Welcome to the WJETT blog
What is WJETT?
The WJETT blog or Warwick Journal of Education - Transforming Teaching blog is designed to encourage staff and students to disseminate good practice and to engage with their peers on academic cultural critique or areas of research that they find interesting. With the increased focus on ‘teachers as researchers’ in the sector, many qualified teachers are expected to publish the outcomes of any action research projects they undertake. The WJETT blog can be the first step on your journey towards publishing and enables you to experience publishing and reviewing in a friendly and supportive environment.
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The place of music in the national curriculum
OFSTED Chief Inspector Amanda Spielman’s (2017) arts speech focuses on the lack of understanding behind the national curriculum and the neglect schools are facing with regards to implementing it.
Receiving knowledge is a measure of making progress, however the lines for this are blurred as schools are focusing mainly on results, rather than on maintaining sight of pupils. Since the introduction of the new national curriculum in 2014 (slimmed down version) it could be argued that GCSEs are now purely a memory test, and don’t always mean full understanding and knowledge, despite the aim being to increase a “rich foundation of knowledge”. As a result of inspections, focus has been readjusted. Many secondary schools have reduced Key Stage 3 to two years, meaning options are decided earlier and there is even less access to the arts, although the content included in the exams remains aimed for a two year course. Despite the removal of Progress 8, the ability to be flexible for those who need it has lessened.
Moreover, there has been a massive focus on test results and league tables with primary schools, due to a hugely narrowed curriculum. Testing has become the curriculum. In conclusion learning must take precedence over levels of outcomes but this does not seem to be at the forefront of educators priorities. With the help of the Government and Ofsted, the focus needs to shift back to giving equal opportunities and implementing the correct curriculum alongside pupil care.
Schools Minister Nick Gibb’s ‘Why good-quality music education matters’ speech in London (2016) demonstrates his personal admiration for music as a subject. The arts is a topic of discussion as something which needs to be discussed when recognising the lack of opportunities for those less fortunate. One example is the Classical 100 app, which is promoting music in primary schools, offering background and childhood music education.
Gibb states how there are measures put in place to counteract the decline of music and its importance. The increase in EBACC subjects is mostly to blame for the decline in uptake of the arts. Schools are focussing on offering a core academic curriculum, despite Gibb’s arguing that music itself should be seen as an academic subject (with the addition of notation and an area of study to decrease the gap between GCSE and A level). Key stage 3 is setting up children with a good academic and practical background should they want to take it up for GCSE. Pupil premium is allowing those in key stage two further access to the arts, which could increase the intake towards GCSE.
Furthermore, the addition of music hubs are allowing more pupils with less access to the arts to try and discover what it is like. County-wide ensembles are also looking to signpost those most talented who wouldn’t necessarily get the opportunity due to financial or support issues. In conclusion Gibb’s speech, despite being predominantly London biased, explains how projects are being implemented to widen access to the arts.
Spielman, A., (2017), https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/hmcis-commentary-october-2017Link opens in a new window
Gibb, N., (2016) Why good-quality music education matters, https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/nick-gibb-why-good-quality-music-education-mattersLink opens in a new window
Writing guidance
Can I write about anything in my blog post?
Yes pretty much. Academic cultural critique (Thomson and Mewburn, 2013) is always a good source of content for academic blogs. This can include (but is not limited to) comments and reflections on funding; higher education policy or academic life. You might also want to consider blogging about:
- Academic practice (Saper, 2006)
- Information and/or self-help advice
- Technical, teaching and careers advice
- Your research or practice
- How you’ve undertaken research
- The impact of research on your practice
- An area of research/practice that interests you
- Your teaching experiences/reflections
How long can my blog post be?
Each individual blog post should be no longer than 500 words. Long blocks of text are sometimes hard for readers to digest. Break up your content into shorter paragraphs, bullet points and lists whenever possible. Also include a list of keywords or tags as this makes it easier for Google to find your work.
Do I need to use citations?
No, this is a reflective piece so it does not need to include citations (but you obviously can include them if they are relevant).
Can I include links or images?
We would encourage you to include links to any articles that you have considered whilst writing your blog post. We also welcome the use of images (as long as you have permission to use them) as they can often help to illustrate a point and obviously will not be included in the word limit. Please remember this is a public site so if you want to include images of your students in your classes then you will need permission to do this.
What is the process for submitting a piece of work?
Your blog post should be emailed to A.Ball.1@warwick.ac.uk. Once the submission has been reviewed it will either be uploaded at the beginning of the next available week or sent back to you for editing if it requires amendments. You should then send the amended work to me once again and I will then upload it.