Geoffrey M Lowe

Lessons for Teachers: What Lower Secondary School Students Tell Us about Learning a Musical Instrument.

In this study I set out to investigate why many students drop out from elective instrument programmes, particularly in lower secondary school. I examined the values and beliefs a sample of students in their first year in secondary school attach to learning an instrument, and the impact of the instrument lesson upon these values and beliefs. Forty-eight year 8 students (aged 12–13) from the Perth metropolitan area participated in eight focus groups. The study found that, while participants had strong cognitive and affective reasons for learning, their competence beliefs were fragile, due in part to the dislocation associated with the transition into secondary school. Students revealed a need for a high level of positive reinforcement from their instrument teachers. The findings indicate that competence beliefs can be just as important as values in determining the future enrolment decisions of students of this age. The study concludes that it is important for instrument teachers to understand the unique needs of students transitioning into secondary school, and develop targeted instructional practices accordingly. Addressing the specific needs of lower secondary students represents one effective step in the process of improving retention rates in elective instrumental programmes.

Competition Versus Cooperation: Implications for Music Teachers following Students Feedback from Participation in a Large-scale Cooperative Music Festival

Competition is reported in the general education literature as having a largely detrimental impact upon student engagement and long-term motivation, yet competition has long been an accepted part of the music education ensemble landscape. Adjudicated ensemble competitions and competition-festivals are commonplace in most Australian states, as opposed to large-scale cooperative events. Arguments advanced in support of competitive events revolve primarily around perceived extra-musical benefits framed from the director / conductor perspective. The student voice is rarely considered in assessments of the impact of participation. This study presents student feedback following participation in an alternative large-scale cooperative music ensemble festival. Students were surveyed immediately after the event, and key findings revealed enhanced enjoyment and motivation to continue and improve across all year levels and playing groups following the cooperative festival. These findings indicate the need for music educators to rethink the purpose of large-scale music ensemble events, understand the potential of cooperative events in promoting long-term musical engagement, and highlight the importance and value of acknowledging the student voice.

Reframing Teacher In-service Training in Kenya: Recommendations from the Literature

Abstract Following the rapid expansion of Kenyas education system from 2003, raising education standards has emerged as the countrys next major nation-building challenge. There is acknowledgement within Kenya that high education standards are dependent upon the quality of its teachers, which is in turn dependent upon the quality of their pre-service training, and subsequent in-service training. However, amidst accusations that educational standards are declining, in-service training programmes in particular have been singled out as being overly bureaucratic, under resourced, poorly delivered and ineffective in helping to raise teaching standards. Further, the literature suggests that current in-service training programmes are failing to address more fundamental issues surrounding Kenyan teaching professionalism as a whole. This article examines the literature surrounding teacher in-service training in Kenya, as identified by Kenyan researchers, with the aim of synthesising and clarifying the major issues surrounding quality and delivery, and then presents policy recommendations for reframing and building effective in-service provision for the future.