Advising

DANCE EDUCATION K–12 SENIOR CAPSTONE PROJECTS

Dance Education K–12 Senior Capstone Project Guidelines and Procedures

Guidelines and Procedures:

1. Submit a capstone project proposal here by either August 1st (for fall capstone projects) or December 1st (for winter capstone projects).
   
   1. Any faculty requested edits must be completed within one week.
2. You will receive an add code for the course only AFTER the proposal (and any edits) are approved.
3. Senior capstone projects require approximately 84 real-world hours (2.0 credit hours equates to 6 hours per week for 14 weeks)
4. Dance Education majors are required to complete a choreographic capstone.
   
   1. Choreographic capstones may be completed during fall and winter semesters only.
   2. Capstone projects should be completed before the student teaching semester.
   3. Performers and cast members should be currently enrolled BYU students.
   4. Requested semesters/years for capstone projects may not be guaranteed due to resource limitations. Late requests, changes, and poor planning may negatively impact your approval for a specific semester/year.
5. If funding assistance is needed for your senior capstone, it is highly recommended you plan wisely and apply for grants accordingly. Most grant applications involve extensive time for writing, budgeting, recommendations, and results.

Program Learning Outcomes Relevancy:

1. The Dance Education K–12 Program requires a choreographic senior capstone to:
   
   1. Build extensive choreography skills for classroom content creation, staged productions, and modeling of compositional proficiency for K–12 students.
      
      1. K–12 Dance Education requires an immense amount of creative output for lesson planning, movement creation, and original choreography. An in-depth choreographic project prepares students for the demands of the profession.

   2. To complete a choreographic project from conception to completion, inclusive of production elements.

      1. K–12 Dance Education requires producer-level decision-making skills regarding concert programming, content, casting, lighting, costuming, props, marketing, etc. An in-depth choreographic project prepares students for the demands of the profession.

Expectations

• The capstone project should be a substantial piece of choreography that is 8-10 minutes in length
• The choreography should be presented on the Senior Capstone Concert, or other approved venue (such as danceEnsemble, Theatre Ballet Showcase Company, or other approved production) 
• All prerequisites must be completed before the intended senior capstone semester/year: DANCE 355, DANCE 362, DANCE 363, DANCE 462. 
• Written Proposal Component:
  
  • Include: title, style, music/sound credits, desired number of dancers, costume ideas, and any set/prop/lighting needs
  • 500-750 word description of your capstone project. Include:
    
    • Concept, intent, and idea development
    • Research strategies
    • How this project will extend and challenge your current abilities and skills. What knowledge, skills, and dispositions are you bringing to the project and what professional and personal development/outcomes are you striving to gain and accomplish?
  • Include a progress report (found through myBYU) and highlight all completed and currently enrolled courses that have specifically prepared you for your senior capstone project (including DANCE 355, DANCE 362, DANCE 363, DANCE 462)
• Movement Proposal Component:
  
  • Present/film 2:00-4:00 minutes of detailed and clear movement. 
    
    • Students without a minimum of 2:00 minutes of movement will be asked to resubmit a proposal.
  • The movement may be submitted in various segments (i.e. a 30-second segment that will go in the beginning, along with a one-minute segment that will be part of a solo, accompanied with a 30-second segment you envision as the ending of the piece).
  • Additional dancers do not need to present/perform movement at this point in the process, but is an option. We encourage you to teach others movement for your proposal if it is crucial to understanding partner work or group work sections.
  • Verbal explanation of movement sections
  • Although we value improvisation, set choreography should be submitted at this point to give faculty reviewers a clear idea of your movement vocabulary, stylization, and consistency with concept/intent.
• Course Expectations:
  
  • Please refer to the current DANCE 469 syllabus for complete information about the course.
  • Although there is flexibility with course meeting times, students are expected to be in class according to the published schedule.
  • Clear communication with faculty and peers regarding assignments and production elements is required.
• Faculty Mentor:
  
  • Dance Education K–12 faculty will assign you a faculty mentor. Requests to work with specific faculty are respectfully considered. Please be aware that individual faculty assignments and research agendas may impact faculty mentor assignments. 
  • The faculty mentor should read the capstone proposal and be aware of the intent, purpose, goals, and details of the project.
  • The faculty mentor should attend 1-2 rehearsals to give feedback.
  • The faculty mentor and student should meet and discuss the project post-performance. 

Assessment

• Proposal Assessment:
  
  • Does the written proposal articulate a clear choreographic project with an intent and purpose congruent with the Department of Dance Mission?
  • Does the presented movement align with the articulated intent and purpose?
  • Is the presented movement sophisticated and indicative of senior class work, demonstrating depth of inquiry and curricular relevancy?
  • Does the proposal indicate a trajectory for student growth, processing, and achievement?  
  • Does the composition artistically evolve from a strong and defined foundational concept?
  • Has the student taken the necessary coursework to support the successful completion of the project?
  • Does the student have appropriate support (mentorship, funding, resources, etc.) to successfully complete the project?
• Choreographic Project Assessment:
  
  • Did the student substantially contribute to the planning of concert production? Including, but not limited to:
    
    • Marketing and publicity
    • Completing production assignments specific to lighting, sound, costumes, programs, etc.
    • Participating in class and rehearsals
    • Communicating effectively with faculty, staff, and peers
  • Did the student complete and achieve a substantial piece of staged choreographic work?
  • Did the student complete the 1,000-word final reflection with in-depth analysis?
  • Did the student meet with their mentor pre- and post-production?
  • The mentor will work collaboratively with the course instructor and Dance Education K–12 committee to determine a final grade.