Students' difficulty with notation for dance in school dance lessons in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Notation for dance (prastarakaranaya) has become an essential component of school dance education since the 1960s. The notation for dance question has become a compulsory question in the GCE A/L examination. During my ten-year career as a government school dance teacher, I identified many students who failed the notation for dance question for various reasons. In particular, they confuse fundamental symbols in notation – tit (^) and tei (/). This paper examines students‘ inability to succeed in the notation for dance question and introduces a new method to teach the symbols tit and tei. Traditional dancers in Sri Lanka used a rhythm system called tit system, which did not require notation on paper. After the 1960s, based on the Indian music notation system, a mathematical notation system was introduced to the school dance curriculum. This study was conducted as action research. The methodology included a diagnostic test for 28 students in Risikala Aesthetic College in Kandy, an intervention to use their hands as the thalampota when notating, a post-test, and a questionnaire to know students‘ education history. Only 11 marked tit and tei symbols correctly at the diagnostic test. After the intervention, 26 students out of 28 marked it correctly. The intervention was somewhat successful. However, it reveals pedagogical constraints, particularly for underprivileged students, to succeed in the notation for dance. As per the curriculum, students should learn the basics of notation in grades 6 and 7. However, in rural schools, some students did not have regular dance teachers. In rural schools, many students are underprivileged, and student-teacher interaction is generally low. Some students feel that teachers in grades 6 and 7 didn‘t explain the notation process systematically and gradually. It also reveals a relationship between students' mathematical skills and success in notation because both require certain cognitive skills which need further studies to elucidate.