The Course
We offer a three year program, operating four mornings a week through the academic year, approved by the American Society for the Alexander Technique (AmSAT). The program offers a high teacher/student ratio (usually 4 teachers each morning with our current group of 16 trainees) and is based on our many years experience of training Alexander teachers and assisting on the world’s oldest established Alexander teacher training course in London, UK.
While the atmosphere is friendly and informal, the underlying structure is a highly evolved, rigorous and practical progression. In depth study of your own use is the essential pre-requisite for the development of the refined hands-on skills of Alexander teaching, Therefore individual work from teachers and daily practices aid in your self-discovery process.
You are also guided through the beginnings of awareness of your own use while putting your hands on another person in simple situations, through building up more complex hands-on skills on this self-aware foundation, to supervised teaching during the final year. Alongside this practical work, carefully chosen reading material and discussion periods develop confidence in articulating and explaining the Technique in lessons, group introductory classes, and public talks.
The Teacher Certification Program is approved by the American Society for the Alexander Technique (AmSAT).
The Curriculum
The coursework of the teacher certification program develops comprehensive understanding of the concepts of the Technique, both kinesthetically and intellectually, and provides training in the established practices of teaching the Technique. The course is of three years duration equalling a minimum of 1600 training hours.
The first year of the training focuses on enabling each student to understand in both practice and theory the three key elements of the Alexander Technique: Primary Control, Inhibition, and Direction. The second year focuses more on developing the refined manual skills and physical practices that have been evolved to pass on the Alexander Technique. The third year focuses on the practical problems of Alexander teaching and trainees progress from practicing on each other to supervised practice on members of the public.
Of the 1600 hours over three years, 160 hours will be allocated to approved independent study in which students may pursue an individual area of interest.
The Location
The course takes place in a large mid-town studio at:
330 West 38th Street #805 (between 8th and 9th Aves.)
New York, NY 10018