World Dance Council Education Department

See also: Categories: Organizations, Education

Category: Educational Organization under the WDC
Head of WDCED: Vibeke Toft
Current President of WDC: Donnie Burns

Definition

The World Dance Council Education Department (WDCED) is an educational organization arranged under the World Dance Council to inspire, stimulate and promote excellence in education in DanceSport educators, coaches, adjudicators and dancers through instruction, development of knowledge, and understanding of the history of past Ballroom legends and endeavors.

Contents [hide]

1. Definition
2. Overview
3. Historical Committee
4. Committee
5. References

Overview

The World Dance Council Education Department (WDCED) has a mission to inspire, stimulate and promote excellence in education for the World Dance Council and Amateur League (WDC and WDCAL) community by:

Development and identification of educational and learning styles and methods through training, resources, input and advocacy
Cultivation of a desire to learn, to generate new knowledge, be challenged and appreciate diversity
Continued commitment to development, pioneering and appreciation of multiple learning environments and perspectives
Continued commitment to the appointment of highly educated and trained interdisciplinary professionals who train effectively and passionately within a broad based, collaborative environment
Providing exceptional learning resources that are enhanced by the use of technology, internet resources and global support
Dedication to the preservation of existing knowledge and archival material
Challenging members through innovation in education to stretch beyond their current levels of knowledge and training to become an integral part of the WDC and WDCAL community
Design, development and implementation of programs to meet the professional development needs of educators, coaches, adjudicators and dancers within the WDC and WDCAL
Working together to create and maintain an academic, physical, emotional, social and safe environment where each can learn and respect one another

Historical Committee

The Historical Committee within the Department of Education of the World Dance Council (WDC) was formed to preserve, archive and remember the heritage, history and pioneers of Ballroom Dancing.

Ballroom Dancing will evolve like any other art, due to socio-cultural circumstances and other currents. Therefore, the WDCED finds it important to strengthen the roots and to nurture the dialogue of generations.

The Historical committee continuously fills their archive on DanceArchives.com with content by viewing, scanning and digitizing documents, pictures and old film-materials as well as corresponding with a team of senior advisers regarding accuracy of content and timelines. Senior advisers who have committed to the Historical Committee include Peter Eggleton, Bryan Allen and Anthony Hurley with many more of their contemporaries to be suggested and recruited in different locations.

The pioneers have passed away and sadly the industry is losing more of the ones who still remember the origins of the dances. As in any other field, the thinkers and artists should be acknowledged and have a platform from which to speak. WDCED finds the need to preserve the knowledge and the stories of the great masters of Ballroom Dancing, give them the recognition they deserve, and provide a forum for them to speak to the generations to come, so that this art form can stay genuine and authentic in order to develop into something bigger with even greater skills.

Today’s World Dance Council was formed in 1950 under the name International Council of Ballroom Dancing (ICBD). As an international body of dance teachers, with P.J. Richardson as chairman, and Arthur Franks as honorary secretary, this new international body assumed the responsibility of approving World Championships. Its founding members were Australia, Austria, Belgium, Ceylon, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Norway, South Africa and Switzerland.

Today, the responsibilities of the oldest international Ballroom Dance association go way beyond that first task of approving World Championships. The Historical Committee within the Department of Education of the World Dance Council is committed to assist the Department of Education in becoming a strong, leading international entity within the vast amount of educational dance institutions worldwide.