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Date of Publication
3-26-2021
Document Type
Paper
Abstract / Program Notes
How can we move our students from answering questions that we pose to them, towards developing their own avenues of inquiry? In this paper we make the case for teaching students how to ask meaningful questions about music. We argue that asking questions can be a crucial learning goal that motivates students’ development as thoughtful and effective musicians. The Question Formulation Technique (QFT) is a pedagogical tool that teaches students how to develop their own questions in relation to a prompt. Students generate, manipulate, and prioritize these questions as a springboard for further class activities. This method foregrounds students’ ideas and agency, motivating those who struggle to creatively engage with course topics and thereby increasing their confidence with the material. We will share how we have incorporated this technique in the context of the theory core sequence and additionally show how the QFT approach can be utilized in other academic courses and applied contexts. QFT leads to a learning cycle where students develop their own questions, learn analytical skills and ideas in pursuit of those questions, share their findings publicly, and then reflect upon the process. In this paper, we will share strategies for using the QFT in our classes, highlighting how this process can create deeper learning, longer retention, and ultimately challenge students in ways that are authentic and meaningful to their own musical pursuits.
Biography
Patricia Burt is an assistant professor at the University of Delaware where she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in music theory. Her research areas include the development of an approach to register analysis that can be applied to stylistically diverse compositions, the use of play in the theory classroom, and the cultivation of fundamentals fluency in 1st-year music majors. She earned degrees in psychology, piano performance, and music theory from Johns Hopkins University, Towson University, and University of Maryland, College Park. Her approach to educating has been informed by her experiences teaching students from diverse backgrounds at a wide variety of institutions including small liberal arts colleges, public universities, and community college. She serves on the Student Advisory Council for the College Music Society and the editorial board of the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy and is the CMS Board Member for Music Theory. Philip Duker is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Delaware. His current research focuses on pedagogy, aesthetics, and repetition in Twentieth-Century music. He has published articles in Perspectives of New Music, Music Theory Online, GAMUT, and the Routledge Companion to Music Theory Pedagogy. In addition to being one of the coordinating editors for Engaging Students: Essays in Music Pedagogy, he is the director of the Institute for Transforming University Education at the University of Delaware.
Keywords
Music Theory, students, Questions Formulation Technique
Student-Driven Music Theory: How the Question Formulation Technique Can Promote Curiosity, Agency, and Creative Course Design
How can we move our students from answering questions that we pose to them, towards developing their own avenues of inquiry? In this paper we make the case for teaching students how to ask meaningful questions about music. We argue that asking questions can be a crucial learning goal that motivates students’ development as thoughtful and effective musicians. The Question Formulation Technique (QFT) is a pedagogical tool that teaches students how to develop their own questions in relation to a prompt. Students generate, manipulate, and prioritize these questions as a springboard for further class activities. This method foregrounds students’ ideas and agency, motivating those who struggle to creatively engage with course topics and thereby increasing their confidence with the material. We will share how we have incorporated this technique in the context of the theory core sequence and additionally show how the QFT approach can be utilized in other academic courses and applied contexts. QFT leads to a learning cycle where students develop their own questions, learn analytical skills and ideas in pursuit of those questions, share their findings publicly, and then reflect upon the process. In this paper, we will share strategies for using the QFT in our classes, highlighting how this process can create deeper learning, longer retention, and ultimately challenge students in ways that are authentic and meaningful to their own musical pursuits.