Abstract
How do you recruit the next class of instrumentalists? Do you do all the talking or do you truly captivate students’ musical imagination and turn it into a reality? For many years, our middle school chamber orchestra visited our elementary school to perform an annual recruitment concert where I would speak briefly about each instrument and one middle school musician from each instrument section would play an excerpt of their solo piece to close the deal. My school district’s recruitment strategies reflected Brian Cole’s (2010), Mary Wagner’s (2013), and Maria Stafford’s (2016) teacher-led template, but only 35 percent to 45 percent of students enrolled year after year. To address this issue, I created a new student-led recruitment format that increased enrollment to 61 percent this past school year.
In our traditional recruitment presentation, middle school students gained performance experience and elementary school students engaged as listeners. This interaction can be more engaging by turning performers and listeners into active participants. Another problem with my annual recruitment concert was that the middle school chamber orchestra was comprised of more advanced instrumentalists, which meant only a handful of middle school students actually performed for elementary school students. To be more inclusive, I invited all of my sixth-grade orchestra musicians to participate in the recruitment process. These are musicians in the fourth-year orchestra curriculum.
The next interactive component was grouping middle and elementary school students together in a cooperative learning environment. Shlomo Sharan (1990) and Robert Slavin (1995) summarize cooperative learning as the idea of having students work in small groups to learn from each other. Robyn Gillies’ (2014) research shows that cooperative learning is an effective alternative to direct instruction. Noreen Webb (2008) also notes that small group learning increases students’ active interaction. Higher achievement and positive peer relationships were associated with cooperative learning (Roseth, Johnson, and Johnson 2008, 239).
My students and I created a “musical petting zoo” where middle school students introduced elementary school students to string instruments through demonstration and trials. Potential recruits were encouraged to ask questions during this interaction. Under middle school student supervision, elementary school students held and plucked string instruments for an introductory experience. Elementary school students rotated from string bass, cello, viola, to violin stations. Bass and cello groups had more elementary student visitors per presentation because we had fewer bass and cello musicians presenting compared to viola and violin musicians. This event took place in the elementary school cafeteria, but can also take place in the classroom.
“I created a new student-led recruitment format that increased enrollment to 61 percent this past school year.”
Student-Led Lesson Plan
In preparation for this event, middle school musicians created a miniature lesson plan by writing the music concept they wanted to share and teaching strategies to meet that goal. Planning prompts included the following: What do you want to show (new recruits)? What are you going to do? How do we know (new recruits) understand what you are presenting (Figure 1)? Part of this project allowed me to assess my students’ understanding as well. My essential question was as follows: can students articulate their own musical understanding and instrumental practice? Once my students completed the planning organizer, they practiced teaching each other in mentoring simulations. Students rotated between various instrument presentations, experienced the introductory lesson, and traded feedback. Because of time constraints, presentations were limited to six minutes each.
Middle school recruiter lesson plan.
Middle school students also created an infomercial-type video recording to practice and review their presentations. In reviewing their recordings, students and I further discussed their musical understanding in a debriefing assessment. We reviewed students’ translation of music vocabulary into layman terms, supporting beginning musician posture techniques, and pacing. In a way, students’ meta-teaching experience triggered flashbacks of personal curiosities from when they themselves were elementary school prospective recruits. The video presentations were useful because some elementary students were absent on the day that the middle school students visited the elementary school. I provided the elementary school general music teacher with the middle school video practice presentations, so the general music teacher could play the middle school presentations for students who were absent in lieu of in-person demonstrations.
Wrapping Up Student-Led Recruitment
At the end of the student-led recruitment event, prospective recruits completed a two-question survey: What instrument would you like to play next year? and What did you like about that instrument? More students enrolled in the following school year, and I believe the added interaction between students engaged and encouraged more kinesthetic/tactile learners to sign up. My hope is to engage parents/guardians in the recruitment process by hosting an evening instrumental music fair where students present a brief concert followed by breakaway small group interactions with incoming potential recruits and their families. The main focus would be on the science fair type event following the brief concert. Potential recruits and their families would move from one string instrument presentation to another. Parents/guardians could ask questions and watch students showcase their instrumental music understanding.
Learning Outcomes of Recruiters
Student-led instrumental recruitment is a highly effective approach because student musicians and prospective music students are more engaged through collaborative learning interactions. Middle school students also reached a musical milestone by clearly articulating their own musical understanding, correctly using music terms, and being able to translate music concepts so prospective musicians can understand instrumental music jargon. Recruiters now demonstrate greater confidence in evaluating issues and synthesizing solutions since the recruitment event. There is more introspection and reflection during practice as students are quick to share with me their practice approach of recording themselves at home on their devices and reviewing their footage from a third person perspective. Our middle school students in general entered another phase of musical independence. However, this took a lot of effort.
Challenges in the Process and at the Recruitment Event
Many of our middle school students were excited to learn about this project. They reflected on the time when they watched the recruitment concert as prospective recruits years ago. Remember, these middle school students sat passively watching the middle school chamber orchestra perform advanced repertoire when they were in elementary school. When it came time for these sixth graders to develop a recruitment lesson, they thought they were responsible for teaching and presenting advanced literature. Some of our middle school students’ initial teaching objectives were teaching “how to slur” or “how to play one of our fiddle tunes” or “how to shift to third position.” We had to discuss the level appropriateness and time allotment of presenting to younger peers without any musical instrument experience. Research suggests that although students need to take a more meaningful part in their education, they are sometimes puzzled about this new role. Kathleen Cushman (1994) and Bernadette Scruggs (2008) caution that it is still the teacher’s responsibility to provide scaffolding when necessary to assist in promoting student leadership.
I had to frame this event as a time for our middle school students to teach non-instrumentalist about their instrument. Educators should not focus on boosting recruitment numbers through student-led recruitment and evaluating student success based on the amount of prospective student commitment. The focus must be on student learning and music experienced by all students involved. Even if this recruitment format resulted in lower enrollment, this experience yielded positive learning outcomes and music engagement.
Organizing the cafeteria space to facilitate interactions between 138 second-grade students was a challenge. Thirty-two middle school students and I arrived at the elementary school a half hour before the recruitment event. The assembly began with an ensemble performance followed by a brief overview of the event, cooperative group learning, another ensemble performance, and a prospective student survey. With only two bassists, four cellists, and six violists, some prospective recruits had to look over each other’s shoulders to get a glimpse of the middle school students’ mini lesson. Prospective recruits also had to wait a bit longer to try the bass, cello, and viola. Each violin station had smaller numbers because there were twenty middle school violinists.
Preparing Recent Recruits in the Recruitment Process
I recently expanded the student-led recruitment project by preparing first-year (third-grade) string students as potential recruiters. The first-year string students did not participate in our recruitment efforts, but I believe there are benefits to fostering leadership opportunities at any level. Beginning string students completed a modified instruction plan (Figure 2). The beginning string student’s lesson in Figure 2 focuses on posture, identifying strings, and plucking strings. As expected, there is more sophistication in middle school student lesson plans. Our beginning string students simulated teaching with their classmates to practice articulating appropriate posture and other introductory concepts. First-year instrumentalists are only one year older than prospective recruits, so prospective recruits may find this motivating. First-year students may also experience a morale boost when they see the influence they have on future musicians.
First-year recruiter lesson plan.
Final Thoughts
I believe this recruitment format is applicable to public, private, large, and small instrumental programs. Reimagine recruitment as an opportunity for students to express to an audience how it feels and what it really means to be an instrumentalist. It takes a lot of courage and trust in students to let them take charge. That is the message we should send to all students.
To see some footage of this student-led recruitment event, please visit www.instagram.com. Search “nanuetmiller” for GW Miller Elementary School and scroll down to find images and video clips of sixth-grade musicians introducing second graders to instruments. Keywords #nanuetmissiondriven, @nanuetschools, and #studentsteachingstudents will also bring you to this content.
Footnotes
Alex W. Fung (