Managing Student Anxiety Around Performances

A guide for dance teachers at Key Stages 4 and 5 by Claire Hindley.

The examination performance is unlike any other. Bound up with grades, identity and months of preparation, it can tip ordinary nerves into genuine anxiety for many students. But it is not only the formal assessment that presents a challenge — for a significant number of young people, simply being asked to perform in front of their peers in an everyday lesson is itself a source of real distress. This guide draws on current data and research to help dance teachers respond to both.