Last year, the Music Manifesto's Power of Music workstream was instrumental in initiating research into the use of singing to help primary aged children who are outside the mainstream education system. The Beyond the Mainstream project, carried out as part of the Manifesto's National Singing Programme, Sing Up, has since delivered a series of successful projects.
In 2009, Greater Manchester Music Action Zone (GMMAZ) teamed up with Sing Up to deliver a seven-month project in the Starting Point Short Stay School in Bolton. Starting Point is unique in its high intake of children from migrant communities. The school is intended as a buffer before mainstream education, where children can settle into their new environment before being exposed to the pressures of mainstream schools.
GMMAZ hosted regular singing sessions in the centre that aimed to give pupils a musical introduction to day-to-day life at school in England. One singing tutor involved in the project reported that children had "learned about weather, routines, social interaction, animals, verbs and nouns through regular, engaging, enjoyable singing activity". Singing was also used as a tool to overcome language barriers and improve language skills. "They sing with each other," said a member of the Starting Point staff. "They can't always speak together because they don't have [shared] language, but they can and do sing together."
The project has been successful in encouraging confidence, social development and by working with local primary schools, aiding the transition process between Starting Point and mainstream education. "It was good to work with Brandwood [Primary School] children," remarked one teacher. "Our children could see that they were on the same level."
The entire teaching staff at Starting Point were also taken on a musical learning journey as the project included regular teacher training sessions. Staff were given continual guidance in how to lead singing in the classroom as they gradually gained confidence in using this new skill. Headteacher Katy Kellett noted that including the entire teaching staff resulted in confident teachers "rubbing off" on less confident ones. "They seem to enjoy bouncing ideas off one another," she said. "The staff compare notes. It has generated conversation, interest and peer engagement." By the end of the project staff were regularly using singing in the classroom and even composing subject-specific songs to use in their teaching.
Research and investigation was a key focus during the seven-month project. Head of Operations and Development at GMMAZ, Charlie Morrison, emphasises that effective evaluation of the project and the creation of a sustainable legacy was a top priority. "We needed to find out what practices worked best for both pupils and teachers," he says. GGMAZ is aiming to produce a tool kit and a good practice guide as a result of its findings that can be used within similar projects in the future.
The Starting Point project is just one example of success within the Beyond the Mainstream programme. Further activity throughout the country involves children with disabilities, children with special educational needs and looked after children. The lessons learnt from each area of work promise to feed into a powerful legacy that will ensure the ultimate fulfilment of the Sing Up vision: that all primary school children, despite their situation, will have access to quality singing activity.
This feature was originally published by Music Manifesto, the campaign to improve music education 2004 – 2010.
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