Samantha Ragusin

MUSE 258/Voice Techniques

Citation
Sound Connections, Chapter 9
Don Ester 2010

Summary Outline
Successful teaching is dependent on timely and specific feedback regarding student
performance and improvement. Music educators must be constantly assessing
individuals as well as groups to ensure the possibility of growth. We must, however,
understand that the terms “assessment,” “measurement,” and “evaluation” are all their
own separate entities and should be treated as such. Assessment includes both
measurement and evaluation. Assessment occurs in the classroom both formally and
informally. Both types are done to achieve the gathering of both formative (monitoring of
progress) and summative (current level of achievement) reports. The Sound
Connections approach promotes authentic assessment, or assessment that is valid and
trustworthy due to its regular and realistic observation. For instance, Sound Connections
includes daily assessment of neutral and syllable echoing, echo-translation, reading, and
notating activities. These can be easily recorded on a seating chart or sample datasheet.
These notes can then be used for future guiding in the learning process. Sound
Connections also advocates for cumulative assessments: Skill Summary Reports and
Skill Tests.

Discussion
In the elementary general music setting, constant and authentic feedback is of the
utmost importance to gauge student learning and comprehension. Because this age
level does not advocate for an extreme use of worksheets, tests, or other written
assignments, much of the assessment of these students is done through daily
observations. Whether the content is Sound Connections or any other content or
pedagogy, it is imperative that music educators constantly be watching and assessing
student progress and achievement. One of the ideas presented in this chapter is that of
the data sheet. Obviously, I have observed various forms of in-class assessment, but I
have never seen a cumulative analysis such as the skill summary report. This idea is
intriguing and would lend itself very well towards objective grading at the end of term.