Music is often used by its advocates as
a vehicle to promote positive changes in
students, academically, emotionally, and
socially (Catterall, Chapleau & Iwanaga,
1999; Fiske 1999). In this study, I
examined the implementation, in my own
public elementary classroom, of a
five-month Character Really Matters!
songwriting program that I developed.
The study is designed to provide insight
into the potential impact of such
songwriting music programs on students'
character development. The study
examined the connections students made
between the songwriting program and
their lives. The data for this study
were derived from a guided student
reflection form used as a normal part of
teaching. To provide further elucidation
of the impact of the songwriting program
on students' character development, I
supplemented the reflection-form data
with my direct classroom observations
using field notes and a
character-tracking checklist. Findings
from the research revealed connections
between songwriting and its impact on
developing children's work habits in
collaboration, cooperation, commitment
to quality work, and in turn, character
development. By writing songs, students
were able to tell stories and reflect on
their learning from their songwriting
experiences. The findings from this
study inform the justification and
improvement of the program and
contribute to the school board's body of
evidence used to examine its character
education program.