Music In Our Schools Month News Dr. Gloria Pasle, MIOSM Chair


LIFE LONG LEARNING Hi Fellow Music Educators,


The focus of this spring issue is that of “Life Long Learning.” What does the phrase “life long learning” mean to you as a music educator and also to your students? Better yet, how does life long learning relate to advocation for “Music In Our Schools?”


According to Wikipedia the term “Lifelong learning is the “ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge for either personal or professional reasons. Therefore, it not only enhances social inclusion, active citizenship, and personal development, but also self-sustainability, as well as competitiveness and employability. Learning can no longer be divided into a place and time to acquire knowledge (school) and a place and time to apply the knowledge acquired (the workplace). Instead, learning can be seen as something that takes place on an ongoing basis from our daily interactions with others and with the world around us. It can take the form of formal learning or informal learning, or self- directed learning (Wikipedia, 2017).


What does that mean for you as a music education teacher. Is this music education training long lasting into adulthood? How do you advocate this life- long learning in your “Music In Our Schools Month” celebrations?


First and foremost, our own national organization National Association for Music Educators gives us 20 reasons why life long music (education) in our schools is very important. They are as follows: 1. Musical training helps develop language and reasoning. 2. A mastery of memorization. 3. Students learn to improve their work. 4. Increased coordination. 5. A sense of achievement. 6. Kids stay engaged in school. 7. Success in society.


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8. Emotional development. 9. Students learn pattern recognition. 10. Better SAT scores. 11. Fine-tuned auditory skills.. 12. Music builds imagination and intellectual curiosity.


13. Music can be relaxing. 14. Musical instruments can teach discipline. 15. Preparation for the creative economy. 16. Development in creative thinking. 17. Music can develop spatial intelligence. 18. Kids can learn teamwork. 19. Responsible risk-taking. 20. Better self-confidence. (NAfME, 2017)


Of course, NAfME talks about skills that will benefit students while they are students still in the school system and possibly long after they have graduated. Once students leave the public and private school system and they become full-fledged adults in the working world, does that music education life long learning continue? Well yes, it does according to The New York Times (April 2013). In an article by Joanne Lipman entitled, “Is Music Key to Success,” many famous and important adults who had music education early in their lives attest to the fact that music education was very important to them. It has also played a key role in where or what they are doing today in their lives. The article begins by stating several important people who had music early in their lives such as Condoleezza Rice who trained to be a concert pianist, Alan Greenspan, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, was a professional clarinet and saxophone player, and hedge fund billionaire, Bruce Kovner, is a pianist who took classes at Julliard. Is this just a coincidence-- these people with high-power jobs having studied music early on in their lives. According to Lipman, “Multiple studies link music study to academic achievement. . . the connection isn’t a coincidence.


See PASLEY, p. 62 MISSOURI SCHOOL MUSIC | Volume 71, Number 3


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