Technology’s role for achieving creativity, diversity and integration in the American undergraduate music curriculum: Some theoretical, historical and practical perspectives

Abstract

This article provides an overview of six years of research with the goal of identifying key music technology competencies seen as essential for the undergraduate music major by tertiary music professors largely in North America. The results of the research are viewed from multiple dimensions: ‘pillars’ of curriculum as defined by a recent College Music Society (CMS) (United States) task force report, the diffusion of innovative technology historically within music instruction and general categories of music study within the tertiary curriculum. The authors share the results of five separate studies over a six-year period beginning in 2011 dedicated to the identification of core technology competencies for all undergraduate music students. Total responses included 772 returned questionnaires across the five studies that probed key competencies and their role in the instructional process. Consistent support for eleven key competencies was identified. The article concludes by offering a number of creative teaching scenarios across the tertiary curriculum for supporting the eleven competencies identified by participants in the research studies. The results from the research along with the overarching curricular issues presented may apply not only to tertiary music study in North America, but to the broader, international landscape of music curriculum innovation and reform.

Music technology and Future Work Skills 2020: An employability mapping of Australian undergraduate music technology curriculum

“…Curriculum design emphasized a trend for creative technical learning within the discipline of music technology, focused primarily on music production skills. This emphasis aligns with core music technology competencies identified by Webster and Williams (2018, p. 25) in the North American context. When mapped against an employability attributes framework, courses from sample institutions all demonstrated Novel and Adaptive Thinking, Computational Thinking, New Media Literacy, and Design Mindset in course LOs.…”

“…In relation to music, and music technology, McKoy (2009) has suggested that music can be a source of cultural identity for many groups and communities and is one of several expressive forms through which cultures of the world, and microcultures within specific locations, may be known and understood. Similarly, the College Music Society Task Force Report asserts “that multiple dimensions of diversity must be embedded into the content and process of undergraduate education” which encompasses “an expanding, interconnected global society with cross-cultural influences and cross-over stylistic expressions” (Sarath, Myers, & Campbell, cited in Webster & Williams, 2018, pp. 7–8).…”

“…Broken down by institution, this represented 18 courses offered by UID01, 16 from UID02, 10 from UID03, six from UID04, seven from UID05, and six from UID06. While other studies have discussed the development of employability skills within tertiary music technology curricula (see Otondo, 2016), or competencies core to the field of music technology (see Webster & Williams, 2018), none have done so within the Australian context, making this research unique in orientation.…”

Innovative Forms Of Art Teachers’ Activities

“…Many works were devoted to various aspects of pedagogical innovations in the field of art education, new forms and technologies of art pedagogy: various aspects of creative interaction between a teacher and children (Kim, Morton, & Gregorio, 2019); questions of the effectiveness of digital technologies in education (Forsler, 2018;Duisenbayev, Daumov, & Kuzdybayeva, 2018), as well as the inclusive art education of bedridden children (Koptseva, 2018); innovative technologies in the American undergraduate music program (Webster & Williams, 2018); the importance of improvisation and composition in the musical development of schoolchildren as a leading component in the new educational technology in music lessons (Alekseeva & Usacheva, 2018); the integration of arts and science, technology, technology and mathematics (STEM) (Kinsella, 2018); solving the problem of leisure culture -the perception of the environment as a place for learning and enjoying (Veledo, Belen, Manrique Lopez, & Fombella Coto, 2018); improving the vocal skills of future teachers (Jia, 2016), the development of giftedness (Nogaj & Bogunovic, 2015).…”

Acquiring skills in music technology

“…We review three examples of these studies, relating to the perceived technological requirements of undergraduate musicians, students of music education and intending audio engineers respectively. Webster and WIlliams (2018) conducted a six-year study intended to identify core technology competencies for undergraduate music students. The authors use 'competence' to describe the "critical understandings that underpin the application of the music technology skills" (2018, p. 22).…”