Dance Teacher Educators’ Identity

This article investigates the professional identity of dance teacher educators by looking at one specific educator. We show how the practice-based dance knowledge acquired through the act of dancing creates a foundation for teaching dance and dance teaching, as well as theoretical dance subjects, such as dance pedagogy. Through this research, it has become apparent that there has been a lack of educator education in dance teacher education in Norway, and therefore, dance teacher educators can be understood to be self-taught. We show how, by making conscious choices, dance teacher educators have the possibility to enter and pursue educator education; how, through these choices, one gains new experiences; and how meaning making and experience are closely connected with identity construction as an ongoing process. The article adopts a phenomenological research approach inspired by Max van Manen, and the materials were gathered through interviews, conversations and textual readings.