Classroom practice around the globe has changed considerably due to the global pandemic. Although ICT (information and communication technology) is at the heart of 21st century teaching and learning, many teachers and students had to make significant adjustments shifting from face-to-face to remote (online) delivery in response to lockdowns and government restrictions since March 2020. This paper focuses on one focal question: ‘What were some of the concerns using ICT during Covid-19 pandemic?’ which was part of a wider Australian study ‘Re-imaging the future: music teaching and learning, and ICT in blended environments in Australia’. The authors seek to understand how music teachers look to employ technology in ways that connect teaching frameworks to 21st century classroom practice. As part of the ongoing study, they present preliminary survey data gathered between March–June 2021 from a range of music teachers around the country. Using thematic analysis, they discuss advantages, disadvantages, opportunities, and challenges in relation to responses that thematically relate three key elements: pedagogy, social interaction, and technology. They identify concerns and call on music educators to reset what, how, and why they teach when using technology to develop 21st century competencies, as the future of schooling continues to change its landscape due to the pandemic.

This paper is based on the reflections and experiences from a participant researcher perspective and explores the creation of an inventory of core pedagogical components, called the adaptive teaching framework (ATF), for use in online teaching. This was developed as part of a graduate music teaching program (MTP) across more than 20 tertiary subjects. It involves a series of reflections, descriptions, discussion points, and suggestions, which specifically reference related learning theory, content review, modification of learning design, and pedagogy that were considered during the implementation of a new learner management system (LMS) platform (Canvas) at the start of 2020. Amid the initial phase of implementation, staff and students were also required to move suddenly into a fully online learning environment, as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold and the subsequent lockdown removed all face-to-face teaching, an essential part of the MTP that included music performance, classroom pedagogy, curriculum design, research, and ensemble performance, as examples of some of the wide-ranging subject areas. These two significant changes (LMS implementation and the COVID-19 pandemic) occurred concurrently, which heightened both the immediacy and demand for adaptive teaching design within a fully implemented online program. The paper overviews the development of the ATF, in response to these mandated changes, just three weeks into Semester One, 2020. The methodology employed was self-study and aspects of critical reflective practice, whereby the researcher reflected on the intersection of technology and 21st century learning in music education, drawing on established literature, research, and emerging learning models combined with creative pedagogies.

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This article assesses the impact of new digital technologies on music education. It argues that music teachers have an obligation to understand and integrate the technologies that students bring into their classrooms. New digital technologies must be seen as instruments in their own right, and used to facilitate the development of knowledge and innovative approaches to exploring and understanding music among various emerging learning communities.