Australian dance teachers want Dance Moms teacher banned from Australia
According to The Australian, concerned Australian dance teachers (as well as concerned parents of dancers) want dance teacher Abby Lee Miller’s visa revoked because her of her alleged emotional abuse towards the children she teaches.
Abby Lee Miller, of course, is one of the stars of the reality television show, Dance Moms, which grew to fame showing the inner workings of a Pittsburgh dance studio’s competition dance team.
Australian dance instructors and parents believe Miller’s bullying antics breach local working-with-children laws.
As a dance teacher myself, I personally agree with those that think bullying children is not the way to teach children. I realize that being strict with children can be helpful, but personally, I believe children should be encouraged and taught to love dance.
As for the show, while I have watched episodes, I do object to the way the dance teaching and dance studio business is presented in the show, and the way our field is sensationalized for dramatic effect.
Proper dance teaching has always been important to me, which led me to open my own dance studio, Dancers Unite, which believes in having classes that promote self-esteem for children. It also led me to help start Dance Teacher Finder, an international website that serves to pair dance studios with dance teachers that share similar teaching philosophies.
