I am taking private lessons. I have been dancing off and on for a couple of years. My instructor is telling me that I am in the basic/social level of dance. I have been doing some research and a lot of the bronze level dancing that I am seeing out there, including the video clips on this website, we are doing in class and at the dance parties. I am proficient in these moves. I am not sure if these moves differ depending on where the training has been taken or not. She says that she is certified and has instructed with FA and AM. There are no certificates posted in her studio to substantiate this. When an instructor is certified, I am assuming that they are tested for each level...bronze, silver, gold...right? My biggest fear is that it is not necessary to be certified to teach...especially since she has asked me to help teach. Yikes! The lessons are fairly expensive and I have to admit that I have some doubts as to her qualifications. Any suggestions?!

level of dancing is determined not by the steps used, but by the perfection with which they are executed.

no piece of paper will prove your teacher is worth the money, only you can decide that when you have something to compare to

You wouldn't see any certificates posted regarding the teacher's A.M. or F.A. qualifications, because these two franchises are very protective of their syllabus, and revoke the qualifications once the teacher has left the school. She may very well have tested out of the Bronze or Silver level with them, but as a former employee she is not officially allowed to advertise those credentials.

...Not that they mean much, to be perfectly honest. I've seen people pass their ISTD exams who have no business teaching. On the flip side, many of my colleagues who are well-qualified (some charging $90 and up for a 45-minute lesson, and rightfully so) have never taken an exam. In particular, the chain schools are notoriously lax on their exam standards. So while I wouldn't doubt that your teacher has taken whatever exams she claims to have, I wouldn't use them as a measure of her ability. Use your own judgement, and you'll be far better off.

Regards,
Jonathan

Jonathan,

Thanks for the information...what you said really makes sense!

As others have said, the formal certificates aren't necessarily an indication of the quality of the instruction. The most important question is, are you achieving what you want to? If you are learning to dance what you want, feel you are progressing pretty consistently, and are able to use what you learn in the venues where you want to dance, then I'd say your instructor is pretty good--for you (that's not to say she'd necessarily be good for someone whose goals are different).

If you want something more "objective" to compare her to, here are a few ideas:

1) if there are other studios in your area, take a group class or even a private lesson there, just to see what else is available and how your instructor compares

2) if you know any of her students who have been taking lessons from her longer than you have, how does their dancing look? Is that where you want to be in the future?

3) the most strigent comparison would be to go to a competition (try accessdance.com to find out if there are any in your area) and see the newcomer and bronze level competitions. How does your dancing compare to those competitors? Competitive dancers will likely be doing fewer "moves" at a given level than a purely social dancer, but will be (aspiring to) doing them with the best possible technique. Still, you'll get a broad idea of what a lot of other dancers at more or less your level can do.

You cannot go to a comp and make a fair comparison wihtout a lot more information. How many lessons total has each competitor had, how much previous experience, how many lessons per week, etc.

Well, if a clear majority in the newcomer category are much better than you are - you can definetly draw some conclusions...

However, if you concentrate on learning as many steps as possible - as opposed to technique - this will not be a good criteria...

As a former teacher for F.A. I know thay do not let you take anything with you not even pix! But I do feel teachers should be certified! I worked hard to get my certs and I worked hard agean to get more, now I am proud to have the dvida papers in hand and on my studio wall! As far as your teacher go with you gut ask questions if she cant give you more than one line answers you may try a lesson some where else and see what thay say.Keep in mind F.A. and A.M.may be holding you back or may not put you where you need to be. Are there outer studios in your area? good luck....

Dear FL,
I was an AM instructor. We trained from videos and lessons from other instructors and books. We did not have to be certified to teach, as a matter of fact when I instructed my first lesson which the person paid $111 for 40 minutes, I only knew the basic steps in Waltz and Rumba and I didn't know them well. Beware, what the instructor is trained to tell you is that you know less than you do so they can sell you more. Do not go to AM, I left there because it was shady. All sales disguised as dance.

I agree that certification does not guarantee a good teacher but in the absence of other details it's a good starting point.

I also think the reference to ISTD (or equivalent) is a good idea. You have to be at a certain level after years before even starting to understand the processes. From what I've seen of the DVIDA certification syllabus it seems very similar to the ISTD format (except perhaps that you can be vertified in individual dances).

It takes years of study to complete ISTD not 6 or 8 weeks.

I also think attending competitions (open rather than in house)is a good thing too. Not neccessarily to see how people are dancing which is important. I'd also focus on finding out who the teachers are whose students are placing at your level.

OB