National Dance Association

National Dance Standards

Developed by the National Dance Association

The National Dance Standards were completed as part of a project developed by the Consortium of National Arts Education Associations and prepared under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. To order the complete National Dance Standards, call 1.800.321.0789 or order online.

The National Dance Standards:

• guide student assessment in both content and achievement at grades K-4, 5-8, and 9-12
• specify what students should know and be able to do in dance at grades 4, 8, and 12 while achievement standards specify the understanding and levels of achievement that students are expected to attain in the competencies at grades 4, 8, and 12
• speak to quality and accountability
• help ensure that the study of dance is disciplined and well focused and that dance instruction has a point of reference for assessing its results

The National Opportunity-to-Learn Standards

• include standards for curriculum and scheduling, staffing, materials and equipment, facilities, and safety guidelines where applicable
• are based on the national content and achievement standards in dance
• represent a comprehensive set of recommendations concerning the types and levels of support necessary to achieve the national standards in dance
• seek to embody the most promising current instructional practices in dance and reflect the most recent research
• were developed by experienced teachers in the field of dance at levels K-4, 5-8, and 9-12

The National Dance Assessments:

• are based on the National Dance Standards
• require children to create, perform, and respond to dance in the three levels of proficiency
• are designed to evaluate what children know and can do in dance at grade levels 4, 8, and 12
• were conducted by the National Assessment in Education Progress (NAEP), a government-sponsored branch of Educational Testing Service (ETS)