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Setting Standards for Music Education
from: Kyle BesserMusic education in public schools became a part of the educational system in North America in the 17th century and eventually spread south. In the beginning of the history of music education, the standards for music education were set by individual music education teachers. It was up to the music education teacher to decide what music should be taught and how. As music education in public schools grew, this began to change. We now have both regional and national standards that govern music education.
When music education in public schools was first introduced, educators began to notice the benefits of music education. Educators began to notice that many students' grades began to improve. As a result, studies were made to see just how much of an impact music really did have on education. Studies found that music can help to improve concentration, self-discipline, coorporation and many other areas.
During the 20th century, it was learned that introducing newborns to music increased their intelligence by helping to develop their power of reasoning and language skills. This is when music education in schools really took off.
The push for national standards began in 1992 when the National Council on Education Standards and Testing (NCEST) called for a system of voluntary national standards and assessments in the core subjects of math, English, science, history and geography with other subjects to follow. The arts were the first of the other subjects to receive federal funding.
From June 1992 through June 1994, the Music Educators National Conference, which is now The National Association for Music Education (MENC) received $1 million from the U.S. Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities to develop voluntary national standards for each of the four arts disciplines - music, visual arts, theatre and dance - in grades K-12.
In 1994 the "National Standards for Music Education" was adopted and set the standards that music education should meet. These voluntary standards describe the knowledge, skills and understanding that all students should acquire in the arts, which provided a basis for developing education curricula.
The nine content standards for music education in schools:
1. Sing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
2. Perform on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
3. Improvise melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
4. Compose and arrange music within specific guidelines.
5. Read and notate music.
6. Listen to, analyze, and describe music.
7. Evaluate music and music performances.
8. Understand relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
9. Understand music in relation to history and culture.
Within each standard are a number of achievement standards designed for assessment at the fourth grade, eighth grade and exit from high school. MENC also led the way in the development of "Opportunity-to-Learn" standards which define the conditions under which music education should be supported in terms of staffing, scheduling, equipment, facilities and funding for music education in public schools.
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