Overview:
Music education, like all academic subjects, has a teaching philosophy founded on a set of principles designed present the discipline with a unified body of pedagogy. The music methods or teaching approaches of Carl Orff, Jaques-Émile Dalcroze, Zoltán Kodály and Edwin Gordon have been researched and practiced for music educators for many decades. Each encourages active participate by the students and are systematic in design.
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
- Describe four of the most widely recognized music education approaches,
- Delineate the rationale underlying each approach,
- Identify and describe principles of each methodology,
- Identify methods or steps for implementing each of the approaches, and
- Identify teaching elements that are unique to each approach.
What are Different Teaching Approaches in Elementary Music?
Music educators in the United States are recognized for implementing an eclectic curriculum. Music has been a part of the school curriculum for more than 100 years, and throughout this period teaching methods have continued to evolve. Affected by changes in lifestyle, technology, and philosophical approach, many methods have been retained, new ones created, and others developed as a combination of old and new methods. The individuality and flexibility of the American educational system has enabled music educators to create and implement personal teaching methods that are shaped by each individual’s education, interests, instructional goals, and the needs of the students.
Four of the most widely recognized approaches are:
- Orff
- Dalcroze
- Kodály
- Gordon