Garth Nichols, Director of Teaching and Learning at Bayview Glen School
September 19th, 2014 - Meeting Before Creating Rhythm Ramp
Q: How has education evolved from the past?
A: Our educational system is outdated. We are learning in an industrial model of education.
It no longer works because the marketplace has changed. Schooling first started with nothing
(no notebooks, pencils), then evolved into chalkboards, then pencils and notebooks, then into
computers. The jobs of the past do not exist, they are based on industrialism (factory-produced goods).
Now these jobs can be outsourced or done by robots. The education system has not changed along with how
society has changed, but this too is changing.
Q: Why is today's education system the way it is?
A: Summer holidays are based on the agricultural seasons. School time hours spanning work hours for parents.
Here are some aspects of the education system that need to be addressed to promote learning for today:
- Less effective homework with no real learning value (why do it when not everyone needs this reinforcement)?
- Less effective compartmentalized subject-based learning (ie. your schools timetable).
- Some schools' schedules go throughout the year with week-long breaks rather than a two-month summer.
- Homework is not needed for every student, and different amounts are sufficient for practice depending on the person.
At Quest University, B.C., students formulate a question which they want to answer by researching through
to the end of the year and each subject will answer this question. Badge learning system makes students demonstrate
their proficiency in each topic to earn their badge. Rather than tests and rigid schedules, educators use
student-interviews where you earn a badge after you demonstrate that you can accomplish certain tasks to
assess proficiency at the student's own pace.
Q: What would the classroom of the future look like?
A: Future classrooms would take into account different rates of learning or styles of learning.
We should meet the students, wherever they may be. There is something called a "scaled classroom."
This challenges the idea that learning takes place only in a school. In the future, students will carry a smartphone.
The student will travel from location to location (music store, historical building, park) as the
student engages with teachers in real world environments.
The challenge in this model of education is: "How can students learn about community and character in a scaled school?"
Method of teaching: give the students a few documents and after they have finished reading them,
the teacher would ask them to describe the concepts that were learned from the documents.
Q: If there were skills that you wish kids were able to develop more easily outside of class,
what would they be (Example: learning to read with parents)?
A: The four C's of 21st Century learning:
- Communication
- Creativity (very important)
- Collaboration
- Critical thinking
From our discussions with Mr. Nichols, a possible topic for us to consider for the research project
is learning about community and character, as well as how to listen in a more free, individualized learning environment.
Garth Nichols, Director of Teaching and Learning at Bayview Glen School
November 11th, 2014 - Meeting After Creating Rhythm Ramp
- The Rhythm Ramp is a great idea, he is very impressed.
- An idea he gave to expand on the existing prototype: If you roll the ball down every time it hits
the notes it could complete a circuit for little lights to illuminate a screen.
- It provides a different method of teaching music for people who cannot make the connections
in traditional ways. (this is F, this is C, etc.)
- Teaches rhythm, placement, "takes music out of your head and constructs music, builds music."
- "the wood construction is very appealing to many people"
- "the feedback component of this is built in by the sound"
- He has contacts. He can ask other schools for them to test our prototype
- We can bring our kit to music classes and film a long song or orchestra piece by piece
- "this is all critical thinking"
- Creativity is built into the construction, introducing traditional concepts - build it rather than brute memory.
- The critical thinking component is taking what is in the book and making it into a song
- we could include prompts on how to take what is learned in this
- "I can't wait to buy one"
- Children would really want to build the melody and use this tool. It is learning without knowing it
- The pattern recognition involved in this tool is a form of critical thinking; it requires you to
recognize and build complicated patterns at your own pace
- Usually, most kids start learning music by just playing a few keys; this provides a new introduction
- Our team came up with the idea to put a musical staff on top of the rhythm ramp on which different notes
could be positioned on (while keeping all the chimes on the same location). This would help teach music notation
- We should structure the learning goals of the tool (notes, rhythm) with the 4 Cs, creativity, communication,
collaboration, and critical thinking
Stavros Vassos, Professor in the Department of Computer Control and Management Engineering at the University of Rome, Italy
October 19th, 2014 - Meeting Before Creating Rhythm Ramp
- Prof. Vassos deals with how artificial intelligence can be applied in the everyday design of products as well as
industrial uses (smart homes, etc.); as well as giving everyday objects sensors and computing power to understand what you want.
- Technology could merge with everyday objects such as enchanted objects you can interact with.
- Children learn easier with a physical object
- A game with plastic tubes of different sizes that produce different tones could be used to create a melody (e.g. Boomwhackers)
- Learning is more effective when playing a game
- Putting a numeric score on the "magnetic musical staff idea" could make it a game and more competitive
- When developing the FLL research solution try to first find a problem and solution, then see
if an electronic sensor would be appropriate for the solution. Do not use sensors for the sake of using sensors.
- Two aspects of learning music: 1) learning and understanding theory, and 2) creating new
instruments that help you to learn, such as proximity sensors for playing music with hands
- When developing a particular activity/topic (e.g. dancing) make the game like a hidden exercise, while at
the same time making it competitive. Sensors can give feedback on how you are doing. (add "gamification" for excitement)
- e.g. Bike with accelerometer and lights telling you how well you are doing.
- It is better to think about the process of learning and whatever can help make it better. A solution can then be made.
- Do not put sensors everywhere randomly, come up with a topic you want to help improve, A CLEAR GOAL (why is it useful?).
Then come up with anything (the technical term is ENCHANTED OBJECT) and determine how it could be made afterwards.
- Collaborating and competing to motivate (can engage friends)
Michael Berkovsky, Juilliard-trained Music Educator and Performer
November 2nd, 2014 - Meeting Before Creating Rhythm Ramp
- He said that his students would much rather use physical tools than electronic apps
- Some kids are born with perfect pitch, which means that they can easily make the connection between what they hear to a note name on the scale
- It is very difficult to teach pitch recognition
- It is extremely difficult to motivate kids to practice music at home
- it is hard to engage the kids while teaching music
Michael Berkovsky, Juilliard-trained Music Educator and Performer
November 9nd, 2014 - Meeting After Creating Rhythm Ramp
- Liked the idea of the rhythm board
- Saw children who are younger do well with it
- Think kids who have something 3 dimensional learn better than through apps when they are younger
- Could see children use the rhythm board with some success
- Encouraged combining rhythm and pitch together in one tool
- Referred us to a website where you can find many musical apps
- Not all apps are educational. For example: "Garageband indeed started on a good idea but all
it accomplished is having kids copy a machine and not think for themselves so that's where the educational part was lost..."
- "I love this (Rhythm Ramp) so the only limit is that it has to be kept to short tunes.
I couldn't fully count how many bars you guys had but I'm guessing 10-15 notes.
I like use of space there- If each bar represents an 8th note could a student have a guide then with a short tune to put together?
Very good music/ logic game and I could see kids ages 3-9 probably using it."
Tom Richards, An Accomplished Music Educator
November 18th, 2014 - Meeting after creating Rhythm Ramp
- "Oh, that's great, that's a nice prototype."
- Could have a grid of eighth notes
- Definitely possible to gamify it
- Making the leap to reading music is partly visual
- Better for younger kids
- Good because it is kinaesthetic
- We should add colours
Ea-Ling Seun, An Accomplished Music Educator
November 26th, 2014 - Meeting after creating Rhythm Ramp
- She described the Rhythm Ramp as "The beat is moving through time."
- She said that it is easier to teach rhythm when the beat is actually moving through time like the ball on the Rhythm Ramp.
Orsi Lengyel, Music Educator, North York Suzuki School of Music
March 1, 2015, Meeting in BVG Auditorium
- The Rhythm Ramp is a multipurpose instrument with note and rhythm component in it. “You can see it”
- What you can teach with the Rhythm Ramp is limitless
- The Rhythm Ramp is ideal for institutional use, as opposed to home use
- The Ramp provides different ways of showing the same music.
- They (i.e. the students) would "get it" through use of the Rhythm Ramp"
- Target age group could be kindergarten to grade 4
- Team should create a "Teacher" pamphlet setting out intended use, target ages group and limitations of the device
- Can use Ramp to teach scales to students
- Rhythm and pitch are concepts taught before note reading
- Maybe teacher set ups up the notes on the hangers and younger students determine only rhythm/spacing of chimes
- When using the Ramp, teachers need to limit number of kids working at a particular time.
- When using the Rhythm Ramp to teach rhythm, do not worry about the notes. The teacher can provide the notes to the students and then have the students “set the rhythm”
- Teacher should separate the teaching of note reading from the teaching of rhythm when using the Ramp
