Technology Strategies for Music Education

SECTION 3: THE NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR ARTS EDUCATION

This publication is based upon the work of the Music Educators National Conference and the development of National Standards for Arts Education, grades K-12 in the field of music. The goal of the Technology Institute for Music Educators (TI:ME) is to link technology and its many applications to the National Standards for Arts Education. The information that follows is largely excerpted from The School Music Program: A New Vision 1994 Music Educators National Conference, Reston, Va.1

Background
In January 1994, the National Committee for Standards in the Arts announced America's first national voluntary standards for K-12 arts education. The standards were published as the National Standards for Arts Education. They represent the consensus of organizations and individuals representing educators, parents, artists, professional associations in education and the arts, public and private educational institutions, philanthropic organizations, and leaders from government, labor, and industry. The project was supported by the United States Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The publication The School Music Program: A New Vision is intended for those interested in the quality of music instruction in America's schools. Its three main purposes are creating a coherent vision of what it means to be educated in music; building a foundation for a comprehensive and sequential curriculum in music; and providing specific assistance to improve the music curriculum.

Categories of Learning
The publication identifies the need for developing a new music curriculum for the twenty-first century. There are several distinct differences between this approach and the traditional curriculum. Many of these differences fall in the following seven categories:

Skills and knowledge as objectives: The music curriculum should be viewed as a well-planned sequence of learning experiences leading to clearly defined skills and knowledge, not as a random collection of student activities.
Diverse genres and styles of music: The music studied should reflect the multi-musical diversity of America's pluralistic culture.
Creative skills: The curriculum for every student should include improvisation and composition.
Problem solving and higher-order thinking skills: The curriculum should emphasize problem solving and higher-order thinking skills.
Interdisciplinary relationships: Ultimately all educational outcomes must cut across subject-matter fields in order to be useful.
Technology: The curriculum should use current technology to individualize and expand music learning. Through the use of computers, electronic instruments, compact discs, CD-ROMs, and various MIDI devices, every student can be actively involved in creating, performing, listening, and analyzing music. Computers in particular can be used to facilitate the learning of basic skills and information. Teachers should work with students toward higher-level learning. Digital techniques make sound reproduction of the highest quality available in every classroom, while musical scores and resource materials also are quickly accessible. The technological limitations of the past have largely been erased. Advances in computer communications make possible the sharing of learning beyond school, state, and national boundaries.
Assessment: Every school district should develop reliable and valid techniques for assessing student learning in music.

Number Six, above, Technology, is the focus of TI:ME. Technology should be used as a tool or enhancement for the achievement of musical objectives.

The Nine National Standards
The National Standards for music include nine specific areas. These are:

Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.
Reading and notating music.
Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
Evaluating music and music performances.
Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

These standards are designed to reflect a national consensus concerning the highest priority skills and knowledge students should have acquired upon exiting grades 4, 8, and 12. They apply to every student through grade 8 and to every student enrolled in music beyond grade 8. Although music instruction in school is important in the development of those students who are talented in music, its primary purpose is to improve the quality of life for all students by developing their capacities to participate fully in their musical culture.

Each standard can be considered a broad content area. Within each content standard several achievement standards specify desired levels of attainment or explain how students will demonstrate their attainment of the desired level. The determination of the curriculum and the instructional activities designed to achieve the standards are the responsibility of states, local school districts, and individual teachers.

The Achievement Standards
Each of the nine content standards has several achievement standards. These are organized as K-4, 5-8, and 9-12 proficient and 9-12 advanced. For example, the achievement standards for content standard number 1, Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music, are listed below. There are separate categories for K-4, 5-8, and 9-12.

Grades K-4 Achievement Standards:

1a: Students sing independently, on pitch and in rhythm, with appropriate timbre, diction, posture, and maintain a steady tempo.
1b: Students sing expressively, with appropriate dynamics, phrasing, and interpretation.
1c: Students sing from memory a varied repertoire of songs representing genres and styles from diverse cultures.
1d: Students sing ostinatos, partner songs, and rounds.
1e: Students sing in groups, blending vocal timbres, matching dynamic levels, and responding to the cues of a conductor.

Grades 5-8 Achievement Standards:

1a: Students sing accurately and with good breath control throughout their singing ranges, alone and in large and small ensembles.
1b: Students sing with expression and technical accuracy a repertoire of vocal literature with a level difficulty of 2, on a scale of 1 to 6, including some songs performed from memory.
1c: Students sing music representing diverse genres and cultures, with expression appropriate for the work being performed.
1d: Students sing music written in two and three parts.
1e: Students who participate in a choral ensemble sing with expression and technical accuracy a varied repertoire of vocal literature with a level difficulty of 3, on a scale of 1 to 6, including some songs performed from memory.

Grades 9-12 Achievement Standards:

1a: Students sing with expression and technical accuracy a large and varied repertoire of vocal literature with a level of difficulty of 4, on a scale of 1 to 6, including some songs performed from memory.
1b: Students sing music written in four parts, with and without accompaniment.
1c: Students demonstrate well-developed ensemble skills.

The complete achievement standards developed by MENC are listed in the publication National Standards for The Arts, available from MENC or by visiting their world wide web site at: http://www.menc.org/.

The Technology Areas of Competency and the National Standards
The areas of technology are listed and defined in Section Two of this document. The seven areas are:

Electronic Musical Instruments (INST)
MIDI Sequencing (SEQ)
Music Notation Software (NOTE)
Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI)
Multimedia and Digitized Media (MULTI)
Internet and Telecommunications (TELE)
Information Processing, Computer Systems, and Lab Management(INFO)

In Sections Four and Five of this publication these areas are integrated with each of the nine National Standards for Arts Education. Technology areas one through six were written for both students and teachers. Area seven, Information Processing, Computer Systems, and Lab Management, refers only to teacher skills and competencies.

Reference :

1 Excerpts from The School Music Program: A New Vision, copyright, 1994, by Music Educators National Conference (MENC). Reproduced with permission. Not for further reproduction without written permission from MENC. The complete National Arts Standards and additional materials related to the Standards are available from Music Educators National Conference, 1806 Robert Fulton Drive, Reston, VA 20191 (voice: 800-336-3768)

Technology Strategies for Music Education

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