Dancing With Digital Tools: Discourses on Teaching and Learning in School-Age Educare in Sweden

Internationally, there is a growing interest in School-Age Educare and the meaning of aesthetic aspects of teaching and learning in educational settings. Even if dancing is beneficial for human wellbeing and can be understood as both a physical activity as well as an aesthetic expression there are few studies that examine dance in School-Age Educare. Dance as an aesthetic expression can be linked to femininity which adds challenges in educational practice. According to UNICEF, dancing is one way for children to develop imagination, creativity, and social skills. Therefore, this study aims to critically examine the prerequisites for teaching and learning dance in School-Age Educare in Sweden. This study sheds light on discursive constructions made by school-age educators when they reason around dance in their education. The empirical material consists of six semi-structured interviews with eighteen educators in sex School-Age Educares in Sweden. Mainly two discourses of how dance is constructed appear in the material. Firstly, a discourse on dance as a joyful “learning” activity. Secondly, a discourse on “teaching” dance by using digital tools. The results show that it is challenging for the educators to encourage pupils while managing the risk that dance as a feminine activity is consolidated. Moreover, in its current form, there is a shortcoming of possibilities for pupils ́to develop their own creativity in dance. Finally, the educators lack the know-how to develop pupils ́ dance skills beyond what they already know. © The International Academic Forum 2023