me more than anything.

As a teacher...when I ask a question I want good solid advice from people who have been in the industry and and know what they are talking about. I don't care if you are 16 or 60...just know what you are talking about when you post and try to sound educated when you type out your response.

i totally agree with you!!!! I am completely against younger kids teaching other kids. Parent's pay way too much money to have a 13year old teaching their students! I started teaching when i was 17, (now 21) still looking back was very young. Anywho. I agree that you shouldn't be given advice if you don't have enough experience. I want to talk with older, experienced teachers get advice, etc. There's a lot of situation questions on here about business, parent problems, student attitude problems that children should not be seeing.

I think everyone's advice on this board has some validity no matter who it's from. Personally, my favorite teachers were about one or two years older than me, but they were excellent dancers. Young teachers can have a lot to offer. I also think (since I'm a new teacher) that a student's advice would be useful, as long as they clarify that they are indeed a student.

^That is where you are wrong. If I am asking how to teach something in my advanced pointe class I want someone to answer my question that has taught pointe and taught that particular step to many students. I do not feel a student's opinion is valid when they have never had experience teaching that.

It is like me telling you how to bake a cake when I personally have never baked one. Wouldn't you rather have your question answered by a baker or professional pastry chef?

well, for one thing, baking a cake is pretty simple you don't need a pro to teach you how to do it, so, in that respect a professional isn't always needed.
and for another thing I really don't find a lot of people asking how to teach, but that they want an opinion or idea on something. From what I've seen on most posts, the teachers are pretty experienced and know what they're doing. who's to say a student wouldn't have good song or costume ideas from their own schools?
sure, maybe they shouldn't be hanging out in the teacher's lounge, but if a student really thinks they have some good input, why not? are they really hurting anyone? it's only suggestions you can take em' or leave em'.

^Well why don't we split hairs. Baking a cake was an example to demonstrate a point but since you didn't like that one how about this...teaching someone to play the guitar. Would you like an opinion from Eric Clapton or the guy next door that taught himself and has been playing a year? Still don't like that example, well let's talk about learning a language. Would you rather have your question answered by a native speaker of the country and is considered an expert or a first year student studying language in high school? I am going to go out on a limb and assume you have half a brain and can figure out the point I am trying to make.

You may disagree with the rule but it was established by the owner of the site and I am a moderator that carries out the rules. If students feel they have something to contribute they can private message the original poster with their thoughts or suggestions, but they cannot post on the thread or it will be removed. The same rules apply in the parent's only forum. If you are not a parent you may not post there. I don't care if you are 65 years old and have taught for 40 years...if you don't have a child you can't post there. The same rule applies to the guy's only forum. It doesn't matter how much information I could add to a discussion...since I do not have a penis I cannot post there.

By the way not all cake baking is simple. Obviously you need a little more experience before making such outlandish claims. Ever tried to make a wedding cake? Here is one example of another cake that isn't so "simple" though I could give you MANY if you ever desired me to back up my claim.

Baumkuchen translated literally this is the tree cake. Called the Tree Cake because of the Layers that look like the rings of a tree. See video of a cake being made.

www.youtube.com . . .

wow! thanks for all that info!!! and assuming I have half a brain??? thanks, I'm really glad you appreciate my intelligence!!
Of course I understand your point, but what I'm trying to say is that your point is dumb and anal, and most people posting here probably won't go nuts if students comment or post here. I know that you feel it is your duty to inform everyone to the tenth degree how important it is that we're not "breaking the rules", what with your prestigious title as "Site Moderator", but this is a freakin' dance forum, who cares??

No my point is not dumb or anal. You may think the site rules are such but it isn't your site. Go start your own dance site and when it has 125,000 members you can feel free to let people post wherever they would like.

I realize you feel you have infinite wisdom on this dance site since you have been a member here for all of 9 days...congrats. I have been a member here for 5 years and the teachers forums have ALWAYS been teachers only. This post where I am supposedly informing people to the tenth degree about not breaking the rules was written in 2004. The owner of the site asked me to post something because this is the ASK A TEACHER forum. Not ask a student, not ask a student teacher, not ask someone who thinks they might have a good answer. We set up the forum for people that wanted an opinion from a teacher. I am not sure why that is hard for you to understand or if I should use smaller words. I have already explained that any student or parent reading a thread can private message the original poster with their fantabulous earth shattering idea or opinion. If it is written on the thread and a moderator sees it or it is mod reported then we remove it.

Yes it is a freakin' dance forum...but there are A LOT of teachers that don't want students posting on the teacher's forum. If you were a member when we had this problem back in 2004 you might have a bit more understanding how many teachers asked for this rule to be enforced.

Why not read some of the past threads where people have wanted to make the teacher forum private so that only teachers could read the info and students didn't even have the option of posting there. We did do that with the studio owner forum. You have to pay to have access to that forum and prove you are a studio owner. I am sure that seems unfair to you as well. Oh well, if you have a problem with the rules then take it up with the owner of the site and tell him how to run the site better since you are obviously not only a dance teacher but an expert in website construction and management as well. Kudos to you!

As for my point being "dumb" when you point a finger at someone you have 3 pointing back at yourself. Ironic? I don't think so.

Wow, "imadanseur": the best way to run your site with "125000" members is to not be so freaking grumpy to the people who post on it. It's the internet. It's anonymous. Get over it.
On the subject of students helping out with answers to teaching questions: I believe that I teach my students in a manner that is so thorough that when they learn something from me they know it well enough to go out and teach it to a younger student. So yeah, if someone that I taught wanted to try and answer a question about technique or the proper way to teach a grand jete I would be confident enough in myself to hear their advice.

oh wow, i go away for a couple a days and come back to find this?

I am on the studio owner's board, and am the first one to get upset when someone who is not a studio owner tries to answer a question. I know we are talking teacher's board here, but let me try to explain.

When I was a teacher, I had no idea what all went into the actual studio owner process. I thought it would be the same thing. Boy was I WRONG!

Putting that into perspective, a student, will not be able to give the same advice as a teacher could. You have been a member here for about 10 days, and haven't really seen it happen yet, but it does. Think of how upset you get when a student thinks they know better than you in your class? Ok that same thing happens on the board.

Let's say I am looking for a way to teach plies. A teacher will come up with the idea of teaching little kids that they make a hole with their knees so the kitty cat can climb through. A student will say "bend your knees"

When we look for advice on how to teach something, we look for specifics, we look for new ways to teach it, not the technical aspects. Not to mention, your student who you taught that too, unless they are some miracle of God, are not doing it perfectly. They are a student for a reason. To learn.


I am not a moderator, but have been a member for a really long time, and honestly have seen things that most people never would have imagined could happen on an internet board. I understand that at this point you don't see why students shouldn't post in the teacher board, but someday hopefully you will.


on a side note, you will get nowhere in life criticizing the moderators/owners of helpful message boards, and telling people you disagree with their policies. If you disagree, go elsewhere.

^I may sound grumpy but when a member of 10 days calls me dumb and anal for enforcing rules that I haven't made up or don't know why we implemented the rules in the first place I get a little annoyed. I don't know what being anonymous has to do with that equation and I am quite "over it." But some people are making it seem like I made up this rule on my own with no thought given to it whatsoever.

I was a member here long before I was a moderator and there have been many situations where teachers have not wanted a student's input on various situations.

I believe that I teach my students in a manner that is so thorough that when they learn something from me they know it well enough to go out and teach it to a younger student.

Good for you. But what about the vast amount of other teachers who don't teach that way and you will be getting advice from students who haven't been taught the correct way and really have no business giving advice to others? They aren't trained, they have no experience, and could be dead wrong which was happening previously. I think I teach my students very thoroughly, but I still think that most of my 14 year old advanced tap students still shouldn't be answering a teacher on this board who is asking for ideas about what to teach in their 3-4 year old classes and neither did 98% of the teachers that were polled in 2004 when this sticky was written.

I also don't think a student has enough knowledge to help other teachers with questions on how to run their studios, how to handle a problem student, problem parents, or problems with financial aspects in running a business. It has been determined by the owner that the ask a teacher forum is for teachers to answer.

Again, you can disagree with that decision, you could write the owner and suggest something different or a student still has the opportunity to private message their response to a question.

The REST of DDN is an "Ask a Student" board. If you want the perspective of students, shouldn't you just post it there?

Dani

^^AMEN!

Of course I understand your point, but what I'm trying to say is that your point is dumb and anal, and most people posting here probably won't go nuts if students comment or post here. I know that you feel it is your duty to inform everyone to the tenth degree how important it is that we're not "breaking the rules", what with your prestigious title as "Site Moderator", but this is a freakin' dance forum, who cares??

I would consider this a direct violation of the TOS and quite immature at that. I would classify this as one of the most disrespectful unappreciative posts I've saw on the site. Mods do quite extensive work. They carry out direct orders from the webmaster, aka owner of the site, for FREE in addition to countless hours making this site an enjoyable SAFE place for advice and exchange of ideas.

Wow, "imadanseur": the best way to run your site with "125000" members is to not be so freaking bitchy to the people who post on it. It's the internet. It's anonymous. Get over it.

??? Again, direct violations of the TOS and completely disrespectful. Every person has a right to defend themselves when they have been attacked, its not being 'crabby'.

Ok, back to the topic.

My personal opinion is probably pretty harsh compared to others. I do not feel anyone under the age of 18 should be posting here. There are Ask A Teacher boards on other sites I frequent that are under lock and key. Anyone can ask a question, but only approved members can respond. I do no know if that is a possibility here, but I would love to see it happen. Student Teachers can have their own board. This board should be for part time or full time Adult Teachers with experience. There is no need for an Ask A Student board, you can ask any random member a question on dozens of other boards or by PM.

Oh golly! Been a long time since I last saw/posted on this thread. I'm old and creaky and wrinkly now! lol.

I personally don't feel that the 'Only' forums are developed specifically to exclude other dancers. Rather, I perceive them as being 'facilitators' of discussion between like-minded people. The like-minded bit here being teaching experience.

For example, I feel there is a difference between the following two questions:
a) A teacher in another studio is teaching jetes differently from the way I do - how are you guys taught to do/teach jetes?
b) A teacher in another studio is teaching jetes differently from the way I do - how do you guys teach jetes?

Bit of a blase example, but you get the point. The first welcomes discussion from 'the other side' of the coin, whilst the second is obviously targeted towards teachers. This isn't the say the hypothetical thread creator doesn't care about student responses, but is seeking personal responses from other teachers to assist their personal thought processes.

The reasons for wanting responses from a particular set of people are varied - some cultural ("I don't want to talk about my periods with guys! Eww!"), some social ("Sorry, too much information! I'll save it for my bestie later"), some emotional ("I'm sorry, I know you mean well, I just want to speak to someone who's been through this before right now"). Whatever the reason, I feel that it's only right to respect that other person's desire to hear from certain people - otherwise it's generally regarded as 'unsolicited advice' in real life. I believe it is the same online.

I understand that there are some students out there experienced and trained enough to be able to answer some of the questions brought up in this forum. However, I also think an important lesson is to learn when is an appropriate way of speaking up, and when it is not appropriate. There are other, more generalised forums for anyone - teachers and students alike - to post and give advice on. I too like to think my students are bright enough to answer questions intelligently, but I would also like to think they are polite enough to only answer another teacher's questions when they were asked directly, or when the conversation was deliberately opened to them.

It is also important to remember that this forum would have been created solely to fulfill demand for teacher-to-teacher communication. The 'only' part of this forum is 50% functional, trust me!!!! lol. Once you start breaking it down and creating a 'second' general dance forum, Linh may as well merge the two and be done with several super-active forums that are difficult to keep track of And then teachers will ask for the 'only' forum back again because the teacher-to-teacher threads are flying off the boards And then we can go through all of this again

Students are always able to PM thread creators if they want to pitch in on a conversation.

Goodness me. This thread is back from the dead, and with a vengeance!

I don't understand what part of imadanseur's message is so hard to understand. The forum is titled "Ask A Teacher". You ask a question, and a teacher offers an answer. The entire remainder of DDN (SO forums an exception of course) is"Ask A Student" or whoever else cares to answer. Plenty of people ask their fellow students for advice on the Ballet, Jazz, Tap, etc. boards. It seems quite sane and simple that teachers reply exclusively on the "Ask A Teacher" boards. It's a simple matter or order and site organization.

Personally, if I were curious about something and went on over the the "Ask A Studio Owner" forum and a bunch of students and teachers started answering my questions, I wouldn't have a fit, but it would be slightly annoying. There is a specific reason why a poster seeks out the "Ask A..." forum. To receive advice from a person of that particular title.

Getting snarky with the moderators who are just trying to do their jobs isn't going to change any minds or make you look smart. There are bigger battles in life to fight. "It's the internet. It's anonymous. Get over it."

Right?

Ok Judge Judy here LOL

Listen, this board is "Ask A Teacher"... That means students can post questions for teachers to answer. How hard is that to understand? A student should not be answering the questions or giving an opinion or instructions on how to teach things that are beyone their capabilities. Period.

Students, pleas have some respect for us teachers and studio owners. We demand it! If you can't give respect don't expect to get any either....

The verdict is in. No students answering on this board. Judgment entered by Judge Judy A/K/A daninqueen A/K/A dance6657!

lol. She has spoken. and you dont mess with judge judy.
period.

see, I have no problem understanding this sticky, and by the way I called no one "dumb" i said that your point was dumb. I was trying to say that I'm sure there are plenty of dancers who have good advice from what their studios do, and i think if you really wanna get on their case about it they'll feel guilty, and there's no need for that. My main point is even though people post where they "shouldn't" post, I think everyone's input should be valued if it is relevant to the post. I didn't feel this forum was so uptight.

^And what do we do with all the irrelevant posts and dancers who are giving really really bad advice who think they are giving good advice because they have only had a one teacher who isn't even qualified to tie her shoes much less teach dance? That is the dilemma we found ourselves in.

The forum isn't uptight...there are basic rules and guidelines and any message board has them. There are over 100 forums that students can post on. There are only a few that are reserved for teachers only, parents only, girls only etc. When people sign up for a membership they agree to follow the rules whether they are "dumb" or not. You can agree, or disagree with them. I don't agree with every single rule I enforce here but it isn't my site so I have the choice to follow them and be a member of the site or not and go to another dance site.

Thanks Kiki!

See here is one of the reasons we don't want students answering. "dumb" ?????? Let's elevate ourselves here please?

im thinking what we do with all the student posts, is remove them. starting with some of the ones in this thread.

well you could just ignore it. Hopefully the students identify themselves as such, and if they give us bad advice we could disregard it, I think that's what most people would do when students post here. It's all just a matter of opinion, and there's a million out there, especially when it comes to costumes, songs, and recital ideas. Hell, I think a student could offer some good ideas.

Iluvpink,
you have been here what..10 days? You think most people would ignore it? not the truth. MANY people who see a student post, click the mod button, and poof there goes the post into "dont ever post here again" land...and a message pops up from a mod that says "only teachers can post here"

Students don't identify themselves as such...
and actually i dont think there has been a problem lately. In fact, this thread was dead until it was brought up again...

Also take notice in the amount of support you have gotten on this....hmm...yeah...about that...

now go back and look at the amount of support supporting this rule in the first place......