Going back to class after anaylsis: Researcher diary entry 13th December

Whilst waiting for my draft to be returned I decided I should make use of my rare free evening time and go back to one of my favourite Jazz classes at Pineapple Dance Studios. I chose to blog about this because I felt really aware during the class of the teacher and their gestures, body language and vocabulary use throughout the class.

The teacher was extremely welcoming and seemed excited to start. There was no aux cable when the teacher started to plug in their music so the class started a few minutes late, but the teacher was very practical about getting the lead as quickly as possible and there was a sense of efficiency which meant I personally didn't mind the class starting a few minutes late.

During the set warm up and technical exercises there appeared to be a real 'buzz' in the room. The teacher smiled a lot and seemed excited as the music came on and we were preparing for an exercise. This left me feeling energised and wanting to put my all into each exercise we did. I worked extremely hard and felt very determined throughout the class - I wondered about whether this was to do with the teacher and I felt partly it was. I think other reasons for the excitement in me was some nostalgia as I had not attended that class for a long time and the music, but I do have to say I think mainly it was the teacher.

During teaching the routine at the end of the class, the teacher gave encouragement to us throughout practising and appeared genuinely pleased at our success in learning. This made me feel proud of what I was achieving in the class and made me want to learn more.

Once the routine was taught, we danced it repeatedly until the class finished - the routine was very fast and had lots of high impact movements and use of levels, which resulted in us being extremely tired towards the end. Again the teacher told us they had faith and that we could do it once more. I felt if I had been doing this routine by myself I would have stopped, but the encouragement from the teacher allowed me to find that last bit of inner strength and dance one more time.

I felt that even though the class was entirely different to ones I have been looking at during my inquiry; the language used, the interaction between the teacher and class and the enthusiasm of the teacher was similar to what my professional sample were seeking to explain when they were answering about how teachers can deliver classes that students will enjoy.

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