Kids and music

For about three months now I've been volunteering at the church's local primary school, running a singing club, and it is without a shadow of a doubt the hardest thing I've ever done, and I feel completely inadequate for the task. I keep going though, and try to console myself with the vague notion that perhaps what I'm doing is going to help or inspire at least one of them in a way that might not have happened otherwise. There are several aspects to these difficulties. First, there is the musical side: I'm finding it incredibly hard to choose music which is exciting, fun, educational, good, challenging, and appropriate all at the same time. I think the reason so much music in schools is still religious, even when the school isn't necessarily, is that all the other options are so violently anodyne and uninteresting. The vocabulary and narratives of religious music seem to be more immediately accessible to children's imaginations.

Second, there is the discipline side: I am not completely hopeless at disciplining kids, but I'm not that great at it either. Part of the problem is that I'm not trained in how to do it effectively; another part of the problem is that I'm running a club for fun, not teaching a class, and people can leave whenever they want. Nevertheless, this will be easily solved by simply having a teacher sit in on the whole thing. Third, there is the fear side: children terrify me, both conceptually, and in how nakedly they portray the violent dynamics of human society, and in the myriad calamities that may befall on grounds of child protection.

Music in schools is difficult, but in primary schools particularly it should be taught and run properly. Unfortunately, this doesn't happen. As with any of the arts, the method of education seems to be, more often than not, to stick a keyboard or a triangle in front of someone and let them piss around. Consequently kids learn very little about musical notation, musical history, or musical instruments, which limits the possibilities of their developing an interest and building instrumental skills. This is not the fault of schools in the state sector; it has been squeezed out by other curricular demands and a lack of money. I know of no primary school that specifically employs a musical specialist, but primary school age is exactly when music is most appealing and accessible to children. And, taught properly (something I am not capable of), reading music is not difficult and can open up a world of exciting possibilities.

The answer? We can't go on relying on volunteers. If we value the arts, and music in particular, we need to fund and employ specialists to do a paid job in primary schools, and make room in the curriculum for it to be taught in a disciplined way. Volunteers are great for supplementing a school's teaching, and the more that people are involved in schools in this way will be great for the communities in which they live; but relying on volunteers to keep the arts alive is unrealistic and will be ineffective.

Tags: music, children, schools

Labels: music