Labanotation or a Bol Grid for Forty Students
A vocational institute must submit a 10-minute documentation video and a written report for 40 second-year Chhow students. There is one guru, no standardized notation system, and students repeatedly forget the bol patterns for Chali and Ufli. A faculty member proposes Labanotation because it looks 'professional'. The deadline is eight weeks; the guru is available only on weekends. The report must show progression from basic posture to a short narrative piece. The institute has one camera, a projector, and a small studio with mirrors. Two students have smartphones with slow-motion video. The external examiner will assess both the video and the students' ability to reproduce a sequence from the written record. No funding is available for software licences.
1. Evaluate the Labanotation proposal for this eight-week documentation task.
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Labanotation is a powerful system, but it is a poor fit here. It requires trained notators and time to record, check and teach; the guru is available only on weekends, and the faculty member who proposed it may not be a qualified notator. With 40 students and eight weeks, the institute would spend the budget on learning notation rather than documenting Chhow. The students' problem is forgetting bol patterns, which is an oral and rhythmic issue; Labanotation does not directly solve it. A simpler system - video, spoken bol, counted grids and a glossary - is more feasible and more useful for the examiner. Labanotation could be used for one short sequence as an enrichment exercise, not as the main record.
2. Design a documentation method that uses the available camera, projector and smartphones.
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Use a three-layer record. Layer 1: video, two angles - front and side - for each basic unit (Chali, Ufli, Bhramari), with a slow and a performance tempo. Layer 2: written grid, one row per cycle, columns for count, footwork, bol, arm path and gaze; keep it to one page per unit. Layer 3: oral glossary, recorded by the guru on a smartphone, giving the bol and a short correction for each common error. Project the grid in class and have students mark the sam with a clap before dancing. For the 10-minute video, show progression: posture, basic units, a short narrative piece, and a student reproducing a sequence from the written grid. This uses existing equipment and matches how Chhow is actually transmitted.
3. How should the external examiner assess both the video and the students' ability to reproduce a sequence?
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Use a two-part rubric. Part A, video and report (40%): clear framing, audible bol, accurate cycle counts, evidence of progression, and a written explanation of choices. Part B, live reproduction (60%): give the student a short written grid and a bol recording, allow two minutes' study, then ask for the sequence with the drummer. Mark tala entry, posture, footwork clarity, gaze and recovery from error. Do not mark memorisation of the whole report; mark whether the student can use the record. This is fair because the documentation is meant to support learning, not to replace the guru. Keep samples of the grids and videos for moderation, and have the guru confirm that the recorded bol is acceptable.