Safety in Dance Education

Did you know the dance studio industry is totally unregulated?  Anyone can open a dance studio and teach dance classes.  There is no mandatory license, no test you have to take, no required continued education.  As dance teachers, we are in charge of keeping children’s minds and bodies safe and healthy but a dog groomer needs more official training.

So what can you do?  What can you do to ensure your child is kept safe and healthy?

You can ask.  You can ask about the credentials of the teachers and the owner.  Do they have degrees in dance?  Are there any certifications they have earned?  What kind of continued education do they participate in?  These are important questions to ask because the job of your child’s dance teacher is to keep him/her safe.  If your teacher does know how to safely advance a dancer you should be concerned.

As educated teachers, my staff and I see it all the time.  Young, uneducated teachers giving kids tricks they can’t do, building habits of bad technique and then causing injuries.  It is so sad but so common.

If you are shopping for a studio make sure to do your research, make sure your teachers are not only educated but are also practicing continued education!  Dance is a fast-moving field and teachers need to stay updated on information and best practices to stay safe in the classroom.

There are many studios across the county that are practicing safe standards in the classroom, look for the ones that are certified or licensed with education organizations.  Being an unregulated industry, having dance studio voluntarily join an organization that holds higher standards speaks volumes.

At East County Performing Arts Center continued education is a cornerstone of our culture.  Not only do we have teachers with degrees in dance and child development but we are a licensed More Than Just Great Dancing Studio, member of The National Dance Education Organization, we are a chapter for the National Honor Society for Dance Arts. our teachers train with physiotherapists, judge at competitions and travel to train other teachers.  We are passionate about learning more to bring back to our students!

There are many studios across the country that offer high-quality safe classes for your dancer, you just need to do a little research and a little asking to find them!