Chesterfield music tutors set out to improve lessons in classrooms
They are aiming to provide teachers with more confidence to create successful primary music lessons
Two Music tutors from Chesterfield set up an online platform to help teachers vary their lessons in the classroom in August.
Their aim is to help children make the most of the subject so they can embrace Music in all its forms and understand it's cultural significance in the UK. The co-founders of the project Corrine Hope and Pete Jenkins believe that Music can also improve other elements of children's learning and enrich their overall academic performance.
Corrine Hope and Pete Jenkins started the initiative to provide teachers with the resources to create meaningful lessons which engage pupils with the subject utilising a more varied approach. One of the key things they noticed was that many teachers prefer to teach lessons they are familiar with and avoid straying into unknown territory.
After speaking to lots of schools about music lessons they found out teachers aren't given enough training in the subject, and it can get left out of the curriculum.
Pete Jenkins said:
"Every day in the primary schools I have teachers coming up to me saying music terrifies me or, I don't know how to do it or how to teach Music. And that is just because they haven't had the chance to grow their confidence in the subject over the years like in PGCE years for example."
Getting teachers comfortable with the subject early on
"At the moment we are working with primary teachers primarily to make sure their Music lessons in their schools are confident and inspiring. But our next steps will be to work with PGCE students."
"We want to take it at the source to give them the musical training which we think the primary teachers at the moment should have had that will be the next amazing step. If we can get to them before they get to primary teachers then all the teachers will know what they're doing already, and then really our job is done."
The importance of Music in the curriculum
"When I was a child the things I remember about school are things like being in band or choir. And it's the only particular subject apart from probably Drama as well where you've got this ability to bring children together."
Varying the lessons
"A big part of the problem is music lessons getting boring because teachers don't know particularly what they can do on a day-to-day basis so even teachers get bored. I hear from teachers all the time where they've just been stuck in a routine of teaching the same music lessons for seven years solid."