Music: naturally inclusive, potentially exclusive?

This chapter explores the way music lends itself to the IPAA framework, focusing on four key areas; working outside of ability groups, using what learners can do as their starting point, engaging in learning at their own level whilst contributing to a collaborative outcome, and developing the whole creative child rather than just a skillset. After reading this chapter, you should be able to: Consider different theoretical and philosophical understandings of musical knowledge and how they manifest in musical learning. Understand the way that teachers’ conceptualisations of musical ability steer pedagogical decisions. Describe what integrated activities are and understand how they enable learners to develop reflective learning. Identify areas of your music teaching that can be enhanced by the use of technology. Consider how different pedagogies can be interwoven in the classroom to enable children with different learning needs and experiences to engage in classroom music in a meaningful way

Prisons and Primary Schools: using CHAT to analyse the relationship between developing identity, developing musicianship and transformative processes

This paper draws on three different research projects to demonstrate the use of an expanded model of Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT), developed as part of a doctoral research study. The first project is an evaluation of the impacts of a Music Partnership Project within Primary and Secondary schools. The second project is an evaluation of the Good Vibrations Javanese Gamelan project in male and female prisons. The third project is an exploration of the learning processes within a Good Vibrations Javanese Gamelan Project in a young offenders' institution. CHAT provides a lens for analysing activity, placing the interactions between the individual, individual cognition and the socio-cultural environment at the heart of the analytical framework. Although a useful way of looking at activity in order to understand the individual and social processes occurring in a learning activity, criticisms of CHAT include the rigidity of the unit of analysis, its inability to view progression and transformation and the focus on one individual without taking into account the labour power that a group offers

The learning ensemble: musical learning through participation

This thesis is an examination of the learning processes employed by adults who learn to play an instrument within an ensemble. The alms of the research were threefold. Firstly, to discover how a person learns in a group and what the role of the socio-cultural environment is in learning. Secondly, to investigate the role that identity plays in learning and whether the students regard themselves as musicians. Finally, to explore the role of the performance in the musical learning process. The research has been carried out using case-study research and a four-year autoethnographic study. The theoretical framework is provided by literature from the fields of cultural psychology, music psychology and adult learning. Activity Theory has been used as the main analytical tool. The discussion firstly considers the learning process in order to construct an activity system of musical learning within an ensemble. Then, using this activity system, the motivational factors inherent in the learning ensemble and the role of Identity In generating motivation are considered. Through analysing motivation and Identity in relation to the activity system, I have demonstrated how the activity system can be developed into a three-dimensional system by Incorporating Identity as a constituent, thus stabilising the activity system. A three-dimensional system then allows for multiple activities to be analysed through the construction of activity constellations. The result of this study is a model of participative learning. Participative learning takes into consideration the purpose of learning and the socio-cultural environment so that musical learning is embedded in social music making. This then provides music education with a new model for learning a musical Instrument

The Pedagogy of a Prison and Community Music Programme: Spaces for conflict and safety

Using theoretical concepts taken from the field of human geography to analyse the conflictual elements within music programmes, this paper presents new empirical research that unpacks the complex pedagogy employed by community musicians with the aim of beginning to address two recent criticisms of community music scholarship: a) community musicians only report positive outcomes and b) community musicians are not interested in scholarly analyses of their work. We begin with a review of literature presenting positive findings and discuss the methodological challenges of community music research. We introduce the key geographical concepts used to analyse the empirical data. After a presentation and discussion of facilitation pedagogy, we finish by suggesting that understanding the work of the community musician through geographical concepts provides a new way to analyse and theorize how a community music facilitator works, thus acknowledging the conflictual element of such work that is often tacit in research

Redefining excellence and inclusion

In this article, we present an overview and summary of the work undertaken by the Music and Social Intervention Network. Exploring the themes of ‘excellence’ and ‘inclusion’, we begin with a consideration of the four articles presented within this special issue and then proceed onto a reflection surrounding wider discussions prevalent at the public events held as part of the project. Following this, we outline five key discourses that emerged through the research process: value, context, measurement, process/product and pedagogy. These fields were then used to identify three underlying issues that affect the way the concepts of excellence and inclusion manifest. After proposing a common understanding of the terms under scrutiny, we suggest that the research points towards a reformation that reads: excellence is the process within community music and inclusion is the product of that process. Reflective questions pertaining to this idea are left open for further discussion

European Music Portfolio Maths: Sounding ways into mathematics review of literature

…makes innovative solutions accessible for teachers in Europe. It develops innovative and creative approaches to make the learning of mathematics (and music) more interesting, inquiry-based and engaging. This approach can have particular benefits for low achievers and students at risk. The project aims to enhance the quality and European dimension of in-service and initial teacher training courses by introducing a tested training curriculum dealing with interdisciplinary approaches to the teaching and learning of both mathematics and music. The project was finalized in 2017. For further collaboration please contact directly the partners listet. From Switzerland and UK we are not able to start new Erasmus+Projects – but we can participate as associated countries and we would be very pleased to support next steps foreward to a more integrated education

Addressing the challenges of teaching music by generalist primary school teachers

Many primary school teachers believe that the teaching of music to children is outside their available expertise. Although primary teachers enjoy music, they often express a sense that music is a ‘specialist’ subject that requires some kind of advanced competence on a musical instrument. Underlying this perception is (i) a lack of confidence in their own musicianship, often linked to the mistaken belief that innate human musicality is unevenly distributed in the general population, and (ii) a lack of knowledge of how to bring music into their everyday teaching. In order to address these concerns, we initiated a specially designed cross-curricular course that sought to link music to other areas of the curriculum where teachers were required to demonstrate everyday expertise, such as in the promotion of children’s language and mathematical development. The article reports the integrated research-based design of the course and the subsequent experiences of student teachers using an action-research model that linked university-based sessions with work in school

Musical development and positive identity change in criminal justice contexts

Drawing on three research projects undertaken in the UK, the US and Portugal, this chapter presents evidence that considers the relationships between music-making and development of both musical and positive learning identities, and in turn how music-making contributes to the rehabilitation of people in criminal justice settings. First and foremost, the interventions discussed provide musical experiences and opportunities for people within specific contexts who might not otherwise have access to arts education, so that they can explore their own musicianship. However, in light of recent work in criminology concerning the change processes that lead to desistance from crime (Weaver & McNeill, 2010), we also consider how personal and social development occur within musical learning, and explore the links between musical development and positive identity change. Within this, the role of creative work in inspiring ownership, confidence, and renewed self- perception will be discussed in relation to developing personal attributes and individual agency. We explore how preparing and performing contributes to the development of social skills. Finally, we suggest that there is a case to be made for providing musical activities within criminal justice settings that foster musical development as well as support positive identity change