Review: Oriental Dance Teacher Training with Nada el Masriya

Oriental Dance Teacher Training with Nada el Masriya, March 7-9 2025

I strongly believe that a true professional always continues to learn through deliberate commitment. Other professions have this idea embedded in their work and qualification practices—schoolteachers have professional development days every year, auditors have continuing professional education credits they must complete to maintain their designations, and many other professions have similar requirements. Why should dance be any different?

I have taken teacher training courses from other instructors before, but I also believe in seeking out multiple sources of knowledge and personal growth. With that in mind, I was thrilled to see a dancer I admire greatly, Nada el Masriya, offering a teacher training program in March 2025. Even better, it was available online, meaning I wouldn’t have to travel to participate.

Having taken a few workshops with Nada in the past, I already knew there was a lot I appreciated about her teaching style. I value the way she explains movements, takes time to drill techniques and help students perfect them, and provides cultural context for each movement. I have always found her to be patient and generous with her knowledge and time during workshops, and I have happily incorporated elements I’ve learned from her into my own teaching.

Nada’s program began with a set of written questions we had to answer before the online courses started. These included an exam testing our general knowledge of Egyptian dance and its history, as well as thought-provoking questions about our mission, vision, what we personally have to offer as dance teachers, and what we believe makes a great instructor.

Over three days, we had four hours of live classes each day (thankfully, recordings were also made available to us afterward). Nada covered essential Egyptian dance knowledge, how to cultivate our identity as teachers, and fundamental aspects of posture and movement technique with detailed explanations. She also guided us in structuring our content into an organized curriculum with different modules, planning individual class sessions, and creating a welcoming and engaging dance environment. Additionally, she discussed marketing, ethics, and business practices.

The course also included an option to pursue certification through Nada’s Egyptian Dance Academy, which required attending some in-person classes, submitting a video of us teaching, and completing a final exam.

A dedicated WhatsApp group for participants has allowed us to continue exchanging ideas after the course, creating a mini-community where we can ask questions, share insights, and benefit from Nada’s ongoing guidance. The participants ranged from those who were not yet teaching to those who had recently started, as well as experienced instructors with many years in the field. The fact that dancers at all these different levels found value in the course speaks to the depth and quality of the information shared.

Though this particular course focused on teaching beginner levels, I found a wealth of knowledge applicable to all levels of my instruction, as well as the overall development of my dance studio business. I feel inspired to revisit my mission and vision for Duniya Studio to ensure it continues to evolve appropriately. I plan to incorporate new ways of explaining movements to my students and make a renewed effort to ask them about their individual goals and desires for their dance journey.

Overall, I have never been disappointed by a learning opportunity with Nada, and this Teacher Training Course was no exception. If she offers it again in the future, I highly recommend it to my colleagues. If she introduces a course for teaching advanced levels, I will eagerly look forward to taking it.