Teaching Music with Technology

Part 2 in the Series: Technology and the Waning Subjects
By Haley Myers from Converge Online
This is the second article in a series to discuss how technology is being used to reinvigorate "the waning subjects," or those subjects first to go due to budget cuts. This article features how educators can apply technology to music education.

Remember music class in grade school? If you were lucky enough to attend a school that required students to learn beat and rhythm and experiment with instruments, you may recall hitting wooden sticks together, stomping your feet and a cacophony of discordant notes echoing off multi-purpose room walls.

Things have really changed in music programs these days. Today, some music educators are getting creative by integrating technology into curriculum.

In Torrington, Conn., Wayne Splettstoeszer, director of the Torrington High School Music Technology Program, has inspired an invigorating approach to teaching music.

His inventive solutions to traditional high school music programs cause students to become involved in music in broader ways than traditional instrument instruction allows.

By sharing information about the Music Technology program at Torrington High, Mr. Splettstoeszer hopes to inspire others to pursue strange and fantastic new approaches to old concepts of music education.

Splettstoeszer sees music technology as the fastest growing aspect of music education. Many schools require the use of technology in all subject areas and because we live in a technology-infused world, a music technology program seems to be a natural outgrowth of students' preferred method of engagement with the world and their learning environments.

"Most students today use technology in every aspect of their daily lives," comments Splettstoeszer, "from mp3 players to laptops, palm pilots and cell phones...As educators, it is our job to reach students any way we can. Technology is the way of the future."

For Splettstoeszer, an integral part of the program is the Web site. "Our Web site began as an action research project in 1999. I wanted to know if the use of a Web site would enhance and improve student learning. Our site contains a daily assignment page, topic pages, student work and [the site] has received numerous awards."

The program's Web site is so comprehensive that it currently serves as an example for other schools and universities as far away as Australia to supplement music technology programs and curriculum.

Torrington High School's Music Technology Program is based on two levels of skill and interest. An introductory music technology class covers sound systems, MIDI, and MIDI sequencing, where students build a song from scratch and learn about song form, basic mixing techniques, basic song construction, and more.

The advanced course invites students to design all aspects of radio commercials and jingles, create sound effects using common items found at school (they record the raw sound in the computer, then manipulate it to come up with a new sound), and analyze and compose film scores. Students are required to save their assignments in electronic portfolios that can later be included in college applications.

These options give a breadth and depth to music appreciation and understanding by handing students new tools to create, manipulate, change, contort and form sound in unique ways. The advanced class enables students to rely on their own creativity with less direction from an instructor and more freedom to pursue what they find compelling.

For less advanced students and younger audiences, there are plenty of online tools to supplement music education, including games that cultivate skills and teach basic concepts about music.

The EdTech Music Web page offers a great list of online music resources for educators and enthusiasts alike, including a game called Mozart WebQuest, vaguely reminiscent of Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?. Mozart WebQuest takes participants on an Internet scavenger hunt as time travelers researching Mozart's life through sound clips, biographies and games.

Children's Music Workshop provides a decent list of education grants, not specifically related to music. The site gives thorough information on 15 instruments including history, level of difficulty and skill required to play, and sheet music. The site provides a convenient link to find out how to purchase, lease or rent the instrument of interest and hosts an instrument maintenance page. Music advocacy is an important topic covered on the site as well, with almost 40 links proposing and advocating benefits of playing an instrument, such as improved spatial intelligence, creative thinking, cognitive development and math skills.

Electronic Music Interactive is a cool resource for kids learning basic concepts about music technology. The site uses Macromedia Shockwave to lead users through an interactive system that teaches concepts like frequency and waves. Electronic Music Interactive is well organized and user friendly. The top of each page lists a parent topic and clearly states related topics. For instance, if you are looking at a basic definition and explanation of digital recording, the top of the screen states "Generators and Modifiers is the parent topic" and directly below explains, "Digital Recording is the related topic." This helps students remember the order and organization of terms and concepts. The site also provides a glossary of terms with picture accompaniment.

Good Ear is a free online ear training site for less experienced musicians. It teaches how to recognize the difference between tone, scale, and octaves and has simple online tests that help users track progress.

Lastly, the University of Pittsburgh's Elementary Education Resources: Music page has an extraordinary list of online resources for music educators, including several links to interactive Web sites with games and activities. The site also offers lesson plan links and song lyrics.

The Web sites and online resources mentioned may not drastically change music education, but it is important to consider the idea of fully incorporating technology into music education instead of merely using it as an additional resource for disengaged students. As Wayne Splettstoeszer says, "When technology is used correctly it can reach students in a way that music appreciation classes of the past could never do."

Perhaps these ideas can fortify the waning subjects with new material through fresh interaction with a traditional medium. Beyond instruction and experimentation, technology offers students new tools to create.

Up Next: Part 3 in the series of Technology and the Waning Subjects:
Art and Lots of Bandwidth, November 16, 2005.