STAR– POST (Music) JAN 2020 Published by the S ingapore T eachers’ A cademy for the a R ts Inquiry-Based Learning: A Process of Making Music Creating opportunities for students to express, experiment, collaborate, and reflect 13 Facilitating musical thinking and creative expression through the use of Musicking Cards Cards to Cue, Trigger, and Question 18 Musical Conversation A STAR Champion shares her teacher- leadership journey 23 Pedagogical Possibilities with Technology 04
Transcript
STAR–POST(Music)
J A N 2 0 2 0 P u b l i s h e d b y t h e S i n g a p o r e T e a c h e r s ’ A c a d e m y f o r t h e a R t s
Inquiry-Based Learning: A Process of Making MusicCreating opportunities for students to express, experiment, collaborate, and reflect
13
Facilitating musical thinking and creative expression through the use of Musicking Cards
Cards to Cue, Trigger, and Question
18
Musical Conversation A STAR Champion shares her teacher-leadership journey
23
Pedagogical
Possibilities
with
Technology 04
EDITORIAL TEAM
Josephine ChanSenior Academy Officer (Music)
Wong Yong Ping TommyAcademy Officer (Music)
Adeline TanSenior Academy Officer (Music)
DESIGN
Garçon Design
No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part without the prior consent of STAR. All rights reserved.
Blending musical learning with technology opens new ways of teaching and learning, and provides opportunities for students to create, reflect on, respond to, analyse, listen to, and communicate with music.
Pedagogical Possibilities with Technology
4
Mobile devices (tablets and
phones) today offer numerous
functionalities which can be used
for teaching and learning in the
music classroom. They can serve
as digital audio workstations,
connect to online portals, and
provide access to various learning
resources. Teachers can take
advantage of streaming platforms,
such as Spotify and YouTube, to
gain access to millions of tracks in
multiple styles and genres. There
is a plethora of music-related apps
available in the app stores for
music educators to explore.
5STAR-Post (Music) 5
Many teachers have explored
and introduced the use of apps,
such as GarageBand, Virtual Guitar, and Real Drum, in place of
acoustic instruments, as a form of
substitution for music-making. The
direct replacement is but one of the
many ways where technology has
enhanced teaching and learning
approaches in music.
There are many other applications
of technology that encourage
self-evaluation and self-directed
learning. For example, there are
apps that provide the option
of recording multiple layers of
sounds, which could be isolated
for students to proof-listen their
work. The isolation function could
also be used as a teaching tool to
highlight the different roles that
each instrument plays, in relation
to balance, texture, register, and
tone colours. As technology enables
immediate feedback, teachers could
harness this tool to help students
discern the suitability of their
musical decisions and continue to
work on their project independently.
Teachers have also harnessed
the internet, social media, and the
Student Learning Space (SLS) to
allow students to continue their
collaborative music-making beyond
the confines of the classroom and
in the comforts of their homes.
These examples go beyond
substitution and offer creative
musical possibilities that would not
have been feasible without such
technology.
Participants recording multiple layers of sounds at the ICT Milestone Workshop
Making Music Accessible and Relevant Technology has also opened
opportunities to give greater
access to students with diverse
musical interests and needs
which aid the growth of student
identities. The availability of apps
and web tools has facilitated music
creative work and encouraged
music sharing. Thus, students are
no longer passive consumers of
music and now have opportunities
to be music creators. For example,
students can easily record sounds
that intrigue them, manipulate and
juxtapose these sounds in endless
6STAR-Post (Music) 6
Students at Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School learn how to create and perform their own loop-based composition
combinations to create new sounds,
thus expanding the sound palettes
available to them, beyond the stock
sounds found in the software. The
evolution of technology has created
new ways of making music, giving rise
to new genres and musical structures
such as loop-based music.
One genre that employs loops is
EDM (Electronic Dance Music), which
many students enjoy listening to. By
connecting to the students’ sound
world, music learning is made relevant
and interesting for the students at
Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School,
who have had their hand at recording
their own sound samples and creating
their own loops.
Teachers can explore creating an environment that harnesses various technological tools to
make music accessible and relevant to students, enabling them to express
themselves and grow their identity through
music-making.
Their music teacher, Lee Jia Ling,
shared how the students engaged
in live improvisation, triggering
the keys on the Launchpad of the
MIDI controllers, similar to how DJs
create music. She believes that
the use of technology to create
music is an in-road to making
music accessible, regardless of her
students’ interests and experiences.
The technological tools that she chose to use are utilised by many leading DJs in the world. She wanted to provide her students with an authentic learning experience, so that they would see the relevance to real-life application and, thus, be more motivated to work on their compositions. Even though she had to spend time teaching the students how to handle the technical equipment, she did not compromise their musical learning and ensured that her students developed an
7STAR-Post (Music) 7
understanding of musical concepts such as mood, texture, and timbre, in their live improvisations.
Technology offers great potential for students to develop musical understandings, regardless of their musical experiences. Thus,
Inseparable: Musical Learning and Technical Understandings
Jia Ling giving feedback to students working on their Film music composition
The use of technology in education has often been focused on the technology itself – its features and
operation. However, one would need to give the same degree of consideration to decide the purposes and
approaches to using that technology. Bauer and Mito, 2017
teachers can explore creating an environment that harnesses various technological tools to make music accessible and relevant to students, enabling them to express themselves and grow their identity through music-making.
Musical understandings and
technical understandings can be
built simultaneously to provide a
fuller learning experience, just
as how technical and musical
skills are applied concurrently in
real-life contexts. Similarly, in the
music classroom, teachers could
scaffold and forefront musical
Learning Outcomes (LOs) as
students engage in their creative
tasks (such as in performance,
composition, arrangement,
and improvisation) through
technology.
As part of their Film Music
composition module at Ahmad
Ibrahim Secondary School,
Jia Ling embeds the LOs
and scaffolds the process of
8STAR-Post (Music) 8
Bauer, W. I., & Mito, H. (2017). ICT in Music Education. In King, A., Himonides, E., & Ruthmann, S. A. (Ed.), The Routledge Companion to Music, Technology, and Education (pp. 91-102). NY: Routledge
composing using a DAW while
learning the conventions
of musical language and
terminology. In using the
DAW to compose, they are
given listening exercises to
recognise different
instrumental sounds,
timbre, and musical
textures, which help
develop their aural acuity,
allowing them to associate various
music elements with particular
genres, styles, and moods. This
enables her students
to express themselves better,
as well as make informed and
intentional musical decisions.
Therefore, the process of leading
students in meaningful creative
activities must go beyond
giving instruction on how to use
technological tools. Students will
be better equipped to demonstrate
musical sensibilities through
their tasks if teachers introduce
suitable preparatory or concurrent
activities to develop musical
understandings.
The use of technology in education
has often been focused on the
technology itself – its features and
Building 21st Century Competencies through Technology in the Music ClassroomThe digital age has challenged
the dynamics of the classroom
and the expectations of teaching
and learning. As we consider the
changing context for learning and
the increasingly heterogeneous
classrooms today, teachers
would have to re-examine what
constitutes musical learning and
how technology can impact the
development of 21st Century
Competencies (21CC).
In using technology to develop
musical understandings, the
model of teaching and learning
shifts from a mastery of virtuosic
instrumental skills and musical
theory to one that supports
exploration, experimentation,
operation. However, one would
need to give the same degree
of consideration to decide the
purposes and approaches to
using that technology (Bauer
and Mito, 2017).
9STAR-Post (Music) 9
and adaptability to new sounds.
The end goal is developing the
students’ sensitivities and
honing their musical ear and
expressive sense.
This rationale led Jia Ling to use a
loop-based platform to engage her
students in music learning, deepen
their music understanding, and
build their confidence. She realised
that her students were initially
uneasy with the idea of performing,
let alone improvising “live” in front
of their classmates. However,
using a loop-based platform
meant that her students would
have ready access to a wide range
of instrumental sounds, effects,
and grooves which they could
easily trigger, manipulate, and
combine, so that they could focus
instead on the expressive musical
possibilities.
Jia Ling also observed how the
students were highly motivated
and self-directed in preparing for
their performance, continually
revising and rehearsing their
work as she facilitated their
creating process.
Through careful scaffolding of
her lessons, her students were
eventually equipped with an
understanding of timbres, textures,
dynamics, and other key musical
elements and grew to be more
confident performers who were
able to react and make musical
decisions when performing “live”
for an audience.
In fact, Jia Ling’s students enjoyed
their music-making experience so
much that she decided to identify
more opportunities for interested
students to perform at school-
based concerts, or at external
venues, such as the National
Gallery and Esplanade, as part
of the Singapore Youth Festival
Celebrations. Some of her students
even downloaded trial versions
of the software that they used
in class to create their own
mobile ringtones.
10STAR-Post (Music) 10
Considerations Using TechnologyMost teachers are enthusiastic
about the role technology can play
in improving learning. However,
some may feel unprepared to
take advantage of these digital
tools in the classroom. Some of
these barriers include inadequate
knowledge about the technological
tools (hardware and software) and
the lack of experience in using
them. Thus, the focus lands on the
technical aspects of learning to use
technology.
Jia Ling intended to introduce
a new technological tool that is
popularly used in the industry.
As she was unfamiliar with it, she
researched on the equipment
and spent time exploring the
functions to familiarise herself
with it. She had to figure out
Jia Ling explores and creates music using the technological tool before deciding if it’s suitable for the classroom
if it was suitable for use in the
classroom. It was a struggle
initially as she was learning to use
the tool and concurrently making
connections on how the tool could
complement what was already
planned in the curriculum. She
also had to consider her students’
prior knowledge and scaffold the
lessons accordingly. It helped that
she was learning from scratch as
she could better break down the
learning process for her students.
Be practical and think through the details and
feasibility of the module. Be brave as there is no better time than now.
Jia Ling
11STAR-Post (Music) 11
The fear to learn something new is
a hurdle to integrating technology
in music lessons. We will, however,
not know what technology can
bring to music education unless
we start using it. Besides spending
time to learn the tool, it would
help if teachers work together and
learn from each other. This would
accelerate the learning process.
Another alternative is to begin
with short projects that are highly
related to the work that students
are currently doing.
The other consideration revolves
around logistical preparation and
execution for each lesson that
harnesses technology. These
elements include troubleshooting
for malfunctioning equipment, as
well as managing the use of limited
equipment, especially when there
are insufficient numbers for each
student to have simultaneous
access.
Despite the limited funds to
buy equipment such as cables,
microphones, microphone stands,
mixers, and speakers, Jia Ling
was not dissuaded from teaching
her students how to create a live
sound setup. She made use of
alternative materials to create
models of the original equipment,
so that all students could
concurrently participate in hands-
on activities, thereby making the
learning engaging and interactive.
For instance, she used skipping
ropes and cardboard boxes to
create additional “cables” and
“speakers”, respectively. She also
devised multiple stations within
the classroom, where students
would be split into groups to learn
specific skills at each station, such
as cable-coiling and setting up of
microphone stands, before moving
on to another station. By doing so,
all students were able to acquire
the relevant skills in an experiential
manner, even with the lack of
equipment.
While the use of technology in
the music classroom undeniably
Students creating a live sound setup
Station 2Set up
Microphone stands
Station 3Plugging the cables to the
sound system
Station 1 Cable-coiling
Alternative materials used by Jia Ling’s students to setup a sound system
12STAR-Post (Music) 12
comes with a set of practical
difficulties, teachers should try
to source for creative solutions
to overcome these challenges
by working with other teachers
who have been successful in their
implementations. Through the
collective wisdom of the fraternity,
teachers will be encouraged to
explore ways to teach music
innovatively with technology.
ConclusionAs technology is constantly
advancing and evolving, music
educators need to be aware of
how technology redefines music,
music-making, and music learning
experiences. There is no need to
incorporate every technological
innovation into the classroom.
Rather, teachers need to discern
factors such as the technology’s
usefulness and suitability for the
music classroom, how it could be
harnessed to give students access
to music, deepen music learning,
and build 21CC in our students.
In essence, teachers should
continually exercise adaptability
in refining their technological
pedagogical and content
knowledge (TPACK) to ensure that
any integration of technology in
music lessons remains relevant
and meaningful (Bauer, 2014).
Bauer, W. I. (2014). Music Learning Today: Digital Pedagogy for Creating, Performing, and Responding to Music. NY: Oxford University Press.
When technology is purposefully
harnessed for music education,
students can enjoy authentic
learning experiences and even
develop a propensity for music-
making, beyond the classroom.
From top:
Participants working on a vocal recording activity during the Basic Music Production workshop
Participants exploring the use of technology to deepen students’ musical learning at the ICT Milestone Workshop
When technology is purposefully harnessed for music education, students
can enjoy authentic learning experiences and
even develop a propensity for music-making, beyond
the classroom.
13STAR-Post (Music) 13
When we explore new ways of
thinking about music teaching
and learning, and experiment
how it might be enacted in the
classroom, we are re-imagining
how the music classroom can be
An approach to learning, encompassing a series of lessons over time and across levels, to enable students to express, experiment, collaborate, and reflect.
Inquiry-Based Learning: A Process of Making Music
transformed to more effectively
scaffold our teaching and help
our students think more critically
when creating, performing,
and listening to music.
“Through the inquiry approach, students think through and internalise
concepts… They are more likely to remember
and enjoy the lesson, even though that could take up more time. The learning outcomes are
better and these are backed up by research.”
Mr Ong Ye KungEducation Minister
Work Plan Seminar 2018
14
Music-making is an iterative
and non-linear process, as is the
process of inquiry. With careful
IBL Being Intrinsic to the Musical Experience
STAR-Post (Music) 14
How might Inquiry-Based
Learning (IBL) look like in
the music classroom? IBL in
music advocates authentic
music learning experiences
that develop 21st Century
skills such as critical thinking,
problem-solving, collaboration,
communication, and creativity.
The approach focuses on
music-making and develops the
students’ musical knowledge
and skills through placing
students’ observations,
questions, and responses at
the centre of the learning
experience.
facilitation from teachers,
students begin to acquire an
inquiring mindset towards music,
how they direct their learning,
and how they sequence
their steps in the process
of making music.
This process of musical inquiry
grants ownership of learning
to students and empowers
them to decide which learning
trajectories are most musically
interesting and relevant to
themselves. This builds student
motivation to learn, leading to
greater retention of knowledge,
deeper understanding, and
more positive attitudes towards
continued learning of music.
Ultimately, students gain
independence to be lifelong
learners of music, which is
important to other aspects
of life as well.
15STAR-Post (Music) 15
Figure. 2 Staged Self-Directed Learning Model (Grow, 1991)
LyricsTeacher provides a set of lyrics as a template to which students can choose to change selected words.
MusicTeacher specifies the parameters (e.g. chord progression, choice of instruments, style, balance) to be included in the song. A project template for music arrangement is provided for students. The iterative process is limited.
LyricsTeacher elicits words from the class in response to the given theme. Students will use these words in their lyrics.
MusicTeacher involves students in deciding the parameters and offers suggestions for the students’ consideration (e.g. chord progressions, choice of instruments, style, balance).Students are given the option to modify the project template for music arrangement (e.g. type of drum).
LyricsStudents craft the lyrics for one section of the song (e.g. Verse or Chorus)
MusicStudents are given the opportunity to decide the parameters in their group’s song (e.g. chords, choice of instruments, style, balance) with input from the teacher.Students decide on their music arrangement, with input from the teacher.
LyricsStudents are given the autonomy to craft the lyrics of their song.
MusicStudents have the autonomy to decide the parameters in their group’s song (e.g. chords, choice of instruments, style, balance, mix and pan).Students decide on their music arrangement.
Bell, R., Smetana, L., & Binns, I. (2005). Simplifying Inquiry Instruction: Assessing the inquiry level of classroom activities. The Science Teacher, 72(7), 30-34.
Below is an example of how the Music Inquiry Framework can be applied
in part or in entirety, over a series of lessons across time and levels:
Song-writing as a group to a given theme [with the option of using a
Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)]
Teacher-directed Student-directed
17STAR-Post (Music) 17
Mod
es
Col
lab
orat
e Students work on their song using the lyrics and music templates provided.
Students work through ideas for their song, with suggestions from the teacher.
Students work through their song, with facilitation by the teacher.
The groups work independently.
Reflect
Teacher decides on the specific assessment criteria and gives students feedback on their song.
Teacher co-constructs assessment criteria with students, and gives feedback on their song.
Teacher facilitates the process of students giving feedback on the other groups’ songs, in relation to the co-constructed criteria.
Students self-reflect in groups on the musical coherence of the song, in relation to the co-constructed criteria.
Students’ motivation to learn
music is determined by a
sense of purpose, meaning and
interest, and also shaped by their
learning environment, and their
cognitive and social contexts. It
is important that teachers allow
students to develop a sense
of purpose in music-making
through the objectives they
wish to accomplish. Developing
purpose in music-making is one
of the first steps to opening the
way for students’ voices and
enhancing their motivation for
learning. What they have learnt,
or would be learning in time, is a
continuous process of discovery
that would eventually enable them
to apply their musical process and
transfer their musical learning
to other areas. Hence, IBL, when
incorporated well in music, can be
a powerful approach to deepen
students’ musical learning.
To conclude, IBL begins with,
or is initiated and prompted
by uncertainty, curiosity, and
wonderment. Its goal is to
understand, to develop new
perspectives, and to investigate
and reframe practice over time. It
does not necessarily assert a final
knowing (Pinnegar, 1998, as cited
in Campbell, 2014) as musical
learning goes on for life.
Campbell, M. R. (2014). Inquiry and Synthesis in Pre-service Mu-sic Teacher Edu-cation: A close look at cultivating self-study research. In Promising Practices In 21st Century Music Teacher Education (pp. 149-174) New York: Oxford Univesity Press.
Teacher-directed Student-directed
STAR-Post (Music) 18
Cards to Cue, Trigger, and Question
The Musicking Cards resource
is a springboard for students to
discover musical possibilities. It
encourages students to explore
and play through the variety of
musical pathways and surprises
that the cards offer, while building
in students the musical vocabulary
to describe and give voice to
their ideas.
The words and questions on
the cards serve as suggested
triggers to stimulate creative work
and discussion. The questions
generate new ideas and give
students opportunities to reflect
Facilitating musical thinking and creative expression through the use of Musicking Cards.
and think deeper about the
meaning and implications of their
musical choices.
At Riverside Primary School,
Lead Teacher (Music), Ameerah
Sharainee Zain uses the Musicking
Cards to develop her students’
understanding of musical
concepts and empower them to
be more conscious and intentional
about applying musical concepts
to achieve their desired musical
effects.
In her upper primary classes,
the students work in groups to
create short compositions and
perform these using different
instruments, such as keyboards,
guitars, ukuleles, pitched
and unpitched percussion
instruments. To facilitate her
students’ compositional process,
she uses the Set 1 and Set 2
cards to encourage them to
consider musical concepts such
as dynamics, register, and form,
and to stretch their imagination
to discover and apply new
compositional possibilities. Ameerah using selected Set 1 and 2 Musicking Cards to facilitate her students’ compositional process
STAR-Post (Music) 19
WATCH
Click here to view an example of how Set 1 Musicking Cards could be used
Students at Riverside Primary School learn to play various instruments and frequently work together in group settings
attempts to demonstrate their
understanding of the relevant
concepts.
Musicking cards can be used at
various stages in numerous ways
to meaningfully engage students
as a pre-activity to music-
making, as a reflective tool in the
process of refining their music
compositions, or at the end of the
creative process to evaluate their
compositions.
Beyond serving as a tool to teach
musical concepts, the Musicking
Cards can also bring about new
ways of thinking, exploring, and
expressing musical ideas. When
using these cards, students
are encouraged to go beyond
their comfort zone to extend
and develop their compositions
and performances. Over time,
students will begin to internalise
the concepts and questions and
naturally apply them in the course
of their music-making.
23STAR-Post (Music) 23
Musical Conversation STAR Champion Leong Su Juen shares her journey as a teacher-leader and explains how she harnesses technology to teach music.
‘Enriching’ and ‘humbling’ are
two words that come to my mind
as I think about my journey as a
STAR Champion. During these six
years, I have gained knowledge of
multiple pedagogical approaches,
as well as opportunities to apply
these strategies by designing
lessons with other teacher-leaders
and then trying them out in the
classroom.
Having been a STAR Champion for about six years, could you share with us your journey as a teacher-leader?
I vividly recall my first time
conducting a zonal music workshop
for East Zone secondary school
music teachers, as well as an
open classroom demonstration in
front of other STAR Champions.
While it was a nerve-wracking
experience for me to share in front
of my fellow music teachers and
teacher-leaders, I appreciated
the opportunity to receive
feedback from my colleagues,
who in turn helped to deepen my
understanding of pedagogies.
Over the years, I realised that
a STAR Champion is not just a
teacher-leader who trials new
teaching approaches in the music
classroom, but is also someone
who advocates quality teaching
and learning experiences.
I am grateful for the numerous
opportunities to have a dialogue,
share with, and learn from other
teachers in my journey as a
STAR Champion.
STAR Champion Su Juen inspiring her students through music
24STAR-Post (Music) 24
This year, the Primary and Secondary STAR Champions had the opportunity to work together to plan and design a spiral curriculum that cuts across from Primary 1 to Secondary 2. How was the experience?
It was an eye-opening experience,
which debunked many of my
previous assumptions of music
lessons in primary schools. I was
especially grateful to have had
the opportunity to work in a team
with senior teachers from primary
schools. Through our interactions
and discussions, I gained
several insights on how primary
school teachers design their
curriculum and developed a better
understanding of students’ learning
experiences in primary schools.
Such information is extremely
useful, because it informs how
secondary school teachers could
plan and pitch their lessons.
Through this experience of
designing a spiral curriculum, I
realised it was possible to design
curricula based on an eight-
year period that spans from
the primary to lower secondary
schooling years. By incorporating
varying degrees of complexity for
the appropriate age levels, the
students’ musical learning would
be seamless and developmental.
STAR Champion Su Juen facilitating a musicking activity with her students
25STAR-Post (Music) 25
You conducted a teacher-led workshop on song-writing this year. What were some of your takeaways?
At the Teacher-Led Workshop
(TLW) on song-writing, I tried to
apply what I learnt from the East
Zone (EZ) Song-writing Networked
Learning Community (NLC), which
I co-facilitated with Dr Kelly Tang
(MTT, Music). This EZ Song-writing
NLC encouraged me to make
my thinking visible in order to
communicate and facilitate more
effectively.
It was an interesting experience
for me because it was my first time
helming a full three-hour TLW on
my own. My biggest takeaway was
in relation to andragogy because
the strategies used to engage adult
learners are quite different from
that of younger learners.
Through this entire process, I
also realised the importance of
planning well and seeking advice
from a mentor to consider different
perspectives, address my doubts,
and overcome my shortcomings,
in order to conduct a meaningful
workshop for my colleagues. I am
thankful for the guidance I received
from Mrs Li Yen See (MTT, Music),
which enabled me to conduct a
workshop that was, thankfully, well
received by the participants.
Sometimes, I tend to feel insecure
about my abilities, especially when
I am exploring teaching areas that
I am less familiar with. Contrary to
common perceptions that teacher-
led workshops are platforms for
competent teachers to showcase
enriching lessons, these workshops
also allow the workshop facilitators
to learn from the participants. I
feel that a workshop facilitator is
not only a ‘sage on stage’, but also
a ‘guide on the side’ and someone
who learns from the participants.
In fact, I was grateful for the
opportunity to bounce ideas off a
room full of enthusiastic teachers
who were passionate about song-
writing. From the preparation stage
to the execution of the workshop,
there was much for me to learn,
unlearn, and relearn.
Guiding her students in their song-writing task
26STAR-Post (Music) 26
We understand that you attended the Basic Music Production Workshop this year. How has the experience shaped your perspectives on harnessing technology to teach music?
Prior to attending the workshop,
I used to think that technology
essentially widened the pre-
existing collection of tools to
make music. However, I’ve realised
that technology encompasses
far more than just serving as
another operational tool to make
music. With proper scaffolding
and planning, technology-based
learning platforms allow teachers
to facilitate the teaching of musical
concepts and even provide more
opportunities for students to
engage in self-directed learning
by allowing students to respond to
differentiated instructions and set
their own pace of learning.
Sharing a light-hearted moment with her students
How have you been using technology to enhance your students’ musical learning?
In my school, we make use of
technology to achieve the following
learning outcomes:
Developing keener aural skills
During lessons with my Secondary
3 Normal Technical students,
I usually get them to figure out
the melodic notes and chords to a
particular song by using the virtual
instruments from the GarageBand
app. These virtual instruments
enable students to replicate the
instrumental parts from the song
with greater ease because they
do not have to grapple with the
technical complexities of playing
an actual instrument. Instead,
students are able to focus on
refining their aural skills and
become more confident once they
realise that they can play a song
without necessarily requiring high
levels of theoretical knowledge
or instrumental skills. Eventually,
their experiences in using virtual
instruments can help to ease them
into the process of learning to
play the actual instrumental skills.
Furthermore, this heightened aural
awareness enables the students to
recognise musical details such as
accompaniment patterns and, thus,
27STAR-Post (Music) 27
apply these aural skills by making
informed musical decisions in their
music arrangement projects.
Developing instrumental skills
We prepare customised video
tutorials for lower secondary
students to learn how to play the
ukulele, keyboard, and cajon. The
students are able to use these
videos quite intuitively. These
videos enable students of different
abilities to learn at their own pace
because they can decide whether
to pause, skip, or re-watch certain
portions of the videos.
Creating authentic learning
experiences through our
recording studio
We realised that many of our
students were curious about the
equipment found in the school’s
recording studio. Previously,
students would remark that the
studio was “so cool” and request to
touch the equipment. We decided
to introduce the recording process
to them by allowing students to
record their performances in the
studio. In future, we intend to
teach interested students how to
operate the equipment. Through
projects such as the production
of music tracks for school events,
our students will be able to apply
their musical learning in authentic
settings, from arranging and
composing, to recording and
post-production.
While many of us may assume that
students will naturally enjoy using
technology during their lessons, we
should be selective and purposeful
in considering the objectives of
using technology. For instance, our
students are definitely conscious
of the fact that making music with
virtual instruments is not the same
as playing an actual instrument. If a
teacher’s use of technology in the
music classroom revolves entirely
around getting the students to tap
on their iPads, the students may
lose interest over time and express
a preference for learning an actual
instrument, even if it is a more
difficult endeavour. The onus is on
us teachers to ensure that we use
technology in a meaningful manner
to bring about deeper musical
learning for our students.
28STAR-Post (Music) 28
Thank you for sharing your work as a teacher-leader, as well as your perspectives on harnessing technology to teach music. As a teacher-leader, what are some of your hopes for the fraternity?
I hope we will continue to be a
supportive fraternity, where all of
us will look out for one another
and have open conversations
about what we are doing in our
respective schools. By doing so,
we could share our best practices
to benefit more students.
This support could also extend
beyond providing professional
advice to taking care of each
other’s emotional well-being. More
often than not, music teachers do
face similar challenges in schools,
and there may only be one or two
of us in each school. Thus, if we
build a community across schools,
all of us can tap on a larger
network of educators for advice
and inspiration.
I’d also like to encourage all
Beginning Teachers to connect
with other colleagues in the
fraternity and to be brave
enough to try out any innovative
ideas that they may have in
the classroom. Instead of
harbouring a fear of judgement
and failure, I hope that all of us
will be forthcoming in providing
constructive criticism for each
other to improve and remain
receptive to feedback. In doing
this, we can all grow together to
provide engaging music lessons
for our students.
East Zone Song-Writing NLC
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STAR-Post (Music) 29
STAR Highlights Another semester of new musical experiences with STAR. We’ve put together a roundup of highlights that have taken place.
01 12 EWS Teacher-leaders, 360 students from 12 Primary Schools and 20 teacher-musicians coming together to experience singing as part of a larger community at the EWS Day 2019 02 Participants from our Basic Music Production Workshop recording their version of a song from STAR’s Stories We Sing Resource 03 Performing as an ensemble at our Orff Approach for Student-
Centric Music Lessons Workshop 04 Listening and responding to one another at our Orff Plus Workshop 05 Participants arranging and recording their own tracks at our ICT Music Milestone Programme 06 75 teachers performed at our annual Friends In Concert 07 MK teachers painting strokes on each other's hands to experience the beat of the music at our EWS (Early Childhood) Workshop
