Toward Inclusive New Zealand Dance Education Strategies

Inclusion of students with impairments in New Zealand (NZ) dance education needs attention. The aim of this research is to explore how curriculum can better ensure inclusion of all children into dance education. Data is collected using the qualitative research approaches document review and preliminary movement research. I focus on official documents such as: the Ministry of Education owned New Zealand Curriculum (2007), Arts Online (2007b), The Arts in the New Zealand Curriculum (2000), and Bronwyn Hayward’s New Zealand Disability and Dance Strategy (2010). These documents are analysed to identify curriculum discourses and how the doctrines might better prepare teachers for meeting the demands of different abilities in dance. A critical review of these texts examines barriers or enablers for the participation of students with impairments. Attention is given to how the documents guide school teachers’ ideologies and practice and might influence the culture of education. This study provides insights into possible curriculum reform, and for improving teacher education