Portfolio Showcase: Kensington-Parkwood Elementary
View as Single Page or Print
Overview
At a 2004 Chorus America meeting to discuss arts integration, John Ceschini met Larry Scripp, the director of the Music-in-Education National Consortium’s Learning Laboratory School Network, and discussed Kensington-Parkwood (KP) teachers’ interest in learning more about music and music integration. The research-based nature of the Consortium appealed to many at the school as a way of studying and documenting the impact of the arts integration program. In addition, the focus on music learning was important to increasing teachers’ comfort levels with music in the classroom.
Ultimately KP teachers decided to become part of the Consortium in order to learn from others and to share creative ideas for integrating music into the curriculum. At that conference, the group developed a greater understanding of the nature of research concerning the integration of music in the classroom. They learned about the variety of approaches that were being implemented across the country and benefited from the interaction with others exploring this concept. The conference inspired the group to form a school-based LLSN study group of teachers interested in exploring the integration of music in their classrooms. The group reviewed the LLSN Guiding Principles to determine those that were of most interest. They also revised some of the MIENC rubrics to fit the needs of the elementary school setting (For a discussion of MIENC principles and Rubrics, see Scripp and Aprill, 2007, “Interlude” in JMIE 3, pp. 177-181, and Scripp 2007, “Embracing the Challenges of Complexity,” in JMIE 3, pp. 184-201). The core group assisted teachers in implementing their lessons and provided support for the changes in the school’s instructional program.
Kensington Parkwood has shared the results of their program through the use of the LLSN network, the school website, and presentations at numerous conferences. It is the goal of the teachers to become mentors to other teachers and schools interested in using music as a means of serving the arts learning and arts integration goals of public school communities.
In 2006-2007, the research team at Kensington Parkwood conducted three action research projects integrating music and language arts: Integrating Music and Writing, “Follow the Drinking Gourd,” and Rhythm and Poetry.