It is a given that, as music educators, we are all required to grade our students. So how do we accomplish this requirement? Consider the following scenarios:
So how do (should) we grade? On what criteria? Does effort matter? Is achievement the only criteria? What about improvement? How do we verify and document musical learning? If our kids fail music, who has failed? The student or his teacher? Obviously evaluation of performance is a complex and thorny problem.
The ideas presented in this paper were developed as a joint effort between the author and Linda Rann, choral director at Dan F. Long Middle School, Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, Dallas, Texas. This paper will specify several suggested assessment techniques; but unfortunately, cannot add the visual dimension. Video and audio taped examples of students performing these techniques appeared during the presentation of this information.
This paper will be unabashedly practical. It will not include a bibliography of information relative to assessment in performance classes, although that would be an interesting and valuable project. I will simply present assessment ideas and examples which teachers have tried and tested in their own situations. They may or may not be effective when transferred to a different set of circumstances. It is assumed that teachers reading these suggestions will avoid the trap of I can't do this in my classroom because of the differences between my classes and the ones given as examples. and instead adopt the mind set of How can I modify this idea to fit my situation? Perhaps modifications are necessary because one has larger classes than the sample ideas. Perhaps an example used for a junior high choir might be transferred with slight changes to a high school band or an elementary classroom. Readers are encouraged to do what effective teachers have been doing for years; i.e., make transfers to their own classroom.
Practical, however, does not mean devoid of a philosophical base. The suggestions made in this paper will be based on the idea that assessment of music performance classes should meet the following criteria:
1. Effective assessment should be derived directly from what we do every day. Too many tests establish totally different assessment procedures. We stop rehearsing and test student's knowledge of some minute aspect of music (often theory, since it is relatively easy to grade) because we need to have six grades this marking period. If the chief activity of the class is singing, then we should assess progress in singing, not ability to draw quarter notes or name the lines and spaces.
2. Effective assessment should be true to our discipline. Music performance is a valuable way of knowing. Reading words on the page or answering a series of factual questions about a given subject matter is not the only way a student demonstrates his understanding of the world. We need to emphasize the unique aspects of our subject matter. Music performance is indeed a higher level thinking skill. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to express my ideas about the importance of music in the form of a curriculum guide for the district in which I was teaching at the time.
Music is re-created each time it is performed or rehearsed, and this re-creation demands continuous use of higher level thinking skills by both director and performers. Very little choral performance can be accomplished with mere knowledge-level information. Continual evaluation is demanded.
How can I find the correct notes? What did the composer want here? Do I agree? How can I improve the sound of my part? What was better about this performance than yesterday's rehearsal? Would this same vocal technique work on another piece? How do we want the audience to react? How should I prepare myself physically for the difficult passage ahead? Is my voice blending with the others? Am I singing too loudly? The tenors are flatting. Can we sopranos pull the pitch up at our next entrance? Why does it sound so wonderful when the group sings the crescendo just like this? How can we make this feeling happen again?
These are just a few example of higher level questions which are asked continuously (verbally or internally) as a piece is rehearsed and performed. (Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, 1989 pp. 10-13).
3. Effective assessment should demand the same higher level thinking skills as does performance. If we stress the unique way of knowing (Bruner, 1962) which occurs during performance, then we must create assessment instruments which also demand higher level thinking.
4. Effective assessment should hold students accountable for their individual performances. It is my position that it is vital that students be evaluated individually within a group. Individual assessment allows each student to:
a. Perceive his/her own growth and worth;
b. Become personally accountable;
c. Become aware of his/her personal contribution to the group (It's all too easy for a third clarinet player or a tiny-voiced second soprano to escape the director's attention);
d. Assess his/her personal development as a musician.
It is vital to the teacher that students be evaluated individually so that teachers can determine where each person is musically and what needs to be taught next. Teachers have noted that a particularly valuable result of individual assessment within a group is improved discipline. Student musicians become more aware of and seem more likely to be responsible for their own actions..both musically and behaviorally.
5. Finally, effective assessment techniques must allow for uninterrupted classes and rehearsals, and must not consume inordinate amounts of scoring time. None of us have extra rehearsal time to devote to testing.
Suggested assessment techniques for Bands, Orchestras, Choirs and General Music situations follow. All meet the philosophical criteria discussed above; all have been tried in the classroom. For ease of discussion, suggestions will be categorized into:
I. Assessment of Fundamentals (Testing Beginning-of-the-Year Basic Skills)
II. Assessment of Ongoing Activities (Testing Sequential Skills)
III. Assessment of Advanced Activities (Testing While Performing)
IV. Assessment of Individual Growth (Pre-Post Testing)
V. Assessment of Written Essays (If You Don't Ask, You May Never Know)
(TESTING BEGINNING-OF-THE-YEAR BASIC SKILLS)
A continual problem for choral educators (and most probably for instrumental educators as well) is encouraging/demanding/developing correct posture among performers. If this is such a vital beginning-of-the-year basic, then why not evaluate progress? Doing so makes students personally responsible for their own posture and removes the onus of sitting or standing correctly because the director says so.
My junior high singers memorized the six steps to correct singing position listed below, took a written test over that list (to emphasize its importance) and then I videotaped a singing position test while the entire organization stood on risers singing a familiar warm-up exercise.
Crowd control hint: Videotape the entire choir (all rows) but grade only the front row. The front row then moves to the back row, the second row moves down to the front and you videotape again. Avoid videotaping only a few people while the rest of the group watches; this tempts them to get silly.
Running the camera: Operate the camera yourself at first; ask a student the lead the familiar warm-up. Later, when procedures are established, reward a student by letting him/her video. Perhaps you might start with your band president, or consider choosing a student who has done something especially well recently. Make sure that the person running the camera understands that any classroom rule infractions will result in loss of his/her video privileges.
The first few times you videotape, you may need to remind students that the camera will indeed see everything and that you will review these tapes. I usually told students the story of a particularly unwise student who made inappropriate gestures on the tape, denied that he did so, and thus had the opportunity to watch the video with his teacher and parents.
Figure 1
Singing Position Grade
Name______________________________ Date________________
You need improvement in the areas checked below.
_____ 1. Feet shoulder width apart
_____ 2. Knees slightly bent
_____ 3. Buttocks tucked
_____ 4. Arms at side
_____ 5. Shoulders back
_____ 6. Head erect
_____ Congratulations! Your singing position is wonderful.
Total Singing Position Score ____
Grading Note: You could use this form in three ways:
1) Checklist only. Form becomes a progress report rather than a test.
2) Take 16 points off for each category performed incorrectly
(16x6 = 96+4 pts. for name on paper=100)
3) Take 5 points off for each category performed incorrectly
(lowest possible grade =70.)
Using this system, everyone who tries, succeeds to some degree.
Establish criteria for grading these tapes as shown in Figure 1. This video should be graded to establish the idea of how important correct singing position is. This particular activity will probably not give the director much information, but it quickly develops a sense of individual responsibility among performers.
Directors may want to evaluate another basic skill at the same time. For example, if you use Curwen hand signs, ask students to warm-up while demonstrating accurate signing. Then you can evaluate both correct posture and knowledge of hand signs.
At first, students should be aware their progress is being evaluated and exactly what the criteria are for success. Later, directors may want to assess posture while singers are rehearsing without telling them that they will be evaluated. This tape is especially good to review with the singers.
Videotape singers performing an exercise emphasizing use of tall vowels. Evaluate their progress by reviewing (or allowing them to review) the tapes. I have found checklists as appear in Figure 2 to be effective in informing singers what the criteria are for correct vowel diction.
Figure 2
VOWELS AND MOUTH POSITION PROGRESS REPORT
Name______________________________ Date________________
You need improvement in the areas checked below. Pay special attention to the
specific vowels circled.
_____ Open mouth more
A E Ah Oh Oo All
_____ Sing with taller vowels. (Pull in the corners of your mouth.)
A E Ah Oh Oo All
_____ Move lips more
A E Ah Oh Oo All
_____ Put more expression on your face
_____ Mouth position is wonderful. Good work!
As before, this exercise can be used while singers are performing a familiar exercise and know they are being evaluated, or while they are singing a song and do not know they are being graded. Most performers begin to ignore the camera after two or three taping sessions unless the director reminds them of its presence. Expect to find much lower scores when students are not told they will be evaluated on posture or mouth position. This is the musical perforce equivalent of the pop quiz.
Such basic skills as correct breathing can be assessed using similar procedures. For example, ask performers to bring their middle fingers together so that they are just barely touching. Then instruct them to place their hands at their waists and inhale deeply. If inhalation forces their middle fingers apart slightly, they are breathing correctly. Students who breathe incorrectly will not expand across their midsections, or they will lift their shoulders when inhaling. This procedure may be observed in real time, or may be taped and reviewed later. The process of videotaping seems to make students feel more personally responsible and that they are making progress. Allowing students to view their videos occasionally while reading the criteria for good breathing technique also removes the teacher from the process. The teacher did not give a grade. The student and observe that he/she earned a grade.
Julie Campbell, a middle school orchestra director, uses a similar idea to evaluate her beginning string students. She uses the forms in Figures 3 and 4 to evaluate progress. Note that it would be possible to use this form after viewing a videotape of specific players or while observing each player during a sectional rehearsal. That decision probably depends on the number of students one must evaluate. A relatively small number of players can be evaluated with ease in a sectional. Larger numbers of musicians are probably more efficiently evaluated using video.
Ms. Campbell uses the entire form (both Figures 3 & 4 for 100 total points) to evaluate her string players. Teachers of beginning players may want to assess students on only a portion of the form so that players can become familiar with posture expectations, or exactly what is meant by intonation or tone. The familiar saying that people can only change one thing at a time is generally quite true. Ask students to concentrate on a single aspect of their musicianship and then move on to other criteria once the first concept is securely learned. As we know, a large part of the art of teaching is deciding what to fix next. When students are given too much at once, they tend to be able to change little or nothing.
Figure 3
Orchestra Evaluation Form: Right Hand, Left Hand & Posture
Right Hand Left Hand & Posture Name Total Hand Elbow Wrist Shoulder Elbow Wrist F. Tips Thumb Shoulder Back
Score 5 2 2 2 2 2 4 1 2 2
______________________________________________________________
Figure 4
Orchestra Evaluation Form: Intonation, Tone, Selection, Accuracy
Intonation Tone Selection Accuracy
Name Total Adjust Match St. Bow Quality Dynamics Bowings Style Rhythm Pitch
Score 10 10 5 5 5 5 5 15 15
The assessment of posture, playing position and embouchure appears to be an obvious transfer for evaluating basic skills in band. A similar form as the Orchestra Evaluation Form (Figures 3 and 4) could be developed for each instrument, emphasizing the unique requirements for brass and woodwind embouchures, etc..
A procedure similar to the one suggested for emphasizing posture among singers could be developed; e.g., focus on the all-too-typical clarinet slump.
(TESTING SEQUENTIAL SKILLS)
This section will emphasize the types of skills which develop over time throughout the life of a musician. Our examples in this section will include choral sightreading suggestions, development of an internal steady beat among elementary children, and conducting as a way of both teaching and evaluating rhythmic precision.
It is quite common to evaluate choral organizations on group sight-reading progress. Many contests and festivals in various states set up situations which formalize such procedures. Incidentally, in the opinion of this choral educator, the goals of any choral program which fails to provide singers with a system for reading music and a daily opportunity to practice that system should be carefully re-examined.
Evaluation of individual progress in sight-reading is perhaps less common than group assessment. There are several reasons why assessing individuals can be extremely valuable to both the singer and the director. Linda Rann, choral director at Long Middle School in suburban Dallas, Texas and frequent sweepstakes winner at concert and sight-reading contests, lists the following advantages when evaluating individual sight-reading progress:
a. Directors become more familiar with the voices in their choir. They can assess vocal production at the same time they are listening to sight-reading progress. This is especially helpful when listening to changing voice boys. No voices are lost in the middle of the section.
b. Directors can determine where the most frequent mistakes are made and drill those areas with the entire choir. For example, one of the most frequently missed intervals is the descending minor third (sol to mi). Another common error is mistaking do-re for do-mi. These mistakes are being made all the time during group sightreading, but are usually covered by the group. Such errors contribute to the generally muddy sound often heard while sightreading. These same errors are probably where the intonation problems occur in the repertoire being learned. The director can identify and improve those areas with the group.
c. Directors can identify what to teach next based on how many individuals have demonstrated their readiness to continue.
d. Directors can identify students with continuing sightreading problems and ask them to retake the evaluation, see that they get peer tutoring from students who are confident of their sightreading, or directors can pull them aside and give them extra help.
e. Assessing individuals makes each singer responsible for his/her learning. Individuals can perceive progress. They are not lost in the crowd.
Given the advantages of individual testing, what test does one use? We originally tried what we thought was a very easy test based on excerpts from Patterns of Sound by Bacak and Crocker (1988). It became apparent that students sight-read individually at a much lower skill level than they read as a group. We found that all but a few students could not make it through more than the first two or three exercises, so we developed a much easier evaluation tool. We also wrote several retest examples for each exercise. Then if a student did not succeed on the first try, he/she had a new example to sight-read which was of the same level of difficulty as the original.
Using this test (samples of which appear in Figure 5), Linda Rann developed the following procedure to use as little rehearsal time as possible to assess sightreading progress. She describes it this way:
Each week, all of my singers audiotape themselves singing a brief, four-measure solfege example. The students' names are listed on a laminated card. The person whose name is first on the card leaves rehearsal, goes to a practice room, audiotapes the test, returns to class and gives the card to the next person on the list so that little class time is lost and rehearsal is not interrupted.
Each student has his own sightreading sheet with the semester's examples on it in a notebook that is left in the practice room. When he enters the practice room, he finds his sheet (listed alphabetically), reads my comments about how he did last week and, depending on his success, either re-sings an example (a re-teach example that is different from the original but contains the same musical problem) or sings the next example. He presses record, states his name, and sings his example onto the tape, which contains the tests of all the members of his class.
I take the notebook and the completed tape home and listen to each student sight-sing. I then know each student's problems, I have an indication of how voices are changing, and I can identify a particular problem area that the whole choir should work on. I also have individual weekly singing grades. By having different students tested on different days, I can keep tabs on how each of my singers is doing in about 30 minutes each day (Rann as quoted in Killian, 1991).
Linda Rann uses this procedure to evaluate the sight-reading progress of her junior high students. Usually her choirs have a total of 120-150 students. She grades them by giving each student a 70 (a passing grade) if he/she attempts the sightreading. The remaining 30 points are given depending upon the accuracy of each attempt and the number of notes in each test. For example, in the first sight-reading exercise (Figure 5) one point would be awarded for each correct note and each correct rhythm.
Note about facilities: An actual practice room is not necessary. A hallway, extra classroom, spare closet or the stage may offer quiet spots away from the sound of the rehearsal. High quality taping equipment is also not vital. We use small, inexpensive tape recorders.
A note about crowd control: At first students may be tempted to waste time in the practice room, so it is usually wise to instruct one person (perhaps the choir president) to give each person three minutes and then go get them. Since we have developed this system, a number of schools have adopted it, and there does not seem to be a problem with missing too much rehearsal or becoming distracted and failing to return to class.
Figure 5
Soprano/Alto Sightreading Tests
Directions:
1. Look at your exercise and note the key signature and time signature.
Find Do.
2. Press record. State your full name. State the exercise number.
3. Hum Do and tap one full measure to establish a steady tempo.
4. Sight-read the exercise. DO NOT REWIND. If you make a mistake,
just leave the recorder running and sing it over again.
DO NOT REWIND!!!!!
5. Stop the recorder and return to class.
_____ Exercise 1.
_____ Retest 1a.
______ Retest 1b.
______ Retest 1c.
______ Retest 1d.
_____ Exercise 12.
______ Retest 12a.
______ Retest 12b.
Try teaching your students conducting patterns (first in 4/4, then 3/4 and 2/4) using quarter, halves, wholes, and dotted quarters, then eighth notes. Gradually add more complex patterns and 6/8 meter. If they can conduct accurately, they develop a sense of the beat and a feeling for where rhythmic patterns fit into the beats. Additionally, an observation of a student's conducting video is an effective way of evaluating understandings of rhythm patterns. Develop your own sequence of practice rhythm drills, or use patterns derived from the music they are singing. Another suggestion is to use instrumental rhythm books such as Sueta (1986) or Perkins (1979) as sources of rhythm drills. Yes. Choral folks can use band materials and vice versa. Too often we do not share materials and information, and instead waste time by re-inventing existing information.
Directors can observe an entire class conducting and pick out the few who are having difficulty. Make a simple mark on a seating chart (having it laminated helps) as a reminder to observe those few unsuccessful students more carefully and/or to ask confident peers to work with these students. It is possible to grade these efforts, or simply to mark that they are achieving/not achieving mastery of this skill.
Crowd control hint: Have a line or two of conducting rhythms on an overhead as students enter the classroom. Begin conducting immediately, as soon as the bell rings. This is even more effective if you do not speak to the class, but simply give them one free measure and begin. It is an effective and productive way to focus their attention on the beginning of the rehearsal. It may be confusing to visualize the effect of such conducting tests, but it is extremely easy to perceive the value of this suggestion if one views a video of students conducting. Videotapes of Mrs. Rann's groups conducting complex mixed meters are truly impressive.
Instrumental directors may also want to use conducting as an easily observed measure of rhythmic accuracy. Other possibilities include an idea used by middle school director, John Black. He asks students to audiotape a brief playing assignment during class. He says that students know the routine so they go into the practice room, tape their assignment, and return to class without disrupting the rehearsal. Then during my conference period I listen to the brief playing tests, record their success or failure on the computer and post the results for the kids to see the next day (Black, as quoted in Killian, 1991).
A sample of his computer information appears in Figure 6. Note the immense amount of advance planning necessary, but the relatively few decisions necessary once the plans are made. That means that the director is then completely free to conduct his rehearsal uninterrupted by assessment distractions.
Figure 6
Sample Band Assignments
File: TAPE TESTING SYMPHONIC TAPE ASSIGNMENTS Sept/23 - Sept/27
INSTRUMENT Mon-Sept23 Tue-Sept24 Wed-Sept25 Thur-Sept26 Fri-Sept27
Grade- - >>>>Formative Formative Formative Formative Summative
Flute p.5:L1m1-m2 no test p.5:L1m3-m4 p.5:L1m5-L2m1 Bk:F(#238)
Oboe #26:L1m1-m4 no test #26:L1m5-L2m3 #26:L2m4-L3m2 Bk:F(#238)
Clarinet #2:L1m1-m4 no test #2:L1m5-m6 no test Bk:F(#238)
Bass Clar #2:L1m1-m4 no test #2:L1m5-L2m2 #2:L2m3-m4 Bk:F(#238)
Alto Sax bm1:L1m1-m4 no test bml:L1m5-L2m1 bml:L2m2-m3 Bk:F(#238)
Trumpet #79:L1m1-m4 #79:L1m5-m8 no test #79:L2m1-m4 Bk:F(#238)
F Horn #109:L1m1-m2 #109:L1m3-m4 no test #109:L1m5-L2m Bk:Ab(#235)
Trombone #12:L1m1-m2 #12:L1m3-m4 no test #12:L1m5-L2m1 Bk:F(#238)
Euphonium #12:L1m1-m2 #12:L1m3-m4 no test #12:L1m5-L2m1 Bk:F(#238)
Tuba #36:L1m1-m2 #36:L1m3-m4 no test #36:L2m1-m2 Bk:F(#238)
Percussion no test S:L1m1-m4 S:L1m5-L2m2 S:L2m3-L3m1 Bk:F(#238)
Keeping a steady beat is arguably the basic musical skill. Elementary music teachers may want to observe children keeping a steady beat while they sing a song, march around the room, or play classroom instruments. A time-efficient way of record keeping if you happen to have hundreds of children to evaluate is necessary. Try making a seating chart of each class and laminating it. Then you can determine what objective will be evaluated on a particular day and make a mark on the chart with an erasable marker for every child who cannot perform the task. Then transfer the information from the seating chart to a more permanent grade book. Hint: If you find that there are more children who cannot perform the task than who are able to, you should consider that task too difficult and rethink your objective for that lesson.
Elementary music teachers may want to video the class marching around the room for example. It may be possible to simply leave the camera running. This has the advantage of freeing the teacher to interact with the children rather than tallying counts during class.
Checklists of progress may be useful to include in a child's portfolio. Figure 7 demonstrates the type of checklist which might go in the portfolio of an elementary-age musician.
Figure 7
Individual Progress on Rhythm Sequence
(To Be Included in Student Portfolio)
Student Name________________Teacher's Name _____________Date_____
Scores: Excellent (+) Satisfactory ( ) Needs Improvement (-)
_____l. Student distinguishes rhythm from steady beat.
_____2. Student chants rhythm while keeping the steady beat.
_____3. Student transfers rhythm of a chant to rhythm on an instrument.
_____4. Student plays rhythm on an instrument while others play steady beat.
_____5. Student plays the rhythm of a chant on an instrument without chanting words (internalizes both the rhythm & beat).
For efficiency in planning elementary music lessons, it may be best to label a grade book prior to the start of the year with expected learnings. Examine the National Standards and any local standards and coordinate the two. Then put the National Standard with the appropriate local objective beneath it on a master chart. Then the date on which a child masters that particular skill can be marked on the master chart and transferred or converted into grades. Such a master chart can be used year after year; new and varied activities can be designed to implement a specific objective, but the chart remains the same. Such a chart may help guide a busy elementary music teacher through the difficult Sunday night question of What do I teach next week? A master chart is also a very good way to visually demonstrate what children learn in music to principals, parents and other faculty members who may or may not be convinced of the value of music in a child's life. A sample of this idea appears in Figure 8.
Figure 8
Performing the Steady Beat
(Teacher's Record)
Successful Students Receive a Steady Beat Bear
Scores: Excellent (+) Satisfactory ( ) Needs Improvement (-)
Teacher's Name ____________________________ Grade Level Pre-K 1 2 3
Activity
Student Names Date
etc.
Kathy Prado, an elementary music specialist, has designed a method to make assessments of rhythm understandings very observable. She has rhythm cards in envelopes. She says that these cards are combined in sets of half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes, quarter rests, and bar lines. I then clap a 8-16 count rhythm and have the children place the rhythm cards in the correct order. The cards are color coded with each note on a different color so that I can quickly assess who needs more help. I don't grade the results, but instead check off their progress in my gradebook. A check means mastery, a blank means I need to cycle back to that pattern (Prado, as quoted in Killian, 1991).
(TESTING WHILE PERFORMING)
Music is a performance art. Teaching students to be highly skilled performers is perhaps what we do best as a profession. But don't forget to decide why a particular piece of music is selected. Of all the music in the world, why are these pieces the very best for your group at this time? What musical learnings can be gained from rehearsing this piece to performance level?
Once you have determined why this piece should be taught, then be certain that the assessment chosen matches those original objectives. Do not choose a piece for its arched phrases and then assess the students on rhythmic accuracy. Assess what you have emphasized in the piece and make the musicians aware that they are learning a specific musical skill as they are rehearsing the notes and nuances of a specific selection. Two examples will serve to illustrate my point:
Early One Morning. English Folksong, arranged by Noble Cain for SATB choir. Oliver Ditson publisher.
Essential Learnings might include arched phrases, smoothness of line, choral blend, or lyric style. Select one of these factors and re-write it as an objective. The singer will sing with arched phrases, making a crescendo and decrescendo every four measures using a supported tone. Note that this objective will fit under National Standard 1E: Students sing with expression and technical accuracy a varied repertoire (Consortium of National Arts Education Associations, 1994). Then design assessment techniques which evaluate progress on the ability to sing arched phrases. Avoid assessing ability to recognize quarter and eighth notation, or students' knowledge of the names of lines and spaces, or Bach's birth and death dates. Instead, design techniques to assess what you are teaching, in this case, arched phrasing.
Sonatemi un balletto by Giovanni Gastoldi arranged by Matthew Marks for SSA in Essential Repertoire for the Young Choir. Hal Leonard Publications.
The essential learnings for this piece might involve foreign language, rhythmic precision, intonation or singing in Renaissance style. Again, select one of the factors and write an objective for it. For example: The singer will sing with rhythmic precision while maintaining accurate intonation. This objective would then fit under National Standard 1A: Students sing accurately and with good breath control throughout their singing ranges (Consortium of National Arts Education Associations, 1994). This would not be the song with which to evaluate arched phrases nor reading notation.
To summarize, the point is to know why you have selected a specific piece whether it be for band, orchestra, choir or a classroom of children. Then emphasize those reasons to the performers and evaluate their progress based on those same objectives. For more materials which coordinate National Standards with teaching objectives and assessment ideas see Essential Repertoire for the Young Choir: Teacher's Edition, and Essential Repertoire for the Developing Choir: Teacher's Edition (Killian, O'Hern & Rann,1995 a, b) and Essential Musicianship: Teacher's Edition (Crocker, Killian & Rann, 1995).
Tape the entire group. After discussing the concept (e.g., arched phrases), instruct the group to listen to the tape and each individual evaluates himself/herself on arched phrases. You may choose to ask students to grade themselves using your school's grading system, or simply to compare their evaluations among themselves. What did some hear that others did not? Discuss.
One might also choose to use a checklist such as the one listed in Figure 9 to focus student attention on specific elements of performance excellence. The example given is for band, but similar forms, with slight modifications in terminology and levels of vocabulary difficulty, could be developed for any performing group of any age.
Note that this is a general form covering many aspects of performance. Depending on your objective, you might want to use only a portion of the form. With junior high age students we found that they could only concentrate on one or two categories. Beyond that they seemed to quit listening to the piece in question and simply make random marks on the page in order to complete the assignment. I've used a similar choral form with inexperienced college choir musicians and have found it quite effective. Thus, as always, good directors have to know their students and adapt materials to fit their particular needs.
Tape individuals within the group by passing a small recorder from person to person as the group is singing. The director can then review the tape and assess individual achievement (a specific seating chart is helpful to identify singers), and/or individuals can listen to the tape and evaluate themselves. This works very well with singers, but I have never tried it with instrumentalists.
Figure 9
Band Evaluation Form
Name _________________________________ Date __________
Name of Piece Evaluated __________________________________
Directions: Listen to a tape of your band and consider each of the following
characteristics of excellent band techniques. Rate your band using this system:
+ = Excellent, better than average
= O.K., average
- = Areas that we could improve
Remember: Evaluating our band always helps us improve. Your evaluations also
show how much you personally know about instrumental technique. Try to write
answers which show everything you know about music.
1. An excellent band always has good balance and blend. _____a. Each section could be heard (one section did not overpower another) _____b. Harmony was never louder than melody. _____c. No one player stuck out. 2. An excellent band always plays on pitch. _____a. The entire band played in tune. List specific spots in which the band was not in tune. _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ 3. An excellent band always plays accurate rhythms precisely together. _____a. All rhythms were played correctly. _____b. All entrances and cut-offs were precisely together. 4. An excellent band always plays accurate pitches. _____a. All pitches were played correctly. _____b. Each section played their pitches correctly. 5. An excellent band always plays with dynamic contrasts. _____a. There were dynamic contrasts in the piece (louds and softs). _____b. The band followed the dynamic markings the composer wrote in the music. _____c. The band played at the appropriate tempo. _____d. The style the band played fit the style of the piece. 6. An excellent band always tries to improve. List specific ways in which this performance could have been better.
Tape the entire group with a single section, e.g., sopranos or trombones, grouped around the microphone. You will be able to hear that section, but will also hear the rest of the organization; so the section will be heard in context. This is especially effective for identifying pitch errors, minor blend problems, or diction inconsistencies in inner parts. Note that, using the examples above, this technique could be used to evaluate the ability of a single section to perform arched phrases.
Tape the entire organization performing a selected piece or prepare an accompaniment tape of selected portions of the piece. Instruct individuals to then go to a quiet place and listen to the prepared tape while recording themselves performing their part with the tape. Note that this requires two tape machines (a player and a recorder). This is a taped method of the time honored tradition of sing or play your part for a grade. This method, however, does not take up any rehearsal time and removes the public performance concerns common among young musicians.
(PRE-POST TESTING)
For the past several years I have been testing my students (whether they be junior high choral singers, college choir members, voice students, or undergraduates taking Music for Elementary Education Majors) using the following procedure.
Tape record yourself singing America (My Country Tis of Thee). Start on a comfortable pitch and sing to the best of your ability. At the end of the year/semester I will return the tape to you and ask you to listen to your original and then retape America. Compare the two recordings and note any changes.
The results of this simple procedure are astounding. Of course, the differences are most dramatic among junior high singers whose voices are undergoing a rapid physiological change; but there are also very obvious changes among college age singers.
There are many positive effects of this procedure.
(IF YOU DON'T ASK, YOU MAY NEVER KNOW)
Most of the suggestions mentioned in this paper are musical alternatives to the traditional paper-and-pencil testing procedures common in non-music classes. That is not to say that paper-and-pencil activities cannot be valuable and informative.
Try asking your students' opinions in writing. The writing across the curriculum advocates at your school will be extremely pleased and you will discover some valuable information in a very short time. Figures 10, 11, 12 and 13 contain sample ideas for performance class essays.
Figure 10 Band Essay: All District Fall Band Concert Directions: With complete sentences in paragraph form, please write a four paragraph essay on the following. Be prepared to discuss your ideas. ¥For this band, what went well? ¥What areas do we need to work the most? ¥Overall, what did you enjoy most about tonight's concert (musically speaking)? ¥What comments were said about the concert by your parents, friends, or teachers?
Figure 11 Choir Essay Scottish Rite Hospital/Double Tree Hotel Tour ¥What positive comments do you have to make about yesterday's trip? ¥In what areas does our choir need improvement? ¥What suggestions do you have to improve the trip for next year?
Figure 12 Orchestra Essay: Final Exam During the past semester you have been actively involved in orchestra with classwork, rehearsal, and performances. In your opinion what have you learned specifically in the following areas? (give a specific example of each). ¥Physical aspects of good string technique (posture, bowing, hand, finger position) ¥The art of public performance (stage presence) ¥The artistic demands for good performance (interpretation)
Figure 13 Any Musical Performing Group: Final Exam The Melody school district has just voted to eliminate all Fine Arts activities from the school curriculum. You e been selected by your teacher to serve on a committee from your school to make a presentation to the Melody school board on the importance of music classes in the public schools. Include in your presentation, reasons musical organizations are important to the entire development of the student. Include three or more of the following aspects: developing social skills, working as a team, cooperation, commitment, practice, higher thinking skills, emotional expression, public performances, competition, music appreciation, career preparation or other ideas. Be persuasive in your thoughts. This essay may be in the form of a speech to the school board, a letter to the editor, or notes for the presentation. Be creative. Organize your essay to include an introduction, a body, and a conclusion (75 word minimum).
The essay exam in Figure 12 was written by Linda Rann and given to her junior high students during Spring, 1995. Their responses were surprisingly thoughtful and insightful. Sometimes even the most difficult students have deeper, more mature thoughts than we realize. For example, I asked my junior high students to write an essay which would serve as a dedication to be read during the extended piano introduction to Song for a Russian Child by Andrea Klouse. The selected essay was read by a student (one chosen by the student writer); the song was sung by all the choirs as they signed the words; and at the conclusion of the song the school orchestra started to play the familiar Let There Be Peace on Earth as the singers, each holding a lighted candle, moved to surround the audience. It was another one of those moments which reminded me why I choose to be a teacher.
For me, personally, the astounding thing about this activity was the depth of thinking with which students responded. The text to the song and the chosen essay appear in Figure 14.
Several additional student essays appear in Figure 15. The essays speak for themselves, so I will end this paper with student thoughts.
I hope that readers have gained a few ideas about ways in which music performance might be evaluated by remaining true to the discipline and by deriving assessment instruments from what we do everyday. In other words, don't teach to the test; instead, after you have considered carefully whether you are teaching the information of most value, test what you teach. I hope you enjoy reading the following essays as much as I did. As you are reading them, please consider the idea that if you don't ask your students about their thoughts, you will never know the wonderful things they might be thinking.
Figure 14
Song for a Russian Child
Words and Music by Andrea Klouse
Essential Repertoire for the Young Choir
I will sing a song for a Russian child.
It's a song of promise to be.
I will sing a song for a little child,
Any child whose dreams seem small.
I will reach my hand out to lend a hand.
I will reach my hand across the sea.
For the children there are just like you and me.
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Dedication to Song for a Russian Child
Written by Bros Poeuv & Jeff Oldham, grade 8
We would like to dedicate these songs to the people from Moscow to Beijing, from
San Salvador to Berlin, who are fighting with all their hearts and souls to gain freedom from their governments. We would like to mention that we are very lucky
to have freedom here in America. How we waste our energy on things we don't
really need! While we are wasting food, people in Africa are begging for food; and while we're here doing anything we want towards our government, people in other countries are getting shot for gossiping. For the sake of all human kind, please stop the fighting. We are dedicating this song to all the people in the world who are fighting for peace. When we're singing this song, we're not just singing for your
joy, but for the people of the world. Let there be peace on earth.
Figure 15
Song for a Russian Child
Additional Dedications:
There are many people in this world that we neglect as our friends. Some of us are not aware of how lucky we are until we reach out our hands to join in the friendship
of others. This song is dedicated to not only a Russian child, but to every other person, young or old, black or white, who can't experience the joy of being free or cared for. If only they could be our friends, if only there could be peace on earth. Angeline Kim, grade 8
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This song is about children all over the world who do not have the freedom that we
do or the choices that we have. They are always in their own little world and can't possibly make their dreams come true. But we will stand by them and maybe give them courage. Angelica Estrada, grade 8
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This song is dedicated to the children around the world. Let there be no more starvation. Let there be no more fighting. Let there be no more cold winters
without shelter. Let there be peace on earth.
LeShanon Griffin, grade 7
In the 60's it was flower power, hippies, and Woodstock. In the 90's it will be summits, nuclear missile pacts, and, most of all, freedom. We dedicate the following song to peace on earth. Kenny Wade, grade 7
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Moral of This Tale: If you don't ask your students about their thoughts, you will never know the wonderful things they might be thinking.
to the following teachers who allowed Linda Rann and I to use their ideas and expertise: