college & university Cherishing Our Humanity:
The Unesco Report and Music Education David Potter, WMEA State Chair, College & University
In 2023, the United Nations Education- al, Scientific and Cultural Organiza- tion (UNESCO) re- leased a 547-page global education monitoring report with a title that asks a salient question:
“Technology in education: a tool on whose terms?” (p. ii). The report surprised me, because in my own conversations with educators and administrators, it is easy for the subject to veer toward the benefits of technology without much concern for the unintended consequences (with, perhaps, AI being an exception). Moreover, while UNESCO did highlight many benefits to technology in education, their summary took a human-centered approach:
“The report underscores the importance of learning to live both with and without digital technology; to take what is needed from an abundance of information but ignore what is not necessary; to let tech- nology support, but never supplant, the human connection on which teaching and
learning are based…technology should not be a substitute for but a complement to face-to-face interaction with teachers” (UNESCO, 2023, p. v).
Human Connection
Building on UNESCO’s report, it is my hope that any music educators who come across this article know that they and their students take precedence in any conversa- tion about technology. UNESCO Director- General Azoulay articulated similar ideas, saying: “Firstly…the best interests of pu- pils should systematically take precedence over any other consideration… Secondly… technology should be seen as a means, nev- er an end” (p. vii). A person-first approach to technology is also important because it addresses three paradoxes noted in the UNESCO report, including the following:
THE PROMISE OF… “personalized learning” “easier access to education” “a global common good”
Simply put, those within the creative art of music teaching and learning are uniquely positioned to grapple with the myriad of technologies in music education by con- sidering UNESCO’s guidelines of appro- priateness, equitability and sustainability.
Using UNESCO’s Guidelines to Ask a Question
I have taught songwriting over the past six years, and my students’ experiences with technology keep me needing to learn. Their experiences with songwrit- ing technology have included BandLab, SoundTrap, Soundation, GarageBand, Logic, ProTools, FL Studio, Ableton, Audacity, Presonus Studio One, Adobe Audition, BeepBox and countless others. While I was excited about the variety of experiences that students brought to the
THE REALITY OF…
“[The] social and human dimension” “Increasing educational inequalities” “The role of commercial and private interests” (p. vii)
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songwriting class, their variety presented me with a question: How do I as the in- structor, with limited knowledge of most of these programs, facilitate a constructiv- ist learning environment that empowers student experiences without marginalizing those whose experiences differ from the list above? In other words, how could I use mu- sic technologies that were appropriate for the songwriting class, equitable for students and sustainable for all of us?
Implementing an Information and Technology (ICT) Framework
The UNESCO report mentions the word “framework” over 200 times, referencing a variety of ICT frameworks, including the Technological Content Knowledge frame- work, which has been referenced often in
22 April 2024
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