Title: Octave Progression for Music Assisted Literacy in Special Education
Date: April 1, 2012
For: EDU 7270 Research Seminar in Educational Technology
RATIONALE:
The attached visual framework represents my theoretical framework from educational source readings to support my proposed dissertation topic of showing how music can assist in building literacy skills for students with multiple and developmental disabilities including autism spectrum disorders.
The framework is outlined by an octave or eight circles representing the eight basic steps of our musical scale. The scale has seven different notes from lowest to highest, the first and eighth musical pitch is the same note. The octave is based on the science of acoustics - double the frequency of the sound wave, it goes up an octave. Conversely half the frequency of the sound wave, it goes down an octave. There are eight concepts used to build my theoretical concept set against the rainbow color scheme, from bottom to top, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, red repeat cycle. These colors are used constructively in my approach for
teaching music to special learners.
John Locke (red circle) (1632-1704), described the value of an Aesthetic Education in his Theory of Knowledge gained from Experience. He wrote that the “senses are a gateway to the mind.” “A child will learn three times as much as he will when he is in tune”. From Thoughts Concerning Education, 1693, S. 74.
John Dewey (orange) (1859-1952), In his Democracy in Education, 1916,takes John Locke’s ideas further “ Education is Life Itself”. He is dubbed the father of experiential education and the progressive movement. Children learn by doing. The Aesthetic Element in Education (1897) showed Dewey’s support of music education as an enterprise for fuller living.
Jean Piaget (yellow) (1896-1980), French speaking biologist and cognitive psychologist whose theory identified four stages of childhood development, sensorimotor stage, pre-operational stage, concrete operations, and formal operations. Concept of play was important to the early development and he supported musical activities as important to developmental learning.
Reuven Feuerstein (green) (b.1921) was a Romanian student of Jean Piaget and he developed his renown Theory of Structural Cognitive Modifiability for persons with intellectual deficits. He founded the International Center for Enhancement of Human Potential in Jerusalem.Successful research is documenting success of his theory worldwide for the past fifty years. My focus is to show how this theory is applied through music to enhance literacy skills in students with multiple and developmental disabilities including autism spectrum disorders.
Howard Gardner (blue) (b.1943)- In his Theory of Multiple Intelligences (1983) the musical/rhythmic intelligence is identified as a whole brain intelligence which unites functions in both the right and left hemispheres, consequently enhancing learning potential across the curriculum.
Edwin Gordon (indigo) (b. 1925) Identified and developed a sequential Music Learning Theory,1997 curriculum which also serves to show the strong correlation of music learning and its connection to building literacy skills: reading, writing, listening, speaking for all children.
Music Brain Research since 1973 there has been a growing body of research to show neuroscientific data on the value of music education to support learning in other subjects such as reading, mathematics and science. Donald Hodges (Neurological Research and Music Education, 1996-1997) discusses the characteristics of the musical brain which operates from birth. The musical experiences are multimodal, involving auditory, visual, cognitive, affective, motor, and memory systems. As such music can assist a student in enhancing his learning potential.
Literacy in Special Education tops the theoretical framework for my proposed dissertation topic. As neuroscientists such as Dr. Donald Hodges reports, the musical brain is highly resilient and the music persists in people with even the most profound disabilities. It is to this end that
neuroscientific research plus the theory of cognitive modifiability supports music assisted learning in special education. My proposed dissertation topic will show specific use of musical applications to support common core standards for literacy in students with multiple and developmental disabilities including autism spectrum disorders.
Peer Reviewed Article
Portowitz, A., Lichtenstein, O., Egorov, L., & Brand, E. (December 2009). Underlying mechanisms linking music education and cognitive modifiability. Research Studies in Music Education, 31.107-128.
Portowitz, Lichtenstein, Egorov, and Brand (December, 2009), explored the possible links between cognitive structures, music education, and self-efficacy among high-risk elementary school children at the Jaffa Institute Child-Care Centers in Israel. There were 81 participants in all between the ages of 7 and 9. The experimental design had 41 children who took weekly music enrichment classes in music appreciation, performance, creativity for two to three hours a week . These enrichment classes were conducted in the Reuven Feuerstein model of mediated learning environments which assisted the children in developing learning strategies while studying music. Mediated Learning Environment also helped the children resolve problems when learning their instrument. This experimental design ran for two years. Children in the control group, 36 participants, did not participate in music enrichment classes nor mediated learning environments over the two year period.
Cognitive skills were measured in pre and post assessments by Raven, Complex Figure
Tests -Standard Matrixes and Colored Matrixes -and for social esteem, the Fitts Tennessee Self Concept(TSCS) Test scale questionnaire. The results of the research project showed that indeed there were significant difference between the groups in the development of the targeted cognitive skills.The findings suggested that music, used within the mediated learning environments (MLE) does provide cognitive development which can be applied across the curriculum. The study gives strength to generalizing knowledge from specific music applications to functional and adaptive daily living.
Researchers Portowitz, Lichtenstein, Egorova and Brand have been forerunners in
the movement to show how the Theory of Structural Cognitive Modifiability - the theory of
psychologist Reuven Feuerstein - has widespread applications for students with cognitive disabilities, and those who are high risk from numerous reasons including low socio-economic
status. They draw upon previously published works of Feuerstein and Rand, 1997 and the
principles and teaching methods of Mediated Learning Experience (MLE), Instrumental Enrichment (IE), and Learning Potential Assessment Device (LPAD) found in Feuerstein, Falk, Feuerstein, and Rand, 2002. Portowitz and Klein (2007) previously published a two year study based on Feuerstein’s cognitive modifiability. This study definitively showed that music learning activities cultivated cognitive functions that could then be transferred to build skills in other areas such as anguage, reading, and writing for children at risk. “Studies of mediated musical environments could provide important insights into the learning potential of other groups of children with special needs,” (Portowitz and Klein, 2007, p. 268). Underlying mechanisms linking music education and cognitive modifiabiliy (Portowitz et al, 2009) inspired me to pursue my proposed dissertation topic to show how music can help literacy development in areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking. Quantitative methods were used to determined results. Portowitz et al used ANOVA 2x2 analysis to evaluate the research hypothesis (Group x Time).
Her figures showed that there was a significant improvement between pre and post intervention in the experimental group but with the control group - without the music, without the mediated learning environments - the scores did not improve over time and showed a bit of decline. The results for the Fitts self-esteem questionnaire showed that improvement in the experimental group is slightly better, but the difference was not found to be significant which Portowitz wrote joins other research about students who come from impoverished physical and emotional environments and how intertwined their these cognitive, social and emotional factors are to their self-esteem.
Underlying mechanisms linking music education and cognitive modifiability by Adena Portowitz, Osnat Lichtenstein, Ludmula Egorova, and Eva Brand, 2009 serve to inform pathways for further research on how music can, with the help of mediated learning environments, help
our students reach higher levels of independence through building literacy skills. This research builds upon my theory of conceptual framework.
References:
Feuerstein, R., Falik, L.H., Feuerstein, F.S., & Rand, Y. (2002). The dynamic assessment of cognitive modifiability: The learning propensity assessment device: Theory, instruments, and techniques. Jerusalem, Israel: ICELP.
Feuerstein, R. & Rand. Y (1997). Don’t Accept Me As I Am. Arlington Heights, Il. Skylight Professional Development.
Mark, M.L. ed. (2002). Music Education Source Readings From Ancient Greece to Today, Second Edition. New York: Routlege.
Portowitz, A. & Klein, P. (200&). MISC music: A music program to enhance processing among children with learning difficulties. International Journal of Music Eduction, 25(3), 259-272.
Portowitz, A., Lichtenstein, O., Egorove, L., & Brand, E. (December, 2009). Underlying mechanisms linking music education and cognitive modifiability. Research Studies in Music Education, 31.10007-128.
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