Day Fifteen – Legalities

Missy Vineyard, in a open post on Facebook's AT Global Group, threw in a focused point about the tablework "is it therapy?" question that I raised yesterday. Let me quote:

We could argue philosophically whether AT is therapy until the cows come home. But it's ESSENTIAL that all AT teachers in the U.S. understand that this word is defined LEGALLY, and people who do "therapy"--which means they are claiming that their modality cures and treats illness and/or injury--must be licensed by the state. But the AT is NOT licensed. We cannot say we do therapy without risking punitive action by state regulatory agencies. We must get all our ducks in a row on this one.

Indeed. I feel safer in my position of eliminating it from BodyChance's toolbox, because perception is the way onlookers are pre-qualified and per-disposed to what you do before you have an opportunity to adjust their ideas. Voice and Yoga people are famous for lying on the floor, but it is easy to argue they are learning something. The image of a person lying on a table/floor with someone "doing things" to them does not resonate with the image of a yoga or voice class, which is usually a group, and the person is receiving little, if any, individual attention… As I wrote yesterday: I know people love receiving and giving this activity, so why not? Freedom to you. I personally hadn't considered very deeply how the practise of tablework could jeopardize the Alexander Technique's positioning legally, but I see that is quite possible in the not so distant future. The use of touch also goes into this mix… Anyway, I hate all the legal stuff, as important as I acknowledge it is. I don't belong to any organisation as long as it is not a legal requirement that I do, which happily is still the case today! Your Mission – To Articulate Your Education Mission

Having wrote yesterday that I wanted you to figure out how tablework (if you do it) fitted into your Education Mission, it occurred to me that maybe you don't have an Education Mission written down? As with all my tasks, this is by your choice, and I will admit that I hadn't not bothered with this. However, now that BodyChance is moving towards the status of a college, rather than a school, with 100+ students in Teacher Education, it becomes more of a requirement than a necessity. I have thought deeply about my teaching, as I am sure you have, and as I approached this issue I wasn't even sure what an Education Mission was. I am still not sure I do. I am working now with Cathy Madden on BodyChance's Education Mission statement, which will act as a guide for our teaching staff and for visiting teachers to understand the milieu they are entering. Your Mission (should you wish to accept it) is to provide a simple Mission statement about your work. Or just take the day off, which I would love to do except I am scheduled to teach in 45 minutes and I still have to eat breakfast!