Nova Scotia Classrooms Combine Music and Technology

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT--Nova Scotia Classrooms Combine Music and Technology

The following is a feature story from the Office of Economic Development.

Students at R.B. Dickey Elementary School in Amherst are singing the praises of a new pilot program that lets them compose their own music and get critical feedback from advanced musicians.

Composers In Virtual Classrooms (CIVIC) connects music students and teachers from six elementary schools in the province with music education students from Acadia University and professional composers. A unique combination of music-composition software and the Internet make it possible.

The program is a project of the Department of Education, the Acadia School of Music and the Acadia Institute for Teaching and Technology (AITT), and is funded by the Information Economy Initiative. The initiative is a provincial/federal partnership that has leveraged about $90 million in information technology projects in schools, universities and communities across Nova Scotia since 1998.

AITT trains teachers in the use of technology in the classroom in an effort to keep Nova Scotia's education system and its students competitive with the rest of the world.

The pilot "reaches students you can't reach any other way," said music teacher Ruth Nichols.

Students start by using composition software to enter notes, keys and time signatures to create their pieces. The program plays back what they have entered so they can hear it and make revisions. When they are satisfied, they upload their creation to the CIVIC Web site and request feedback from the Acadia students and composers involved in the program as well as from their peers.

"I like making our own music. I like to listen to what other people thought about my work and listening to theirs," said Amanda, a 10-year-old student at R.B. Dickey.

Ruth Morrison, a professor at the Acadia School of Music and the CIVIC project leader, started the program after hearing about the success of a similar one in Vermont.

"They are creating something, hearing what other people have to say, and then deciding for themselves how they want to improve on their work, based on that feedback," she said. "Instead of just being a passive listener, they are actively creating and learning."

Using the software is a significant step up from writing the music on paper and then trying to play it note by note. It allows students to compose different parts for different instruments and to hear the music as it would be played.

"Sometimes the students' ability to play their instrument hinders their ability to actually hear what their composition would sound like," said Dr. Morrison. "This technology opens up a whole new world of composition possibilities that wouldn't normally be possible for students at these levels."

"Students are making requests that lead to acquisition of new musical skills and ideas that are far beyond their current level," she said. "It really gives them a need to learn, and it helps promote lifelong learning."

Ms. Nichols said the program helps students realize that music theory actually has a purpose and an enjoyable end result.

"It makes the connection between the music class and the music they hear in the world every day," she said. "It really makes it relevant."

If the CIVIC project continues to be a successful learning tool, its organizers hope to move it beyond the six test sites and incorporate it into all music classrooms in the province.