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About the TestDELTA PartnersWho Should Take DELTA
 

DELTA

 

DELTA is a collaborative effort by NDEO and the State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education (SEADAE) to build national consensus on baseline competencies necessary to ensure entry-level K-12 public school dance educators enter the field with the requisite Pedagogic Content Knowledge (PCK) and skills for successful entry into K-12 public school dance education. Driven by the fact that Dance is the only art form with no national entry-level teacher readiness examination, which measures pedagogic content knowledge and serves as a gateway for dance certification – NDEO & SEADAE secured funds from the National Endowment for the Arts to create and field test a praxis examination for the field. After several years of development and field-testing, DELTA is ready for inaugural launch of an operationalized examination. 

What is DELTA?

DELTA is a teacher readiness assessment, aligned to national standards, that measures the Pedagogic Content Knowledge and subject specific content knowledge in dance.  The test consists of approximately 150 selected response test items with and without stimulus materials (photos/videos). The intent of DELTA is to serve as one measure of allowable proof of subject-matter competency to ensure that beginning dance teachers have the requisite pedagogic content knowledge and skills for successful entry into the public schools. 

 

Due to Covid, the Spring 2020 exam that was to be offered online by our partner, SEADAE, was cancelled.  Plans are being developed to host a DELTA exam in 2022. Stay tuned for updates.


The broad goals of DELTA are to empower new dance educators to:

  • Understand how to communicate the content, skills, and knowledge articulated in the National Core Arts Standards (2014)
  • Understand how students develop content, skills, and knowledge in dance in a developmentally appropriate manner
  • Understand industry-standards for learning and teaching dance (including dance content, education theory, practice, and methodology) as set forth in the NDEO Professional Teaching Standards for Dance Arts (2005, 2011)
  • Measure knowledge and skills of teachers necessary to engage students in learning dance, consistent with national standards (NDEO, 2011)
  • Identify pedagogic strengths and weaknesses for future professional development of pre-service dance education programs, and recent graduates from dance education degree programs across the country (NDEO, 2011)

SEADAE
DELTA is a collaborative effort between NDEO and SEADAE.