Editors’ Note
Welcome to 2018!
STAR recently launched the Stories We Sing resource featuring 12 commissioned songs. This new resource supports you in your classroom teaching, together with the PD programmes we have lined up for the year.
Stories behind Stories We Sing
Stories We Sing is an exciting pedagogical resource, made complete with 50 lesson ideas designed by our Music teacherleaders. It celebrates our creative voice as music educators and artists in contemporary Singapore society, capturing the musical expressions of our lived experiences in Singapore. We hope that these musical stories will bring about authentic and meaningful learning experiences for your students.
Design the Meaning of Learning Experiences
Taking a quote from an unlikely source, one by Mauro Porcini, Chief Design Officer of PepsiCo, “We (PepsiCo) don’t design products. We design experiences. Experiences are stories.” If a beverage company sees it crucial to design meaningful experiences for their consumers, what more for us as educators to create impactful learning experiences for our students.
How might we translate curriculum objectives to design classroom experiences that connect with our students? Might it be through their daily lived experiences of meeting neighbours at the lift lobby, or their everyday MRT rides? Or through the cultural stories behind the repertoire? Meaningful learning experiences generate stronger ownership, and deepen musical engagement.
In this issue, our series-feature on the Singapore Teaching Practice: Lesson Enactment considers the various dimensions to effect positive teaching and learning experiences.
Creating New Stories
Thus, for 2018, what stories of music learning are we creating? What are the stories of our teaching practice?
These stories – alive and evolving – are perhaps the most exciting aspects of professional learning as we go forward as a fraternity. Enjoy the journey.
The editorial team also takes this opportunity to express our thanks and appreciation to Mdm Ho Hui Ping (Deputy Director, Music) for her unbridled enthusiasm and firm commitment to leading the team, and making an invaluable contribution from 2012 to 2017. We wish her all the best as she starts her new posting in school.
STAR welcomes aboard wef 15 Dec 2017, Mr James Lee, Deputy Director, Music.
STAR-Post (Music) Editorial Team
Singapore Teachers’ Academy for the aRts
Weaving Musical Tapestries: Stories for the Singapore Classroom
Two years in the making, Stories We Sing is a pioneering effort to express authentic lived experiences that will resonate with teachers and students, and expand shared spaces in Singapore through songs. This teaching resource features an illustrated publication, a CD album and 50 lesson ideas based on a collection of 12 commissioned songs to support teaching with engaging pedagogies.
The 12 songs express our contemporary Singapore lived experiences through a striking variety of musical styles in the four national languages that elucidate
our cultural diversity - the richness of our past, the unique character of our places, the strength of our way of life and the power of our aspirations. Together, they create a kaleidoscopic tapestry that celebrates our rich and vibrant life in Singapore.
In collaboration with the National Arts Council, the songs were penned by notable Singaporean composers, poets and singer-songwriters as pedagogical repertoire to support the 2015 General Music Programme syllabus, intersecting both the artistic and educative.
The Art and Music teaching fraternity at Celebración 2017
Stories We Sing was launched on 6 November at Celebración 2017, STAR’s annual appreciation for art and music teacher-leaders.
Themed “Celebrating our Singapore Story: Past, Present and Future”, Celebración 2017 was held at the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Centre. The centre’s dynamic showcase and stories of Singapore’s evolving landscapes painted the perfect setting for the launch.
Officiated by Director-General of Education (DGE) Mr Wong Siew Hoong, the launch drew interest from the local press and media.
Mrs Rebecca Chew, Academy Principal (AP/STAR), Mdm Ho Hui Ping, Deputy Director (Music), and Ms Grace Ng, Director of Development and Education, National Arts Council
The launch was also attended by several of the composers, lyricists and singer-songwriters of Stories
We Sing, including Mr Art Fazil, Emeritus Professor Bernard Tan, Mr Eric Ng, Mdm Fauziah Muhd Fadzillah, Sri Ghanavenothan Retnam, Ms Heng Siok Tian, Mr Jeyarajadas Pandian, Mr Joel Nah, Ms Karen Pereira, Dr Kelly Tang, Mr Kevin Mathews, Mr Muhamad Rafi Abu Bakar, Ms Sarah Ismail, Xiaohan as well as the illustrator of the publication, Mr Lee Kow Fong.
Director-General of Education, Mr Wong Siew Hoong captivated by the opening item of the launch of Stories We Sing. With him, from left,
Of Songs and Our City
Upon arrival, guests were first greeted by Stories We Tell, an exhibition of sketches on our picturesque urban landscapes of Singapore, presented by our art teachers.
In his keynote, Mr Kelvin Ang, Director of URA Conservation Management Department, Planning, Conservation and Urban Design Group gave a fascinating glimpse into the world of landscape conservation in Singapore, and how it played a part in shaping a sense of space and place, and hence a sense of identity.
He related his personal stories of how some places with songs such as Di Tanjong Katong, captured his memories and imagination of places in Singapore. Through engaging anecdotes and examples, Mr Ang underscored the significance of songs in capturing and in a way, conserving the emotive essence of Singapore’s diverse neighbourhoods.
Mr Kelvin Ang, Director, URA Conservation Management Department, Planning, Conservation and Urban Design Group, presenting his keynote address
Mdm Irene Loi Cheng Li, Head of Department, Aesthetics and Design, St. Andrew’s Secondary School, with Music Master Teacher Mrs Li Yen See, sang the album’s opening song My City, My Sayang to kick start the launch.
Composed by music director Mr Joel Nah with lyrics by Singapore poet Ms Heng Siok Tian, My City, My Sayang, expresses the deep intimacy we feel with our city, and our constant desire to discover more of it. In the chorus, the audience was invited to join in the calland-response singing - one of the many pedagogical features incorporated into the design of the 12 songs.
Mdm Irene Loi Cheng Li leading the audience in singing My City, My Sayang, with Master Teacher (Music) Mrs Li Yen See
Scenes at Celebración 2017
7 Having a fun time taking a WE-fie with the fraternity 8 Teacher reading Stories We Sing 9 Eric Ng and Xiaohan, composer and lyricist of Dui Shou seeing the publication for the first time
Artists sharing their insights during the panel discussion 11 Teachers with singer-songwriter, Sarah Ismailcomposer of Bendera Kita
Stories We Sing: Ideas and Inspiration
Following the performance, a panel of five artists and an educator shared the ideas and inspiration behind their contributions to Stories We Sing. The panel was moderated by Senior Academy Officer Dr Kelly Tang. Together, their interlocking stories presented a fascinating perspective on the personal background behind the creation of the songs and lesson ideas, and how these might create exciting possibilities for the teaching of these songs in the classroom.
The intriguing dialogues between the panel members revealed valuable personal insights on the creative process.
The artists of Stories We Sing discussing the ideas behind the writing of their songs, with pedagogical perspectives from Music Lead Teacher Lim Hwee Sian
My City And Me
Ms Heng Siok Tian, lyricist of My City, My Sayang, described the circumstances that led her to move to Australia, and how living overseas prompted her to reflect more deeply on what it meant to be Singaporean. She shared how she began viewing Singapore in an entirely new light upon her return to Singapore some years later.
Conceptualised as a complementary poem to her earlier poem my city, my canvas (1999), the lyrics to My City, My Sayang are driven by a similar curiosity to experience Singapore in a new way each day. Imbued with a heightened sensitivity to the sights, sounds, tastes and textures of her environment, My City, My Sayang invites us to be suspended in a constant state of wonderment, always discovering the new amidst the familiar, like a tourist in one’s own country.
Click to view lyricist Heng Siok Tian describing the events and epiphanies that inspired the lyrics of My City, My Sayang
Contemporising Traditions And Unifying Communities
Singer-songwriter Ms Sarah Ismail spoke about how she assembled the inspirational lyrics of Bendera Kita (Our Flag) from a compilation of pantun (a traditional Malay literary form) composed by teacher-writers from the Malay Language Centre of Singapore. She expressed the richness of traditional Malay poetry in a contemporary musical style that the young can access. Similarly, Sarah believes in the power of music to bridge different communities. As the founding leader of the Singapore indie band SEYRA, she has created a repertoire that represents a multi-cultural fusion of styles. Citing the vibrant red and white colours of our flag, Bendera Kita is Sarah’s rallying call for all Singaporeans to be united and stands as a powerful expression of Sarah’s artistic beliefs.
Click to view singer-songwriter Sarah Ismail speak of the unifying power of music in Bendera Kita (Our Flag)
Learning Values Through Songs
Principal Master Teacher of Tamil Language as well as a veteran songwriter, Mr S. P. Jeyarajadas Pandian’s eyes light up whenever he talks about education, especially when the topic is about the use of music to teach language. For him, words and music convey values, and in his song En Veetiley (My Home), the focus is on the pliable character of the child, and the critical role family members must play in shaping the character of the young ones.
His lyrics are carefully designed to articulate such profound ideas in the simplest and most elegant of language. The words are crafted so memorably to help non-Tamil speakers among us sing along and learn easily.
Mr Pandian was excited for teachers and students, not just to sing his song, but to use it as a springboard to create additional verses, to add accompanying movements, and to extend its themes into their own realm of personal experience, thus making the learning their own.
Click to view lyricist and Principal Master Teacher S.P. Jeyarajadas Pandian speak of expressing the most profound values in the simplest of terms, in his song En Veetiley (My Home)
Redefining Success
Award-winning lyricist Xiaohan shared how her lyrics resonated most strongly with her personal experience in 2016 when her daughter was preparing for her Primary School Leaving Examination. She encouraged her daughter to focus on improving herself each day, rather than peer competition.
Serendipitously, that was also the moment when Joseph Schooling won the Olympic Gold Medal for the 100m butterfly in 2016. This served as the inspiration behind the lyrics of Dui Shou (To Be A Better Me). Schooling’s victory inspired Xiaohan to write a song that re-defined the idea of success, also as a message for her daughter. True success is not about defeating others, but being driven to become better versions of ourselves each day.
The central message of Dui Shou is that true drive and motivation must come from within. Xiaohan feels this is a critical concept for Singaporeans to embrace and to live up to, as we face the oncoming challenges of a dynamic and uncertain future.
Click to view award-winning lyricist Xiaohan share about the inspiration, as well as the aspiration, behind her song Dui Shou (To Be A Better Me)
Bringing Stories We Sing To The Classroom
Music Lead Teacher, Ms Lim Hwee Sian of Cedar Girls’ Secondary School was a member of the networked learning community who contributed some lesson ideas to Stories We Sing. She also taught two of the songs to her students as part of the lesson trials for the project. She spoke of how her students responded in the most enthusiastic way to the captivating approaches used to teach the songs.
As an active proponent of using music to impart values, Hwee Sian is greatly excited about the immense potential of the Stories We Sing resource to resonate with students, and to engage them in thinking more deeply about important issues such as identity, values and community. The key lies in using appropriate teaching strategies that capitalise on these songs to develop students to be more confident, creative, collaborative and culturally aware. And in the process, be emboldened to tell their own stories through song.
Click to view Music Lead Teacher Lim Hwee Sian describe her experience in designing lesson ideas for Stories We Sing and teaching the songs to students in lesson trials
Supporting Teachers In Bringing The Songs To Life In
The Classroom
The resource enables students to experience how songs are written to capture the essence of the people and places around us, and to give voice to thoughts and feelings that lie within. The hope is to inspire students to compose their own stories, and to live their dreams for the future through song.
Click to view the Stories We Sing launch video which features a variety of pedagogical approaches to teaching the songs
Celebrating Our Teacher-Leaders
Celebración annually celebrates the contributions of our teacherleaders in the professional development of others in the arts teaching fraternity.
STAR recognises the critical role they play as nodes of influence in transforming arts education.
The teacher-leaders each received a certificate of appreciation for their commitment and involvement in various programmes, having supported the professional growth of fellow arts teachers. Some of these programmes include:
• STAR Champions Programme
• Networked Learning Communities
• Beginning Teacher Support Programme
• Music Teaching for Generalist Music Teachers
• Music Teacher Practitioner Programme
• Cross-Level Deployment Course
Representative Art and Music STAR Champions together with Director-General of Education, Mr Wong Siew Hoong
Music Teachers Share Their Thoughts
The music teacher-leaders who attended the launch of Stories We Sing share their perspectives on the significance of this pedagogical resource, the new possibilities it brings for music teaching and its potential impact on music education in Singapore.
Resonating With Students’ Experience
“I love the beautiful illustrations found in the Stories We Sing book. I also love that the songs span such a rich variety of genres. The music is relevant and current, and the lyrics are meaningful in our social context. I look forward to using this valuable resource in my music classroom.”
Mrs
Ang Chea Ing
Allen Losey Senior Teacher (Music) • Tampines Primary School
“This set of 12 beautiful songs makes it easier for music teachers to build 21st century competencies in students. The teaching and learning of the songs can help foster cross-cultural understanding among students. Just as importantly, students will be able to identify the songs with their own daily experiences.”
Mrs Chan Wee Teng Dawn Subject Head of Aesthetics • Dazhong Primary School
Engendering National Pride And Identity Through Song
“The songs bring a modern interpretation of the Singapore identity, and at the same time incorporate the essence of our heritage and multi-racial culture. I believe that through Stories We Sing, we can inspire our next generation to think critically and redefine their own identity in the world, and be proud of the music we call our own.”
Mr Soh Yang Yit
“Hearing about students and teachers who have trialled the lessons expressing excitement and engagement, I look forward to using this set of resource in my curriculum next year, to build up national pride in students as we celebrate our nation’s 53rd birthday.”
Ms Wu Meihui
Coordinator • Gan Eng Seng Secondary School
Music
Music Teacher • Elias Park Primary School
A Uniquely Singapore Music Pedagogical Resource
Presented as a suite, Stories We Sing comprises a publication, an accompanying audio CD and a thumb drive of lessons ideas. Collectively, they express authentic stories contextualised for the Singapore classroom.
The album integrates a kaleidoscopic diversity of styles into a single harmonious unity, much like the interweaving of cultures that makes up the core of Singaporean society. This led Mr S. P. Jeyarajadas Pandian, lyricist of the two Tamil songs on the album and Principal Master Teacher of Tamil Language, to comment, “Only a country like Singapore could have come up with such a collection of songs for the classroom.”
Expressed through four themes — Deepening Roots, Growing Communities, Moving Landscapes and Living Life, the illustrated publication presents in detail, the intriguing backstories and creative processes behind the 12 songs.
The illustrated Stories We Sing publication
Bringing together more than 100 musicians including professional artists, teacher-musicians and students in its creation, the album takes the listeners on a sonic journey of the 12 songs.
The thumb drive presents an eclectic collection of lesson ideas designed by teacher-leaders. It also includes the score, lyric sheet, audio file, audio stems and minus-one track for the 12 songs.
The Stories We Sing CD album
The Stories We Sing thumb drive of lesson ideas
PLAYLIST
Click on each of the logotypes to listen to the songs in Stories We Sing.
Music by Joel Nah
Lyrics By Heng Siok Tian
Music by Sarah Ismail
Lyrics by Mohamed Noh Daipi, Muhamad Rafi Abu Bakar and Fauziah Muhamed Fadzillah
Music by Ghanavenothan Retnam
Lyrics by S. P. Jeyarajadas Pandian
Music and Lyrics by Liang Wern Fook
Music by Kelly Tang
Lyrics by Aaron Lee
Music by Kelly Tang
Lyrics by Aaron Lee
Music and Lyrics by Kevin Mathews
Music by Bernard Tan
Lyrics by Joshua Ip
Music by Benjamin Lim Yi
Lyrics by Karen Pereira
Music by Ghanavenothan Retnam
Lyrics by S. P. Jeyarajadas Pandian
Music and Lyrics by Art Fazil
Music By Eric Ng
Lyrics by Xiaohan
Click on the logotype to listen to the album
Media Buzz
The launch of Stories We Sing attracted widespread positive media coverage, featuring educators from STAR and various schools.
The published stories featured educators who had conceptualised and designed the project. It also featured teachers who trialled lessons using the songs in their classrooms.
Upping quality music teaching and learning in schools
The Straits Times and Channel 8 News featured Ms Lim Hwee Sian, Lead Teacher for Music, Cedar Girls’ Secondary School.
Ms Lim shared how she used the songs for values education and how she organised her students into groups to analyse and interpret different parts the songs before sharing with them the songwriters’ intent.
Straits Times Online feature
Local songwriters, artistes come together to pen 12 new S’pore songs that will be sung in schools
Channel 8 News feature on Stories We Sing
Berita Harian and 938NOW Talkback featured the Stories We Sing resource; the latter held an interview with Mdm Ho Hui Ping, former Deputy Director (Music), STAR, who shared that the project sought to strengthen the teaching pedagogy of music teachers and enhance the pool of music teaching resources, especially those with a local context.
A feature on Stories We Sing resource by Berita Harian
Developing students holistically with strong values and appreciation for other cultures
Vasantham News featured Mr Abdul Hakim Mohd Udori, Senior Teacher for Music, Kheng Cheng School, who shared that he had taught his non-Tamil speaking students mudras (hand gestures inspired by Indian dance) to help them appreciate the song En Veetiley. He said that he infused group work into the lessons so that students could learn from, teach, and correct one another as they practised the songs.
Mediacorp Suria News featured Mr Muhammad Rafi Abu Bakar, Master Teacher for Malay Language who was also one of the lyricists for Bendera Kita.
Mr Rafi shared how Bendera Kita incorporated the traditional Malay poetic form of the pantun and explained how it is important for pantun to be preserved and used in today’s classrooms.
TV News interviewing
Mediacorp Suria News interviewing Mr Muhammad Rafi Abu Bakar, Master Teacher for Malay Language, Malay Language Centre of Singapore, one of three lyricists for Bendera Kita
Teachers using the resource to instil a joy of learning in students by allowing them to sing about their lived experiences and enhancing their local music repertoire
ST featured Dr Kelly Tang, Senior Academy Officer for Music, STAR who said that STAR’s hope was for teachers and students to relate to the songs and feel proud that fellow Singaporeans wrote them. Dr Tang also explained that STAR hoped the songs would be a good springboard in empowering and encouraging young people to write their own songs.
The Straits Times featuring Dr Kelly Tang, Senior Academy Officer, STAR and composer of Song Of The Fisherfolk and One By One
Vasantham
Mr Abdul Hakim on how he taught a Tamil language song
From Professional Development To Improved Pedagogy
Teachers in discussion during a session as part of the Pedagogical Song NLC
What Makes Great Professional Development Which Leads To Consistently Great Pedagogy?
A research review by Stoll et al. (2012) resulted in nine claims, of which two were put forward that effective professional development is strongly enhanced through:
• collaborative learning and joint practice development; and
• by creating professional learning communities within and between schools.
Stoll L., Harris A., & Handscomb G., (2012). Great professional development which leads to great pedagogy: nine claims from research. Nottingham: National College for School Leadership
Thus, the key to
• building teacher-capacity,
• improving instructional practice,
• fostering a teacher-led culture of professional excellence, and in turn,
• enhancing student learning, can be found in the establishment of Networked Learning Communities (NLCs).
NLCs expand beyond the notion of schools as learning communities, as it includes the idea of groups of teachers across schools learning together and participating in sustained professional developmental activities.
These activities are based on the SPAR© model, namely, Seeding, Planning, Applying, Reflecting, and Celebrating (AST, 2014).
Academy Singapore Teachers. (2015). Networked Learning Communities: Handbook for Facilitators. Singapore: Academy Singapore Teachers.
SPAR© Model of Networked Learning: Key factors in the process to bring about effective networked learning
Pedagogical Song Networked Learning Community
The Pedagogical Song NLC was thus formed, bringing together six music teachers of varying school profiles and teaching experiences to co-design student-centric lesson ideas based on the 12 songs in Stories We Sing. Each brought to the table their own unique experiences, beliefs and approaches to teaching. But through the NLC, they learnt to challenge their thinking and ways of engaging with new ideas. It required the rethinking of existing beliefs, unlearning of past habits and practices to develop new ways of teaching songs in the music classroom.
The impact of change to the teaching practice was brought about by learning from and with each other. These were the principles which determined the mode of learning in the NLC. The ideas shared, facilitated by Music Master Teachers, offered fresh perspectives to the design and delivery of the lesson, while always keeping in mind the pedagogical intent.
The Pedagogical Song Networked Learning Community brainstorming for lesson ideas
Designer of Learning Experiences
Different approaches were born out of the discussions which outlined the students’ experiences to aid the design of novel yet appropriately challenging learning experiences for our students.
The NLC is one professional development that contributed to the refinement of my teaching practice. The ideas shared have given me fresher perspectives on lesson delivery, with the pedagogical intent in mind.
I was working on the lesson ideas for ‘En Veetiley’ and had the opportunity to learn from Sri Ghanavenothan Retnam, the composer of the song. The song centres on the mudras, or the symbolic hand gestures, found in Indian traditional dance. When these gestures are paired with the words which are in Tamil language, it allows my students to form the cognitive and aesthetic connection between the two.
In the classroom, I then scaffolded the learning of the words in melody and gave the students the opportunity to seek the translation of the words on their own, based on the hand gestures learnt. It helped that the song also comes with strong underpinning values relevant to the students, forming a teachable segment of the lesson.
Music Senior Teacher Abdul Hakim and Music Teacher Loh Shao Wei learning from Sri Ghanavenothan Retnam, the composer of En Veetiley
– Mr Abdul Hakim Mohd Udori Senior Teacher (Music) • Kheng Cheng School
Reframed Perspectives
In being introduced to different approaches to teaching, the teachers delved deeper and rethought the ways in which they have been teaching. They gained new understandings and refined its applications in the music classroom.
The lesson planning process through the NLC gave me the opportunity to think about how to incorporate thinking routines within a music lesson. I had to be familiar with the thinking routines and think deeper to use them effectively within a music lesson. Learning from the teacher-leaders, including the conferencing sessions with the Music Master Teachers gave me deeper insights into writing my lesson idea. Their questions set me thinking pedagogically and musically about the lessons that I planned.
I realised, as we move into a thinking nation, there has to be a paradigm shift in the way we teach music lessons. Hence, the lessons should not focus solely on the teaching of the songs and musical concepts but to engage students in deeper thinking. One way is through the use of thinking routines to evoke the students’ curiosity about the songs and to question the thinking behind the writing of the songs. This opens up a window of wonderment and subsequently, creativity and innovation.
Another is to draw connections to the context of the song. The lesson I designed for ‘East West Line’ has to do with the way the train moves along the rail. Getting the students to draw the melodic contour provides students the opportunity to relate the movement of the music with that of the MRT rail.
Ms Tan Mui Kheng Agnes Subject Head, Music and Performing Arts Endeavour Primary School
In the NLC, I experienced writing pedagogically-anchored lesson ideas, which helped reframe my perspective on the starting point of teaching a song. In designing lesson ideas for the Malay language pop song Bendera Kita, I experimented with elements of informal learning. The discussions helped me to refine and align my application of the informal learning approach with my lesson ideas, to enable deeper students’ musical learning.
Both the pedagogy-specific and non-specific learnings such as listening to the ideas of others, getting feedback, and negotiating ideas from this experience are what I bring back to my classroom and school community.
Contextualising Students’ Personal Experiences
We may share the lived experiences of Singapore, yet each of these experiences provide a different perspective. For example, we may have taken the MRT but we each recall different memories of our rides. The teacher brings these experiences to the classroom and contextualises them for the students. In making the connections to one’s personal experiences, new meanings can be uncovered for the students.
Mr Irvin Wan Yong Quan Music Teacher • CHIJ St. Theresa’s Convent
Through the discussions during the NLC with other music teachers, my repertoire of teaching approaches has expanded immensely. One of which involves collaborative composition that brings out the students’ voice.
My lesson idea for ‘East West Line’ then revolved around the personal experiences of the students, where they have to record what they hear at the stations and from there create a soundscape.
This lesson idea was based on a reflection of my experiences as a young boy growing up in the 90s and how I spent my time on the MRT looking out of the windows, observing things which I saw or heard. That was when I realised music could be everywhere! In doing so, the musical sense is activated while minute-ing the things that happen as they go about their lives.
Mr Ong Ting Kai Music Teacher • St. Gabriel’s Secondary School
I learnt that it is important to think through the pedagogical approaches when designing learning experiences to teach a song. One approach is to provide the context and to draw on the students’ responses to facilitate a discussion on the lyrics of a song. A lot of rich meaning can be gleaned from the words and phrases, and linking it to their context will make the learning richer for them.
In preparing my lesson idea for ‘Telok Blangah’, I shared my childhood experience and facilitated a discussion with my students on the lyrics of the song. Besides linking words and phrases to their own context to make the content more meaningful, I also discussed the mood in which the music evokes, the chord progression used and the melodic contours before embarking on the informal learning approach to ensemble playing.
Mr Murugesu Samarasan Senior Teacher, Music • East View Primary School
Indeed, it is encouraging to see how the teachers in the NLC learn collaboratively and develop their practice jointly, to deepen and reframe their pedagogy. The NLC has also enhanced cross-level pollination of ideas between primary and secondary teachers, engendering deeper understanding and a better appreciation of how music lessons can be engaging in different ways.
The Pedagogical Song NLC making up teachers of varying school profiles and teaching experiences
Explorations Of Song To Lesson Enactment
When faced with new material, the process of making sense begins with an initial exploration, which subsequently leads to an assimilation of knowledge, reflection and relation to our prior experiences.
Upon listening to the pedagogical songs, each teacher merged their initial ideas from the song with their own perspectives and designed lesson ideas based on teaching approaches which they were proficient in. Each conceptualised and realised the use of the pedagogical song according to their students’ needs in their respective classrooms.
With a pedagogical intent in mind, two teachers share the process of designing and enacting their lessons.
Students engaging in self-directed learning to play Telok Blangah on the keyboard as part of an instrument carousel
Music Coordinator Leong Su Juen facilitating collaborative student practice
Inclusivity Through Band Carousel
The song ‘Telok Blangah’ is about the lived experience of the singer-songwriter, Kevin Mathews, during his teenage days in the 60s. What struck me upon hearing the song was how it was a suitable model for students to play in an ensemble setting. The manageable chords and moderate tempo of the song made it inclusive as students could play and sing along comfortably to the song.
The lesson began with students playing in an instrument carousel where they learnt the instrumental part of the keyboard, ukulele, cajón and voice, through the process of weekly rotation. By the end of the rotation, every student would have been given opportunities to understand the song from each instrumental role of a basic pop band, and perform that role as part of a class ensemble at the end of each week. The lesson was adapted from Musical Future’s Band Carousel (D’Amore, 2009).
The element of independent and collaborative learning was evident in this approach. Students in their groups were provided with a range of resources from which they could choose, based on their learning style preferences. They could view customised ‘play along with me’ tutorial videos of the instrument, lead sheets and chord charts, to aid their learning.
Performing the song as a class helped students to recognise the role of each player in relation to the larger ensemble.
Ms Leong Su Juen Music Coordinator • Pasir Ris Secondary School
cajón part stored in the iPad to enable independent learning
D’Amore, A. (2009). Band carousel. Musical futures: An approach to teaching and learning: resource pack (pp. 88 – 94). London, England: Paul Hamlyn Foundation.
Recorded
Sound Before Sight
‘Masa Remaja’ (Time of Youth) speaks of the importance of making good use of time. Thus, the lesson started with a class discussion about the impact of time, and how students utilised their time.
Using the principle of ‘sound before sight’, I introduced the syncopated rhythm through the call-and-response method. It helped the students internalise the rhythmic pattern quickly and naturally.
With the recurring melodic motif in mind, I designed the lesson with the Kodály approach. I introduced the melody through graphical representation, and subsequently with pitch names and Curwen hand signs. This helped the students appreciate how the composer had cleverly incorporated a repeated motif throughout the song.
Mr Loo Teng Kiat Lead Teacher, Music • Zhenghua Primary School
Music Lead Teacher Loo Teng Kiat revising the melodic line using solfége ladder
Through the use of the English translations, the students understood the message of the song to live life to the fullest. They speculated about the composer’s life, his compositional approaches as well as his choice of rhythmic pattern, and got excited upon finding out that the composer is still alive. They hope to meet him in person and have a conversation with him about the song.
Mr Loo Teng Kiat Lead Teacher, Music • Zhenghua Primary School
Music Lead Teacher Loo Teng Kiat using Curwen hand signs to teach the melody of Masa Remaja (Time of Youth)
Production Letters From Behind The Scenes
The Stories We Sing project involved considerable groups of people, including those who worked behind the scenes, lending their talents to the production; be it in singing or playing an instrument. Two of whom share their experiences and newly-gained insights after having such close interaction with the song.
Musicians at the rehearsal session for Vaazhway Olli Theebamay (The Glowing Light)
Almira Farid recording the harmonium part in Vaazhway Olli Theebamay
A Flame That Glows And Continues To Inspire
Earlier this June, I was excited to attend my first combined rehearsal of ‘Vaazhway Olli Theebamay’ (The Glowing Light). I excitedly marched down to Bhaskar’s Arts Academy, after having an aptly fulfilling masala thosai, only to walk right past it.
Quietly sandwiched among Jalan Kerbau’s row of shophouses and tucked away from the hustle and bustle of Serangoon Road, the Academy’s entrance is an unassuming one, leading into an even more modest interior. I didn’t know it then, but that evening, I was to meet some of the most humble and distinguished individuals I’ve ever performed with, who would later fill that small, simple space with music and voices of the most invigorating energy.
‘Vaazhway Olli Theebamay’ is very much similar to the space in which it was rehearsed. Like the image of the small glowing flame, its message is simple, as well as strong.
Be true to yourself, it reminds us.
I am reminded of a tune I picked up as a child from Sesame Street, with a catchy chorus that still resonates within me 15 years later,
‘One small voice, can teach the world a song.’
It is a simple and incredibly empowering idea. That every voice, no matter how small, simple or strange it may seem, if strong, will reverberate further than we can possibly imagine.
So to say that ‘Vaazhway Olli Theebamay’ is a song only about Deepavali would be to do its creators a great injustice. It speaks of a much deeper lesson behind Stories We Sing. That, like a small flame that can light up a room, every voice has the power to tell a story. And much can be learnt if we listen to the voices around us, no matter how small or simple they might appear - so that we do not accidentally pass them by.
Ms Almira Farid STAR Intern (July - August 2017)
Making Connections That Strengthen Engagement
Singing Dr Liang Wern Fook’s song was an honour. It was doubly meaningful for me as I personally also enjoy listening to his xinyao compositions. His songs touch on the life of Singaporeans, the aspirations and challenges that the regular Singaporean faces. And all these make his compositions very endearing to many of us.
In ‘The Invisible Snow’, there is this instantaneous connection because of the unique candidness in the lyrics and the music. To begin, ‘The Invisible Snow’ is a Chinese metaphoric expression that describes this seeming distance between our neighbours and us despite a sense of familiarity since we meet almost every other day in the elevator. Perhaps we are afraid of embarrassment or rejection when our neighbours do not reciprocate with a response. Or we might simply be too caught up with social media and ignore our surroundings. Hence, as an educator in this day and age, I feel it even more crucial to imbue in students the value of making connections verbally and tangibly. It is this basic form of respect and cultivating a sense of neighbourliness that is ever more important to provide footing and authenticity in today’s volatile world.
A poignant piece, rich in metaphors and similes, this song will generate many interesting and frank discussions. It may tease out in students, deep reflections about themselves and society.
I feel proud that we have this unique teaching resource that allows us to teach not only music elements, but also the rich values that come with the songs, and more so, songs that we can call our own. I’m now even more inspired to encourage our students to write songs about Singapore.
Mdm Irene Loi Cheng Li Head of Department, Aesthetics and Design
St Andrew’s Secondary School
Mdm Irene Loi recording The Invisible Snow in the studio Rehearsing for the recording of The Invisible Snow
Music Teachers Bring Songs To Life At The Padang Atrium
The crowd’s chatter at the Padang Atrium of the National Gallery Singapore (NGS) was increasing with excitement as they anticipated the start of 2017’s instalment of Friends in Concert (FIC). The fourth year in the running, this year’s FIC, themed ‘Our Voices’, was part of NGS’ Resonates With programme, featuring 72 teachers from 50 schools. It was truly an afternoon that brought the fraternity together through artistic collaboration and music-making to engender in our music teachers, a deeper sense of belonging and professional identity.
Held on 12 August 2017, in tandem with National Day celebrations, the concert’s repertoire was dedicated to stories and songs of Singapore, as the theme ‘Our Voices’ aptly puts it. The concert featured evergreen folk songs
Full house at the Padang Atrium of the National Gallery Singapore
Friends in Concert: Our Voices
such as Di Tanjong Katong and Singapura to xinyao to music by Singapore composers and performers. Each song was recreated and interpreted in different styles from the original, showcasing the artistic imagination and endeavours of our teacher-performers.
Graced by Director-General of Education, Mr Wong Siew Hoong and Deputy Director-General of Education (Professional Development), Mrs Chua Yen Ching, the concert was attended by an overflowing crowd, making up educators and also the public, including passers-by whose curiosity was piqued by the presentation of the performances.
The West Groovers, made up of music teachers from the West Zone, singing The Magic Is You
AP/STAR Mrs Rebecca Chew, Mrs Wong and DGE Mr Wong Siew Hoong, singing and clapping to the music
Soft Launch of Stories We Sing
This edition of FIC was also special as it flowed perfectly with the soft launch of Stories We Sing. Four pedagogical songs in the collection were presented that afternoon by our teacher-performers, who made the songs their own by rearranging them. It showed how these songs are alive and how they are living compositions as we continue to birth new ways of singing and performing them.
The teachers who had the opportunity to perform the four pedagogical songs shared with us their performance experience, the understandings they took away from the songs and the potential of the songs for the Singapore music classroom.
The performers of Friends in Concert and the Artists of Stories We Sing together with DGE Mr Wong Siew Hoong and DyDGE (PD) Mrs Chua Yen Ching
Click on link to watch the performances at Friends in Concert 2017
On East West Line
This song brings me back to the times when I used to take the train every day to school. I would take at least half an hour travelling on the East-West line to school, though I was more familiar with the West than the East of the line. While trying to memorise the lyrics, I would visualise the different stations and what I would see along the way - the scenery and iconic buildings along the way. From the song, I also learnt some interesting historical facts which I did not know before singing this song.
The melody of the song was beautifully written but may not be easy to learn as there are sections with incidentals and complex rhythms, which may resonate better with the upper primary students. The song can also be used as a tuning-in activity for Social Studies and History lessons.
Mr Wilson Kwa Kok Beng Senior Teacher, Music • Cantonment Primary School
Click to watch a rendition of East West Line as performed at Friends in Concert 2017
On Bendera Kita (Our Flag)
This song resonates with me and the feelings I have for my country – how I am proud to serve the needs of the nation as a teacher, moulding the future generations. The message of pride for a country is clearly brought across in this song. This song is versatile and can be tailored accordingly for use for all primary levels from P1 to P6 at any time of the year. For the lower primary students, it could be a simple singing of the song with some movements to a singing game. For the middle to upper primary level, rhythmic and melodic ostinatos could be added or even include playing an instrumental accompaniment such as on the ukulele (though with some transposition needed). The students could also create alternative introductions or endings to the song as an extension activity. The possibilities are endless.
Mr Shahrin Bin Mahmud Senior Teacher, Music • Greenridge Primary School
Click to watch the performance of Bendera Kita
On En Veetiley (My Home)
Part of my job as a music teacher is to nurture young minds to grow with good character. This song is an excellent resource to teach values and character building from within the heart. As the Chinese proverb goes, ‘If the family lives in harmony, all things will prosper’. The importance of family is encapsulated in this song.
I taught this song at one of my school’s assembly as part of Deepavali celebrations. It was a great sight to see the students perform the mudras (hand gestures) together as a school! Being a non-Tamil speaker, I had doubts if I could accurately pronounce the words and deliver the message in the song. However, the audio clip recordings that STAR provided as part of the resource package helped in the learning of the nuance and pronunciation of the words. In teaching the song, I would definitely start with the Pallavi (Chorus), as this part contains words that sound familiar to us. The tune and rhythms are also easy to remember, to help ease the non-Tamil students in learning a song of a different language.
Mr Loh Shao Wei
Coordinator • Yew Tee Primary School
Music
Click to watch the performance of En Veetiley
On Dui Shou (To Be A Better Me)
The song was meaningful to me in more ways than one. Musically, the echo parts and recurring themes were attractive as it could be easily caught on by students. Lyrically, there were uniquely Singaporean references - how we would nod our heads when greeting one another, Singapore’s rise to a bustling city, and also the positive message of courage and resilience to be better versions of ourselves.
I see this song as part of an informal learning package where students form groups to try to come up with their own version of the song as we teachers have, in collectively shaping the music and interpreting it our way.
Mr Eng Yan Chen Alvyn Subject Head, Aesthetics • Ngee Ann Primary School
Click to watch a rendition of Dui Shou performed at Friends in Concert 2017
The Composer’s Thoughts
Eric Ng, the composer for Dui Shou, was also present at FIC and shared how the performance was an eyeopener for him as he saw his song being put into practice, how the outdoor venue of the Padang Atrium was transformed into a classroom with parts of the song taught to the audience.
During the creative process of writing and producing the song, he experienced first-hand, the passion of our arts teachers in improving and sharing their craft with the new generation. It is great to see that practitioners in the industry understand the heart and hard work of Music teachers!
Click to read more about Eric Ng’s thoughts on the soft launch of Stories We Sing
Meeting of Hearts and Minds
Artists and educators came together to listen and to share insights to the song creation and its use in the classroom
Stories We Sing Listening Party held at Sing Lit Station on 12 Oct 2017 co-organised by STAR and NAC
Panel discussion and performances at Singapore Writers’ Festival held at The Arts House on 11 Nov 2017 organised by NAC
Singapore Teaching PracticeLesson Enactment
The Singapore Teaching Practice (STP) is a model that makes explicit how effective teaching and learning is achieved in Singapore schools. A critical component of the STP is the Pedagogical Practices (PP) which comprise four fundamental teaching processes that lie at the heart of good teaching.
This issue discusses how lesson enactment may look in the music classroom. Here we use vignettes from actual music classroom practices to illustrate the different teaching areas in the PP.
The Four Fundamental Teaching Processes
Vignettes Of Music Teaching Actions
Activating Prior Knowledge
Prior knowledge is what we know and can do as a result of one’s life experiences. For our students, this includes previously learned content knowledge, concepts and skills. Prior knowledge significantly influences our learning, including our ability to remember, understand, reason, and apply new knowledge and skills.1
Arousing Interest
Students who are interested in the content of a lesson will be engaged and intrinsically motivated to learn at higher levels of complexity. This is aligned with our belief in the Singapore Curriculum Philosophy that when children find meaning in learning, they are motivated and challenged, and take ownership of their learning.2
Kicking off a song-writing activity on the theme of cats, Mrs Allen Losey from Tampines Primary School got her primary 4 students to imitate her and imagine themselves as ‘mummy cat’ and ‘kiddy cat’ and the kind of emotions they could express through various sounds. They created music together as a class tune-in activity with the various cat sounds prior to embarking on the song-writing task.
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Senior Teacher (Music), Allen Losey from Tampines Primary school piqued students’ interest through role-play
1. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/activating-prior-knowledge
2. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/arousing-interest
Encouraging Learner Engagement
Learner engagement impacts the overall motivation to learn as it is an important condition for learning and achievement. Students are engaged when they are attentive, motivated, interested, and participating in the learning actively.3
One strategy of encouraging learner engagement is to make music learning real and relevant. Ms Lim Hwee Sian from Cedar Girls’ Secondary School introduced students to music used in films, and related it to their lived experiences.
She played them an excerpt of a well-known film, The Sound of Music, but replaced the accompanying music with another in a completely different mood. As she played them the extract, she guided the students’ listening to aspects of the music such as the tempo and dynamics.
Students were amazed by how their experience differed greatly with just a change in the style of the accompanying music. It was a powerful lesson to awaken taken-for-granted experiences and turn them into educative moments for the students.
3. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/encouraging-learner-engagement
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Lead Teacher (Music), Lim Hwee Sian from Cedar Girls’ Secondary School engaged learners through attentive listening and authentic learning experiences
Exercising Flexibility
Exercising flexibility involves teachers thinking on their feet during instruction, and responding spontaneously and effectively to what happens in class. It also involves teachers’ proactive anticipation of what may occur during the learning process. While lesson planning is important, the lesson plan is not a script to be strictly adhered to (Mutton, Hagger, & Burn, 2011). Teachers will need to respond flexibly to the needs of students during the lesson as they teach.4
Providing Clear Explanation
Clarity in teaching refers to classroom instruction that enables students to have a clear understanding of what is to be learned. Teachers need to be equipped with effective communication skills, use language that is developmentally appropriate for their students, and use appropriate terms and concepts correctly. Teaching with clarity involves the clear articulation of instructions and explanations, and where appropriate, the sharing of the thinking behind the actions.5
In a singing lesson, teaching a song with clarity involves consideration of how the melody and the lyrics can be taught to students. It may require some reordering and/ or isolating of the melodic lines, and teaching through echoing and repetition, before putting them back together as a whole.
This can be seen in the teaching of the Tamil language song, En Veetiley (My Home), by Mr Abdul Hakim Bin Mohd Udori, Senior Teacher (Music), Kheng Cheng School who extracted particular segments and had students learning the song by ear.
Mutton, T, Hagger, H, Burn, K (2011) “Learning to plan, planning to learn: the developing expertise of beginning teachers”, TEACHERS AND TEACHING. 17(4) 399-416.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2011.580516
4. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/providing-clear-explanation
5. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/providing-clear-explanation
He also had students imitate hand gestures (mudras) inspired by Indian dance, which helped provide further context to clarify the meaning of the lyrics of the song.
Pacing and Maintaining Momentum
Pacing refers to the speed at which the teacher conducts a lesson, and the amount of time the teacher allocates to each instructional activity. It is based on the teacher’s understanding of the students and their readiness to learn, and assessment data regarding how much they know and understand. Teachers can flexibly adjust the teaching and the lesson plan when students are progressing faster or slower than expected. This coheres with the Singapore Curriculum Philosophy, which advocates the appropriate adaptation of teaching pace, approaches, and assessment practices to meet the learning needs of the students.6
In a music classroom, teachers may need to move students from one seating position to the next to transit between lesson segments. Musical routines can help teachers facilitate this process.
Mrs Bridgette Teh, previously from Chong Zheng Primary School, used songs to move students from one activity to the next.
6. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/pacing-and-maintaining-momentum
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Senior Teacher (Music), Mr Abdul Hakim Mohd Udori from Kheng Cheng School clearly communicates instructions and explanations in the learning of a Tamil song
The songs were adapted from folk tunes with re-written lyrics to reflect the purpose of the transition.
Let’s get in our lines.
Let’s get in our lines.
Quietly, quietly.
Let’s all get now in our lines.
Let’s all get now in our lines.
Quietly, quietly.
Facilitating Collaborative Learning
Collaborative learning involves students working in pairs or groups on a problem or an inquiry-based activity. Collaborative learning, when well-facilitated, enables knowledge to be socially constructed among students and subsequently internalised individually. This is aligned with the belief that learning takes place individually and collaboratively, as children construct and co-construct meaning from knowledge and experiences.7
7. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/facilitating-collaborative-learning
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Mrs Bridgette Teh, previously from Chong Zheng Primary school, used songs to transit between lesson segments
There are many opportunities for collaborative learning in a music classroom, such as getting students to compose a musical work or practise for a performance together.
Mrs Katherine Faroek, Music teacher from Ang Mo Kio Primary School, taught the Inang rhythm (a Malay traditional rhythm) to her students and organised them to work in pairs or trios to co-create variations of the Inang where they have opportunities for reciprocal teaching. This is also an effective way of engaging students to demonstrate their musical understanding and to construct their learning collaboratively with their peers.
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how music teacher,
Using Questions to Deepen Learning
Questioning is an integral part of quality teaching for quality learning. Skilful questioning is a strategy which teachers use to engage students in integrating new learning, and in applying what they have learned to new contexts. This forms part of the process of developing students’ critical and inventive thinking. Questioning also allows teachers to gather information on students’ learning in order to improve future teaching, learning, and students’ performance.8
8. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/using-questions-to-deepen-learning
Mrs Katherine Faroek from Ang Mo Kio Primary School facilitated collaborative learning in a music lesson
Questions to generate musical Ideas
In music lessons, questions can be used to generate musical ideas and encourage students’ imagination.
Mrs Li Yen See, Master Teacher (Music), initiated a composition lesson with questions to encourage students’ exploration of vocal and instrumental sounds to create accompanying soundscapes to the text of the song.
What would ‘flickering’ sound like?
Why do you think ‘flickering’ (sound) is like this?
Do you think a flickering has no sound? she probed further, when a student responded, ‘no sound!’ In the process, Mrs Li affirmed and encouraged different responses from students.
This illustrates how questions could be used to make visible students’ thinking which has been expressed through their music-making.
Through the use of open questions, students are able to explore further, and the process facilitates the development of new understandings.
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Master Teacher (Music), Mrs Li Yen See used questions to help students generate musical ideas and deepen learning in a composition lesson
Questions to facilitate reflection
Questions can also be used to facilitate reflection of students’ practices and their performances. Ms Sng Sok Hean Clara, Subject Head (Aesthetics) from East Spring Secondary School, led her class through a series of questions as she debriefed the way her students had played on their guitars.
Were there any difficulties you face while ‘copying’ (the playing of the guitar)?
Why is it so?
Why could you not control (the guitar)?
Was it difficult to hold?
What could be another problem?
How could we make it better?
What did you realise about the strumming?
In the process, she restated the students’ responses and probed further. Through the questioning approach, she took students through a process which they could use to reflect on their own guitar playing when they practised.
Click to view video excerpt illustrating how Ms Sng Sok Hean Clara, Subject Head (Aesthetics) from East Spring Secondary School facilitated students’ own reflection process to work towards a better performance outcome
Concluding the Lesson
‘Concluding’ typically occurs at the end of a lesson, and it can serve as a review or summary of the key points presented earlier. Teachers can take advantage of ‘concluding’ to help students draw links to subsequent lessons or make explicit the 21st century competencies the students have learned.9
While the above vignettes illustrate different excerpts in enacting a music lesson, a music lesson will only be effective if the teaching areas and actions are conceptualised with the larger goals and purposes in mind. These areas and actions would need to be considered in the context of a larger curriculum plan to ensure coherence, thereby creating meaningful learning experiences for our students.
9. https://opal.moe.edu.sg/stp/pedagogical-practices/lesson-enactment/concluding-the-lesson
A Musical Conversation with Lead Teacher, Lim Hwee Sian
Appointed Lead Teacher, Music in 2017, Ms Lim Hwee Sian from Cedar Girls’ Secondary School, was recently conferred the prestigious President’s Award for Teachers, Singapore’s highest accolade for teaching excellence. Hwee Sian shares her journey on teacher-leadership with STAR.
STAR: Congratulations Hwee Sian on your award of the President’s Award for Teachers (PAT). You were one of six outstanding teachers and the first music teacher to receive this prestigious award. Could you share with us what underpins your music teaching practice?
Hwee Sian (HS): I am very honoured and humbled to be conferred the award and I hope it can give inspiration to the other teachers in the music teaching fraternity.
I enjoy teaching music and I strongly believe in the value of a good music education. When taught with pedagogical understanding, music can make a big impact on developing the students’ creative and critical thinking, shape their personal, cultural and social identity and also nurture their character.
Music Lead Teacher Lim Hwee Sian receiving the prestigious President’s Award for Teachers from President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the Istana, in recognition for her dedication to education through the use of innovative teaching strategies
I believe that 21st century competencies are best developed through authentic platforms and our Music Curriculum can very much support such meaningful experiences.
The music activities I designed for the students provide opportunities for students to work in groups and engage in hands-on tasks. Therefore I assume the role of a teacher facilitator, guiding my students to discover the joy of creating and working in teams.
STAR: How have the students responded to your style of teaching?
HS: The engagement level is very high as they are involved in discussing, creating and performing music. In this environment, I hope that through my facilitation, the students would gradually gain confidence in leading and become self-directed learners.
STAR: You were also appointed Lead Teacher, Music in 2017, a first for the Secondary School level. Could you share with us how you as a Lead Teacher, support the growth of the teachers within your school and the cluster?
HS: I lead the professional development of teachers, more specifically in the area of pedagogy, through mentoring and collaborating with them.
Ms Lim Hwee Sian facilitating students’ response based on a thinking routine
In school, I am involved in the planning of the teacherleaders’ learning focus for the year as well as facilitating the sharing of pedagogical strategies such as the use of thinking routines with the teachers in the school.
I am also a mentor to teachers of various subjects in my school and music teachers from the cluster schools.
Besides that, I collaborate with the school’s and cluster’s teacher-leaders regarding the teaching and learning needs of other teachers and how to better support them.
I was recently involved in the Pedagogical Song NLC for the Stories We Sing project where I worked with both primary and secondary music teacher-leaders to craft lesson ideas for other music teachers in the fraternity.
STAR: Could you share with us some nuggets of your experience and learning in this project?
HS: Being in the NLC gave me the opportunity to collaborate and learn with other teachers; we discussed and exchanged ideas with one another, building on each others’ strengths.
I am more conscious of the pedagogical intent of lesson ideas. In the process of crafting lesson ideas for the Stories We Sing resource, we discovered new teaching strategies to better engage students and inject greater joy in learning music.
Hwee Sian facilitating pedagogical strategies with teachers in her school
I wrote three spirally-developing lesson ideas for the song titled Dui Shou (To Be A Better Me). In one of the lesson designs, I made use of a thinking routine to foreground the composer’s thinking behind the lyrics. The intent behind the lesson ideas was to allow students to listen, respond, create, make choices, work collaboratively and learn independently.
Hwee Sian crafting lesson ideas with fellow members of the Pedagogical Song NLC
STAR: How do you think this teaching resource will benefit the larger fraternity?
HS: The songs from Stories We Sing have added to a pool of rich resources for music teachers to tap on. Teachers can use these songs to create lively discussions for students to discover, interpret and make meaning for themselves as the song topics are closely related to the lived experiences of Singapore which students are able to relate to and identify with.
The melodies are catchy and easy to sing. Instrumentation in the music arrangement includes instruments of our varied cultures, which provide opportunities for students and teachers to learn and discuss the diverse music cultures of Singapore.
The cultural elements infused in some of the songs also provide opportunities for teachers to introduce nonwestern music elements such as the tala and raga (beat cycle and melodic mode respectively), distinctive of Indian classical music.
All 12 songs convey meaningful messages, from which students can learn core values such as resilience, graciousness and gratitude, as well as gain better crosscultural understanding and develop a sense of identity and rootedness.
STAR: In addition to the design of lesson ideas, you were also involved in the recording of Dui Shou (To Be A Better Me) by Eric Ng and Xiaohan. Could you share with us your experience in working with the artists?
HS: It was really fun to be in the recording studio and be part of the backup vocals for the recording of the song Dui Shou. Working alongside the artists gave me the opportunity to gain some understanding to how the pop music industry works.
I noticed how Eric, the composer had us backup singers to sing various short music phrases which he creatively weaved into the music arrangement. His final arrangement of the song left many of us in awe!
Xiaohan, the lyricist, gave me new insights to the use of metaphors in lyrics to bring across her intended message to the listeners.
These insights allowed me to share their creative process with my students.
The backup vocals in the studio with Eric Ng, composer/producer for Dui Shou
STAR: Thank you, Hwee Sian. As a parting message, how would you encourage teachers to serve as teacher-leaders for our music fraternity?
HS: Have the dare to try and explore various teaching strategies, and model the way as a continual learner. Most importantly, be open to share and collaborate so that we can support one another in the fraternity.
View the following video for an insight to the work of a Music Lead Teacher.
STAR Arts Educator Series: Lead Teacher for Music, Lim Hwee Sian shares how she shapes her school arts culture, improves student learning and influences pedagogical practice among colleagues and the arts teaching fraternity
STAR Highlights 2017
STAR’s Engaging With Songs Day was held in Sep 2017 at the School Of The Arts. Involving over 300 students and teachers from 10 primary schools, the event featured invigorating singing and movement activities for the students, designed and led by teachers from the EWS programme. The event culminated in a mass singing finale, accompanied by an instrumental ensemble.
The teachers in STAR’s Engaging With Songs programme share how singing pedagogies have impacted their teaching in the classroom and enthused their students.
The Music Teaching Through the Lens of the Singapore Teaching Practice (STP) programme for music teacher leaders was conducted in Oct 2017. Through these sessions, a shared understanding of music teaching through the lens of STP was developed amongst the Music Senior Teachers (STs) and Lead Teachers (LTs). This provided them the common language and tools essential for their mentoring work with other teachers.
The Cross-level Deployment Course is specially designed to support secondary school teachers adapt and transit smoothly to teaching in a primary school. Led by Music Master Teachers in Oct 2017, the course included professional sharing by experienced primary school music teachers, as well as visits to primary schools to observe music lessons being carried out.
The Orff Approach for Student-Centric Music Lessons programme was conducted by Andrea Ostertag from the Orff Institute, University Mozarteum Salzburg, in Sep 2017. Combining music, movement and speech into lessons similar to children’s world of play, it encourages a studentcentric environment where children learn through play, music making and improvisation. For teachers who have attended the milestone programme, the Orff Plus programme broadens perspectives and deepens pedagogical understanding of the approach.
The Teaching ICT-based Music Making milestone programme was conducted in Nov 2017. Co-designed by STAR and AEB to support the use of ICT in teaching and facilitating music-making in the secondary music classroom, the workshop included sessions on collaborative music-making using ICT, technologically-mediated live performance, assessing ICT-based music arrangement/ performance and planning the ICT-based music making curriculum.
A Critical Inquiry Mini Symposium was held in Oct 2017. It featured primary and secondary level teachers who presented their critical inquiry projects which stemmed from their learnings at the 6th International Symposium on Assessment in Music Education (Apr 2017) at Birmingham City University, UK.
The Turning Experience Into Expertise: Collaborative Inquiry as Professional Development workshop was conducted in Nov 2017 by Tina Blythe, Director of Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education. The workshop focused on the use of protocols for guiding collaborative inquiry.
The Keyboard Accompaniment Supporting Programme was conducted from Jul to Sep 2017. The course caters to music teachers who wish to learn basic keyboard accompaniment skills to accompany singing, and to support music teaching and learning.
proudly presents
SEMINAR
Enlivening Music Lessons In The Classroom
Stories We Sing is a collection of 12 commissioned songs that speak of our contemporary lived experiences in Singapore. Presented as a suite, this resource comprises a publication, an audio CD, and a thumb drive of 50 lesson ideas created for music teachers, by music teachers. Join us at the Stories We Sing Seminar as we demonstrate an array of eclectic teaching approaches that are responsive to 21st century students.
DATE & TIME 1 February 2018 0830 - 1700 hrs WHERE Grand Copthorne Waterfront
We’d Love To Hear From You…
Lee Huan Siak James Deputy Director (Music) LEE_Huan_Siak@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1493
Chua Siew Ling Master Teacher (Music) CHUA_Siew_Ling@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1501
Li Yen See Master Teacher (Music) CHAN_Yen_See@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1499
Suriati Bte Suradi Master Teacher (Music) Suriati_SURADI@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1498
Chan Yu Ling Josephine Senior Academy Officer (Music) Josephine_CHAN@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1555
Leong Siew Chun Senior Academy Officer (Music)
LEONG_Siew_Chun@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1495
Tan Li Jen Adeline Senior Academy Officer (Music) Adeline_TAN@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1494
Kelly Tang Senior Academy Officer (Music)
Kelly_TANG@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1561
Eng Yan Chen Alvyn Academy Officer (Music) Alvyn_ENG@moe.gov.sg +65 6664 1497