Reading Response Week 6: Mathematics & dance, movement, drama and film

Reading: sarah-marie belcastro & Karl Shaffer (2011). Dancing mathematics and the mathematics of dance.

Summary:

Belcastro and Shaffer describe the ways in which mathematical ideas are intrinsic to dance; music is divided into counts, and counts are used to mark timings in which particular movements are done. They discuss that complex patterns arise when dancers play with rhythm, and that various dance styles and traditions have their own way of using mathematical concepts.

The paper describes the use of symmetry in dance, and the various types of symmetry such as translation or mirror reflection. While dancers and choreographers may not recognize the exact mathematical terminology, they have a deep understanding of performing these mathematical ideas and therefore likely have a better understanding of them than some with formal education on the topic.

Belcastro and Shaffer also describe how explicit mathematics shows up in the history of modern dance, as the work of Rudolf Laban describes the direction, types, and qualities of movements within the kinesphere, noting coordinates on the axes in relation to certain dance steps.

Dance is typically intertwined with music and therefore sound, with repeating rhythmic patterns, leaving endless mathematical opportunities. Importantly, the authors note that dance is not solely mathematical and must take on a life of its own, revealing the humanness of both in order to not limit the possibilities within either mathematics or art forms such as dance.

Stops:

1) “Dancers and choreographers might not use this terminology, but they do have to be adept at performing symmetries” (p. 2)

This quote really highlights a consistent barrier within education and even more so within academia. In order to actually engage with mathematics, we often are required to understand numerous terminologies, which may not be consistent between regions, cultures, or languages. While some may argue knowing extensive mathematical vocabulary is a basic, fundamental “skill”, it sometimes restricts access to mathematics instead of allowing everyone equal opportunities within it. This can result in success within mathematics to become exclusive only to those with consistent and high-quality mathematics education within one culture and language. Understanding mathematics and recognizing mathematical terminology are very different things, and being unfamiliar with the technical words does not necessarily hinder one’s ability to engage meaningfully with mathematical ideas.

2) “Dance is many things, sometimes all at the same time: artistic expression, ceremony, social interaction, political protest, expression of sexuality, a form of athletic competition, physical exercise, theater, psychological catharsis, community event. And sometimes it’s the interplay of these elements with mathematics that engages us as artists – and, we hope, engages the audience as well” (p. 5)

I appreciate how this quote touches on the humanness of dance and mathematics, and I think it can be related to schooling and education as well. Our lessons are not solely one thing – math class is rarely solely about math. Schooling, and our lessons, involve real people with real lives, and the way we can find and understand math within our own contexts outside of the classroom is the key to finding meaning within them. Sports, dance, music, and so many other interests that students have are heavily intertwined with math, and by bringing those contexts into our lessons and into our classrooms, we can guide our students to recognizing the importance and creating their own mathematical meanings.

Question:

How can we introduce mathematical terminology while also ensuring we are not restricting meaningful engagement to only to those familiar with the vocabulary and symbols involved in mathematics instruction in our classroom contexts?