Darren Henley, chair of the Music Manifesto, has welcomed Ofsted's evaluation of music in schools, Making More of Music, and has pledged the work of the Music Manifesto to help improve music education still further.
The Manifesto has already begun addressing a number of issues pinpointed by Ofsted as areas of concern. "The report finds that music was good or outstanding in half of schools visited," says Darren. "Much has been done to achieve this result since the Music Manifesto started work, though a lot remains to be developed.
"The work of the Music Manifesto Partnership and Advocacy Group (MMPAG) members will be crucial in the coming years to continue to drive up quality.
"The report describes in useful detail what needs to be in place for effective teaching in music, and echoes many of the themes MMPAG members are working on. Our plans for professional development, in conjunction with the Music Education Council, will help address the professional isolation of teachers, as will our Awards workstream - the Music Manifesto Lifetime Achievement Award was presented for the first time at the Schools Prom last November.
"We have long recognised the problems identified in the report that children face in making headway in music as they transfer from primary to secondary school. Following a seminar and a six-month scoping exercise in conjunction with the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, we have developed comprehensive plans for tackling this area.
"The report calls for better coherence across the whole range of young people's music making experiences, and our Stronger Frameworks group is developing a 'health check' pack that will help music education providers do just that.
"Our Power of Music group agrees with the report that more needs to be done in schools to enable disadvantaged children to gain the benefits that music making can bring. Following two seminars and a consultants' report, the Music Manifesto national singing programme, Sing Up, is funding projects specifically designed to explore how to maximise the powerful contribution music can make to the personal development of vulnerable children or those with special needs."
This News story was originally published by Music Manifesto, the campaign to improve music education 2004 – 2010.
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