Editorial
Do you remember your first ever music lesson? Or did your musical journey start at home, before you even knew what lessons were? Experts seem to agree that the early years are when the brain is at its most receptive to music, so if you grew up to become a music teacher, it’s more than likely that you first encountered music at a relatively tender age.
Of course, helping produce the next generation of music teachers is only one of the reasons why the work of early years and primary music teachers is so important. This month’s issue includes three practical articles dedicated to the art of teaching this challenging age group: Lucinda Geoghegan presents her energetic approach to teaching early years on page 36; Rosemary Hodi considers what makes the perfect primary music lesson on page 25; and Cyrilla Rowsell offers a myriad of ways to instil the difference between rhythm and pulse on page 33.
The good news for aspiring primary teachers who are not music specialists is that the government’s recent National Music Plan came with the promise that additional music modules are to be added to initial teacher training courses. Of course, it remains to be seen how this will turn out, but the announcement is surely a step in the right direction. Primary teacher training currently touches on music for little more than a day, so it’s no wonder that there is a considerable crisis of musical confidence among generalist primary teachers.
While we’re on the subject of the National Plan, it has been interesting to watch the dust settle since the long-awaited document was published in late November. One enraged correspondent (see Letters, page 6) argues that a coherent vision for music education masks the reality that the plan comes with devastating funding cuts. Others continue to doubt Arts Council England’s ability to make sound decisions over hub leadership, especially as there seem to be few seasoned music educators on the decision-making panel. Such worries are valid, and funding is a particular concern; it would help if the government were to give more detail on what it means by ‘cost savings through partnership working’ and ‘economies of scale’.
This month’s issue may be an early years and primary special, but as always we’ve done our best to provide something for everyone. There’s jazz training for teachers on page 17, an investigation into sexual discrimination in music departments on page 21, and the latest piano sheet music reviews on page 53. Please tell us what you think we left out, and let us know if there’s anything else we can do to help as the music education sector gears up to put the National Plan into action.
Christopher Walters, editor
In The Next Issue of Music Teacher: March 2012
Features:
- Inside the UK's specialist youth ensembles
- In Harmony: has it worked?
- Fusion meets music education: the Grand Union Youth orchestra
- Bass clarinet: the instant bass instrument
For classroom teachers:
- Martin Fautley on assessment
- New secondary classroom column
- Primary ideas bank
For instrumental teachers:
- Paul Harris on teaching theory
- John Kember on sight-reading
- Getting adults to sing
- Q&A: David Marcou, chairman, European String Teachers Association
- Core repertoire: the guitar studies of Ferdando Sor
