Abstract

ABSTRACT Higher education is experiencing rapidly shifting demographics brought about by the expanding global economy. The influx of English Language Learners (ELLs) into U.S. dance classrooms is creating a shifting paradigm for students and instructors. According to Beth McMurtrie (2012), universities with increasing international enrollments recognize the need to bolster services to support these students. This evolving educational landscape presents an opportunity for dance education. The dance studio provides a unique interchange of movement and language from which dance educators can support language acquisition alongside social, emotional, and cognitive development. Through qualitative analysis of interviews with Chinese ELLs, this article articulates the challenges and benefits interviewees experience in the dance studio, and offers teaching strategies participants found assistive to their learning. Using in-practice sessions, classroom activities were developed. The resulting learner-centered solutions focus on classwork with embedded language objectives, teacher-facilitated interactions, and conscientious modeling to foster culturally inclusive learning environments.

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