MUSIC EDUCATION
Future sounds
Musical Futures
has unveiled
30 Champion
Schools that are
excelling in their music
education. Carrie Dunn
finds out more
‘
usical Futures came
M
about because there have
been problems with music in
school,” abigail D’amore told
me with disarming frankness.
“the thing about music is
that it’s something all young
people are passionate about in their own way, but in
schools it’s fairly consistently one of the worst-rated
subjects. so there’s a dichotomy between students’
interest and what actually happens in the classrooms.”
Ms D’amore is national co-ordinator of the
Musical Futures initiative, which has just announced
30 champion schools across the country that will
be models of best practice and provide training for
other music departments interested in developing the
programme.
the entire programme is intended to discover ways
to engage more young people in music for longer,
placing them at the centre of music learning and take and use from our website – all free. We wanted “For some teachers, there is difficulty with trying champion schools. Head of music anna Gower is
personalising ways of education. teachers to develop what we’d provided and go on to to engage students who already see themselves as excited about the potential improvement of skills it
“it started as a pilot to develop new methods of share good practice.” experts,” explains Ms D’amore. offers to teachers and students alike.
teaching music in schools,” says Ms D’amore. “We that good practice is essentially focused around “Musical Futures has validated the student “in lessons, we used to choose a piece of classical
released teaching resource materials that people can giving students control of their own learning. experience, and shows teachers a way through that. music, the class would listen to it in silence, then they’d
teachers are so busy, and they have ways that they’ve perform a composition based on what they’d heard using
Maths focus: NCETM
always taught, but some of them were asking how to keyboards and tuned percussion, and use traditional
engage with them and build a programme around it. notation as a tool to write it down,” she recalls.
We were successful and had positive results, and other “it was broken down into chunks, the compositions
teachers have seen that, mostly at key stage 3.” were mostly pastiche, and the students didn’t really
Creating a real dialogue
it can be a scary experience for teachers who are engage, leading to behavioural and motivational
used to working in a very different way, and some may problems.”
feel that their lessons are effective enough already, Now, the formal structure of lessons has been lifted.
Mark McCourt
(especially about the staff), but it’s most useful to which Ms D’amore recognises. “We ask students to bring their own cDs, and get them
dwell upon the negatives. after all, these are the areas “the initiative holds appeal, risks and challenges to compose versions of those tracks, allowing them to
argues that we
which need working on. – it’s facilitating learning where you’re not completely work in friendship groups and to choose the instruments
a colleague was feeling uninspired about his own in control,” she said. they want to perform on,” she said.
teaching and the lessons which he was delivering. “Of course, there are many schools who are doing “We’re not militant – we model rather than show,
need to listen to
He said that one evening he sat down and planned great work anyway, and don’t need to do anything, and offer help if they ask for it. We stand back and
a lesson like he used to – with thought, enthusiasm but it can revitalise teachers’ own practice, and remind facilitate, rather than controlling and dictating the way
our students to find out
and creativity. He said it gave him a buzz that them what it is to be a musician having been bogged they should work.”
he hadn’t felt for a long time; a buzz which was down in paperwork.” she feels that Musical Futures has offered a boost to
what they really think of
passed on to his students while teaching the lesson. initially, the plan was for Musical Futures to last two the year 9 students at a time when their interest in the
Working on effective planning is as good a place to years, but since its inception, it has grown. subject traditionally dips.
start as any. “We thought it might grow from the initial 20 “it gives them time and space to find their own way
their maths lessons
so, an idea for the classroom – don’t be boring, schools to another 10 or 20,” says Ms D’amore, through learning,” she explained. “they also get to
do be sensible! “but now we have 400 schools around the country work with musical styles that interest them, though of
as We know, students are a teacher’s most reliable “Measures” is an area of the curriculum that is participating. course we do still do world music and classics, just in a
critic. their level of engagement and participation sometimes hard to get excited about. it’s a shame “We find ways to support teachers taking it on in different way than we used to.”
in a lesson is often determined by the quality of its because a good understanding of measures will be their schools because it’s a challenge – it’s student- Matthew Horner, head of music at Parklands
planning and delivery. if the teacher fails to catch a skill that pupils will carry with them throughout led, and the control of learning is in the students’ High school in liverpool, also had a problem with
their interest, problems can arise. their lives. so i was delighted when a colleague hands, which is a shift from what teachers are used demotivated year 9 students.
as part of your department self-evaluation form, recommended sensibleunits, a fantastic website. to. However, a study by the institute of education Mr Horner is a relative newcomer to Musical Futures
you could interview a selection of students within i had great fun typing in some lengths and weights surveying the 400 Musical Futures schools provided us as a formal scheme, signing up to it after a workshop
varying year groups and sets to gauge their perception and seeing the equivalents that the website instantly with the feedback that teachers feel their practice has in Manchester with the liverpool Music service made
of mathematics as a subject – how it’s taught and their produces. so did some other colleagues. it set me been improved.” him realise that the student focus was something he was
general attitude towards it. thinking when i received an email from a colleague, impressive figures – particularly for a scheme that already implementing in his classroom.
it can sometimes be tempting to assume all is who admitted: “i am apparently the weight of 45 has limited resources and relies so heavily on teachers’ “We’d been doing what turns out to be the Musical
well so long as the students remain orderly and the average physics text books! Better lose a few pages participation and engagement. Futures programme without even knowing it,” he said.
results are as expected. Yet since we perform in front at the gym.” Ms D’amore continued: “Musical Futures is “We work in an area where musical instruments
of audiences on a daily basis, is it unreasonable to ask immediately concerned, i typed in my meagre basically tiny – it’s me and another colleague – so it’s tend not to be provided by families, and we didn’t have
them what they think once in a while? weight and found i was only 37 average physics something teachers and schools take on, because we enough to go round for classical-slanted composition
it is always a good idea to be careful when text books. so how heavy is my colleague? a good can’t be everywhere at once.” and performance work. What we did instead was to
selecting students. look for those who will provide use of proportional reasoning to solve this important champion schools puts the ownership and set up student-focused workshops allowing them to
honest responses, even though they may be things problem! development of the training programme with the compose and perform in styles that appealed to them
that you would prefer not to hear. about those text books though – “average physics teacher. there will be 30 schools around the uK with more. it totally eradicated the motivation problem, and
the questions work best if open, to encourage text books”. What does average mean in this context? champion school status, and the teachers there will has made music a more popular option.”
a discussion, and although i referred to it as an How do our school text books compare? i sense a train others in their area. With improved behaviour and motivation, revitalised
interview, the real aim is to create a dialogue. stress data-handling investigation could be relevant here. the scheme is designed to highlight schools teachers, and increased uptake of the subject occurring
to the students that the conversation is not about the demonstrating best practice in the project. across the country as a direct result of the scheme, the
merits and failures of individual teachers, but that you • Mark McCourt is an assistant director at the those with champion school status needed to musical future is indeed looking bright. SecEd
want to establish how they view the subject in order National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching show an understanding of and commitment to Musical
to identify areas for improvement. of Mathematics with responsibility for secondary Futures, with a minimum of one term’s successful • Carrie Dunn is a freelance education writer and tutor
Needless to say, the students’ responses usually schools. The Centre is funded by the Department for practice and an experienced head of music with the who and lectures at various London universities.
confirm what we know already. they don’t like Children, Schools and Families. ability to run and organise training sessions is crucial.
book work or copying notes, the variety within also important is having the space to run cPD sessions,
Further information
some lessons is limited, sometimes the work is
Further information
senior management support and long-term commitment, Musical Futures is a national scheme encouraging
difficult, the teacher doesn’t help them when they For more ideas, visit the NcetM’s secondary experience in using music technology, and a willingness students to stay involved in music for longer. the
ask, little group work or chance to discuss (like in Magazine at www.ncetm.org.uk/secondarymagazine to explore new ideas. Musical Futures/roland champion schools programme
other subjects!). and to see how many physics text books you weigh, Monks Walk school in Hertfordshire was part of is aimed at promoting best practice and allowing
Don’t get me wrong, they do say positive things visit www.sensibleunits.com the original 20-school Musical Futures pilot, rolling teachers to access cPD training with their peers. For
it out to their year 9 students, and are now one of the more information, visit www.musicalfutures.co.uk
SecEd • November 13 2008 19
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