last night on sytycd they announced the dizzy feet foundation (run by nigel, katie holmes) which will offer scholarships for kids to dance that otherwise could not- which is fabulous!

what i don't like is another goal they have. thay want to certify teachers to be "certified dizzy feet teachers". i am an active member of two teacher organizations in my area for many years. like many of you, was tested and continue to take advantage of classes offered. when students sign up, they do see you are in these prof. organizations and certified by test but realistically you were chosen to teach the student because of the carpool or schedule or the friend takes....dizzy feet feels that their certification will put a gold seal on the door of studios they certify. the general public, that doesn't know much about dance, are more likely to be attracted to a studio or teachers certified by sytycd vs someone that has been successful in this profession for years and a certified member of our own current trade organization.

(i had to vent about this and of course-this is the perfect spot!)

tapnut wrote:

when students sign up, they do see you are in these prof. organizations and certified by test but realistically you were chosen to teach the student because of the carpool or schedule or the friend takes....

You know what? At the end of the day, this will still be the reason that most teachers/studios are chosen.

I, too, have been tested and am a member of a professional teaching organization and frankly nobody has ever used this as a reason to take from me. No one has ever said "We saw you were certified with XYZ and chose you."

I don't even think most prospective students/parents delve deeply into my bio for my other creds.

You are more likely to be chosen for 5 million reasons OTHER than a certification. Your reputation, the quality training you provide, the professionalism of your studio, your organizational abilities, your studio offerings, the time of the class, your location, the way you deal with students and parents, etc. etc. etc. These will always come before accreditation.

If parents chose based on accreditation alone, they would probably only take from teachers that have degrees in dance. In the 25+ years that I have taught and the gazillion families I have serviced, not ONE has ever asked "do you have a degree in dance?" Not one.

I wouldn't sweat the "dizzyfeet" certification. It might be a cool thing to have, but it's not going to add up to much by way of actually attracting or keeping students.

I am curious to see how much they are in alignment with the tests/credentials of the other organizations. They might have annoyed the preexisting organizations with the implication that they will set the bar.

i agree that it will be interesting to see the opinion of who has the "higher accredidation" sytycd or the existing teacher organizations. i don't know if you saw the piece they did on tv last night but...they implied that people should know that if they want to learn to dance correctly they should only go to a studio with the dizzy feet seal of approval. can't wait to see how this plays out. i think that as a charitable organization they should stick to doing the "charitable work only" scholarships, etc

I just replied but it didn't post, so if it double posts, sorry!

I did see last night. But I still believe that most viewers did not pay much attention to that aspect of the Foundation.

I think that the people who heard it were the instructors. The average consumer does not realize that anyone can open a school with absolutely no creds. So to say "we are going to unify the teaching standard on a national level" means nothing to the average bear.

I feel that it's a bit like any other profession. Take a physician for example. Some of us may delve into the background creds of our doctors, but most people cannot tell you what university that their doctor graduated from, much less whether they graduated magna cum laude or at the bottom of their class. You simply know that they are an M.D.

Also, I think most consumers just assume that there is a board of some sort for dance accreditation and if you teach, you obviously passed. They really don't understand what the educators on the inside understand, regarding the lack of a unified standard.

I agree...I was quite peeved about it myself but held back on posting to see if others did. My main issue was the "we are going to give 10 scholarships to students in dance studios who are in need." My first thought is...why don't you send your choreographers into underprivileged schools instead of giving 10 scholarships to students ALREADY in DANCE CLASSES! We need to be reaching the kids who don't have access to dance!

On Tuesday night our school board voted on the district's "All the Arts for All the Kids" program. Cutting our programs drastically. Our students now get 2 hours of dance 2 hours of art 2 hours of music an 2 hours of drama year!!! The article said that the school teachers would be "picking up the pieces" from the lessons that had to be dropped and I just have to say...YEAH RIGHT!

Upon further inspection of their website it looks like they plan to do more than give 10 scholarships but who would have known? They blatantly said that the foundation gives 10 scholarships! Oh yes and it also irked me too that they made it sound like unless your teacher is "dizzy feet" certified they are not going to be well trained.

My original post was just going to say...how much will this cost us???

Oh I am so glad someone posted about this... What a freakin' joke!!! I'm sorry, but how many "certifications" does one field need? What makes theirs better - their celebrity status?

Let's come with our own certification.

"DDN-certified!"

No costs involved for us. Just something else to add to our list of certifications. No one will ask us what it means. It just looks good on our resume.

Haha...DDN Certified! I LOVE it!

lidwina wrote:

Let's come with our own certification.

"DDN-certified!"

No costs involved for us. Just something else to add to our list of certifications. No one will ask us what it means. It just looks good on our resume.

As SO, we do pay for membership to the SO board. I think we learn just as much from chatting here, too. I think you're on to something! lol

I would like to second the idea of being DDN Certified!! Where do I sign up?? LoL

i can continue teaching dance without the gold seal from the hot tamale train! just what i want to be certified by someone that says things like "nice spin, great twirl"

organizations like d.m.a. nat'l must be luv'n this

I'm sure this is coming out of their experience touring the country and seeing horrible dancers who claim to also teach. But, an accreditation process isn't going to keep those people from holding classes. In my opinion the most important thing that SYTYCD can do is educate the public about how important quality training is and how dangerous a bad instructor can be.

Oh yes...at a 5 post average a day, I believe I qualify for the DDN Certification. Plus we are INTERnational. Yo! here's a shout out to the DDN Certified instructors in Australia, Holland, England, Canada, etc. etc.!!! hehehe

And yes, DMA is who I thought about as well. Not to mention the Cecchetti Council, RAD, DEA, etc. Wonder how they feel about Dizzy Feet (must say...I do not like the name...does not sound prestigious)

Scattered wrote:

But, an accreditation process isn't going to keep those people from holding classes.

Even with accreditation, there is no guaranteeing a stellar instructor. How many HORRIBLE teachers does one encounter in the education system?? Most school teachers need their Masters degree. They can still be AWFULLLLLL!

Fave Ferris Bueller quote - "In 1930, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, in an effort to alleviate the effects of the... Anyone? Anyone?... the Great Depression, passed the... Anyone? Anyone?.... The tariff bill."

DDN TEST....

1. Name three shows about dance on TV.

2. Name three dance steps that you have learned (do not worry about spelling, as long as it looks familiar).

3. Can you count to 8?

4. Have you taken at least one dance class during your life?

5. Have you ever danced in front of an audience (yes, your friends at age 7 counts).

6. Do you know the difference between ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop and other dance forms?

If no, just name your favorite dance song, instead.

7. Do you own lyrca tights or booty shorts?

8. Can you do a split?

9. Can you jump more than five inches off of the floor?

10. Do you know what a muscle is?


++++

Can you add anything else to the test? I think that it should be very legitimate looking (even if we realize that the unsuspecting customers will have no clue).

When I took my tests for organizations that have three initials, I was amazed at how easy and elementary they were and anyone who could study, could pass. Hello, how about observing and doing massive testing?

So, I would love to see HOW they accredit these people and do we have to pay for this? Hmm, sounds like a good money-maker for someone, in the long run.

You know what? I had my own scholarship and work/study programs in my school, and they did not have to go through any huge orgaization.

So glad we feel the same here. And how about instead of yet another certifiable organization for teachers, how about grant programs for us struggling to make things work and be affordable, but not cheap and still offer dance where Joe Schmo can take even if they are "in need"? That's what I would like to see. Grants for dance teachers trying to make a difference and maybe struggling to get off the ground.

JLL wrote:

7. Do you own lyrca tights or booty shorts?

Well now what???? I thought I was good to go until #7!!!

I retired tights long ago and NOBODY I repeat NOBODY wants to see me in booty shorts.

What if you modify that to "Do any of your students wear booty shorts?"

Then I'm TOTALLY certified.

Well, I am sorry then, no DDN certification for you. LOL

^^^^ Okay...you just made me laugh out loud in a public place! Now everyone around me just thinks I'm "certifiable" hearing me laugh at my computer screen regarding my revocation.

Thank a lot!

Buahahahahahaha!

tcsso wrote:

As SO, we do pay for membership to the SO board. I think we learn just as much from chatting here, too. I think you're on to something! lol

Because this is the Teacher board, I said no costs.


My oral examination Jazz methodics.
Question: what is the most important muscle in your body?
Me (looking around, thinking: "Is this the anatomy exam?"): "....Uhm, your heart?"
Examinator: "No, try again please."
Me (sweating all over): ".... Uhm.......uhm....Your lungs?" (Come on! Be nice to me! I was completely confused! I was prepared for questions like: 'How would you teach a triplet to a 10-year old?")
Examinator: "No."
Me: "Some muscle in your brains?"
Examinator: "You give up?"
Me: "Yes."
Examinator: "The pupil reflects the inner soul of a person and is therefore the most important muscle of the body."

Okay! Who of you had that right? Well?

Same examination, Jazz methodics, remember.
Next question: "From what country does the accordeon comes from originally?"
Me (secretly digging a hole under my chair): "France?"
Examinator: "No, from Holland."
Me: "O, really?"
Examinator started a long monologue about the development of acccordeon music through the ages.

I passed.

so if we all get certified by dizzy and people ask what d.i.z.z.y. stands for what do we say??

any ideas people? i'm stuck on the "z"

JLL wrote:

When I took my tests for organizations that have three initials, I was amazed at how easy and elementary they were and anyone who could study, could pass. Hello, how about observing and doing massive testing?

Yup... after flipping through study manuals at a studio I worked at, I came to same conclusion... e-a-s-y. It pretty much sealed my opinion that certifications are crap. (Don't mean to offend anyone - if you know me, I'm blunt).

Anywho... I was thinking... I have some of those gold starburst award stickers. If I break out a Sharpie and doodle on there D.D.N. and stick it on my door, can I say I have a gold seal of approval??? lol

Seriously - scholarships are great and all, but I got the idea that they would be handing them out at their auditions? These people are adults, right? They grew up dancing and got themselves to the audition. Why do they need the $? They would be able to take some bigger classes in NYC and LA? I don't know how swell of an idea that is. If they were any good, wouldn't they have already hit their prime and be ready to teach or perform professionally?

tcsso wrote:

I have some of those gold starburst award stickers. If I break out a Sharpie and doodle on there D.D.N. and stick it on my door, can I say I have a gold seal of approval??? lol

About 10 years ago I found a personalized official looking "Doctorate Degree in Dance" on Ebay, and I got one as a joke because the wording was clever, and it had a big picture of a ballerina on it. I even got one for my brother who hunts - it had a picture of a deer. Unfortunately, some people who saw them (and didn't read their text) thought that they were legit, so I was never able to hang mine up.

Okay the name alone Dizzy Feet makes me laugh, but adding the certification makes me want to throw something at Nigels head.
Who came up with this, what reputable professional instructor would go thru the hassle of receiving a certification with the word "dizzy" in it.

Maybe their Dizzy Feet certification should be a disapproval. Label the poor teachers out there! =)