Classroom Discussion and the Community of Music Majors

James A. Davis SUNY-Fredonia

Keywords: discussion, active learning, community

Abstract

Modern theories of teaching and learning recommend that students actively participate in their own education. For the music history teacher this usually means some form of in-class discussion. Yet generating meaningful discussions can be problematic, and many instructors lament the difï¬culties they experience when attempting to instigate and sustain discussions in their classes for music majors. Viewing the community in which these young musicians live and learn through the lens of ethnomusicology helps to explain how music majors perceive their role in the classroom, which in turn sheds light on why they may or may not engage in classroom discourse. An awareness of the social and professional dynamics surrounding music majors can help instructors handle student responses in a way that promotes engaging discussion in the music history classroom.

Author Biography

James A. Davis, SUNY-Fredonia

Jim Davis is Professor of Musicology and Chair of the Music History Area at the State University of New York at Fredonia. His work has appeared in International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, Journal of Aesthetic Education, and Philosophy of Music Education Review. He is currently editing a volume titled The Music History Classroom that covers the mechanics of teaching music history courses. He also researches the music and musicians of the American Civil War and he is finishing a book on musical activities during winter quarters in central Virginia, 1863–64.

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Published

2010-05-04

Issue

Vol 1 No 1: (Fall 2010)

Section

Articles

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