Suggestions for a present to a teacher

Lilly_of_the_valley said:
It could be that he has lost students because he is not a good teacher. Also, could be an unfortunate location, inconvenient hours, or just an unlucky group that signed up for the class, as lots of new people quit very soon regardless.
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I am too new to this to be able to judge his teaching.
Currently, I am taking classes from four teachers, each with a very different personality and teaching style. At this point, everyone seem to add something to my knowledge base.

The class is on a weekend, so I am sure this is one of the reasons. Also a few people had absolutely no feeling of rhythm. I noticed that he gets frustrated quickly if I don't do something in the exact way he asks (I almost told him a few times " do you realize that this is my 2nd/3rd class?"), but overall, I do not mind this kind of correction because I'd rather hear things as they are than have things smoothed over.


I have a question regarding something that is entirely off-this topic.
Should a teacher dance with his students?
I am currently taking a class from someone (in addition to the ones above) where things are adequately explained, and teacher will sometimes stop and correct (literally move your leg or torso), but neither of them (its actually a married couple) dance with students (at least, not thus far). I take other classes concurrently, so I have some idea of what the lead should feel like, but I wonder if I would have been lost if that was my only instruction.
What is a typical practice and could you please direct me to the threads (if there were any) as to what a beginner student should look for in a teacher? Thank you again.
 
I have found that there are many teaching styles.

I have seen teachers in group class that demonstrate once and the speak you through the moves from then on. I avoid them.

Some teachers in group class will demo the moves many times while you stand and mimic. This helps me.

The best is when the teacher stops during practice to act as leader or follower. In a busy class, you may not get this opportunity. You should in a subsequent class. I notice some teachers do not distribute this evenly, through no fault of their own. So you need to get in there and ask questions. If a teacher does not do this, I avoid them.
 
I concur with the group. No need to feel obligated to give this teacher a gift. If he wanted to cancel the class, he would have. A thank you note is plenty.

I think it's very sweet that you would like to do something for him, though. :)
 
PinkBlossoms said:
I am too new to this to be able to judge his teaching.
Currently, I am taking classes from four teachers, each with a very different personality and teaching style. At this point, everyone seem to add something to my knowledge base.


I have a question regarding something that is entirely off-this topic.
Should a teacher dance with his students?
I am currently taking a class from someone (in addition to the ones above) where things are adequately explained, and teacher will sometimes stop and correct (literally move your leg or torso), but neither of them (its actually a married couple) dance with students (at least, not thus far). I take other classes concurrently, so I have some idea of what the lead should feel like, but I wonder if I would have been lost if that was my only instruction.
What is a typical practice and could you please direct me to the threads (if there were any) as to what a beginner student should look for in a teacher? Thank you again.
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Remember they are teaching YOU to dance; their methods might be not what you expect (asa beginner how would you possibly know what is expected, works etc anyway) but I can assure you that dancing with you is many times not a good way to teach you. Another person on this forum listed teaching they liked best, which included when a teacher stops practice to dance with you. That I am sure is a nice experience, but teaches nothing; a rule of thumb is that 'feelings are fleeting, technique is real'. The path to training yourself to dance well includes a lot of times when it does not feel good to you or your partners, and often, many times when it feels 'right' to you it may be very wrong but feels right only in the context of your limitations at the moment. It's a hard thing to accept, but ultimately will allow you to progress past beginner stage (which also lasts a lot longer than you think...)
 
PinkBlossoms said:
I am too new to this to be able to judge his teaching...

The class is on a weekend, so I am sure this is one of the reasons. Also a few people had absolutely no feeling of rhythm.
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Actually, very few human beings have no sense of rhythm to the point of being hopeless. The rest just need to find and develop it. A lot can be done, there are drills and exercises, etc.
A teacher who expects everyone in the beginning class move with ease to very unfamiliar ( to most, outside Argentina) music seems a bit naive.


PinkBlossoms said:
I have a question regarding something that is entirely off-this topic.
Should a teacher dance with his students?
I am currently taking a class from someone (in addition to the ones above) where things are adequately explained, and teacher will sometimes stop and correct (literally move your leg or torso), but neither of them (its actually a married couple) dance with students (at least, not thus far). I take other classes concurrently, so I have some idea of what the lead should feel like, but I wonder if I would have been lost if that was my only instruction.
Click to expand...

For Argentine Tango, if teachers never ever lead or follow a student in class, it is a red flag. Moreover, if a couple of instructors does not dance in the milongas, or only dances with each other in the milongas, and never ever with their students, it is a huge red flag.

PinkBlossoms said:
What is a typical practice and could you please direct me to the threads (if there were any) as to what a beginner student should look for in a teacher? Thank you again.
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We indeed had a thread or two on the matter. I will search and post.
 
Lilly_of_the_valley said:
PinkBlossom, in Argentine Tango it is one of the best ways. Actually, for many great ladies dancers, it was the only way. :)
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Yes it is a way but instruction in dance has to also include the ability to dance on your own, to understand your movement, and to be able to be able to contribute to the dancing. It's like any partner dance... Easiest thing is to dance with a better dancer, but what is the point? Don't you want to become better? The world is full of followers who can only dance with a teacher... And the absolute beginner needs more than just a quick dance around the floor to understand their part
 
Bailamosdance said:
...The world is full of followers who can only dance with a teacher... And the absolute beginner needs more than just a quick dance around the floor to understand their part
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Aren't you making a false dichotomy? It's not one or the other. Maybe there is a tendency for that in ballroom dancing.

Two beginners dancing tango together is the worst way to start, because neither of them know what to do. A little bit of hands-on teaching can be very useful in giving new dancers the feel of it. Of course, beginners need to dance with other beginners, also, but they should have a good idea of how is should feel when done properly.
 
Yes, I agree in principle, altho you seem to think it also is 'one way or another'... Obviously teaching includes a combination of physical, mental, verbal and non verbal communication of ideas. Dancing with a beginner only tells them what YOU feel like, and it does not let them know what it really feels like - after all, they are not doing their part of the partnership. And, they lack the insight and experience to do much more than enjoy it - they certainly cannot interpret movement, timing, etc to any degree. As they start studying, and begin to understand basic dance such as balance, etc, then perhaps dancing a figure with a more experienced person might give them insight, but having 3 minutes with a good dancer does not make you better; unless you learn what is required of YOU in that situation, then you are simply being dragged around the floor.
 
Bailamosdance said:
... but having 3 minutes with a good dancer does not make you better; unless you learn what is required of YOU in that situation, then you are simply being dragged around the floor.
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My frame of reference was "in class", where the 3 minutes would be all about learning what is required from the student.

If you're talking about just dancing, as at a milonga, then much less learning would be going on.
 
got it. Agreed, but I think that the beginner who thinks that they only get value from a group lesson when the teacher dances with them is deluding themselves. Privates are another story, but this person was talking about group classes...
 
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