Music Education

Music education is an important part of the primary school curriculum with students benefiting from participating in musical activities as both educational and social experiences. In all classrooms all teachers give students the opportunity to understand, interpret, respond to, and create music.

The NSW Creative Arts K–6 syllabus builds foundational understandings through three interrelated processes:

• Composing (cognitive domain): structuring musical elements to create convey music

• Listening (affective domain): responding emotionally, valuing, interpreting, and developing musical appreciation.

• Performing (psychomotor domain): singing, moving, and playing instruments.

The benefits of music education are well-researched and include positive impacts on:

Student wellbeing and emotional intelligence

Music education can contribute to wellbeing by providing a sense of inclusion, belonging and joy. Composing, playing and appreciating music are accessible for students of all abilities, enabling them to feel successful and accomplished. Music education can also contribute to the development of a student’s emotional intelligence as they explore, recognise and express emotions, and as a carefree activity, find emotional release and enjoyment.

Critical and creative thinking, and academic achievement

Music education can support the development of problem solving and imaginative expression as students explore musical elements and express imaginative ideas. Creating, playing and singing can strengthen memory, facilitate multisensory learning, and support academic growth in other Key Learning Areas. For example, songs can reinforce mathematical concepts and the memorisation of historical facts. Music education can provide students with insights into cultural identity and diversity.

A classroom must be well-resourced for high impact music education. A teacher needs to have a collection of musical instruments at the ready for students to compose, play and appreciate music. These will include instruments:

• purchased by the school such as recorders, bongo drums and ukuleles,

• constructed from basic materials and household items such as clapping sticks, bottle xylophones, and rice-filled shakers.

Effective music education depends on teachers having the confidence, skills and knowledge to engage in quality teaching practices. At Ashfield Public School this involves professional learning that enables teachers to develop their ability teach music and incorporate it into a daily/weekly lessons.

Music education has a strong impact on a student’s intellectual, social, and personal development and therefore on their wellbeing. Simply put, music education matters.