WEBSITE
www.rambertgrades.com
DIRECTOR
Abigail Reeve, Chief Executive Officer
HISTORY
Created in a landmark collaborative partnership between Rambert dance company and Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, Rambert Grades is a progressive and inclusive creative contemporary dance syllabus. With a century-old legacy of pioneering contemporary dance performance, practice and education the UK, Rambert Grades draws on an expertise grounded in many years of developing professional dance artists of unique quality and excellence, to form a foundation for the benchmark in contemporary dance education and training.
Across two syllabi developed by a team of industry experts with additional solo material created by internationally renowned choreographers Hofesh Shechter, Alesandra Seutin and Rambert’s artistic director Benoit Swan Pouffer, Rambert Grades training is accessible to all ages, abilities and bodies regardless of prior experience of formal dance training. Across four levels and eleven qualifications (Creative Movers to Grade 8), Rambert Grades teachers are taught to promote a safe environment to enable students to develop lifelong skills.
STYLES/GENRE
Creative Contemporary Dance
GRADING/MARKING SYSTEM
Rambert Grades qualifications are recognised by The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual).
Designed to celebrate holistic progression and create milestones for each dancer, all Rambert Grades examinations are filmed by the teacher in the student’s familiar surroundings and submitted digitally for remote assessment. The examinations act as moment for students and their teachers to acknowledge and celebrate their achievements and recognise stages within their learning journey. Examinations may be tailored to suit the needs of each student, perhaps shaping these into performances with an audience present. or downplaying the moment to capture student progression in a discrete and supportive manner.
We have two grading systems:
- Creative Movers, Pre-Primary and Primary: pass/fail
- Grades 1-8: Pass, Merit, Distinction, Distinction*
TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS
- Online Syllabus Training is available for the following qualifications:
- Creative Dance for Early Years (Creative Movers, Pre-Primary and Primary)
- Level 1 (Grades 1-3)
- Level 2 (Grades 4-5)
- Level 3 (Grades 6-8)
Natalie Dodd
Syllabus Co-Devisor, Examiner and Delivering Artist for Rambert Grades.
What do you enjoy about your job?
As a syllabus co-devisor, it is humbling and a touch surreal to see some of my ideas take on a new life and play a part in the training of young dancers. Contributing to our syllabi and seeing this material exist out in the world is a hugely enjoyable privilege. When delivering this material to our members in my role as a Delivering Artist during our online training courses, it is rewarding to connect with dance educators across the globe and to be challenged and inspired by their questions and ideas.
Within my role as an Examiner for Rambert Grades, I am a fly on the wall of sorts. Our exams are digital, and the dancers can exist in their own spaces and retain their connection with their facilitator – I love witnessing the relationships and interactions between them all and the supportive environments in which they take place. I give personal ‘feed forward’ comments that aim to allow each dancer to feel seen and to be able to action constructive pointers. I feel fulfilled in having more of an active role as an examiner and hope that each examinee concludes their exam experience with confidence. It is a pleasure to witness innovative creative voices emerging and exciting glimpses into the future of the dance scene.
The full circle moment of guiding my own students through their Rambert Grades exams this year was a great source of pride and pleasure.
What is the purpose of exams/assessments and why do you think they are beneficial?
An examination should be a celebration and culmination of a period of learning and growth. They are opportunities to gain a sense of performance, to a new milestone, representing a springboard upon which to process and move forwards with new goals. When an individual is well-supported through exam preparation, and the exam itself is sculpted to embolden each examinee with an individual and collective sense of achievement, the event should not feel like a ‘test’, instead highlighting and championing each dancer’s unique abilities.
Rambert Grades exams are mouldable so that both participants and teachers feel empowered, and the examiner’s marks and comments are constructive information and tools to positively navigate the progression of each dancer. Exams can and should be enjoyable, useful, and approached holistically, considering the whole person.