EXPLORING CHANGES TO THE 2021 OHIO MUSIC STANDARDS Heather Marsh

A new version of the Ohio Music Standards is on the horizon, and I am very excited to share some information about the changes and updates that are forthcoming. I had the privilege of being a member of the working group for the new standards and hope to provide some insight on the modifications that were made to the 2012 standards. If you were not aware, a draft of the standards was released last spring, and this document is available on the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) website. It is important to note that 2021 standards are still in draft form and have not yet been approved.

UPDATE ON THE NEW STANDARDS TIMELINE

We began the task of revising the standards in early 2019, and the original plan was to have the new standards in place for the current school year. Unfortunately, due to Covid-19 and a myriad of other challenges we have faced the past year, the standards are now slated to be released for the 2021-2022 school year. In addition, in July 2020, the Ohio Department of Education released Resolution 20 to address inequality in standards and curriculum. ODE is working to ensure that the new standards will meet the needs of students of all backgrounds. This process is currently underway, and the Fine Arts Standards will be re-evaluated to ensure proper implementation in regard to Resolution 20.

CHANGES TO THE 2021 MUSIC STANDARDS

A significant amount of changes were made in the 2021 music standards. I would like to outline a few of these notable changes and give some explanation about the revision. The first change is in the cognitive and creative learning processes. In the 2012 standards, there were three main categories: creating, producing/ performing, and responding/reflecting. In the 2021 standards, there are four categories: creating, performing, responding, and connecting. These categories were changed to align all of the Fine Arts Standards to the same set of learning processes. The visual art, dance, media arts, drama, and music standards now contain a common language of assessment for students throughout the arts.

The next change was to the structure and format of the standards. I am so excited about this change because it makes the standards so much easier to follow. In the 2012 standards, there is a progression of concepts in each grade level, but you have to search through each box to find that skill in the next grade level. In the 2021 standards, you can now trace growth of a specific skill or concept through multiple grade levels. I will use improvisation as an example, which is in the “creating” category. Standard 1CR is about improvisation in every grade level. This makes it very easy to show how a specific skill should progress throughout the music education process. Each standard now follows this pattern from kindergarten all the way through high school, if applicable.

THE 2021 ENSEMBLE STANDARDS

Perhaps, the biggest change with the 2021 standards is the addition of the ensemble standards. I felt very passionate about this revision, as most of my job every day is teaching in an ensemble setting. With the addition of the ensemble standards, we were able to add many essential playing and singing skills, such as tone, articulation, expression, sight reading and technique. These are concepts that we discuss every day in an ensemble setting, but many of these were not consistently addressed in the 2012 standards.

The design of the 2021 ensemble standards is just like that of the K-12 music standards, with clear lineage between ability levels for each standard. For example, in the Performing category, standard 2PE develops the concept of tone quality from the beginner to advanced levels. The 2PE standard shows the growth that should happen in regard to tone quality with the advancement of each level.

The committee opted to show progression in the ensemble standards through ability level, instead of through grade level. School districts across Ohio start students in band and choir at all different grade levels. We also know that students progress at different rates, depending on a variety of factors. For these reasons, the ensemble standards are set up in five categories: Novice, Intermediate, Skilled, Accomplished, and Advanced. The standards should be viewed from the prospective of the ability of the individual student, not by the grade level of the student. Every student should advance in category as they develop their individual skills. You could have 8th-grade students who are at the intermediate level or at the advanced level in the same classroom, and that is okay. The goal is for students to progress and show growth in their skills as they develop as individual players or singers.

I encourage you to take a look at the draft of the new 2021 standards. A tremendous amount of thought and care were put into this revision. My hope is that the music teachers of Ohio will come away with a user-friendly and understandable document to help their students flourish in the music classroom!

Heather Marsh is in her 14th year of teaching, currently serving as the director of bands in the Arcanum-Butler Local School District. She has served OMEA as a district treasurer, vice president, president, member of the OMEA Band Music Selection Committee, and has been an OMEA adjudicator since 2010.