Nonverbal communication in dance teaching - How do students experience and interpret the nonverbal communication of a dance pedagogue?

The purpose of this thesis is to further the knowledge about how a dance pedagogue's nonverbal communication could be interpreted by dance students. The thesis focuses on four semiotic resources; placement in the room, facial expression, usage of voice, and body language.

A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods was used. A practical workshop was executed where demonstrations of various ways in using nonverbal communication within a dance class context was shown. A questionnaire was based upon these demonstrations. A group interview was conducted. In the process of making the content of the demonstrations, video filming was used. The theoretical framework is based on theories of social semiotics and multimodality.

The results show that small details in the dance pedagogue's usage of nonverbal communication have great influence on students' experiences of the presence of a dance pedagogue, the clarity of the instructions from the dance pedagogue, and the power dynamics between dance pedagogue and student. The study shows that these components are crucial for students' comprehensions of the content of a dance class and their experiences of the social climate of the classroom. The study advocates the importance of consiousness among dance pedagogues about their usage of nonverbal communication in teaching.