Abstract
Technology is constantly changing, and it can be challenging to move beyond the “bells and whistles” of a new app or piece of software to confirm worthiness for classroom use. This article explores the balance point between technology use and more traditional modalities in the music classroom.
My formative years occurred simultaneously with the availability and affordability of the personal computer. The first computer in my family’s home was an Apple IIc, and I literally spent hours breaking into programs, learning how to program in BASIC (one of the early computer languages), and playing games. My college years aligned with the huge increase in Internet use as my friends and I connected to the Local Area Network and found many songs on the Internet (that we thought were free for the taking) on sites such as the now notorious Napster. Because Java was in its early stages, I learned HTML code and built my website “by hand,” spending hours typing code, tasks now easily accomplished with an “insert graphic” button and clicking a mouse. Fast-forward to the present day, which starts with me in the basement on a Saturday morning typing an article surrounded by a variety of technological devices while upstairs my kids get their Saturday morning treat—Netflix. Within current society, technology is ever-present and continually marketed. For example, one headline that appeared when opening my browser was “Essential apps: You just can’t do without these apps.” Headlines such as this are a regular occurrence with so many people connected to some form of technology on a regular—or at times continual—basis.
In this technological age, the landscape is ever-changing. Children are exposed to technology early, and teachers are expected to incorporate technology within instructional delivery. With so many technological options, it can be difficult to find the balance point between “technology for technology’s sake” and using technology as a tool to enhance student learning. In this column, I will explore the need to add technology as a familiar modality to our current student population while maintaining a balance with much-needed “hands-on” music activities.
Technology as a Familiar Modality
According to the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2010), 97% of teachers reported at least one or more computers in their classrooms for everyday use, and 93% of these classroom computers had Internet access. An additional 54% could bring computers into the classroom for use, with 96% of these computers having Internet access available. The ratio of computers to students was 5:1 at the time of the survey in the year 2009.
Technology use and availability have increased in homes as well. According to the Kaiser Foundation, children from ages 8 to 18 spent approximately 7.5 hours exposed to media of some kind (i.e., TV, music/audio, computer, video games, print, and movies) daily in 1999 (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010). Media exposure time increased to 8.5 hours daily by 2004. However, the most recent 2009 survey found children ages 8 to 18 spend 10.75 hours exposed to media daily, with 26% of that time using multiple media types at one time (i.e., multitasking; Rideout et al., 2010). Mobile devices have become also become commonplace, with the Pew Research Center reporting 98% of adults surveyed owning a cell phone in 2015; 86% of those surveyed owned a Smartphone (Anderson, 2015). Similarly, the Kaiser Foundation reported an increase of cell phone ownership among 8- to 18-year-olds, with two thirds of children in this age range owning their own cell phone (Rideout et al., 2010, p. 3). Increases in device ownership between ages 8 to 18 are consistent with increases in home Internet access, with 84% reporting having Internet access at home; 33% of those surveyed reported having Internet access in their bedroom (Rideout et al., 2010, p. 4). Based on these statistics, technology access and use have become part of the typical lives of many school-aged children across the country.
The Quest for Deeper Understanding
Technology is another way to experience content; however, the three modes of representation used throughout life to understand concepts are enactive representation, iconic representation, and symbolic representation (Bruner, 1964). Bruner (1964) notes these representations appear “in the life of the child . . . in that order, each depending upon the previous one for its development” (p. 2). In short, children need to “do” as a primary experience to have a tangible representation of content. Moving to an iconic representation and manipulating content through icon cards would be a natural step in students’ learning progressions. It is not enough for students to visually interact with the content; Houlahan and Tacka (2008) believe students should construct understanding through kinesthetic (Stage 1), aural (Stage 2), and visual (Stage 3) representations during the cognitive phase/preparation . Deeper understanding is the result of multiple representations of content where students use their bodies, ears, and eyes to experience content.
Technology can be an enhancement to the students’ experiences. As a familiar modality, technological representations can be used as another way to experience content. For example, students could experience a song through game and movement. They can manipulate the song’s rhythms through icon cards or rhythm cards and create new patterns individually or in small groups. These patterns could be shared on a SmartBoard or using iPads to allow for quick manipulation and presentation. Beats and patterns created in Garage Band can be translated into traditional and nontraditional notation to show textures and the interplay of parts. Students can create an animated listening map as a storyboard or comic book to demonstrate understanding of music elements.
For example, introducing “Lucy Locket” (see Figure 1) could use a balance of kinesthetic, aural, and visual activities balanced with technology. Students could start by learning the song through playing a game as a class. Manipulation of the song can be completed both individually and as a group using craft sticks, sets of physical icon cards, and technological devices. See Figure 2 for a more detailed view of a possible instructional sequence.
Lucy Locket melody.
Possible instructional sequence for Lucy Locket.
What Is That Saying About Cake?
Chalkboards were introduced into the classroom sometime in the early 19th century. Although skepticism existed, the impact of this new technology was clear in education and music education as the capabilities of this new “technology” was explored (Karpf, 2012). Teachers recognized the chalkboard not as a replacement but as an enhancement. Whatever technology is used in the music classroom, the technology should be used to enhance learning rather than for the “bells and whistles” of using technology. The newest apps and software may be “something you didn’t know you needed,” making teaching more efficient and easily understood by students. Using technology just to use it, however, can become a frustration rather than enhancement. Finding two to five technological advances in the classroom that can be used seamlessly in the classroom to enhance teaching and learning can benefit both teachers and students. Building on successful technology use in the classroom can help discern other technology to use purposefully in the general music classroom.
If we teach today’s students as we taught yesterday’s, we rob them of tomorrow. (John Dewey, n.d.)
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Author Biography
Laura Dunbar has taught 10 years in public schools, beginning her career as a band director teaching instrumental music to grades 5–12 at Elmwood Local Schools in Ohio. When her family relocated to Arizona, she accepted a K–8 position in Sedona, Arizona, where she taught general, instrumental, vocal, and steel drum music for seven years. Laura completed a PhD in Music Education at the University of Arizona; she is currently the Elementary Music Specialist and the Music Education Coordinator for the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire.