Training
After 10 years of running a training course in Berlin – namely the Ausbildungszentrum fur F.M Alexander Technique – Danny and Sarah founded C.C.A.R.E in January, 2002 at beautiful Bowden House on the edge of Totnes, now famous as the Transition Town.
Bowden House is a grand manor situated in its own spacious, wooded grounds. It is a place where people of different backgrounds live as a community. Our training course is housed in one of the many cottages that exist in the grounds.
Prospectus:
The three year syllabus has, as its foundation, the daily practice of the following:-
1. The use of inhibition and direction in a wide variety of activities, as well as in the actual learning of how to teach the Technique using the combination of subtle guidance through the hands and verbal instruction.
2. The study of F.M Alexander’s writings and related literature and research material by other teachers, such as Dr. Wilfred Barlow and Frank Pierce Jones.
3. Classes in holistic anatomy and physiology are offered. The emphasis is on learning how to relate anatomy and physiology to the general co-ordinated use of the body as a mechanism.
The thinking process of inhibition and direction is emphasised as the core of the Technique. Cultivating – in class – the conscious spontaneous use of these functions of the mind is essential to the development of the awareness of the kinaesthetic or proprioceptive sense, which is, in turn, improved and expanded by the individual into dynamic co-ordinated use of the organism in daily living. This whole process leads to the realisation that the so-called mind and the so-called body are not separate, but one and the same.
In addition to the practical and theoretical work, the basics of voice work also form part of the curriculum. The loss of his voice was the stimulus that led F.M Alexander to make his great discovery of constructive conscious control.
The training is based on the principles laid down in F.M Alexander’s four books.
1. MAN’S SUPREME INHERITANCE (1910)
2. CONSTRUCTIVE CONSCIOUS CONTROL OF THE INDIVIDUAL (1923)
3. THE USE OF THE SELF (1932)
4. THE UNIVERSAL CONSTANT IN LIVING (1941)
These books form the bulk of the study at C.C.A.R.E of the principles and concepts of the Alexander Technique. Students are required to present written summaries of them and to write essays on certain passages at the discretion of the Directors. Study of a wide variety of other related literature is included.
The course runs approximately in line with the normal schools academic terms. There is a timetable of twenty hours per week, for thirty-six weeks of the year. Students are also expected to continue the studies in their own time.
Qualification at the end of the three years is based on continuous assessment.
On completion of the course, a certificate will be awarded authorizing the graduate to teach the Technique and to become eligible as a Teaching Member of the Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique. (M.S.T.A.T).
Applications:
Applicants will be expected to have a good practical and theoretical grounding in the Technique by the time they begin their training. Applications, including a short C.V, should be made in writing to Daniel McGowan or Sarah Paice at the following address. An interview will be arranged for suitable applicants.
11 Bridge Road
Totnes
Devon TQ9 5FG
All books, articles etc. that form the study at C.C.A.R.E are to be obtained at the students own expense and are not supplied by the Centre.
List of teachers we’ve qualified
Psychological and Emotional Qualities Necessary for the Study of Constructive Awareness:
1. POSITIVE CHANGE
The student requires a strong yearning to change from being a subconsciously controlled individual, who is the slave of unco-ordinated, negative and harmful habits, to a positive consciously controlled human being, skilled in the use of the self. Such conscious change requires the willingness and courage to take a step into the unknown.
2. KINAESTHETIC ACCURACY
The desire to re-educate oneself about the faulty use of the mind and body must be there. The intellect and the kinaesthetic sense must be brought into harmony. This entails going through a conscious thinking process that will re-educate the subconscious mind and lead to greater co-ordination and well-being. When learning to change, the intellectual idea does not usually match the kinaesthetic feeling. The ’right’ thing usually feels ‘wrong’.
3. DEEP AND DYNAMIC THINKING
Thinking power must be cultivated and become acute enough to weigh correctly the relative importance of matters, and/or the validity of statements made by other people. Constructive awareness demands a truer perspective. It seeks to show the individual how to see him/herself and other things as they really are. The student should attempt to become free of the quagmire of the doubtful opinions and beliefs of others. Clarity of thought must be achieved to avoid being stupefied by habitual and unreasonable social conventions.
4. DETACHMENT
A steady attitude of inner detachment is required, because throughout the whole process of change in the use of the self, deep mental, physical and emotional habits may be revealed: with the help of the teacher, the student can learn to deal with them positively. Rigorous reasoning and a light emotional attitude are needed, not only if the truth about one’s misuse of the self is to be realised, but also to enable the student to face the task of continuous change, and to learn to work with it through staggering repetition, no matter how palatable or unpalatable the revelations of such deep change may be.
5. DETERMINATION
A quiet and reasoned determination – not the facial-grimacing, fist-clenching, muscle-tensing type – must be adopted. Despite occasional setbacks, never to accept ’failure’ and resort back to habitual, negative behaviour patterns; but simply to realise that the past is behind you and the rest of your life starts now, now now, now, now………………… You can make a fresh start by using the power of the eternal NOW, the ever-present MOMENT.
6. BALANCE REASON AND EMOTION
At every stage in the process of learning constructive awareness, where reason and emotion come into conflict, to stop and consider if one is habitually displaying unreasoned, emotional bias. The process of conscious change is very powerful, and complex intellectual and emotional problems may occasionally – but not always – arise. In examining these problems, it is very common for the individual to be influenced too much by deep-seated, negative emotions and ill-informed opinion, which cause resentment when evaluating the alternative ideas of other people. In such cases, the tendency is to cloud – and even block completely – clear thinking with a confused, emotional fog. Whether we like it or not, positive, unprejudiced emotions must be cultivated to disperse the fog and bring about clarity of thought.