Interview "Great Gymnastics Teacher"@Magazine "Gymnastics", March Issue 2019
Inspired by his three year full time training as a gymnastics teacher at the Weber Schule Duesseldorf, Mark Dowe then studied stage dance at the renowned Codarts Academy in Rotterdam. For fifteen years he worked as a professional dancer at home and abroad.
At the same time, he has been specialising in yoga over the last ten years and now works full-time as a yoga and mindfulness teacher at yoga schools, education and festivals in Europe.
"My education at the Weber School has, in a sense, opened the world for me," says Dowe.
Of course, his story is in no way representative of others and every professional career has equally to do with hard work, good timing and a spark of talent.
However, his graduation as a gymnastics teacher not only gave him the certainty of a well-founded education, but also the tools to implement the acquired knowledge in different ways.
"At a time when clever media and online expertise can easily be confused with actual expertise in your craft, I really appreciate my education, which I have been able to call on for so many years."
It was not just the versatility of the training itself but more the ability to recognise structures and patterns, be it in the human body or in the different movement methodologies.
“That is how I learned early on how to successfully combine my own expertise with new challenges, which has always helped me in my job," says Dowe.
After 20 years of teaching, he knows how much esteem and respect he feels for this profession.
"As teachers, we take on a great deal of responsibility, especially in the area of health and physical activity, but in particular we have the privilege of accompanying people
who are looking for something," says Dowe.
No matter what subject you teach, you not only pass on your knowledge and experience, but also have the great fortune to share your passion and love for the subject with others:
"Teaching teaches us most about ourselves."
In both yoga and dance, one might think that it is a purely physical experience
until one becomes aware of how much emotion is released.
"That's why my teaching is not only committed to the teaching of methods and techniques,
it is also about the perception and internalisation of it self.
How much joy can I find in what I do, and what can I take from lessons in my daily life
- THAT is my job as a teacher: to create new approaches. “
