Our district has adopted a model whereby we identify the things that each and every student will be able to know and do in a given course. These "essential learnings" provide the basis for lessons and summative/formative assessments. Ultimately the collection of essentials represents what it means to become a competent musician in the particular course. They provide the foundation for everything your performing ensembles well, perform. Essentials are very narrow. We don't say "every student will be able to play their band music." A realistic essential for a top high school ensemble might be: "Every student will be able to properly identify major key signatures and perform the associated major scales from memory."
It might seem very simple to identify these essentials, but when you start thinking of it in terms of every single student achieving mastery (not the typical bell curve of results), it can be challenging. I have put out feelers via Facebook and Twitter, but so far I have not found any other music programs who are in the midst of this process. So I am enlisting your help here on the blog, and hopefully a collaborative effort can result in something we all can use.
We are assembling "packets" for every instrument comprised of the skills that a (band/orchestra/choir) student should be able to do as a senior in a capstone music ensemble. One portion will be things that are written (key signatures, rhythm components) and the other portion will consist of performance demonstrations. The packets can provide a basis for ongoing assessments that can be used at multiple levels by altering the tempo requirements. We will also be able to use the packets as audition requirements for the following year. This will provide unprecedented continuity and spiraling in the course sequences. We are starting with the band packets and then moving to orchestra and choir from there.
What I'm asking is that you think of one skill/ability that a senior band student should be able to do, and leave it as a comment below. This will take you just a few seconds and everyone will benefit. I will share the first draft of the packets in the coming month. To get the process going, here is one that we came up with yesterday:
Every student will be able to play the melody to Chester in four-bar phrases (quarter note-based melody, not eighths) at quarter note=60 at a dynamic of mp with characteristic tone. This will demonstrate that the student has learned proper breathing technique while performing a lyrical line.
Or then again, will it? Do you see the challenges of describing these essential learnings? Remember, every student must be able to do it. If they can't, we must revise the instruction and the student stays with the essential learning until they have achieved it. Notice how changing the tempo would make this essential much easier, or much more difficult.
Considering things like range, articulation, key signatures, lip slurs, rudiments, and so on: Name an essential that you feel demonstrates what a senior should be able to know or do. Be sure to include a tempo and dynamic level, and the instrument (or instrument family). Keep the task focused, and set the bar where you think it should be. Thanks for your contributions.