Life attitudes to, level of involvement with and success in musical learning are all tied to first musical experiences. Consequently an important objective in the planning of any musical programme for young children is to acknowledge their interests in and attitudes to different musical activities. The purpose of this investigation was to determine young children's attitudes to musical activities included in their pre-school musical programme. In particular it sought to discern if preferences exist for certain activities. What emerged from the investigation is that pre-school children generally appear to respond favourably towards involvement in all musical activities but that preferences do exist for moving and playing based activities.
Primary school music experiences have been shown to impact not only on future adult attitudes to, but also interest and participation in music. Unfortunately, the current policy and practice of music in primary schools is still perceived to be unsatisfactory. According to teachers this can be attributed in the main to their undergraduate university training in music education. Music educators have a key role to play in breaking the apparent current cycle of unsatisfactory (or no) music practice at the primary school level. This paper investigates what curriculum content is currently included in compulsory undergraduate university music education programmes. It asks teacher educators, in light of recent research, to reflect critically on the adequacy of their current curriculum to prepare beginning teachers to teach primary school music.
This paper traces the evolution of an academic community of practice and identifies the individual and collective outcomes of participation for the members. The impetus for the community was the joint development of a learning and teaching project grant application that aimed to improve teacher education in music curriculum, and the subsequent implementation of that project. The paper draws on a range of data sources including individual reflective journals, audiorecords and transcriptions of meetings, email archives and discussion board posts of the project team members. The purpose of the paper is to illuminate and interrogate the processes and enabling conditions that supported the development of this academic community of practice, and consider the implications for academics.
Link to this article: http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0265051705006091 How to cite this article: Nita Temmerman (2005). Children's participation in music: connecting the cultural contexts -an Australian perspective.
N i t a Te m m e r m a n
Social and Cultural Studies in Education,The cultural contexts of home, school and community all have important parts to play in the music education of children, but at present in Australia, these three entities are insufficiently connected on a number of fronts, not the least being an understanding about the purpose(s) of young people's engagement with music. This paper puts forward two specific proposals for action aimed to help build linkages among the three cultural contexts and ensure young people's on-going engagement with music. These proposals, which call on the education sector to assume leadership for action, have implications for policy makers, school personnel, as well as parents, individual artists and community arts organisations.
This article discusses two interrelated themes. First, that arts education plays a valuable role in developing the skills required by successful individuals of an increasingly sophisticated knowledge economy; and second, that arts education programmes in initial primary teacher education courses should be linked to, and compatible with, the needs of future schools. If young people are successfully to develop skills, knowledge and understandings that prepare them as productive citizens of the creative economy, then those enabling that development should understand and in turn be able to demonstrate and foster these capacities.
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