Feldenkrais Training in New York City
Learning Strategies
The following sections explain the many teaching/learning approaches on which the training will draw. These include experiential movement lessons, individual hands-on lessons, small group exercises, class discussions, lectures, community project, supervision and between-segment assignments.
Awareness Through Movement®
You will experience a few hours of Awareness Through Movement (ATM) lessons each day of the training. The core lessons are drawn from the trainings that Feldenkrais conducted and from the classes he taught. It is important for you to experience different types of lessons, including intricate lessons that have an extended and interwoven structure as well as simpler ones, such as those usually taught to the general public.
After an initial period of immersion in experience of the lesson, we begin to examine the underlying structure and strategy of lessons. As noted above, we do not make a strong distinction between Awareness Through Movement and Functional Integration¨ (FI). When we practice the method, we know that they are the same, simply two sides of the same coin.
Functional Integration
As part of your training experience, you will receive at least three individual Functional Integration (FI) lessons each year from members of the faculty and from invited practitioners. (We invite experienced practitioners to offer supplemental lessons.) Beyond that, you will be given opportunities to observe lessons given during class, lessons given to other trainees during non-class hours and videos of Feldenkrais and others giving lessons.
We begin to teach touching by developing basic abilities such as Òmaking skeletal contactÓ and Òseeing with the hands.Ó You refine tactile, as well as kinesthetic, acuity in ATM lessons and in small group work. FI supervision begins with giving fellow trainees lessons in the third year and members of the public in the fourth. All along, you will receive the feedback necessary for refining Òthe touch that teaches.Ó
Class Discussion
We hold regular discussions, both in small groups and with the entire class. These discussions will vary in style from question-and-answer periods, dialogues, open-ended talks, and conversations oriented around specific topics. These discussions will ask you to grapple with difficult questions, those without pre-determined answers, and actively investigate them. To encourage autonomy and develop competence in in-depth inquiry, there will be opportunities for trainee-led discussions.
Small Group Exercises
Small group activities facilitate the learning process. Group exercises will include discussions and assigned activities, such as observing a movement or working with each other in specific ways. Small groups will also be used to develop your ability to understand and teach FI and ATM. For example, you will review ATMs, analyzing and discussing the compositional logic of the lessons. As the training progresses, you will have the opportunity to present short sections of the lessons and develop your presentation skills.
We are committed to creating a constructive atmosphere for small groups. The purpose of this setting is to create a place where you and the other trainees can speak and be heard. In these small groups, you will discuss the training process by reflecting on class events, identifying difficulties and developing solutions. By drawing on the different skills and background that each trainee brings, the group will be a place for collaborative interaction and cooperative learning. We want to expand beyond the idea of being in a group and learning individually to create a process of learning with a group.
Lecture
Faculty and guest lecturers will give presentations about the background of the method, related areas of current knowledge and developing and running a practice. You will learn about Moshe Feldenkrais and how the historic, philosophical, and scientific bases of his education and experience led to the development of the method. So that you understand how the Feldenkrais approach differs from prevailing ideas about movement and instruction, you will be introduced to relevant topics in the movement arts and sciences, contemporary education and philosophy.
Community Project
During the third year or early fourth year, you do a community-based ATM teaching project. This could be a presentation, class or, optimally, a series of classes for some group or institution in your home or professional community. In this way, while still developing your skills, you are given a legitimate reason for offering your services in your local area and provided a stepping stone to becoming known in your new profession. You work on the plans, curriculum and presentation in study groups and with the faculty, thereby giving us another means for keeping the learning of how to teach ATM active and engaging.
Supervision
So that we can track your progress through the program, the educational director and faculty will get to know you by working with you. By observing as you learn, interact and practice, we will be able to assess your progress and development. That means that supervisionÑin the sense of watching and guidingÑis an ongoing aspect of the program. To facilitate this process, Larry will be available to meet with trainees to discuss their learning process. Together we will identify subject areas or skills that need work, map a personalized strategy for focused study and formulate assignments for individual learning between segments.
Between Segment Assignments
The training is designed to facilitate your continuous, incremental learning. This includes making sure that the intervals between training segments are well utilized. To that end, we encourage you to take ATM classes or workshops offered by your local practitioners during the interim periods. In this way, you can learn about styles of teaching and begin to interact with future colleagues. For the same reasons, we also suggest that you receive at least a few series of FI lessons between segments.
To deepen your understanding of the method and to strengthen your ability to express that understanding, we will ask you to read specific texts and give you writing tasks between segments. For example, during the second year, we ask you to write an outline for a talk to the public; these outlines will then be used in small groups for discussion and suggestions. You will have access to a private training website where you can chat with other trainees and the educational director, review assignments and training announcements and be able to access downloadable audio recordings of class lessons (for which there is no supplemental charge).
Each trainee should take into account the expenses above and beyond the course tuition. Please realize that you will need to purchase several hundred dollars worth of books and other educational materials as well as budget for classes and individual lessons. You will also need a Feldenkrais table along with rollers, pads and a stool, which can cost $600 to $1000. (The training will offer an opportunity to buy a Feldenkrais table for a reduced price in exchange for bringing the table to the training program.)
To help you keep in touch with other trainees and with the learning process, we ask you to participate in regular study group meetings. We assign different tasks and exercises for you to do in the study group and report back about at the next segment. The online support via a website, which is for the exclusive use of participants in this training and the Amsterdam1 training, provides another opportunity for keeping learning alive between segments.
During the second half of the third year, you will do an externship (community-based) project. This gives you the opportunity to apply what youÕve learned about teaching ATM for the benefit of a specific group while providing an incremental step in introducing yourself to your community as a Feldenkrais teacher.
1 The NYFTT will have a sister program, also administered by Mind In Motion, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Trainees will have the option to attend modules of either training with permission of the educational director.
