Consider the balance of learning in a unit of work you are currently teaching.

Does the planned learning enable the change of balance between ‘knowledge’ (a focus on musical skills and theory) and ‘evaluation’ (a focus on musical understanding) to take place?

Is this progression properly planned for, so that you can constantly challenge pupils to move on to the next stage of musical learning when they are ready for it?

Are there specific activities that you could add to the unit to make the shift in balance more explicit and effective?

You might consider:

• asking pupils to develop the quality of performing opportunities (fluency, confidence, communication) rather than simply the accuracy of playing skills;
• challenging pupils not only to apply knowledge about styles or genres to their composing, but also to analyse what they are doing and choose from a wider range of musical options;
• asking pupils to appraise their work in progress more rigorously;
• asking them to propose alternatives to their current ideas, or asking them to draw conclusions about the effect that the changes would have, based on an ability to synthesise their understanding of different possibilities.

Decide on a particular point in the unit where you could add one of these ideas to the planned learning. Afterwards, reflect on the extent to which it enabled a more effective shift towards musical understanding.