Common issues and solutions

Background

A range of inspection and research evidence identifies common issues in defining and providing appropriate challenge for pupils in music lessons. It also describes how successful teaching finds solutions that enable positive musical learning. The  main characteristics are outlined below.

Common issues

Sometimes pupils:

• rely on teachers to know what they should do next as they cannot take forward their own learning independently – they cannot identify patterns to their learning, and get stuck with similar problems on a regular basis;
• do not reflect on their learning effectively, and consequently find it hard to evaluate their work in progress or make decisions about what is successful and why;
• focus on mechanical completion of tasks rather than on the processes that lead to effective musical learning;
• do not know how to describe musical quality, and find it difficult either to recognise or demonstrate how musical understanding reflects effective musical learning;
• do not use musical vocabulary consistently, whether using technical or expressive language;
• struggle to describe cause and effect in music, and find it hard to evaluate the value of their own work and that of others;
• lose motivation, either because the skills demanded of them are too high, or because the level of challenge is too low, given their prior experiences of instrumental and vocal music making. In particular, pupils with a range of enhanced performing skills find that the challenge of ‘advanced’ practical work does not match or stretch their capabilities, and fails to engage their capacity to develop broader musical understanding.

Resolving the issues

• Teachers encourage pupils to think about how to tackle learning, and support them in the process by using sequences of questions that challenge and probe their thinking. They expect pupils to make their own decisions based on clear criteria and a regular analysis of work in progress.
• Musical understanding is an explicit focus for learning. Teachers and pupils value the processes of learning that lead to musical understanding more highly than the simple acquisition of knowledge and skills. They consistently explore the qualities of music and music making that enable effective musical communication.
• Teachers plan learning that takes account of progression in musical understanding, and assess pupils’ work primarily by reference to this progression. This provides significant challenge to all pupils, whatever their level of prior engagement with music making and their existing confidence in using practical musical skills.
• Teachers and pupils consistently use an expressive and technical vocabulary to describe their work and learning. This is a foundation stone that supports regular opportunities for pupils to appraise their work, using a range of literacy techniques to embed learning.
• Teachers know what prior experiences of practical music making pupils have had, and are able to challenge all groups of pupils effectively as a result. They build on the skills, knowledge and understanding that different pupils already possess, and extend their understanding by expanding and deepening their known repertoire of styles, genres and traditions.