Susan Hallam

University College London | UCL · Institute of Education

This chapter focuses on music learning and participation in tertiary contexts. We begin by discussing the purpose of tertiary music education, highlighting some critical questions and debates. We explore the ways that different facilitation approaches within tertiary music education can have a profound influence on the musical trajectories of stude...

This chapter explores musicking in the home. We begin by considering the idea of parents and children as musical partners in the home, focusing on research concerned with musical parenting. We then turn to parental involvement in formal instrumental learning and parents as facilitators of home-schooling in music, considering the ways in which diffe...

We begin this chapter with some definitions and theoretical frameworks for self-directed learning (SDL). We then consider the conditions for self-directed learning, framing this discussion with the six dimensions of learning proposed by Heron, as set out in Chap. 1 of this book. The intersection of self-directed learning and experiential learning i...

This chapter focuses on the aims, scope and purpose of adult music learning and participation within non-formal contexts. We begin by considering the idea of music-making as leisure. The question of whether adult learning is qualitatively different from learning at any other stage of life is discussed, framed by the concepts of andragogy and gerago...

This chapter explores the pedagogical characteristics of peer learning, considering how peer learning may be interpreted within the framework of the facilitation modes set out in Chap. 1. We begin this chapter with a review of evidence concerned with the potential benefits of symmetrical peer-to-peer learning or asymmetrical peer-assisted learning....

This chapter focuses on music learning and participation in primary school contexts, considering the ways in which these early formal music education experiences may contribute to lifelong musical possible selves. We begin the chapter with a discussion of some issues concerning the roles of specialist music teachers and generalist classroom teacher...

In this chapter, we discuss music programmes where the primary mission is to use music as a vehicle for fostering social change. We discuss the contexts for such programmes, as well as the characteristics and processes of facilitation and learning that can foster manifold learning and in turn influence musical possible selves. We consider a range o...

In this chapter, we discuss orientations to inclusive teaching, learning and music participation within secondary school music education. We begin the chapter by setting out some shifts in priorities and practices that have influenced secondary school music education. We then discuss the idea of inclusion, focusing on non-formal teaching, informal...

This chapter focuses on the role of technology and social media in music learning and participation. Our specific concern is with the potential for technology and social media to promote innovative approaches and to enable access to music learning among under-served groups. We begin this chapter with the idea of ‘disruptive technologies’ that provi...

This chapter, focusing on Early Years (age 0–5) contexts, explores the assertion that “how parents, educators, therapists, artists ‘see’ children as musical determines what experiences and opportunities they offer, what they encourage, foster and teach” (Young, Critical new perspectives in early childhood music—Young children engaging and learning...

This chapter discusses the aims and purpose of extra-curricular music learning and participation within non-formal contexts. We focus on contexts that serve school-aged children and young people. We consider the developmental potential of extra-curricular music learning and participation, interpreting this within the framework of positive and creat...

Susan Hallam is Professor Emerita at the UCL Institute of Education, UK. Her research interests in music include practising, performing, musical ability, musical understanding and the wider impact of engagement with music. Andrea Creech is Professor of Didactique Instrumentale at the Faculty of Music, Université Laval, Canada, where she holds a Can...

There has been little research on instrument differences in the length and nature of instrumental practice or how these may interact with level of expertise. This paper aimed to address this issue. A total of 3,325 young people ranging in level of expertise from beginner to the level required for entry to higher education conservatoire completed a...

Recently, models have been developed that recognise the complexity of motivation. These set out the interactions that occur between environmental (cultural, institutional, familial, educational) and internal factors (cognition and affect) enhancing or reducing motivation. Despite this we know very little about gender differences in motivation in re...

While there has been a great deal of research on instrumental practice and the nature of motivation to engage with music making, there has been relatively little that has considered the relationship of these with instrumental examination outcomes. This research aimed to address this issue. A total of 2,131 young musicians, aged 6–19, across a wide...

A maior parte das pesquisas realizadas sobre Ansiedade na Performance Musical (APM) tem considerado sua relação com as características internas do intérprete musical, a condição de preparação para a performance e fatores relativos ao ambiente no momento da execução. Os métodos para o seu alívio geralmente têm natureza clínica. Poucas pesquisas situ...

There has been considerable research on instrumental practice and musical motivation. This paper aimed to extend this research studying instrument differences in beginner players in relation to their practice and motivation. Almost 500 beginner instrumentalists and vocalists completed a questionnaire which consisted of a number of statements relati...

Introduction Participation in musical activities has been shown to enhance social cohesion, enjoyment, personal development and empowerment (Sixsmith and Gibson, 2007; Hallam et al, 2017). Many benefits have been reported for older people (Creech et al, 2013a), with research on singing demonstrating how it contributes to increased energy; reduction...

This is the first of two volumes arising from the ground-breaking New Dynamics of Ageing Research Programme. While the Programme produced many scientific papers and several project-based books this is the only place where most of the projects are represented in specially commissioned chapters that not only report the key findings of each piece of r...

The current research aimed to explore the extent to which school professionals and local authority staff perceived that there was a role for educational psychologists in the processes involved in implementing, monitoring and offering support to young people for whom a managed move was being arranged. The study was conducted in one English local aut...

The aim of this research was to explore the impact of the adoption of the Musical Futures approach on the musical progression of students in Musical Futures’ Champion schools. The research took place over three years in three phases with 733 students and 28 music teachers completing questionnaires. Data from the interviews with 39 staff and focus g...

Music education has faced considerable challenges in trying to bridge the gap between music in young people’s lives and that taking place in the classroom. The ‘Musical Futures’ initiative aimed to devise new and imaginative ways of engaging young people, aged 11–19, in music activities through a process of informal learning based initially on popu...

There is increasing international evidence that playing a musical instrument has a positive impact on attainment at school but little research has been undertaken in the UK. This study addresses this drawing on data on attainment at age 11 and 16 relating to 608 students, 115 of whom played a musical instrument. The findings showed that the young p...

This paper is based on the data collected from a longitudinal study of seven maintained, secondary schools in England that have adopted Musical Futures as an approach to teaching music. The research had a particular focus on key stage 3 (11–14). For the purposes of this paper, data gained from 18 music staff and 325 student interview transcriptions...

Music can be understood in many ways. This has important implications for music education. The research reported here explored how groups of people conceptualise musical understanding and what they believe supports its acquisition. In this study 463 participants completed two statements: “Musical understanding is” and “You learn to understand music...

This research aimed to provide an account of the impact of the Musical Futures approach on the wider school community in Musical Futures ‘Champion Schools’. Questionnaires were completed by 344 non-music teachers. Interviews were undertaken with members of senior management teams. The majority of staff indicated that Musical Futures had had a posit...

This research aimed to consider whether there were gender differences in the amount of practice undertaken by boys and girls, the practice strategies adopted and motivation to practise. A sample of 2027 girls and 1225 boys aged 6–19 years, ranging in level of expertise from beginner through to conservatory entrance level, playing instruments repres...

Although there is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people’s wellbeing, little attention has been paid to the potential for music making to effect a significant contribution to the quality of life of older people. The research summarised here explored the role of music in older people’s lives and how participation in community...

Recent models of musical motivation have recognised the complex interactions which occur between environmental (cultural, institutional, familial, educational) and internal factors (cognition and affect) in enhancing or reducing motivation. Much previous research has been small scale and not taken account of long term musical aspirations. This arti...

Although there is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people’s well-being, little attention has been paid to the potential for music making to effect a significant contribution to the quality of life of older people. The research summarised here explored the role of music in older people’s lives and how participation in communit...

The aim of this research was to explore the impact of the adoption of the Musical Futures (MF) approach on secondary school music teachers working in MF Champion schools. The research took place over 3 years in 3 phases with 28 teachers completing questionnaires exploring the impact on their confidence, skills and pedagogy and 30 being interviewed...

Although there is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people’s well-being, little attention has been paid to the role of those facilitating such activities. This research explored the benefits and challenges for those working in facilitating musical activities with older people. The research was undertaken at three UK case study...

Music education has faced considerable challenges in trying to bridge the gap between music in young people's lives and that taking place in the classroom. The ‘Musical Futures’ (MF) initiative aimed to devise new and imaginative ways of engaging young people, aged 11–19, in music activities through a process of informal learning based on popular m...

The current research aimed to increase understanding of the experiences of young people and their parents of managed moves, what contributed to success and the nature of the challenges experienced. The study was conducted in one English Local Authority, where five young people and their parents were interviewed. Five superordinate themes emerged fr...

This paper explores the effects of two kinds of background music on task performance of primary school children and the extent to which the children were aware of the effects of the music. Children aged 10 to 11 were asked to write an exciting story while listening to arousing, calming or no music. They then completed a questionnaire to establish t...

The current research aimed to increase understanding of the processes of managed moves for children at risk of exclusion from school, particularly exploring what contributed to success and the nature of the challenges experienced. The study was conducted in one English local authority where 11 school staff and 5 local authority staff were interview...

The principal aim of this paper is to address the question of whether and how professional practice within an informal teaching and learning context (music) may be understood through a critical-geragogy lens. Secondly, we consider whether critical geragogy has relevance to and potential applications for enhancing practice among facilitators of olde...

There is accruing evidence which indicates that actively making music can contribute to the enhancement of a range of non-musical skills and lead to other beneficial outcomes.

This book draws on research from neuroscience, psychology, education and music to set out our current understanding of the ways in which active engagement with music can impact on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people. The findings reveal that there is considerable and compelling evidence that musical traini...

This chapter concentrates on health and well-being, drawing on 11 New Dynamics of Ageing (NDA) projects covering the whole range, from basic biology to the arts and humanities. Our main purpose is to employ the findings from our projects to examine the barriers to healthy ageing and how to overcome them. By way of introduction to this discussion of...

This chapter discusses the various aspects of health and well-being in later life that were studied by fourteen different NDA projects. The first part of this chapter examines some of the key concepts in this field, including quality of life and subjective well-being. It focuses on the barriers to healthy ageing and good quality of life in old age....

Historically, in the professional training of musicians, the master-apprentice model has played a central role in instilling the methods and values of the discipline, contributing to the rigorous formation of talent. Expert professional musicians advocate that certain thinking skills can be modelled through the master-apprentice model, yet its crit...

Active Ageing with Music explores the powerful potential for active music-making to support wellbeing among older people. While major demographic transitions are currently underway, significant problems of social isolation, depression, and chronic disease among older people have been noted, requiring cost-effective and compassionate responses. This...

The principal aim of this paper is to address the question of whether and how professional practice within an informal teaching and learning context (music) may be understood through a critical geragogy lens. Secondly, we consider whether critical geragogy has relevance and potential applications with regard to enhancing practice amongst facilitato...

The adoption of setting in the primary school (pupils ability grouped across classes for particular subjects) emerged during the 1990s as a means to raise standards. Recent research based on 8875 children in the Millennium Cohort Study showed that 25.8% of children in Year 2 were set for literacy and mathematics and a further 11.2% of children were...

Sixteen flute students at two levels of expertise from conservatories in Madrid participated in an individual semi-structured interview designed to explore the activities they carry out when they learn a new piece of music, as well as the elements of the musical score that they work on. The learning process was divided into three stages: beginning,...

Background: There is considerable evidence that participating in music making can have benefits for children and young people. This research explored how participation in making music might support the social, emotional and cognitive well-being of older people. Methods: Comparisons were made between older people participating in a wide range of mus...

This research evaluates a pilot of alternative education provision for disaffected young people. IOE Research Briefings are short descriptions of significant research findings, based on the wide range of projects carried out by IOE researchers.

The Department for Education is running a three-year school exclusion trial, which started in autumn 2011 and continues until July 2014. The trial sees schools taking on responsibility for placing permanently excluded pupils in alternative provision and funding the placements from money devolved from. IOE Research Briefings are short descriptions o...

This research is an evaluation of the Musical Futures project set up to discover new ways of engaging 11 to 19-year-olds with music. IOE Research Briefings are short descriptions of significant research findings, based on the wide range of projects carried out by IOE researchers.

This research is an evaluation of a national pilot to improve outcomes in literacy and numeracy for children. IOE Research Briefings are short descriptions of significant research findings, based on the wide range of projects carried out by IOE researchers.

There has been a gradual increase in the body of literature regarding seniors’ musical preferences, learning approaches, development, and creativity. This literature dispels existing myths that perceive older people as a homogeneous group, characterized by decrepitude and diminishing capacity, and with a passive contribution to society. A phenomeno...

A compelling body of research demonstrates that music continues to offer powerful potential for enhancing health and well-being in old age. Active music-making has been found to provide a source of enhanced social cohesion, enjoyment, personal development, and empowerment, and to contribute to recovery from depression and maintenance of personal we...

The basis of this article is findings from the Music for Life Project which investigated the benefits and challenges of music activity participation for the over 50s in three case study sites in the United Kingdom. The paper uses a philosophical lens to explore the leaders’ and participants’ views on the purpose of the activities, how learners are...

The research reported here focuses on the organizational structure and facilitator strategies observed in musical activities with older people. The observations formed one part of the Music for Life Project, funded by the ESRC New Dynamics of Ageing Programme (http://www.newdynamics.group.shef.ac.uk/), which investigated the social, emotional and c...

There is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people's well-being. There is increasing evidence that active engagement with music has the potential to contribute to this. This paper explores the relationship between musical possible selves and subjective well-being in later life. The research reported here formed part of a larger...

Between 2008 and 2010, the internationally acclaimed London Symphony Orchestra worked in partnership with the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and 10 East London Music Services, delivering a range of music education projects that involved professional musicians, classroom teachers, primary school-aged pupils and college students. This article cons...

Aims: This research explored the relationship between active music making and subjective well-being, in older people's lives. The research focused on how participation in making music might enhance older people's social, emotional and cognitive well-being, through meeting the basic psychological needs identified in earlier research. Method: The...

It has been said that participation in master classes provides an initiation into a community of practice (Hanken, 2008; Creech et al., 2009) and that contemporary practices in higher music education are strongly informed by those of the past (Froehlich, 2002, cf. Heikinheimo, 2009). This is certainly true of public master classes which provide stu...

There is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people's health and well-being. There is increasing evidence that active engagement with music has the potential to contribute to this. This research aimed to explore the characteristics of older people who participated in active music making with a view to identifying the groups that...

This article focuses on the reported benefits of participation in music activities, identified by participants of the Music for Life Project. The participants engaged in weekly music activities offered in three locations: two centres in London and one in the North of England. Their responses were collected through questionnaires and focus group int...

This article focuses on the reported benefits of participation in musical activi¬ties identified by people over the age of 50, who participated in the Music for Life Project (MFLP). The participants engaged in weekly musical activities offered in three locations; two centres in London and one in northern England. Their responses were collected thro...

There has been considerable research considering how instrumental practice changes as expertise develops. Much of that research has been relatively small scale and restricted in the range of instrumentalists included. This paper aimed to explore the development of practising strategies and motivation to practise as expertise develops with a large s...

Musical scores constitute a key element in the development of expertise in musicians from western tonal traditions, since they act as a mediator between the performer and the music itself. Our aim was to study the role of musical scores in instrumental performance practice by analysing the process of learning a new piece of music, as well as the fr...

Between September 2008 and August 2010 24 KS2 classroom teachers were involved in a two-year programme of continuing professional development (CPD), delivered by the LSO in partnership with Local Authority Music Services. The teachers indicated that they embarked on the CPD programme looking forward to opportunities to share good practice, gain new...

The adoption of streaming in the primary school (where children are placed in a class on the basis of measures of attainment and remain in that class all of the time) was commonplace when the 11 plus examination was used to select children for grammar school places. During the 1950s and 1960s the practice died out with most children being taught in...

This paper reports on qualitative research undertaken at a conservatoire in the United Kingdom, exploring students' perceptions of how they were supported in realising their aspirations as professional musicians and making the transition to professional life. In particular, the research explored students' perceptions of the role played by their ins...

There is a large body of literature devoted to examining the effects of music on behaviour and cognition, driven by a desire to understand the effect of playing music on the performance of an ongoing task, e.g., studying, driving, exercising, shopping, or eating. In this sense, background music can be defined as the act of music being played when t...

There is abundant evidence that humans as a species are 'musical', that they share similar brain structures that respond to music. However, it may be that it cannot be established, beyond doubt, to what extent individual musical ability is learned or inherited. Pragmatically, this chapter suggests that people provide their children with opportuniti...

This article describes a music project that took place as part of a bigger project, entitled the Music for Life Project that explored the social and emotional benefits of music participation for people over fifty. The intergenerational project was led by two music leaders from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. The participants involved were pu...

Although there is now an accepted need for initiatives that support older people’s well-being, little attention has been paid to what constitutes effective leadership of such activities. This research explored perceptions of effective leaders of musical activities with older people. Three case study sites engaged with the research that drew on the...

The cyclic process of self-regulated learning has been identified as a predictor of achievement in musical skill acquisition and musical performance. Meta-cognition, intrinsic to the self-regulation process, develops as the student takes greater responsibility for their own learning. From this perspective we consider music students' responses to a...

This article aims to increase our understanding of how amateur musicians become teachers as a change of career, how they use their musical and life skills in their teaching, and how their teaching impacts on their musical identity. The questionnaire responses of 67 career-change instrumental and vocal teachers showed evidence of their strong identi...

Research exploring learning outcomes in instrumental music has tended to focus on attainment ignoring other outcomes including long-term commitment to engage with music. This research addresses this issue. One hundred and sixty-three instrumental music students completed a questionnaire which sought information about their practising strategies, at...

This study aimed to assess the perceived impact of young people's active engagement in ensemble music making. Sixty-two non-music university students were asked to report on the impact that their participation in music making had on their lives. The data were analysed using Atlas.ti software. There was a reported positive impact on social, musical...

Researchers in recent years have increasingly placed an emphasis on seeking pupils' perceptions of educational settings. Alongside this shift towards attaching value to the pupil viewpoint has been a growing interest concerning how interpersonal relationships, manifested as control or responsiveness between teachers and pupils or parents and pupils...

This study explored gender differences in perceptions of studying for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). The sample comprised 644 pupils drawn from eight schools in Outer London, UK. The schools encompassed pupils who could be regarded as high, middle and low achievers drawn from co‐educational and single‐sex schools. Pupils com...

This chapter focuses on the processes concerned with learning and the development of musical expertise which are common to all human beings but which develop differentially depending on the environment (cultural and ecological) within which individuals are located. It considers what we know about human learning, the way that the brain develops in r...

Rating scale questionnaires were administered to 600 students in three age groups, 12–13, 15–16 and 20–21 from Japan, the UK, Greece and the USA. The questionnaires explored the extent of playing music while studying, the kinds of tasks when music was played, the perceived effects of music on studying, the characteristics and types of music played...

The overall aims of this study were to identify qualities of interpersonal interaction within teacher- parent-pupil learning partnerships and to explore whether these characteristics were predictors of learning and teaching outcomes for teachers, parents and pupils participating in pursuit of expertise on musical instruments. This article presents...

This paper reviews the empirical evidence relating to the effects of active engagement with music on the intellectual, social and personal development of children and young people. It draws on research using the most advanced technologies to study the brain, in addition to quantitative and qualitative psychological and educational studies. It expla...

This study explored conceptions of musical ability using an inventory derived from previous qualitative research. Participants included 102 musicians, 95 educators, 132 adult amateur musicians, 60 adults who were not actively engaged in making music. 193 children actively engaged in making music in addition to their engagement with the school curri...

This research uses the psychological construct of ‘possible selves’ to investigate the aspirations of 25 students in Year 11. ‘Possible selves’ provide a conceptual link between self-concept and motivation. The study compared the positive, negative and impossible possible selves of Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) attendees with participants from a second...

This research aimed to explore whether pupils’ perceptions of studying for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) altered during the two‐year period of study of this qualification. Six hundred and forty four pupils from eight schools in outer London completed a self‐report questionnaire on two occasions, once in Year 10 and once in Y...

This paper describes staff perceptions of the implementation of an alternative curriculum, Skill Force, for disaffected pupils in the UK. The perceptions of Skill Force and school staff were compared based on data from questionnaires completed by 62 Skill Force and 84 school staff, and interviews with representative samples of each. While the data...

The landscape of music education in the UK is constantly shifting and developing. This book provides a timely and unique overview of this restless sector by considering the achievements of music education, analysing its current performance and setting out aspirations for the future. "Music Education in the 21st Century in the United Kingdom" addres...

The introduction of alternative curricula in the UK for students in the secondary phase is one of a number of strategies designed to improve attendance at school, reduce exclusion and improve attainment. Skill Force is a charitable youth initiative that offers 14- to 16-year-old students a key skills based vocational alternative to the traditional...

The aim of this research was to investigate the value and purpose of Master Classes, from the perspective of Conservatoire students. Thirty-seven UK Conservatoire students responded to a questionnaire, providing information about their prior experiences of Master Classes, the factors that they considered to be important in a successful Master Class...