Music education has been integrated into the curriculum in Hong Kong for over 20 years. After the Learning to Learn curriculum reform in 2001, it is recognized as a key subject to foster student holistic development, especially for aesthetic skill training and moral growth.
This research study is an exploration of music teaching practices in Hong Kong primary school context. Four music teachers of diverse backgrounds were recruited for conducting in-depth interviews during the pandemic times. By adopting the idea of Shulman’s pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and integrating five commonly-used music instructional methods, such as Kodaly, Orff, Suzuki, Gordon, and Dalcrozes’s approaches, a novel music pedagogical framework was created for coding the music teaching practices and no previous research has been done in this perspective.

Based on the four case studies, preliminary results suggested that music teachers in private international schools were likely to exhibit greater variability in their pedagogical approaches to music instruction compared to music teachers in public-aided schools. This finding revealed that music teachers in private international schools tended to employ more dynamic and constructive teaching methods, which was paramount to flourishing student learning. Additionally, the modeling, guiding, and training approach was identified as a grounded teaching method for music education regardless of different types of schools. Furthermore, a supportive learning environment and parental involvement were prerequisites for effective music education and all teachers considered these factors. Other implications were highlighted for framework development.

Authors:
Wing Yin Lam, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong
Rhoda Wang, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About the Presenter(s)
Ms Wing Yin Lam is a Independent Scholar at The University of Hong Kong in Hong Kong

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