News and events from around the world this month

A London Music Masters session in January 2019

BENJAMIN EALOVEGA

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Great communicators

With a new teacher-training qualiicaion just about to launch, what are the opions for Briish musicians when it comes to becoming an accredited tutor?

By Peter Somerford

A new teacher-training course set to begin in London this month aims to equip graduate violinists with the skills to teach large groups of children and whole-class ensembles in primary schools. It also establishes a new kind of qualification in a sector where there is no formal mandatory qualification required of classroom instrumental teachers. he Post Graduate Certiicate in Education International (PGCEi), specialising in group learning, is a joint venture between music charity London Music Masters (LMM) and Birmingham City University. he one-year, part-time course will accept an initial cohort of 15 violinists, with the aim from 2020 of expanding the number of students and opening the course to non-violinists. Siân Banield, senior learning manager at LMM, says that while many musicians may have had experience of delivering one-to-one teaching during their undergraduate studies, teaching whole-class instrumental lessons is a very different experience: ‘You need to know how to manage a class, how to differentiate when some of the class are progressing faster than others, how to help children with special needs, and how to recognise and deal with issues that young children face, such as when they are tired or hungry.’

Primary schools have not always found wholeclass instrumental teaching a positive experience, and there is pressure on music services to increase the quality and depth of irst-access instrumental programmes. ‘he PGCEi is part of our drive to improve access to music for children,’ says Banield.

‘If we improve the teaching skills of musicians going into the classroom, pupils will get more out of the learning experience, and then we hope that schools will be more prepared to invest in instrumental teaching and expand on irst-access programmes.’

For music services and hubs, the nearest thing to a minimum national qualification for instrumental teachers is the Certiicate for Music Educators (CME), which was developed by the music education sector, led by Arts Council England and Creative & Cultural Skills. Introduced in 2013 and validated by Trinity College London and the ABRSM, the CME is a Level 4 qualification (equivalent to first-year undergraduate level) designed to cater to a broad range of music educators, including community musicians, instrumental teachers, primary school teachers, and professional musicians who engage in education work. he CME assesses educators in understanding how children learn music; planning, facilitating and evaluating children’s learning; reflective practice and professional development; promoting children’s positive behavior; equality, diversity and inclusion; and safeguarding. CME providers include music services and specialist music education organisations such as the European String Teachers’ Association (ESTA). Richard Crozier, ESTA Education’s director of academic studies, says: ‘I think the CME is the minimum standard that musicians who teach should obtain. And I wish that Arts Council England and the government would come out and say that. I know there are music services and hubs that want all their teachers to have the CME rather than anything else, because they know that these musicians will understand teaching and know what they are doing in the classroom.’