Curriculum 2A Assignment 2

PART A - Critical reflection on Unit of Work 650 words- 800

1) Analyse a unit of work in the Assignment 2 folder on vUWS (10%).

The sample Unit on Popular music begins with a detailed historical view overview of popular

music. This gives students a sense of relevance to the idea of popular music not being confined to

the contemporary time period in which they experience popular music. As with most forms of

artistic expression, music has built its fundamental structures progressively over time, building on

the themes and forms of the previous generations. This detailed historical analysis places the

foundations for popular music well in the past, giving a wide conceptual grounding for the topic that

follows; and in doing so exposes students to many other forms of (popular) musical expression that

they may not have considered. This gives a greater field of inspiration for students to draw from

when considering their own compositional work and performance repertoire, and a greater

understanding of how to use the relevant musical concepts (duration, tempo, pitch, tone colour,

texture, dynamics) when creating a composition in the style of popular music.

This is followed by a detailed definition of what popular music is and isn’t. Here students

learn that popular music has been through many changes throughout its history and that there are

some important distinctions to be made about where popular music resides with reference to other

Genres. It is here that students can observe how the commodification of popular music has evolved

over time. It has always been so, with the elites of the renaissance period commissioning chamber

music to be shared within the upper echelons of society; to its current state of being a product to be

bought and sold. It is an important addition to this unit of work as it touches upon these trends and

the forms of experimentation and deviation from the norms that have risen from this hyper-

commodification, with popular bands wishing to broaden their own repertoire after gaining success

and therefore broadening the scope of where popular music falls.

 Within this unit, tare is also some distinctions made between the Genres of contemporary

Popular music. This gives students an understanding that the passage of time has allowed the genres

of popular music to blossom outwards into an ever-diversifying tree of musical expression. In today's

musical landscape students are exposed to so many genres and sub-genres of music that has been

built on the work of the previous generation. The unit cleverly references this trend and allows

students to incorporate their own musical ideas in new ways that will transcend even the

established framework of popular musical genres. This inclusion would allow students to build their

own repertoire of musical inspiration that is limited only by their imagination.

Another important element when developing repertoire within popular music genres is

the Instrumentation, and this is also covered within this unit outline. Students are guided through a

variety of time periods and the typical Instruments used within that movement of popular music.

The development of technology can also be viewed through the lens of Instrumentation as

advancements in electronics and amplification took over from the Acoustic instruments that had

been dominant in earlier popular music ensembles.

This unit also incorporates information on some social trends that have impacted on the

evolution of popular music such as the social division in the early 20th Century which saw musical

ensembles arranged according to the performers’ race and gender, as well as the introduction of

World Music groups and Instruments. These trends also follow the sociological movements of the

time and help to position the music into a greater sociological framework.

This unit on the popular music repertoire has discussed the use of certain musical devices that are

prevalent within the various movements and time periods in which popular music has grown. Such

devices as Chords structures, motif use, and vocal harmonic and melodic devices give students an

important point of reference for developing and analysing popular music. These music devices have

been used and developed throughout many genres within popular music and it is here that students

can identify the common threads that hold the many genres together.
 I would have included all the above elements, and I would also have included lessons on the

emergence of video technology as part of the popular music movement. Its inclusion in this unit

would underpin one of the more recent diversions away from popular music being solely a product

of music composition and performance (within a recorded setting as well as live performance). The

Audible artform of Musical composition and performance was augmented by the introduction of the

visual elements contained in a video clip. This gave a heightened sense of image that popular

musicians now carry with them through all forms of their work.

Part B – 950 words

2) With reference to literature, how does rehearsing for performance in a Stage 6 classroom provide

evidence of Professional Teaching Standard 3.1 and the Quality Teaching element of self-regulation

(20%)?

Teaching Standard 3.1 Establish challenging learning goals Set learning goals that provide

achievable challenges for students of varying abilities and characteristics.

There are many elements of classroom rehearsal that enable students to set and achieve

goals both individually and as a collective collaborative unit. The rehearsal space is a perpetual

learning environment that engages students in an active learning process in which both formative

self-assessment and summative self-assessment can be achieved. The former is achieved through

the rehearsal process itself in which students are encouraged to work towards a scaffolded target for

each lesson (rehearsal), whilst the latter is achieved during the final performance of the rehearsed

works. Ideally, the teacher would set a goal for each student that would be just outside of their

current technical ability for each student to progress and develop their skill as a musician, and to

also allow the students to achieve their goals, and in doing so heighten their sense of self-efficacy.

Within the creative arts students in the modern classroom seem to struggle with their sense of
confidence and perseverance in the face of challenges. So, it is important for students to have goals

that are relevant to them personally, so they can achieve these goals successfully and gain the

confidence to engage in the challenge in a positive way. This cycle of positive psychological activity is

integral to the development of your learners’ minds and their attitudes towards their creative

performance work.

The rehearsal space also provides an opportunity for students and teachers to be self-reflective. If,

as Elbaz (1981) states “a teacher knowledge grows out of and responds to specific practical needs”,

it is therefore self-evident that our student’s knowledge of their own ability can be drawn from their

performance within the practice space. As teachers scaffold lessons for our students, we reflect on

our own ability to achieve success within the classroom, students can build their own goals within a

reflexive practice. If the bar of expectations is set too high by either party within the rehearsal space,

the reflective process can then guide both students and teachers towards a new set of goals. This

process can be enhanced with the addition of a reflective journal that the students would fill with

their goals and achievements throughout the rehearsal process. This also provides structure and

purpose to their rehearsal time and allows the students to self-regulate as they progress towards

their performances. If the incremental goals are not being outlined clearly and subsequently

achieved in a timely manner, then the students would be encouraged to make adjustments that suit

their individual abilities and characteristics. As Hentchke and Ben (2006) state that our own

interpretive frame is a culmination of our own experiences and those transmitted to us by others,

we as teachers can transmit a positive framework for our students to incorporate into their own

conceptual framework of themselves and their ability to achieve success within a musical

performance.

The rehearsal space is also a great place for students to engage in both collaborative and self-

directed learning. Green (2009) suggest that making music is a kind of non-school space (or at least

that some students felt that way) in which the usual restraints both social and cultural apply to a
much lesser extent, freeing the student to experience an autonomous creative expression. This was

a double-edged sword in some respects as it not only freed the students to guide their learning but

it, unfortunately, leaves some students without the much-needed direction and assistance of the

teacher. So, there is a fine line to be walked here. Students should be free to set their own rehearsal

goals and paths to achievement, yet they also require the interaction with and the guidance of the

teachers to establish and maintain a healthy working practice. When left completely free to their

own device’s students could potentially get off track and become disengaged during rehearsal as

there is no clear ambition and enthusiasm towards each rehearsal session. It is important to note

that Green (2009) postulates that a balance between student autonomy and teacher presence

(without being overbearing and controlling) potentially allows for the best results in students setting

their own goals and achieving them in a meaningful way, hence leading to the cycle of positive self-

efficacy mentioned earlier.

Whilst the act of self-reflection and direction can be experienced and engaged within the

rehearsal space, it also allows for an opportunity for students to engage in peer-directed learning. As

students engage in a variety of performance ensembles they inevitably engage in both peer-directed

activities and peer-review. Kushner (2006) relays the importance of this practice and suggests that

whilst our students are interacting with one another and assessing their own levels of success, we as

teachers can also engage in this practice in order to better our own pedagogies. Contemporary

teaching literature suggests that teachers can better engage our students by forming workable

relationships with our students, and it is here that other students have an advantage over teachers

on that they know one another on a much deeper level. Therefore, students have the unique ability

to lead, regulate and assess one another as they know each other on a more detailed level. Green

(2009) suggests that these individual nuances can then be developed further during the process of

peer leadership as students can identify and enhance each other’s strengths and weaknesses in a

way that a teacher may not be able to.

 The rehearsal space satisfies the NSW quality teaching model in that it allows students to work

within a Quality Learning Environment that challenges them individually and within a group context.

Students create their own explicit quality criteria and set high expectations with social support and

self-regulation and direction, as well as being reflective learners as they can outline their experiences

in a process journal. Students also engage in an inclusive connected space as their performance

goals are worked towards and hopefully achieved successfully.

References

AITSL. (2017). Aitsl.edu.au. Retrieved 14 March 2018, from

https://www.aitsl.edu.au/teach/standards

Blair D.V. (2012) Collaborative Journals: Scaffolding Reflective Practice in Teacher Education. In:

Barrett M., Stauffer S. (eds) Narrative Soundings: An Anthology of Narrative Inquiry in Music

Education. Springer, Dordrecht

Burnard P. and Hennessy S. (eds.), Reflective Practice in Arts Education, 45–54.

© 2006 Springer. Printed in the Netherlands.

Elbaz, F. (1981). The teacher’s practical knowledge: report of a case study. Curriculum Inquiry, 11(1),

43–71.

Green, Lucy. Music, Informal Learning and the School: a New Classroom Pedagogy, Routledge, 2009.

ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uwsau/detail.action?

docID=446440.

Kushner, S. (2006). Adolescents and cultures of reflection: More than meets the eye. In P. Burnards

& S. Hennessy (Eds.) Reflective practices in arts education. New York: Springer.

NSW Quality Teaching sourced from

http://www.darcymoore.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/qt_EPSColor.pdf
3) Create a website or blog site (if you do not already have one) and design two interactive learning

experiences relevant to the topic represented in part 1 (30%).

https://rogermlee.weebly.com/stage-6-interactive-learning.html