Children's Ways of Learning Inside and Outside the Classroom

Abstract

This article focuses on children's musical play, including that involving interactions with popular music and popular culture. It outlines features of musical play, especially as found in communities of practice in the playground, and the disjunction that may often occur between children's challenging, social, and participatory enactment of play and the pedagogical characteristics of classroom music. The article suggests a child-centered approach to music learning and teaching that endeavors to bridge the gap between children's external, informal music-making and musical experiences in the school.

Exploring the culture of Greek children’s musical games in the school playground: An ethnographic study

“…Two particular aspects of learning were observed in this study: implicit learning, with children participating as a group in a common activity, and explicit learning, with peers teaching each other. This reflects similar research findings on learning in informal contexts (Green, 2008;Harwood & Marsh, 2012). In line with findings from relevant studies (see Introduction), data from this study showed that learning took place in a holistic way in the performance context.…”

“…The key findings are grounded in the data collected from observation, interviews, and video recordings, but they are also informed by themes that have been reported elsewhere in the relevant literature (cf. Bishop & Burn, 2013;Gaunt, 2012;Grugeon, 2001;Harrop-Allin, 2010;Harwood & Marsh, 2012;K. Marsh, 2008).…”

“…Similar approaches were also adopted in studies on children's music culture(s) within the field of music education (Barrett, 2003;Campbell, 1998Campbell, , 2002. The research focus today is more commonly on informal contexts where children develop musically through practices that they initiate (Green, 2008;Harwood & Marsh, 2012).…”

Enhancing student agency in the primary music classroom through culturally responsive practice

“…Culturally responsive practice neither precludes nor privileges any particular teaching and learning approaches, but calls for adaptive expertise characterised by flexibility and sensitivity to context (Berryman et al, 2018). Context and teaching approaches are largely determined by the goals of music programmes, which may emphasise either presentational or participatory goals (Harwood & Marsh, 2012;Lawton, 2020). Reimer (2007) is critical of a system of music education that concentrates on large ensemble performances.…”

“…His solution is to assert that the popular music of any culture has the most potential for engaging students with moral and ethical issues. Harwood and Marsh (2012) also explore the difference between a music education whose goal is to prepare repertoire for an audience and one which features the equal and valued participation of all. Drawing on Turino (2008), they acknowledge that neither approach is better or more natural than the other, suggesting that effective classroom learning is found in a common ground, since children develop musically in unique ways across both participation and performance.…”