Week Aim Activity
0 Pre-test HoM gave the group a GCSE past paper and marked it.
1 To assess students’ understanding of musical scores Students were given 10 extracts from musical scores, from a range of genres. I asked them what they could tell, from looking at the scores. I played them relevant extracts of music on a CD player, and they matched the music they heard to the correct extract from the score, explaining why the extract matched the score.
2 To develop the ability to follow a score Students listened to extracts of music, using Windows Media Player, whilst following the relevant scores. I asked them to put a mark on the score, every 30 seconds. They did this several times, with me guiding them, prior to working individually.
3 To help them to show physically, what they could hear mentally I taught them to ‘draw the melody in the air’ – to indicate relative pitch by moving their hands up or down, according to the melodic contour of the music they were hearing. I did this with them several times, asking them to imitate me first, and to look away when they became more confident. I then gave them a set of ‘multiple choice’ tasks: scores with missing bars, for each of which I had prepared four possible ‘fillers’. I asked them to draw each filler in the air, before hearing the music. When the music was played they drew the missing bars using hand signs, and then writing the melodic contour on the page, before deciding which filler was correct.
4 To give them practice at answering the GCSE task I gave them six practice questions, similar to those in the GCSE examinations, but less difficult. (I chose music in which the melody moved slowly, and mostly by step, mostly from the Baroque and Classical styles.) I also gave them written instructions, which we discussed at length (see below). Students started to answer the questions, each at an individual computer, and continued this for homework.
5 To review what had been learned I assessed the students’ responses to the practice questions and conducted two focus-group interviews, asking them how they had approached the practice questions.
6 To review further what had been learned I gave all the students questionnaires, and observed four students, who were working on the practice questions.
7 Post-test HoM administered and marked a similar GCSE past paper