With Dr Patrick Johnson and Dr Tim Cacciatore.
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\n\nThis course will run over 6 sessions on Fridays from 6 to 8pm on the following dates:
\n\n2 February, 16 February, 2 March, 20 April, 18 May & 15 June
\n\n15 June
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\n\nPLEASE NOTE: ALL PAYMENTS ARE TO BE MADE DIRECTLY TO TIM CACCIATORE.
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Please use Tim's PayPal address: tim.cacciatore@gmail.com.
\n\nYou can also use the PayPal button under the booking button for the payment.
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\n\nCost: $375
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\n\nDr. Johnson is a PhD. physicist and a practicing STAT/NeVLAT certified teacher of the Alexander technique with over 15 years of research experience, over 40 peer reviewed publication and over 2000 citations, and 7 years of AT teaching experience. Dr. Cacciatore is a PhD. Neuroscientist and STAT certified teacher, author of many peer reviewed scientific articles on Alexander technique, with 20 years of research experience.
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We have been giving these workshops for almost two years now, live and via webinars, in Ireland, Spain, England, Israel, The Netherlands, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and the USA for both AT teachers and teachers in training. Our initial goal was to communicate rigorous science of Alexander Technique in ways that are accessible and fun. The workshops have since grown in both content and scope. They are now part of a broader dialogue about how to think objectively, scientifically, and professionally about what we do. We are excited about the enthusiasm and content they have generated.
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\n\nWhat is going on when you practice Alexander Technique? We have all sorts of experiences, observations, and sensations. Can these phenomena be described and explained objectively?
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Since F. M. Alexander first referenced the work of Rudolf Magnus in the 1920s, AT has borrowed ideas from science to explain AT experiences. Scientific concepts permeate the AT culture - books, websites, lectures, conversations - with many references to concepts such as reflexes, gravity, startle, effort, tensegrity and spatial awareness to name a few.
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In general, however, most of the science we use is either out of date or very roughly applied. Furthermore, it is only in the last decade or two that we have seen high quality modern science applied directly to AT and AT mechanisms.
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\nThe goal of these webinars is to confront our current relationship with science and to get our scientific explanations and concepts up-to-date. We combine lectures, group activities, and discussion to identify and debunk misconceptions and to build new, current models that support what we do and how we communicate. We emphasize rigor, jargon-free communication, and reference to current experiments.
\n\nFormat:
\n\nSix 2-hour webinars spread over 12 weeks.
\n\tHomework assignments - reading and review questions, including grading and feedback
\n\tSpecific Content:
\n\nHours 1-2: Good Science, bad science, and brain anatomy
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What is good science?
\n\tOutdated scientific ideas in the AT world
\n\tHow can we describe AT concepts objectively?
\n\tExperiments on postural tone: “Twister” and the Kohnstamm effect
\n\tBrain anatomy as related to AT
\n\tActivities
\n\nPushing the hand against the wall (the Kohnstamm effect)
\n\t“Hot hands” game: Consciously tuning your reflexes
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\n\nHour 3-4: Biomechanics and motor control of posture, movement, and balance
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\n\nThe physics of getting up from a chair: what you need to know as a teacher
\n\tPosture: is it a good or bad word for AT teachers to use?
\n\tUnderstanding how the scientific definitions of postural support, goal directed movement, and balance explains a lot of what AT is about.
\n\tActivities:
\n\nPlaying with and understanding different ways to get out of a chair
\n\tExperiencing different stabilization strategies
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\n\nHour 5-6: Experiments on sit to stand and motor control hypotheses
\n\nTopics
\n\nWhy do students lurch? Experiments on the interference of posture on movement in sit-to-stand
\n\tWhat are possible central mechanisms for AT effects?
\n\tActivities
\n\nSimple experiments that give insight into how posture works
\n\tOpen discussion of possible mechanisms
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Hour 7-8: Direction and primary control
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\n\n“Springy” backs and delocalized tone - mechanical and neurological spreading effects and debunking tensegrity
\n\tThinking affects use. Experiments of Dr. Rajal Cohen and more.
\n\tHow can a local change affect global patterns? Experiment of Dr. Ian Loram and more.
\n\t"Natural" coordination patterns - do they exist? What do we mean when we talk about “natural” movement? What does science have to say about this?
\n\tActivities
\n\nSensing stability - how good is our touch?
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\n\nHour 9-10: Body schema, sensory appreciation, startle, and stress
\n\nTopics
\n\nFaulty sensory appreciation: what does current science have to say about it?
\n\tBody schema: How does our internal representation of ourself define both our own use and how we interact with the world? Can it be altered? Is this the heart of AT?
\n\tImproved sensory appreciation - what kinds of changes happen and what skills are learned?
\n\tAT and stress (and startle): The science of stress and startle. Are we using the right terminology? How might AT reduce harmful effects of stress?
\n\tActivities
\n\nRubber hand illusion
\n\tThinking, feeling and learning with your body schema.
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\n\nHour 11-12: Inhibition and hands on effects
\n\nTopics
\n\nInhibition: How do different AT teachers talk about inhibition? How do scientists talk about inhibition? What is the overlap?
\n\tImproved sensory appreciation - what kinds of changes happen and what skills are learned?
\n\tHow might subtle "hands on" effects work? What kind of messages can be sent via contact?
\n\tActivities
\n\nTake some scientific inhibition challenges: the Stroop test and more
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