Enhance Dance Initiative's Glossary of Terms

Enhance Dance values transparency. Our understanding of the following terms informs our approach.

Dancer: a person who dances for pleasure or profession.
Dance Education: an intentional process of leading and learning in the art of dance with a focus on human flourishing (dance training is often one component of this education).

• Enhance Dance is informed by Anne Greene Gilbert's holisitc approach to dance education, aiming to provide educational experiences that provide opportunities for participants to become skilled dancers, critical thinkers, innovative creators, successful collaborators, and respectful responders.
• Dance Training: leading and learning technical and artistic skills of dance.
• Complementary Training: leading and learning skills that support dance practice. 

Equity: the fair distribution of resources among people.
Evidence: an outward indication of something.

• Enhance Dance uses the Equity Literacy Institute framework, which recognized evidence as inclusive of academic research and the lived experiences of those in our communities.

Health: "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." (World Health Organization, 1948)
Pedagogy: a way of being and interacting with care that animates and educates.

• See What is Pedagogy? (Smith, 2021) for a fulsome look at pedagogy.

Safety: being protected from harm and danger.

• Enhance Dance uses the trauma-informed Sanctuary Model of safety, which recognizes the fundamental need for physical, psychological, social, cultural and moral safety.

Social Justice: a concept, process, and goal that promotes respect for human rights. Social justice provides a framework for social change and social impact, ensuring that initiatives centre the needs and wellness of marginalized communities.
Wellness: an active process of being aware, making choices and engaging in activities that leads to the holistic health of individuals and groups; encompasses multiple interconnected dimensions, including physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, creative, social, occupational, environmental, etc.