Elementary Music Education Teaching Methods, Why?

     Why do we use our current teaching method? I am thinking of going back to work in an elementary classroom teaching general music and want what is best for the students. Therefore, I am questioning a lot of my past teaching ideas and methods. From my experience, the teaching method in which each teacher or county adopts is, in most part, up to the teacher. If a teacher is excited about using a certain method, and conveys that to his/her supervisor, the materials are ordered and not questioned by anyone. Many teachers rely heavily on one of many instructional methods that emerged in recent generations and developed rapidly during the latter half of the 20th Century, as listed below (courtesy of Wikepedia, sorry about that, it was a concise list that I found to suit my purpose). Do we, as educators, use the latest thing coming down the pike because we were talked into it from our college professors, or do we use them because we truly believe in them? Do the colleges and universities teach only what is new, or are they offering courses in tried and true methods with the same amount of emphasis? Do we just use what our county purchases for us because we have little say or they have little money to replace what is already in use?

     In my experience, as a new teacher, I used what the county had on hand which was Silver Burdett and Ginn; World Of Music. When that was outdated, I went to our yearly conference and some of us really liked the look of Macmillan MacGraw and Hill; Music and You, so those teaching materials and books were purchased for us. Nobody researched what to use or why, it was spur of the moment with little thought. The materials had almost the same format as the first. Within those teaching manuals, there was a splattering of methods from Orff, Dalcroze, Kodaly and others but no concentration in one method. After 10 years with that county, I moved to another state and they adopted Musikgarten. This time, there was a supervisor of music, unlike the last, and some thought went into the choice of materials with which to teach our students. I still think that most of the teachers were not concerned with what was best for the students at that time, but were more concerned about how much that they would have to change what they were comfortable with. They seemed to be offended that the supervisor of music wanted them to try something new, as if he was saying what they were already doing was not good enough. Also, I think that money is a huge factor. Most teachers wanted to have Orff instruments with which to work, but they are extremely expensive. Speaking from experience, I was only allowed to purchase one per year due to insufficient funds and there was no way to have an Orff ensemble unless we were creative and made or borrowed instruments. I think that all music educators want to be told what works, for the most effective learning of the students, and have the money and resources at their disposal to be able to spend their time and energy on doing it. I am now coming around to a new way of thinking; we need to be super sleuths and dig for ideas and methods that work and be resourceful to find funding for it. Our energy cannot just be spent in the classroom implementing our programs, we have to keep our fingers on the pulse of what is new and proven to be working elsewhere. We have to keep learning and growing with our ever changing field. 
      If you are reading this blog and in the field, please give me your opinion and why that you chose the method in which you use.

Major international music education methods

Dalcroze method

The Dalcroze method was developed in the early 20th century by Swiss musician and educator Émile Jaques-Dalcroze. The method is divided into three fundamental concepts - the use of solfege, improvisation, and eurhythmics. Sometimes referred to as "rhythmic gymnastics", eurhythmics teaches concepts of rhythm, structure, and musical expression using movement, and is the concept for which Dalcroze is best known. It focuses on allowing the student to gain physical awareness and experience of music through training that takes place through all of the senses, particularly kinesthetic. According to the Dalcroze method, music is the fundamental language of the human brain and therefore deeply connected to what human beings are.

Kodály method

Depiction of Curwen's Solfege hand signs. This version includes the tonal tendencies and interesting titles for each tone.

Zoltán Kodály (1882–1967) was a prominent Hungarian music educator and composer who stressed the benefits of physical instruction and response to music. Although not really an educational method, his teachings reside within a fun, educational framework built on a solid grasp of basic music theory and music notation in various verbal and written forms. Kodály's primary goal was to instill a lifelong love of music in his students and felt that it was the duty of the child's school to provide this vital element of education. Some of Kodály's trademark teaching methods include the use of solfege hand signs, musical shorthand notation (stick notation), and rhythm solmization (verbalization). Even though most countries have properly used their own folk music traditions to construct their own sequence of instruction, America primarily uses the Hungarian sequence even though Hungarian folk music is completely different from American.
   

Orff Schulwerk

Carl Orff was a prominent German composer. The Orff SchulwerkOrff considers the whole body a percussive instrument and students are led to develop their music abilities in a way that parallels the development of western music. The approach encourages improvisation and discourages adult pressures and mechanical drill, fostering student self-discovery. Carl Orff developed a special group of instruments, including modifications of the glockenspiel, xylophone, metallophone, drum, and other percussion instruments to accommodate the requirements of the Schulwerk courses.[3]

Suzuki method

The Suzuki method was developed by Shinichi Suzuki in Japan shortly after World War II, and it uses music education to enrich the lives and moral character of its students. The movement rests on the double premise that "all children can be well educated" in music, and that learning to play music at a high level also involves learning certain character traits or virtues which make a person's soul more beautiful. The primary method for achieving this is centered around creating the same environment for learning music that a person has for learning their native language. This 'ideal' environment includes love, high-quality examples, praise, rote training and repetition, and a time-table set by the student's developmental readiness for learning a particular technique. While the Suzuki Method is quite popular internationally, within Japan its influence is less significant than the Yamaha Method, founded by Genichi Kawakami in association with the Yamaha Music Foundation.

Simply Music method

Simply Music is a playing-based music education institution. The program is primarily based on creating, developing and presenting playing-based piano and keyboard programs. The Simply Music method was created by Australian music educator, Neil Moore, and first released in January 1998. Simply Music first translates entire pieces into simple shapes and patterns. Simply Music does not diminish the importance of learning to read music. Instead, the process is delayed. Composition and improvisation are demystified, by introducing them very early on in the program as something natural and enjoyable. By drawing on some simple principles learned in the foundation pieces and developing these, students learn, through a playful process of experimentation, to create their own unique pieces and arrangements. The accompaniment program equips students with the skills to play in bands and ensembles, opening the door to playing a vast array of popular music quickly. The Simply Music curriculum unfolds over six to ten years and consists of the Foundation Program (unfolding over the first 3 to 5 years), the Development Program (unfolding over years 6 to 10), as well as an array of Special Programs that are woven throughout the curriculum from the earliest stages. Music used throughout the program includes contemporary, classical, gospel, blues, jazz and traditional styles. Students also are immersed in composition, improvisation, developing arrangements and contemporary accompaniment.

Other Notable methods

In addition to the four major international methods described above, other approaches have been influential. Lesser-known methods are described below:

Gordon Music Learning Theory

This method is based on an extensive body of research and field testing by Edwin E. Gordon and others. Music Learning Theory provides the music teacher a comprehensive method for teaching musicianship through audiation, Gordon's term for hearing music in the mind with understanding. Teaching methods help music teachers establish sequential curricular objectives in accord with their own teaching styles and beliefs.[4]

World Music Pedagogy

The growth of cultural diversity within school-age populations prompted music educators from the 1960s onward to diversify the content of the music curriculum, and to work with ethnomusicologists and some of the world's artist-musicians in establishing instructional practices relevant to the musical traditions. 'World music pedagogy' was coined by Patricia Shehan Campbell to describe world music content and practice in elementary and secondary school music programs. Pioneers of the movement, especially Barbara Reeder Lundquist and William M. Anderson, influenced a second generation of music educators (including Bryan J. Burton, Mary Goetze, Ellen McCullough-Brabson, and Mary Shamrock) to design and deliver curricular models to teachers of music of various levels and specializations.

Conversational Solfege

Deriving influence from both Kodály methodology and Gordon's Music Learning Theory, Conversational Solfege was developed by Dr. John M. Feierabend, chair of music education at the Hartt School at the University of Hartford. The philosophy of this method is to view music as an aural art with a literature based curriculum. The sequence of this methodology involves a 12 step process to teach music literacy. Steps include rhythm and tonal patterns and decoding the patterns using syllables and notation. Unlike traditional Kodály method, this method follows Kodály's actual instructions and uses a sequence based on American folk songs instead of using the sequence that is used in Hungary based on Hungarian folk songs.

Carabo-Cone Method

This early-childhood approach sometimes referred to as the Sensory-Motor Approach to Music was developed by the violinist Madeleine Carabo-Cone. This approach involves using props, costumes, and toys for children to learn basic musical concepts of staff, note duration, and the piano keyboard. The concrete environment of the specially planned classroom allows the child to learn the fundamentals of music by exploring through touch.[5]

MMCP

Main article: MMCP

The Manhattanville Music Curriculum Project was developed in 1965 and is an alternative method in shaping positive attitudes toward music education. This creative approach centers around the student being the musician and involved in the discovery process. The teacher gives the student freedom to create, perform, improvise, conduct, research, and investigate different facets of music in a spiral curriculum.

Self education

There are multiple software products which were developed to encourage easy and entertaining engagement of people into playing and learning music. The applications provide simulation environment where harmony, rhythm and just beauty of classical music are learned through the following automated music performance. [6]

Integration with other subjects

Some schools and organizations promote integration of arts classes, such as music, with other subjects, such as math, science, or English. It is thought that by integrating the different curricula will help each subject to build off of one another, enhancing the overall quality of education. Music education can play a vital role in the development of the whole child and their scholastic journey.

One example is the Kennedy Center's "Changing Education Through the Arts" program. CETA defines arts integration as finding a natural connection(s) between one or more art forms (dance, drama/theater, music, visual arts, storytelling, puppetry, and/or creative writing) and one or more other curricular areas (science, social studies, English language arts, mathematics, and others) in order to teach and assess objectives in both the art form and the other subject area. This allows a simultaneous focus on creating, performing, and/or responding to the arts while still addressing content in other subject areas.[3]