ISSN: 2226-6348
Open access
Against the backdrop of the inward development of higher education and the continuous strengthening of aesthetic education, the quality of teaching behavior among dance teachers in colleges and universities has become a critical factor influencing the effectiveness of talent cultivation in dance majors. However, how teaching content is effectively transformed into concrete teaching behavior still lacks systematic empirical explanation. Accordingly, this study takes dance teachers from colleges and universities in Hebei Province as the research sample and examines the mechanism linking teaching content–teaching engagement–teaching behavior, with a particular focus on the mediating role of teaching engagement between teaching content and teaching behavior. The research objectives are to: describe the overall levels of teaching content, teaching engagement, and teaching behavior among college and university dance teachers; test the direct effect of teaching content on teaching behavior; and verify the mediating effect of teaching engagement. A quantitative, cross-sectional questionnaire design was employed, involving 183 full-time dance teachers from 13 colleges and universities in Hebei Province. Data were collected using revised scales measuring teaching content, teaching engagement, and teaching behavior, all assessed on five-point Likert scales. Stratified cluster sampling was adopted for data collection. Descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, and regression analyses were conducted using SPSS, and the mediating effect was examined with PROCESS Macro (Model 4) based on 5,000 bootstrap samples. At the theoretical level, grounded in cognitive development theory and the Knowledge–Attitude–Practice (KAP) framework, this study elucidates how teaching content, as a cognitive foundation, is progressively externalized into stable classroom teaching behavior through the transformational mechanism of teaching engagement. The results indicate that: first, university dance teachers demonstrate moderately high levels of teaching content quality, teaching engagement, and teaching behavior, suggesting a relatively stable foundation of teaching practice; second, teaching content exerts a significant positive predictive effect on teaching behavior, indicating that well-designed dance curriculum design, curriculum structure, curriculum content, curriculum implementation, and curriculum evaluation contribute to the formation of positive teaching behaviors; third, teaching engagement plays a significant partial mediating role between teaching content and teaching behavior, such that teaching content not only directly influences teaching behavior but also indirectly strengthens its impact by enhancing teachers’ emotional, cognitive, and behavioral engagement, including student-centered engagement, instructional preparation, and professional development. These findings provide empirical support for optimizing teaching content design and enhancing teaching engagement among dance teachers in colleges and universities. Future research may further deepen the understanding of the formation mechanisms of dance teachers’ teaching behavior by expanding the research regions, adopting longitudinal designs, or incorporating additional individual and contextual variables.
Abele, A., Liduma, A., Upeniece, I., Isidori, E., & Sandor, I. (2025). Building effective teaching strategies: The impact of differentiation and collaboration in music and dance teachers’ education. Ricerche di Pedagogia e Didattica. Journal of Theories and Research in Education, 20(1), 45-61.
Chen, J. (2025). Dance education using digital technologies: enhancing effectiveness by facilitating student–teacher feedback. Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 16(1), 12-31.
De Las Heras-Fernández, R., Cuellar-Moreno, M. J., Espada Mateos, M., & Anguita Acero, J. M. (2025). The influence of teaching styles on the emotions of university students in dance lessons according to sex. Research in Dance Education, 26(2), 182-201.
Demian, N. C. (2024). Exploring the Intersection of Dance Education and Digital Technology. Tánc és Nevelés, 5(1), 127-152.
Duffy, A. (2026). Research in Dance: Methods, Processes, and Practical Applications. Human Kinetics.
Giguere, M. (2024). Teaching Philosophies for Dance Educators. Dance education in practice, 10(1), 2-5.
He, D., Arifani, Y., Liu, Y., Siripala, W., Songsiengchai, S., & Suryanti, S. (2024). The impact of teachers' classroom behavior management strategies on learning behavior among Chinese art students. Journal of Curriculum Studies Research, 6(2), 158-176.
Jia, C., & Zhang, J. (2026). Emotional Regulation in Dance and Its Role in Emotional Expression: Evidence from Dance Majors. Empirical Studies of the Arts, 44(1), 399-428.
Johns, S. (2024). The Impact of Teacher Engagement on Student Engagement in Dance Education (Doctoral dissertation).
Kim, J., & Hong, A. (2025). A grounded theory approach to the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of dance educators. Research in Dance Education, 1-15.
Pham, L. T. T., & Phan, A. N. Q. (2024). Why teaching? Vietnamese dance teachers’ experiences, motivations, and professional challenges. Journal of Dance Education, 24(3), 199-210.
Pürgstaller, E., & Neuber, N. (2025). Is the promotion of creativity important? The link between dance teachers’ attributed significance towards creativity promotion and their teaching practice. Research in Dance Education, 1-18.
Rajbhandari, P. (2024). Contemporary dance: Examining limitations and expanding pedagogy. Dance Education in Practice, 10(1), 11-17.
Risner, D. (2023). Dance Education Matters: Rebuilding Postsecondary Dance Education for Twenty-First Century Relevance and Resonance 1. In Dancing Mind, Minding Dance (pp. 49-64). Routledge.
Schicker, J., & Fallon, C. V. P. (2026). Preschool Immersion Pedagogy: A Practical Guide for Teachers and Administrators. Die Unterrichtspraxis/Teaching German, 59(1), e70043.
Schupp, K. (2024). Rethinking the pedagogy of dance pedagogy. Research in Dance Education, 25(3), 254-267.
Shen, Q., Bailey, R. P., Pickard, A., Judge, S., & Samsudin, N. (2026). Dance teachers’ competency in school education: a narrative systematic review. Research in Dance Education, 1-22.
Soerel, B. F., Plaatsman, L. A., Kegelaers, J., Stubbe, J. H., van Rijn, R. M., & Oudejans, R. R. (2023). An analysis of teachers’ instructions and feedback at a contemporary dance university. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1133737.
Wang, Z. (2024). Artificial intelligence in dance education: Using immersive technologies for teaching dance skills. Technology in Society, 77, 102579.
Xu, S., Rahim, N., & Yahaya, W. A. J. W. (2025). The Impact of Hybrid Learning Integrating Mobile Interaction and AI Timely Feedback on Students' Dance Performance, Perceived Motivation, and Engagement. An-Najah University Journal for Research-B (Humanities), 39(10), 1-9.
Yaqing, W., & Rahim, N. A. (2026). The Impact of Teaching Content on Teaching Behavior among Colleges and Universities School Dance Teachers in Hebei Province, China: The Mediating Role of Teaching Engagement. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 15(1), 865-881.
Copyright: © 2026 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode