Over the last several years, a growing number of K-12 music programs have been adding hip hop, electronic dance and other popular music to their repertoires in an effort to becoming more 鈥渓earner-centered,鈥 says听, a professor of music education at the University of South Florida.
This often means having students collaborate in small groups to create their own music or record versions of hit songs.
鈥淓ven without saying the words 鈥榯echnology’ and 鈥榩opular music.’ you end up doing both because that’s typically what students want,鈥 Williams says. 鈥淭hey want to make popular music on instruments that are digital.鈥
But it’s not all synthesizers, samples and sound effects鈥攎any schools have also added guitar instruction and modern rock band classes over the last several years, Williams says.
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A wider music palette is an example of how music instruction has become more culturally inclusive in recent years, adds Denese Odegaard, the immediate past president of .
鈥淢usic lends itself to that so well because of all the rich cultures, traditions and backgrounds of our students,鈥 Odegaard says. 鈥淪haring this music allows students to understand each other better.鈥
While some K-12 administrators have made it a priority to provide an instrument to every student who wants one, music remains at the back of the funding line in some schools and districts.
Other schools and districts rely on outside groups鈥攁nd parent fundraising efforts鈥攖o provide funding for instruments and music instruction. 鈥淢usic can take up a large part of the budget,鈥 Odegaard says.
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