Relative effect of two dance instructional techniques on the development of each student's body alignment

This study examined the relative effect of two dance instructional techniques (body therapies and traditional ballet method) on the development of each student's body alignment. Sixteen female college students between the ages of 18 to 26 served as subjects for this study. The experimental design consisted of two groups; one group was instructed using the traditional ballet method, while the other group received additional instruction using body therapies techniques. Each group participated in a twenty nine day lesson sequence. The subjects were videotaped on three separate occasions throughout the semester. A panel of two members examined the subjects using a five point rating scale to determine if the student maintained body alignment while doing the following barre exercises: plie, tendu, rond de jambe, fondu, grand battement. The data was analyzed by a Mann-Whitney U test. According to the evidence found in this study, no statistically significant differences were found in the scores for the traditional ballet method group and the body therapies group. Although the differences between groups were not statistically significant, the mean score did indicate an overall rate of improvement in the experimental group especially during the first half of the semester.