Community Reimagined:

Cultivating Meaning in Middle School Music Classes through Global and Local Lenses

Matthew Clark

MUS 892A

Professor Nicholas Field

July 30, 2021

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Introduction

As the world becomes ever “smaller” due to the expansiveness of globalism, members of com-

munities form a common identity around factors including, but not limited to, culture, language, and

technology. Primary and secondary public schools generally (although not universally) tend to popu-

late their enrollments from the neighborhoods surrounding their school building. The school commu-

nity serves as a representation of the surrounding area; the student body, faculty, administration, vol-

unteers, and families unify around a mascot, a motto, colors, and traditions. (Would Anderson call

this an “imagined community?”) Within the classroom, teachers establish learning environments ap-

propriate to their subject, their students, and their own personalities.

More than simply a curricular space, the music classroom is capable of being a thriving com-

munity in which all students find meaning and to which all members contribute. One of the richest

opportunities for our subject to achieve relevance and for our students to make individual contribu-

tions lies in their generating curricular content and exploring their own cultural backgrounds and per-

sonal interest. According to Johansen, today’s students learn more music within Internet communities

than in the classroom, and their most significant musical experiences occur outside of school.1 As

teachers, what are ways in which we can leverage such experiences as strengths to represent students’

lives while teaching curricular standards?

Establishing the Need for Research

The need for this research is established by [1] observing recent research and social movements

in music education, [2] present interest in the school community, and [3] to engage students more

deeply in curricular content.

One goal of this research is embracing current trends in music education toward decolonizing

the curriculum. Recent conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, the National

1
Geir Johansen, "Music Education and the Role of Comparative Studies in a Globalized World," Philosophy of
Music Education Review 21, no. 1 (2013): 42.
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Association for Music Education, and state and local organizations have prominently featured ses-

sions highlighting issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion and systemic bias and race in music edu-

cation. These often focus on curricular choices, including repertoire selection and inclusion of com-

posers outside of the (straight, cisgender, white male-dominated) Western art music canon, but may

also relate to cis- and heteronormative practices such as gendered concert attire and rehearsal language

(e.g., “Ladies, please sing at measure 53.”). Additionally, numerous social media groups exist to pro-

mote this aim, providing informal but structures spaces for communities of like-minded music teachers

to discuss best practices and to learn from the lived experiences of members of marginalized groups.

Next, as a teacher at Daniel Wright Junior High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois, a Grade 6–8

school within Lincolnshire-Prairie View School District 103, present interest in the school and local

community further drives the need for research in this area. The school routinely hosts community

events to feature and celebrate the cultural diversity of our community. Many students are involved

in music lessons in traditional styles of their cultural background (for example, Indian classical sing-

ing). As shown in Figure 1, Daniel Wright population contains a high degree of racial and ethnic

diversity.2 In 2020, a strategic planning committee comprising stakeholders from all categories selected

“global citizenship” as one of six core competencies in the “Portrait of a Graduate” five-year vision

for District 103.

2
The “Asian” category is extremely broad. Conversations with students and families reveal a wide variety of
ethnic backgrounds even within the “Asian” category. Most notably, students of Indian, Chinese, and Japa-
nese descent bring unique musical perspectives even though they fall into the same racial/ethnic category in
Figure 1.
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Figure 1. Daniel Wright Jr High School: Racial/Ethnic Diversity. Illinois State Report Card 2019–2020.

Finally, understanding how students make meaning out of music lessons and connecting what

they learn in music class to their present and future lives produces deeper engagement in the curricular

content, both from their own individual perspectives and from sharing in their peers’ experiences. In

combination, these three factors suggest a need for research and curriculum design that provides rele-

vance and meaning to students by directly involving them in the process of outlining the curriculum

and generating some of the musical content to be studied.

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Literature Review

Contextualizing this unit design within a review of the literature provides a lens through which

we may view the intersections of globalism and music education. Bentley discusses Eurocentrism as

a “gravitational field” that is difficult for historical scholars to escape.3 If historical scholarship inevi-

tably reflects the perspectives of the historians who produce it4, will music curriculum inevitably reflect

the perspectives of the teachers who produce it? If so, how can we “make a virtue of this necessity,”

especially when incorporating perspectives beyond our own? Bentley suggests a strategy to deal with

Eurocentrism in historical scholarship: turning to the local, which can take on “several different and

distinct forms.”5

Johansen suggests that David Jeffrey Smith’s notion of globalism—entailing “the conditions

that may be emerging for a new kind of dialogue regarding sustainable human futures”6— includes

the “internet-based democratization of information and knowledge that gives access to earlier re-

stricted musical competences, such as the local learning practices of various forms of world music and

community music projects.”7 Abrahams analogizes music education in school as a “crosswalk” to

connect formal music learning inside school with informal music learning outside school.8 According

to Abrahams, formal music education in school “provides a window into the cultural history of the

past, records the cultural history of the present, and sets the foundation for a cultural history of the

future.”9

Patrician Shehan Campbell, one of the leading researchers on meaning in music education,

offers that “teaching strategies are authentic when they are rooted in children's actual needs and

3
Jerry H. Bentley, “Globalizing History and Historicizing Globalization,” in Globalization and Global History,
ed. Barry K. Gills and William R. Thompson (New York: Routledge, 2006): 22.
4
Ibid.
5
Ibid.
6
Smith, “Curriculum and Teaching Face Globalization,” 35, in Johansen 43.
7
Johansen, 43.
8
Frank Abrahams, “Another Perspective: Teaching Music to Millennial Students,” Music Educators Journal
102, no. 1 (2015): 98.
9
Ibid.
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interests,” inspiring teachers that “the ways in which children use and value music should serve as the

foundation for the instructional plans that we design and deliver to them.”10

In exploring meaning and lasting impact on students, Abrahams wonders what we can do “to

ensure that what we teach and the ways we interact with children in artistic processes will add meaning

and significance to their engagements with music outside school and after they leave formal school-

ing?”11 In response, he argues that we have the capacity to broaden students’ view of reality, changing

the way that both students and their teachers perceive the world.12 Further, he claims that a transfor-

mation can occur: “Music learning takes place when both the teachers and the students can

acknowledge a change in perception.”13 Abrahams continues by offering that curriculum “should re-

sult in an enlightened vision of what is important” and that “[pedagogical content] becomes significant

when situated in a context rich in social capital.”14

According to Davis, “Meaningful learning experiences can encourage students’ best efforts

and make learning more lasting.”15 Research shows that meaningful learning experiences produce a

“greater likelihood of transferring to adulthood than rote memorization or isolated facts.”16 Davis

explores the significance of students’ relationship with technology in their everyday lives. Daniel

Wright is a 1:1 school with iPads, and teachers are expected to utilize technology as a resource. My

classroom observations reveal that students’ facility with technology is unprecedented. Many students

are capable of creating very sophisticated loops and compositions in digital audio workstations such

as GarageBand and Soundtrap with little technical coaching from a teacher. (I provide feedback on

the musicianship of their work, but the technological components are largely self-driven.) Even the

10
Patricia Shehan Campbell, “What Music Really Means to Children,” Music Educators Journal 86, no. 5
(2000): 36.
11
Abrahams, 98.
12
Ibid, 99.
13
Ibid, 100.
14
Abrahams, 98.
15
Virginia W. Davis, “The Meaning of Music Education to Middle School General Music Students,” Bulletin
of the Council for Research in Music Education, no. 179 (2009): 61.
16
Ibid.
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term “musicianship” has evolved in the face of technological advances, which are in turn creating new

areas of specialization in the music industry.17 The roles of sound engineer, producer, and recording

technician are avenues middle schoolers may view as synthesizing a passion for music with a job,18

especially for children who may consider themselves non-performers. Increasingly, middle school stu-

dents look to express their maturity by striving to emulate adults; therefore, lessons that incorporate

real-world music-making motivate students to invest their time and effort.19 Davis recommends peer

interaction in the classroom as a conduit for developing social-emotional learning skills such as coop-

eration and notes that motivation may also be increased by social academic opportunities.20

Culturally responsive pedagogy continues to be a popular movement in education today. Ac-

cording to Bond, culturally responsive education “emphasizes high expectations, the formation of

cultural competence, and development of a critical consciousness”21 and is “validating, emancipatory,

and comprehensive”22 for students. When a teacher is culturally responsive, they strive to teach to

students’ strengths and through their strengths.23 By centering students’ cultural experiences, musical

interests, and preferences to a healthy degree (moderated by the teacher), we employ their strengths

to the benefit of all. Similar to Abrahams, Bond refers to social capital. One advantage of harnessing

each student’s social capital lies in “empowering them to promote their experiences as a resource.”24

Further validation occurs when teachers lead their classes in appreciating not only the repertoire but

also the cultural practices of each student’s perspective.25 If teachers desire the skills and knowledge

they teach to perpetuate in students’ lives beyond the classroom, they must allocate time and focus to

make music in a culturally accurate manner. This will make apparent to students the relevance of their

17
Davis, 73.
18
Davis, 73-74.
19
Davis, 75.
20
Davis, 74-75.
21
Vanessa L. Bond, “Culturally Responsive Education in Music Education: A Literature Review,” Contribu-
tions to Music Education 42 (2017): 153.
22
Bond, 154.
23
Bond, 153.
24
Bond, 155.
25
Bond, 160.
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classwork to their lives.26 As we have observed, relevance remains an inspiration for many students to

invest their attention and energy in learning new skills and concepts.

In the past ten years, the academic field of comparative studies has been increasingly applied

to music education research and practice. Globalization has driven a push toward high standards and

best practices in the United States, especially since the 1980s. Naturally, educators aim to refine their

practice and improve their craft, and observing others can make a powerful impact on one’s own

teaching; however, when we look to successful nations to observe which of their pedagogical methods

may be applied to our education system, we often lose sight of the particularities and context that

allows certain standards and practices to succeed in a given place. For better or worse, international-

ism has carved out a place to stay in education. Kertz-Welzel focuses on how the “international ten-

dency toward standards and competencies”27 overrides—indiscriminately, we interpret—critical and

practical considerations of the context in which these standards and competencies have developed and

thrived.28 We wish to avoid what Kertz-Welzel refers to as “’cargo culture,’ where the export and

import of these educational models and successful practices is undertaken without taking critical as-

pects into account.”29 The issues of “borrowing” (or “lending”)30 produce, in my opinion, unhealthy

competition and a clumsy search for a panacea. Is it hyperbole to state that, in education, when schools

compete, everyone loses? For my observations indicate as much.

Cruz, focusing narrowly and effectively on global education in the middle school, describes it

as a “grab-bag of issues and special projects,” reflecting unclear purposes and goals among its propo-

nents, displaying that (as of 1998, at least) consensus had not been reached surrounding global educa-

tion’s goals and overall purpose, with varying emphasis on issues of citizenship, interdependence,

26
Bond, 169.
27
Alexandra Kertz-Welzel, “Lessons from Elsewhere? Comparative Music Education in Times of Globaliza-
tion,” Philosophy of Music Education Review 23, no. 1 (2015): 59.
28
Kertz-Welzel, 48.
29
Ibid.
30
Kertz-Welzel, 50.
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foreign language, and/or cross-cultural communication.31 Suggesting that “students' questions and

interests as well as teachers' unique expertise and experience may provide direction in curriculum

planning for a global perspective,”32 Cruz considers global education and middle school pedagogy to

share the common goal of cooperative learning and mutual understanding.33 Emphasizing my per-

sonal observations above, Cruz claims that competition is antithetical to cooperation and, further,

damages students’ ability to grow into the type of collaborators that they will need to be in the face of

global issues.

Cruz delineates a dichotomy (which implicitly has the potential to be a spectrum) of method-

ology in which teachers tend to use one of two strategies: discrete versus infusion.34 In a discrete ap-

proach, a specific quantity of class time is set aside to discuss world events, cultures, and global issues.

The usefulness of this method lies in its message: a power signal that such discussions are a valuable

use of time. The drawback of the discrete strategy is students’ conceptualizing global education as

external to the core curriculum, obfuscating the clarity of the message. The infusion strategy involves

integrating global education as a theme of various aspects of curricular content. This act of embedding

helps students to view globalism and other perspectives as a standard part of the school day; however,

this model can be disadvantageous if, in its subtlety, students do not fully appreciate its essentiality.35

Cruz’s subsequent research indicates that a combination of the discrete method and the infusion

method seems to be most effective.

An assessment instrument will be a crucial aspect of developing our unit. According to Cruz,

“The substantial heterogeneity in adolescents' development requires assessments that are continuous,

31
Bárbara C. Cruz, “Global Education in the Middle School Curriculum: An Interdisciplinary Perspective,”
Middle School Journal 30, no. 2 (1998): 27.
32
Cruz, 28.
33
Cruz, 29.
34
Cruz, 30.
35
Ibid.
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comprehensive, and multidimensional.”36 Our aim will be to focus particularly on the multidimen-

sionality of our assessment and creating space for a multiplicity of valid approaches.

A notion crucial to the development of the unit this research inspired lies in an original term

presented by Roland Roberts, “glocalization.” The idea of glocalization, a portmanteau of “globali-

zation” and “localization,” merges Bentley’s solution of turning to the local with Johansen’s idea of

merging the local with globalism.37 Comparative studies (e.g., Kertz-Welzel, Johansen) can help to

mitigate (or avoid entirely) “yet another Eurocentric, self-referential body of knowledge.”38 To solve

the “self-referential” problem, what if we have local students create the body of knowledge? Hearken-

ing back to Campbell, “Children have much to teach us about how to teach them.”39 Might incorpo-

rating student perspectives produce authentic content while simultaneously increasing motivation?

Drawing in Davis’s claim that motivation may also be increased by social academic opportunities,

and mindful of District 103’s five-year strategic plan with its vision for students to exhibit global citi-

zenship as a valued learner characteristic—in Cruz’s own words, as early as 1998, “Global citizenship

necessitates the type of collaborative, tolerant, accepting mentality that cooperative learning can en-

gender”40—it seems logical that initiating a student-created body of knowledge brimming with their

local perspectives—both shared and distinct—coupled with social interaction would produce a high

degree of motivation, application, and relevance for students.

36
Ibid.
37
Johansen, 43.
38
Johansen, 44.
39
Campbell (2000), 36.
40
Cruz, 29.
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Developing Our Unit

Reflecting on and synthesizing salient points from the literature yielded the following goals as we

develop our unit.

1. All students participate in both independent and collaborative components.

2. Strive for authenticity (avoid “cargo culture” or “grab-bag” mentalities).

3. Validate student perspectives and cultural heritage(s) and embrace students’ music repertoire

and musical practices.

4. Incorporate music encountered in everyday life, not just at school.

5. Keep it local, make it personal.

6. Provide application of these skills beyond the school setting.

7. Leverage student mastery of technology platforms.

Lesson Plan: Standards

• This task assesses the artistic process of Responding as well as either Creating or Performing.

• Student interaction may be assessed relative to school-wide social-emotional learning (SEL)

standards.

Lesson Plan: Instructional Tasks

In this task, you will create a recorded artifact (audio or video file) documenting music that you

feel represents their cultural identity. The strongest projects will choose to include traditional music

from the student’s cultural heritage(s) and/or music that you identify closely with. This project will

give the listener a sense of your identity and perspective.

Steps

• Play and comment on your selections in the form of a podcast or video blog. The artifact

should be 4–6 minutes in length.

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• Choose 2–3 musical examples. You should play excerpts from these; you don’t need to play

the entire song. Choose what you believe are the most significant moments.

• Discuss, using academic vocabulary (or in your own words), specifically why these musical

selections represent your cultural identity. Choose only pieces you are willing to discuss on a

personal level.

• For example, have you heard them played or sung by a family member? At a gathering? On

an album?

Lesson Plan: Materials, Procedures, and Grouping

• You may use a Soundtrap Studio to mix your podcast audio or a similar video editing software

if you’re choosing a video blog.

• You may choose to perform using an instrument or voice, but performing is not required.

• You will share your podcast or video blog with one partner (chosen randomly).

• You are invited, but not required, to share with our entire class by posting your artifact on

Padlet.

• You and your partner will complete questions reflecting on your experience creating your ar-

tifact and listening to each other’s.

• Your recording may be utilized in future class discussions and units. We’re all here to learn

from each other!

Lesson Plan: Reflection Instrument

• What was the first thing you noticed about your partner’s presentation?

o Was there a clear theme?

o Had you heard any of the songs before?

o If so, when/where?

• List at least 3 positive aspects of your partner’s work that stood out to you.
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• List 2 questions you thought of or things you are still curious about.

• List 1 idea for improvement.

Lesson Plan: Assessment Rubric

Beginning Approaching Meets Exceeds

Song Includes no Includes 1 song Includes 2–3 Includes 2–3 songs with

selection songs or songs with commentary songs with thoughtful, detailed com-

and chosen do not or 2 songs with thoughtful, de- mentary that inspires fur-

application appear to satisfy minimal to no tailed commen- ther questions and discus-

project criteria commentary tary sion

Length Total duration is Total duration is Total duration is Total duration is 4–6

<3 or >7 minutes 3–4 or 6–7 4–6 minutes minutes

minutes

Cooperative Does not share Shares with part- Shares with part- Listens with curiosity,

learning with partner ner but little dia- ner, engages in provides partner with val-

logue is achieved authentic discus- uable reflective feedback

sion that elevates the quality

of both artifacts
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Implications for Future Research

The most thoughtful practitioners, including educators, evaluate and reflect on the success of the

product and the process. In our case, this is the unit we developed and how clearly our students

demonstrated their learning as evaluated more qualitatively by the reflection instrument and more

quantitatively via the assessment rubric. Following evaluation and reflection, the unit should be re-

vised as needed in future iterations of the course. Goals for extending this unit include (1) developing

a differentiated curriculum specific to each grade level and/or (2) charting a three-year sequence for

students as they progress through Grades 6, 7, and 8.

Framing the students as the experts, the teacher should examine what ideas may be transferable

and extract them from student presentations, allowing the student to lead the way in presenting a

particular unit of study, if desired.

The curious researcher may choose to examine in significant depth any sources cited in the bibli-

ography, identifying and addressing any potential shortcomings, oversights, and problematic implica-

tions. The author recommends, most notably, reviewing the Kurtz-Welzel and Johansen articles and

applying notions of comparative music education to the classroom as a microcosm of the globe.

Teacher Reflections upon Deciding to Implement this Unit

As teachers, what challenges do we foresee in implementing this unit? Johansen charges teachers

to continuously develop their competencies and “[to construct] themselves as cosmopolitan scholars

capable of contributing to music education in ways that can make a difference to people’s lives.”41 By

what standard can we be justified in calling ourselves "cosmopolitan scholars"? Do we see this charge

as opportunity? An obligation? In what ways must we prepare ourselves before presenting ideas of glob-

alism to our students so that we ourselves are authentic bearers of what may be to many students

unfamiliar educational approaches?

41
Johansen, 47.
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Conclusion: Reconnecting to Meaning

Revisiting Campbell, she offers that “although children are musical without expert guidance,

they become more so as a result of it. Their lives are enhanced by education in and through music as

they become all that they can musically be. As they progress, they become more human, as well, by

knowing music at many levels, in many guises.” Teachers should be heartened to know that we have

the potential to cultivate children’s inherent musicianship.

Campbell continues, “There is good evidence that children have a natural inclination to think

and act musically, but they also have a right to know more music, better, so that they can use it to full

advantage to enrich and give meaning to their lives.” How fortunate are we as music educators to

possess within our grasp the joyous responsibility and humble power to nurture children’s natural

musical inclinations?

Finally, Campbell concludes, “This is where we come in. Children become more musical

through authentic interventions that teachers provide in thoughtfully prepared programs of school

music.” Whatever path, procedure, or practice we choose, let us be encouraged to make strides toward

including global education as a means to thoughtful preparation in our school music programs.
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