Parkhurst State School

How many students in total at your school? 270

How many students participate in music? 500+

Is the music program run by a musically-trained teacher? Yes

How long has the music program been running? 2 years

Is your school urban, regional, rural, remote?  Regional/slightly rural

At Parkhurst State School, we acknowledge learners in the Middle Phase require opportunities and programs that are flexible to enable individuals to grow and develop their unique needs as young adolescents across physical, emotional, intellectual, social, cognitive and moral platforms. Parkhurst Music Innovation Centre actively engages and challenges learners through digital music composition to unleash their creativity and collaborate with peers on a range of integrated multimedia curriculum projects. This successful school initiative has achieved maximum participation and intellectual rigour, whilst catering for the full range of learning styles and fostering an enthusiasm for learning embedded in popular culture.

In the last two years we have targeted the Middle Phase of Learning, This age group has  significantly different needs compared to younger children or older adolescents. Research has shown that these learners are making the least progress in learning and the gap between low and high achievers increases markedly in the middle phase. Middle Phase learners need to consolidate the building blocks including the foundations of numeracy and concept formation to enable further learning. In some cases, particularly for indigenous learners and boys, some learners may become gradually disengaged or lose enthusiasm when learning experiences and curriculum offerings are not personalised to cater for their preferred learning styles.

To Middle Phase learners, popular culture in the form of Music and Multimedia engages and unites this group. Music is a shared point of playground conversation and discussion. Instead of banning MP3 players and mobile technologies, Parkhurst has embraced the passion, skills and knowledge that comes with such devices to enrich and personalise learning experiences whilst going narrow and deep to achieve successful outcomes for the full range of learners.

We share the belief that learning must be engaging, enjoyable and connected to the real world whilst promoting risk taking, collaboration, active participation, creativity, communication and thinking. ‘Music in the Middle’ allows learners to unleash their creativity and use Music as an integrated curriculum tool that directly enhances significant aspects of their learning and education within a rich elearning environment. Learners are encouraged and enabled to reflect, critique and respond to their own and others work.

Music in the Middle is a school based digital music composition initiative that allows students to compose and record their own digital music or powerfully manipulate prerecorded tracks to accompany multimedia projects, promote their creativity and develop and enhance their music skills and knowledge in a one to one ICT rich learning environment using a range of software applications, hardware and peripherals. Learners regularly create ringtones, CDs as gifts and soundtracks. Students convert and edit files, developing podcasts and create their own songs within the context of other key learning areas. Students create rich, digital music compositions that have multiple tracks, incorporating a range of instruments, music styles and tempos and use these as backing tracks for slideshows and presentations. Learners have also developed podcasts to assist peers in their understanding of a range of concepts. The mathematical process of double addition is just one example. Early Years learners have used their musical compositions as soundtracks to their digital portfolios to individualise the introductory pages as well as showcasing their work to others. The dreaded recorder lessons are actually eagerly awaited because the students learn how to make unique upbeat backing tracks on which to record their own recorder playing and then shared at home with family and friends. I love harnassing technology to engage these learners. 

Another innovation, we have developed is inviting other schools to come to the Music Innovation Centre for a day to experience all we have to offer.  Thanks to our Principal, I am able to facilitate this extended learning program approximately 5 times a term. We actually received a small grant to cover the cost of buses for other schools to come to these intensely creative days in term 2 and 3 this year. (This is what we hope to continue.)

I always model and scaffold the use of available hardware and software within the Music Innovation Centre through a ‘Mine – Ours – Yours’ pedagogical Model to deconstruct specific applications in order to promote success for all learners. An interactive whiteboard is used to facilitate the modelling. Modelling allows for collaborative decision making to take place as well as supported risk taking. Once students develop an understanding of the software and its possibilities, they are able to ‘dabble’ in a sandpit environment to create their own compositions, whilst being supported and encouraged by peers and myself. Audacity requires high level thinking for learners to edit sound recordings successfully. Learners can clearly visualise the form of the sound wave and through Audacity’s powerful editing capability, produce professionally sounding results.

The implementation of Music in the Middle has changed learner experiences. The teaching of Music is now contemporary, capitalising on and bringing popular culture and community trends to our classrooms. Students are engaged, enjoy music and are embracing music in new and innovative way and all the while linked in cross curricular outcomes. The experiences of learners and teachers beyond our school context have also been enriched through extended learning program and professional learning. A specific example of just how this program has impacted on the delivery of everyday teaching and learning is: the current Year Six and Seven Learning Neighbourhood created a narrated CD with sound effects and music to accompany story books accessed by Early Year students.

Parkhurst’s Music in the Middle Program has enabled learners across the Glenmore Educational Precinct and immediate Rockhampton Area to engage in shared experiences around Music through its ongoing Extended Learning Programs. Glenmore State High School Music Head of Department, Melissa Fenlon, has indicated that Year Eight students entering Glenmore State High School are musically literate, enthusiastic and have achieved success. Music in the Middle has been successful in developing the individual capacity of learners and contributed to the development of enthusiasm, positive attitudes and ultimately high achievement as a result.

The qualitative data outlined is from our Middle Phase Learners, our Year Five and Year Seven students. School Opinion Surveys indicate that the use of technology to support the teaching and learning of Music has been highly successful with student, parent and carer opinion rising each year well above state and like school means. Seeing learners actively engaged and enjoying the learning process is also a major indicator of success. Managing learner behaviour is never an issue and is a further indicator of the program’s success.