Teaching and Learning News

Fifty students participating in Introduction to Contemporary Popular Dance Forms: Modern and Traditional Bhangra surprise unsuspecting Canucks fans by performing a flash mob outside Rogers Area on April 7. Flash mobs are “brief, surprise performances performed in everyday spaces, usually in crowded, urban areas” (Muse, 2010). Raakhi Sinha and Gurpreet Sian, the course instructors, chose to stage a flash mob as the course final performance to pair popular culture with Bhangra, an increasingly popular dance style.

Dancing a final exam in the streets

The performance begins with a dance sequence created and choreographed  by a group of the students in the course as part of an earlier assignment. The flash mob culminates in a large-group sequence created by the course instructors that combines traditional Bhangra movements and modern stunts.

When Sinha and Sian announced that the class would be performing two flash mobs in downtown Vancouver as the final exam, the students were immediately on-board. On April 7, at the Rogers Arena, several hundred Canucks fans witnessed the first performance. Later that evening, the students surprised commuters and tourists at the corner of Granville and West Georgia with a second performance that demonstrated improved focus and execution of moves.

Learning Bhangra as a popular form of dance

These final performances are the culmination of an intense semester of studio training. Students explore both traditional Bhangra and contemporary North American trends and styles. Overall, the instructors hope students will learn about Bhangra, explore Punjabi culture, have fun, and be “proud to dance.”

Students participate in weekly studio rehearsals at SFU Woodwards with Sinha and Sian to experience and practice a corpus of Bhangra movements, tricks, and choreography. To complement the studio teaching and learning environment, Sinha and Sian use a Facebook group to post rehearsal videos, songs and inspiration to help students practice at home, and these dynamic instructors invite course participants to immerse themselves into Vancouver’s thriving Bhangra community by attending, reporting and reflecting on local performances and competitions.

The  students’ enthusiasm and commitment to learning and dancing Bhangra, as well as invitations from several community organizations for performance and competition, have inspired the formation of a new Bhangra Club. Sinha and Sian are coaching the club, and they look forward to teaching Bhangra dance at SFU and hope to build on their success linking the university and the South Asian community.

What are your reactions to the students’ final performance? How do your students display or perform their learning in public for members of the wider community?
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DD Kugler (Theatre) is known for being tough. He has little sympathy for students who complain about their workload. He demands a lot from them, but is also prepared to give a lot in return. As the current Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies in the Faculty of Communication, Art, and Technology, he still finds the time to engage with his students, participate in the local theatre scene, and support the work of his current and former students outside of the classroom.

Often in the office by 6:30 am, Kugler makes a point to get to know each student by name and also encourages them to get to know each other by name. This seemingly small task, combined with an energetic and respectful teaching style, is one of the reasons why he elicits such overwhelmingly positive feedback from his students. They note the passion and commitment he brings to his teaching, as well as his nuanced, thoughtful, and vast understanding of his discipline.

Students laud him for opening their minds to new ideas, philosophies, and practices, and many mention that they consider him a mentor, as well as an instructor. One student commented that, “Even though I have finished my studies at SFU, I still consider Professor Kugler an important mentor and cannot think of any instructor I had who is more deserving of recognition.”

Having only begun formal theatre training at the age of 36, Kugler has already had a storied career, including directing a play that won the Governor General’s Award for drama.  He has directed several plays at SFU and remains a freelance director/dramaturg.

The Faculty of Communication, Art & Technology (FCAT) recently announced its upcoming undergraduate research conference to be held March 19, 2011 at SFU Woodwards in Vancouver. The conference theme is “Spaces of Culture”, a title that reflects the nature of all the disciplines within FCAT. Norman Armour, Executive Director of the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival (http://pushfestival.ca) and recent recipient of the 2010 Outstanding Alumni Award, will be the conference’s keynote speaker.

The conference was proposed by Dr. Denise Oleksijczuk (Assistant Professor of Art and Culture in the School of Contemporary Arts) and Dr. Zoe Druick (Associate Professor in the School of Communication), and is funded by the FCAT Office of the Dean. Students from FCAT will be involved in the organization of the conference. According to the FCAT Coordinator of Recruitment and Retention, Stephanie Greaves, the goal for next year is to have the conference fully managed by FCAT undergraduate students, as has been done in similar successful conferences held across North America.

The call for proposals for “Spaces of Culture” reflects the diversity of FCAT disciplines and mix of presentations the jury is seeking.  Students are encouraged to apply to present a paper, performance, or demonstration, or poster for the poster session. The jury responsible for selecting the conference presentations is made up of seven students from across the Faculty, under the guidance of Dr. Denise Oleksijczuk.

FCAT instructors are encouraged to invite their students to participate in the hope that they will gain experience preparing a conference proposal and presenting in an academic and public forum.  Students are also encouraged to attend the conference to learn and network with other students in their discipline.

Registration is free, and includes lunch, but participation is capped at a maximum 100 students. There will be a $250 cash prize for the best presentation and all attendees will be entered in a draw for an 8GB iPod touch.

While the conference is geared towards the disciplines of FCAT, students from all departments are encouraged to seize this opportunity to present their work and engage with their peers. The conference is being promoted nation-wide, and there is a small amount of travel funding for participants across Canada.

Learn More

“Spaces of Culture” undergraduate research conference: http://www.fcat.sfu.ca/undergrad-conference/

Contact

Stephanie Greaves, Office of the Dean, FCAT   stephanie_greaves@sfu.ca | 778-782-5332

Howard Rheingold has published a list of tactics that he employs to get his students to make the break between the online/connected world and the world of the seminar.  His seminars are about social media, but the distractions of Facebook impinge on that as much as any teaching moment.

He has, for example, a “moment of silence” strategy. He also encourages designated note-takers, who use laptops, rather than letting everyone use them.  He does all of this with an eye to being reflexive and conscious about our use of technology in the classroom rather than blind to it.

– Dr. Richard Smith, University Teaching Fellow and Professor, Faculty of Communication, Art, and Technology

Have you developed similar constructive strategies for incorporating technology into your classroom? How do you encourage students to attend and engage in class?

When Métis student Kelvin Redvers is home in tiny Hay River, NWT he still enjoys hunting caribou and geese. But his favourite pastime is telling stories in a non-traditional medium: film.

“I’ve always had a world going on in my head,” says Redvers, who receives his bachelor of fine arts degree this month. “Filmmaking became a way to get that world out.”

Since enrolling in SFU Contemporary Arts’ film program, Redvers’ student films have won a dizzying array of national and international awards, but he has also found ways to increase visibility for Aboriginal peoples and culture on campus.

He organized two annual spring feasts showcasing Aboriginal musicians and artists, for example, and initiated several popular coffee houses and an Aboriginal storytelling workshop.

So it’s no surprise Redvers is the 2010 winner of the undergraduate Gordon Shrum gold medal, awarded for academic excellence and extra-curricular activities demonstrating outstanding qualities of character and unselfish devotion to the university.

Read the full story in SFU News.

Faculty members in the School for Contemporary Arts reflect on the upcoming move from Burnaby Mountain to the Woodward’s Complex in downtown Vancouver. In addition to the flexibility afforded by the design of the new teaching and learning spaces, there are also exciting opportunities to grow and connect with the broader arts community.

The Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology has announced the recipients of the 2010 Curriculum Innovation Awards. The awards recognize

” multidisciplinary teams of faculty for curriculum innovation projects that lead to new undergraduate course offerings or significantly revised offerings.”

Congratulations to this year’s recipients:

• Thecla Schiphorst, Henry Daniel, and Philippe Pasquier for a new course on Collaborative Interdisciplinary Performance, Installation and Technology.
• Michael Filimocicz, Jan Marontate, and John Maxwell for a new course on Communication Design.

Professor DD Kugler received the 2010 Excellence in Teaching Award.

A professor of theatre with the School for the Contemporary Arts, he’s at his desk by 6:30 am most days to deal with administrative work so that he’s free to chat with students when they drop in. After hours, he’s often supporting former students by attending their performances, helping them with their writing, or sponsoring their ambitions.

“I have high expectations,” he acknowledges. “But ultimately, the students are kind of honoured by those expectations.  They accumulate a sense of fulfilment that they did it—that they can read it, understand it, think about it, talk about it, write about it, and defend it.”

Watch a video of Kugler discussing how he encourages students to step beyond their boundaries: http://blogs.sfu.ca/projects/tlcomm/2011/03/dd-kugler-on-winning-an-excellence-in-teaching-award/

Email: ddkugler@sfu.ca

Department: School of Contemporary Arts

Faculty: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Link: http://cgi.sfu.ca/~scahome/?q=user/49

News Story URL: http://blogs.sfu.ca/projects/tlcomm/2011/03/dd-kugler-on-winning-an-excellence-in-teaching-award/
News Release URL: http://www.sfu.ca/archive-pamr/media_releases/media_releases_archives/winning-secrets-to-teaching-excellence.html

Congratulations to the 2008 recipients of the SFU Excellence in Teaching Award:

• Dr. Rick Iverson, Faculty of Business Administration
• Dr. Eugene McCann, Department of Geography
• Ms. Penelope Stella, School for the Contemporary Arts

Learn more about these esteemed teachers and their experiences.

Ms. Penelope Stella received the 2008 SFU Excellence in Teaching Award.

Stella has spent her career training students not only how to act but how to take control of their own careers in theatre and film. Her goal is to ensure that when they leave university, they have skills to create their own opportunities instead of waiting for the phone to ring. And an extraordinary number of her students have gone on to form local independent theatre companies that include Boca del Lupo, Genus Theatre, La Luna Productions and Touchstone Theatre.

Email: diamondstella@telus.net

School for the Contemporary Arts
Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology

Link: http://cgi.sfu.ca/~scahome/?q=user/52

http://www.sfu.ca/sfunews/news/story_04300918.shtml