The Practice of Assessment in Music Education

G-7655

The Practice of Assessment in

Music Education:
Frameworks, Models, and Designs
Proceedings of the 2009 Florida Symposium
on Assessment in Music Education
University of Florida

Timothy S. Brophy, PhD, Editor

Frank Abrahams Lynne Gackle Chia-Ying Lin Leslie Scheuler
Beatriz E. Aguilar Jason Gaines Linda T. Lovins Sheila J. Scott
Amy K. Anderson Beth Gibbs Wendy McCallum Scott C. Shuler
Edward P. Asmus Dilek Göktürk Sarah H. McQuarrie Marissa Silverman
Lyndel A. Bailey Edwin E. Gordon O’Neal Mundle Benjamin N. Smith
William I. Bauer Dee Hansen Angela Nierman Tina M. Stallard
Stephen Benham Lee Higgins Glenn E. Nierman Stephen Stalls
Ashley E. Budde Linda High Denese Odegaard Clark Saunders
Jennifer Bugos Alice Ray Hixson Denise Ondishko Keith P. Thompson
Richard Bunbury Charles Hoffer Anne M. Osborne Gianfranco Tornatore
Jian-Jun Chen Alena V. Holmes Douglas C. Orzolek Ann Usher
Patricia A. Chiodo Peter Holsberg Kelly A. Parkes Charles J. Vaughan
Ming-Jen Chuang Daniel C. Johnson Bruce Pearson Jeffrey Ward
Richard Colwell Anne-Katrin Jordan Ann M. Porter Richard Wells
Donald DeVito Cheng-Hsien Kao William Renfroe Brian Wuttke
David C. Edmund Paul Kimpton Patricia E. Riley Ching Ching Yap
David J. Elliott Jens Knigge Russell L. Robinson
Elisabeth A. Etopio John P. LaCognata Maria E. Runfola
Brad Foust Jeremy S. Lane Joanne Rutkowski

GIA Publications, Inc.

Chicago
 Contents

Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................................................... xiii

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................xv

Part 1 Assessment in State and National Contexts

Many Voices, One Goal: Practices of Keynote Address Richard Colwell ..............3
Large-Scale Music Assessment

Assessment in the Arts: An Overview Special Guest Presentation Linda T. Lovins ............23
of States’ Practices and Status

Connecticut’s Common Arts Assessment Special Guest Presentation Scott C. Shuler

Initiative: Helping Teachers Improve Music Richard Wells ...............43
Learning in a Data-Driven School Environment

Investigation of the Multiple-Choice Formats Paper Ching Ching Yap ..........57

for Assessing Music Notation Reading

The Development of Competency Models: Paper Anne-Katrin Jordan

An IRT-based Approach to Competency Jens Knigge ..................67
Assessment in General Music Education

The Caribbean Secondary (C-Sec) Music Panel Discussion Lyndel A. Bailey

Syllabus: Formulation, Content and Anne M. Osborne
Assessment Processes O’Neal Mundle .............87

Assessment “Over The Ocean” Panel Discussion Alena V. Holmes

—Outside of the US Dilek Göktürk
Beatriz E. Aguilar
Jian-Jun Chen ...............97

The Use of Portfolios in Hiring Music Teacher Paper Cheng-Hsien Kao

Process in Taiwan: A Matter of Perspectives Ming-Jen Chuang ....... 103
by School Administrators and Music Teachers

Frameworks, Models, and Designs: Key Issues Work Session Summary Charles J. Vaughan
for Assessment in Music Education David C. Edmund
Alena V. Holmes
John P. LaCognata ...... 117
Part 2 Assessment in Schools and School Districts

Assuring the Validity of Teacher- Made Paper Edward P. Asmus ........ 131
Assessments

Musical Assessment as an Impetus for Paper Stephen Benham ......... 145

Strategic, Intentional, and Sustainable Growth
in the Instrumental Classroom

Musical Skills Assessments Used in Inner-city Paper Leslie Scheuler ........... 171
Schools: The Education through Music Model

Assessment in Elementary Music Education: Paper Amy K. Anderson....... 179

One District’s Approach to Authentic
Assessment in the Elementary Classroom

Making Your Curriculum Transparent: Strategy Paul Kimpton..............205

Build It and They Will Come

Part 3 Assessment in Music Classrooms

The Crucial Role of Aptitudes in Music Keynote Address Edwin E. Gordon ........ 211
Instruction

Teacher-Made Tools for Assessing Music Special Guest Presentation Keith P. Thompson ..... 217
Listening

Student Assessment in the High School Paper John P. LaCognata ......227

Band Ensemble Class

The Communicative Function of Behavioral Paper Donald DeVito ............239

Responses to Music: A Precursor to
Assessment for Students with Autism

Expanding Higher-Order Thinking in the Paper Dee Hansen

Music Classroom: Suggestions for Effective Clark Saunders ...........253
and Eficient Assessment

Assessment 101: Basic Strategies Every Paper Charles Hoffer ............267

Director Should Know for Teaching and
Assessing

The Singing Voice Development Measure: Paper Joanne Rutkowski .......273

Assessing Children’s Use of Singing Voice in
the Elementary General Music Class
Assessment Practices in the Choral Classroom Panel Discussion Russell L. Robinson
Lynne Gackle
William Renfroe
Ann Usher ...................... 281

Classroom Assessment Techniques for the Strategy Brad Foust ......................287

Elementary General Music Teacher

Assessing Assessment: Examining Habits of Strategy Jason Gaines

Work and Learning and Mastery Peter Holsberg
Gianfranco Tornatore.....293

Improving Performance through Authentic Strategy Denise Ondishko............297

Assessment in Early Childhood Classes:
Taking Out the Guesswork…Working
Towards Data-Informed Decision Making
in Kindergarten Music

Singing Self-Assessment Accuracy of Paper Patricia E. Riley .............307

Elementary School Children

Eye-hand Coordination as a Factor in the Paper Glenn E. Nierman

Success of Beginning Instrumentalists Angela Nierman
Bruce Pearson ................323

Beyond the Classroom: Analyzing Student Paper Denese Odegaard ........... 335
Work

Assessing Student Learning in Music Strategy Kelly A. Parkes .............. 351

Performance Class: What Works, What
Doesn’t, and What We Can Do about It

Part 4 Assessment in Higher Education and Music Teacher Education

Assessing the Concept of Assessment: Some Keynote Address David J. Elliott ...............367
Philosophical Perspectives

Aims in the Age of Assessment: A Special Case Paper Marissa Silverman ......... 381

Self-assessment Strategies for Developing Strategy Brian Wuttke.................. 391

Future Music Teachers

The Nature of Performance-Based Criterion Paper Maria E. Runfola

Measures in Early Childhood Music Education Elisabeth A. Etopio ........395
Research, and Related Issues
In Search of Models for the Assessment of Paper Douglas C. Orzolek .... 415
Thinking in Music Education

Technological Pedagogical and Content Paper William I. Bauer .........427

Knowledge, Music, and Assessment

The Role of Technology in Assessment of Paper Benjamin N. Smith ..... 437

Online Music Education Courses Taught at
the Community College Level

Designing Assessment: The Selection and Paper Patricia A. Chiodo ......443

Construction of Instructional Objectives

The Use of Criteria-Speciic Performance Paper Kelly A. Parkes ........... 455

Rubrics for Student Self-Assessment: A Case
Study

The Problem with “No Problem”: Music Paper Ann M. Porter............. 461
Teacher Assessment

Constructivist Perspectives of Instruction and Paper Sheila J. Scott

Assessment within Instrumental Music Education Wendy McCallum....... 475

Making the Grade: Preservice Teachers and Paper Lee Higgins

Facilitarors for School and Community Music Frank Abrahams .........487
Programs

Theory into Practice: Teaching Assessment Paper Jeffrey Ward

Strategies to Pre-service Teachers through a Linda High..................499
Third-through-Fifth-Grade Vocal Music
Laboratory

Part 5 Poster Session Abstracts

The Inluence of Statewide Music Testing on Paper Sarah H. McQuarrie ... 515
Assessment Practices within Elementary Music
Classrooms

Challenges of Teaching and Assessing Recorder Poster Session Chia-Ying Lin ............. 517
Playing in Elementary General Music Classes
in Taichung City Taiwan

Galileo’s Lute: Assessment through Authentic Poster Session Richard Bunbury ........ 519
Performance Tasks in Secondary General Music
The Effect of Music Instruction on Preschool Poster Session Daniel C. Johnson .......523
Students’ Academic Skills: A Two-Year Study

A Study of the Effect of Co-equal Arts Poster Session Alice Ray Hixson .......525
Integration on Student Achievement in Music
and Writing with Fourth-and- Fifth-Grade Students

An Analysis of Relationships Between Lesson Poster Session—Abstract Jeremy S. Lane ........... 529
Planning Training and Rehearsal Pacing of
Undergraduate Instrumental Music Education
Majors in Practice Teaching Settings

The Musical N-Back (MNB): A Measure of Poster Session—Abstract Jennifer Bugos

Working Memory in the Musical Domain Stephen Stalls ............. 531

Assessing Elementary Music Teachers’ Beth Gibbs .................. 533

Perceptions of Effective Interactions

Recruitment and Retention of School-of-Music Ashley E. Budde ......... 535

Students: Strategies Used by Faculty and
Administrators of Higher Education

A Qualitative Analysis of Participant Roles in Jeremy S. Lane

an Applied Vocal Music Studio Tina M. Stallard.......... 539
Assessing Assessment: Examining Habits of Work
and Learning and Mastery

Jason Gaines
Peter Holsberg
Gianfranco Tornatore
Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, New York

Strategy Paper

Abstract

More often than not, instrumental music programs focus on assessing either content or character.
Content refers to the mastery of musical skills, and character refers to the student’s contribution
within the classroom community and the personal growth of the student. These domains are rarely
combined into a coherent assessment strategy that displays a more comprehensive and clearly deined
portrait of student growth and achievement. What would an instrumental music program look like
if it assessed both content and character in a manner that was transparent to all stakeholders? At
the Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School (WHEELS) in the urban New York City
community of Washington Heights, a model designed to honor the union of content and character
in a cohesive strategy has been implemented. The implementation of this strategy has yielded both
promises and challenges. This presentation will illustrate the promises and challenges that arose
from the implementation of this strategy, along with implications for further research.

Introduction

Far too often, instrumental music programs focus on assessing either content or character
(Wendell, 2007). Content refers to the mastery of musical skills, and character refers to the student’s
contribution within the classroom community and the personal growth of the student. These domains
are rarely combined into a coherent assessment strategy that displays a more comprehensive and
clearly deined portrait of student growth and achievement. Few could argue that assessment that
is devoid of either domain will result in deep insight into the growth and progress of the student
within the classroom community. In doing so, one arguably neglects a valuable tool in assessment
Part 3: Assessment in Music Classrooms

(Abeles, Klotman & Hoffer, 1995). However, because of the dificulty in assessing these areas,
music educators have not developed ways to measure both content and character in a manner that
is systematic and clear to all stakeholders—teacher, student, administrators, faculty, and parents
(Abeles et al., 1995; Hickey, 1997).
What would an instrumental music program look like if it assessed both content and character
in a manner that was transparent to all stakeholders? At the Washington Heights Expeditionary
Learning School (WHEELS) in the urban New York City community of Washington Heights, a
model that attempts to honor the union of content and character in a cohesive strategy has been
implemented. The implementation of this strategy has yielded both promises and challenges. This
presentation will illustrate the promises and challenges that arose from the implementation of this
strategy, along with implications for further research.

Background

Expeditionary Learning builds on the educational insights of Kurt Hahn, the founder of Outward
Bound. Expeditionary Learning (EL) schools evolved from an Outward Bound urban education
initiative that began in 1992 (Cousins, 2000). EL schools use, as their framework, ive core practices
and benchmarks. These core practices—learning expeditions, active pedagogy, school culture and
character, leadership and school improvement, and structures—work together to promote a learning
environment that fosters high student achievement through active learning, character growth, and
teamwork.
Assessment is an integral component of the EL philosophy. Both process and product are factored
into assessment strategies in the EL classroom. Products, the result of in-depth investigations, are
a critical component of the assessment process. “Products are motivational, drive a need to know,
and propel students to apply skills” (Expeditionary Learning Core Practice Bookmarks, 2003, p.
12) in order to understand content and concepts. EL refers to character objectives as Habits of Work
and Learning (HOWL). In the model that WHEELS has adapted to it within the requirements of
the New York City Department of Education, which requires a single assessment grade per subject,
content and character HOWL grades are combined at a 60/40 ratio respectively. This is important
to note because the traditional EL model offers separate assessments in content and character.
WHEELS has grown from 180 to nearly 360 students since the school opened in September
2006. It was at this time that the entire faculty at WHEELS engaged in a discussion involving the
idea of assessment. Founded on the research of Ken O’Connor (2000), WHEELS has adopted a
school wide assessment policy that includes not only the mastery of content objectives, but also
includes the HOWL grade. The HOWL grade represents what music teachers have used informally
for years. To formalize this practice we, as the music department, designed rubrics and assessment
guides to better assess student achievement. Using the EL benchmarks as a means for combating
this problem, we found these benchmarks to be very helpful in codifying student expectations and
its relationship to assessment.
Some may argue that this codiication of expectations is too regimented and is not consistent
with the philosophy of a democratic and constructivist classroom. However, in a democratic and
constructivist classroom it is essential to establish expectations in order for students to lourish in

294
 The Practice of Assessment in Music Education: Frameworks, Models, and Designs

a safe environment (Dewey, 1938). Working within the community in a creative way is part of the
challenge to both the students and the teacher (Bruner, 1996). Content is negotiable and lexible
to meet the desires and needs of the student in a community-based environment (Dewey, 1938);
however, the expectations of student participation are somewhat less luid. This will provide a sense
of structure, ultimately facilitating the augmentation of the community learning experience.

Implications

Implementing this assessment strategy poses both promises and challenges. Promises include
awareness on the part of the student in regard to academic progress, the habits of work and learning
that lead to an understanding of the process and a more reined product, increased communication
between the teacher and student (Duckworth, 1996) and through the relective actions of students
throughout the exploratory process of learning (Brookield, 1987). This strategy allows the teacher
to reine their practice by carefully examining, in detail, both the product and process that occurs
in their classroom, as well as the amount of objectivity and subjectivity that is being used to assess
student performance.
In addition to the promises of implementing such a strategy, challenges arose as well. This
strategy is time consuming and requires careful planning. Furthermore, if the implemented struc-
tures are ill conceived, both the teacher and the students can experience frustration and fail to
meet the stated objectives. As a result, the desired outcome utilizing multiple components to assess
student growth and progress will become unfounded. It is clear that further research is needed to
investigate fully the promises and challenges posed by assessment strategy.

295
Part 3: Assessment in Music Classrooms

References

Abeles, H.F., Hoffer, C.R., Klotman, R.H. (1995). Foundations of music education. New York:
Schirmer Books.
Brookield, S.D. (1987). Developing critical thinkers: Challenging Adults to explore alternative
ways of thinking and acting. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Bruner, J. (1996). The culture of education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Cousins, E. (2000). Roots: From outward bound to expeditionary learning. Dubuque, IA: Kendall
Hunt Publishing Company.
Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. New York: Touchstone Press.
Duckworth, E. (1996). The having of wonderful ideas and other essays on teaching and Learning.
New York: Teachers College Press.
Expeditionary learning core practice bookmarks, (2003).
Hickey, M. (1999). Assessment rubrics for music composition. Music Educators Journal, 85(4)
26–33.
O’Connor, K. (2000). How to grade for learning: Linking grades to standards. Thousand Oaks, CA:
Corwin Press.
Wendell, H. (2007). The new bloom’s taxonomy: Implications for music education, Arts Education
Policy Review, 4.

296