Reach Out and Reveal Research project
Academic research on our work with SEND
2022-2025
Our Reach Out and Reveal (ROaR) project champions and evaluates new approaches of delivering South Asian dance and movement sessions at SEND schools, cultivating knowledge transfer opportunities between teaching professionals and dance practitioners.
We commissioned a 3-year research project by two academic researchers, Claire Farmer and Dr. Ashley McGill, aiming to result in peer reviewed papers. The evidential learning from this research will be disseminated to the wider health and education sector. Funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, the project provided opportunity to three South Asian dance artists to train as SEND specialists and to expand ROaR’s reach to a fourth school.
Through this project, we hope to demonstrate the value of arts, in particular South Asian dance as a tool in supporting and enhancing the lives of young people with SEND and associated challenging behaviours.
This project is a true collaboration between researchers, artists, trainee artists, Akademi and the partner schools.
Aims
The main aims and objectives of the study were to understand how participation in weekly South Asian dance classes can potentially enhance engagement for children with Autism, based within a SEND school.
Furthermore, the study aimed to understand if the dancing can help students progress beyond engagement profile targets within their education setting and achieve further subject-specific learning and targets.
Supported by Paul Hamlyn Foundation
