Contributions of playground singing games to the social inclusion of refugee and newly arrived immigrant children in Australia

Abstract

Background Several major approaches to primary school music pedagogy are based on the desire to emulate aspects of children's play. Carl Orff, whose Schulwerk has been highly influential in the international development of music pedagogy in the primary music classroom, stated that Musical instruction for the child does not begin in the music lesson. Playtime is the starting point. What is important is that the child be allowed to play, undisturbed, expressing the internal externally. Word and sound must arise simultaneously from improvisatory, rhythmic play. (1932/2011, p. 68) Similarly, Zoltan Kodály, the initiator of another classroom methodology that has been widely disseminated, utilised the songs and singing games of Hungarian children as the basis of his pedagogy, partly because it had a strong appeal to children, noting that "this is the music that belongs to children; it is their own. .. it is never too difficult for them, so they participate with great energy" (Farkas, 1990, pp. 103-4). He proposed that there was an interdependence between what was taught in the classroom and what happened in the playground: The simple song does not hinder the action of play, rather the opposite; it makes play more attractive, more interesting. The limited time available for musical education of the child can thus be extended on the playground without diminishing the time for other activities.

Beyond the dots on the page: Harnessing transculturation and music education to address intercultural competence and social inclusion

“…This was particularly pertinent for young people with a refugee background who sought validation for their ideas, understandings and interactions in this new context. Previous research about the indisputable value of music and arts education on students’ learning and well-being correlate with the findings of this study (Bryce et al., 2004; Crawford, 2017, 2019a; Deasy, 2002; Donelan & O’Brien, 2008; Fiske, 1999; Heath & Wolf, 2004; Marsden & Thiele, 2000; Marsh, 2012, 2015; Marsh & Dieckmann, 2016, 2017; O’Brien & Donelan, 2005, 2007). As globalisation is a government priority and growing international issue, a reconsideration of what is taught in schools and how is not an unreasonable request.…”

“…Many musical tasks and activities are inherently social and require collaborative learning and team-driven processes. Collaborative music making has been linked with positive well-being outcomes for young refugee and immigrant children (Marsh & Dieckmann, 2016, 2017). The students across the three case studies were able to consolidate and expand friendships as a result of participation in the music programme.…”

Developmental trajectory of interpersonal motor alignment: Positive social effects and link to social cognition

“…Also cooperative singing with peers, as reported for adults ( Pearce et al, 2015 ), increases group cooperation in children of seven to eight years more than art or competitive games ( Good and Russo, 2016 ). Furthermore, the positive effects of synchronous singing have been reported to contribute to feelings of social inclusion in refugee children ( Marsh, 2017 ; Marsh and Dieckmann, 2017 ). This suggests, that singing in synchrony, just as moving in synchrony ( Tunçgenç and Cohen, 2016 ) or joint music making ( Marsh, 2012 , 2017 ), may support the establishment of a collective group membership by forging intergroup bonds.…”

Socially inclusive practices in the music classroom: The impact of music education used as a vehicle to engage refugee background students

“…While this convincing evidence advocates for the arts with “at risk” young people, there is limited research relating directly to the impact of music specialist programmes in schools on students from refugee backgrounds (Crawford, 2016). This is particularly true for the secondary school context, given the significant research already established in the primary and early childhood area that links social inclusion, the role of music, collaborative music making with play-based learning theory and wellbeing outcomes for young refugee and immigrant children (Marsh, 2013, 2016, 2017; Marsh & Dieckmann, 2016, 2017). There is also evidence to suggest that collaborative music making contributes to a sense of belonging and a community of practice (Pitts, 2005).…”