Although the main focus of the IPad in music is a three year observation of my own teaching and the students ‘ learning, we are already using iPads in years 9 and 10. Year 10 marks the end of the key stage, a time when music is no longer statutory and becomes an elective. The same objectives of Listening, performing and composing are the focus of the elected course.
What is interesting is that there is no requirement for students in the statutory years to learn notation. This safe guards the subject from becoming entirely centred on theory with little practical experience. However, in a learning environment where the students are at the top of the academic intake, this may be selling them short. Given the time constraints, it is simply impossible to include elements of Listen, Compose, Perform and also give a lesson in staff notation and note values. Students may play a walking bass line, but it is meaningless if it cannot develop into something beyond mechanics.
With iPad access and server apps such as my big campus, it has been possible to set lessons and exercises on Ricci Adam’s Musictheory.net. With a minimum training, students can undertake differentiated exercises and get instant feed back on their answers. A homework challenge of ’email me a screen shot of your 100% result or 20/20′ ensures that the topic is grasped. The response from the students is excellent. Firstly the use of a website or app to learn and assess independently of the teacher appeals to those who like to work at their own pace. Secondly, the sense of achievement is instant, with increased challenges also readily available. Thirdly, most students have had very poor experiences of music at primary level. They approach second level with a built in feeling of inadequacy and disinterest. The lack of specialism in music at primary level often leaves issues inadequately explained or, in some cases, presented incorrectly. The high achieving student quickly sees that he is very capable of grasping and scoring well in basic music theory.
A homework can thus be set, where a lesson is studied followed by a related exercise. In a subject where the primary aim is a skill acquisition, this serves as a very tenable method for students to ‘see’ their own progress.
I have provided the Tenuto app for the elective students in year 11. It is an excellent app if used daily as part of a learning regime. It s excellent for teachers to firm up their own skills at the upper level, particularly in the chord and scale identification sections.
The picture therefore is of a learning community, motivated to learn a potentially dull topic, through the means of technology. This same idea, presented to incoming year 8 s may actually reel them in at an even earlier stage.
Having thought about the coming three years, I have several questions that I need to answer.
Firstly, I need to find out how much musical knowledge the students presently have, and also, how much IPad knowledge.
My intention is to create a questionnaire which can be used over the coming three years. This survey, completed individually, will assess both these benchmarks.
Positive sentences such as;
‘I can use GarageBand to play a primary chord sequence’ will not be answered positively by many right now, but they will , by receiving the same questionnaire, over three years be able to chart their progress. They need to know musically how to use primary chords, and technically how to achieve this in GarageBand.
iPad knowledge is one thing, but individual app knowledge is quite another. Should a 13 year old be fully familiar with all the possibilities of GarageBand? Given that certain Key skills are assessed at level 4 and 5 at the same age, how will this tie in with their learning?. Will the emphasis have to steer away from music and move towards ICT?
So, enough musing, I will design an all purpose but quite specific questionnaire which will allow me to benchmark the present standard and allow the students to chart their progress.
With a new intake of first years, all from differing musical backgrounds, and all with their new IPad 3s, the best approach is probably to follow these students over the next three years. Their iPads will be equipped with GarageBand, keyz and some other free apps as well.
The students become very adept at mastering the basics of iPads, iTunes and the communication skills that come inherent in these devices. But the challenge for me is: can we help them to use these fantastic devices to gain a better understanding of music and its relevant place in our contemporary culture? This must be a meaningful understanding, not a superficial, appreciative overview.
Then, for the more advanced first year, how can they further progress their skills using iPads and apps?
Having taught already for a year using 1:1 iPad 2, I am coming to this with some experience, but these wide and often novel experiences need to be further honed to meet the needs of a statutory curriculum.
Before beginning to look at teaching through the iPad medium, there must firstly be a very clear picture of the expected outcomes. How do the statutory requirements actually produce musicians? Do they actually produce musicians? I think not.
What valuable experiences do the students take from curricular music? What mindset do we, as music teachers, need to adopt to create a fulfilling and formative music course?
Over the course of the next three years, I hope to address this issues with my own classroom experiences and my own thoughts and reflections.
I have no need to be followed, I am keeping a written account for myself. However, this technology works best when ideas are shared, and if we can work collaboratively, in a digital hub, then we can only benefit as teachers.
This is the very first blog. My area for discussion is the use of IPads in music teaching, with particular emphasis on curricular music. My three areas of potential are; music classes for the general age group 11-14, curricular music classes for the more experienced student within the same age group, and finally, music classes for the student who has chosen to take music to a further level.
Teaching Music through iPads 