A factual overview of types of artistic dance is an obvious starting point in any course, to provide at least some shared examples for discussion. This factual introduction is obviously a necessary starting point for the general education student. But many dance majors, although they have some awareness of the dance universe, know shockingly little about dance history, dance in other cultures, and other genres from their own specialties. Modern dance students have seen too little of ballet. Few have seen historical performances available mainly through videotaped reconstructions.
Nobody seems to have seen much non-western dance.
In teaching students that knowledge takes many forms, the dance major is encouraged to try out different approaches to understanding the artform they love to enrich their appreciation of movement. The general studies student is encouraged to draw on perspectives from other disciplines with which they are more familiar. All of these students are introduced to new approaches to knowledge, regardless of their awareness of the primary subject matter. By learning how to think about dance, to ask questions about it, to relate it to the complex cultures within which dance functions, students gain methods and insights which will serve them well in the future, even if few formally study dance or go on to professional performing careers. We live in an age overwhelmed by information, facts, data.