This dissertation explores the value placed on music education in primary schools in Northern Ireland with particular reference to Key Stage 2. The main objectives of this study were to define what music education is, to develop a better awareness of the purpose of it and to discover how its value is perceived by various stakeholders. In order to achieve these objectives, factors which contribute to the status of music within primary education are identified and ways in which to recognise its value are presented. Through a critical examination of the debates surrounding curriculum in general and music education in particular, it is argued that the influences of popular culture, educational philosophies, the economy, and the development of the statutory requirements have had an effect on the hierarchical positioning of subjects and the type of knowledge which is deemed to be worthwhile in the curriculum. As a consequence, music is often granted low status within the curriculum. Working within an interpretivist paradigm, this qualitative study consisted of drawing attention to people’s perceptions and experiences of music education. The views and opinions of children, class teachers, music co-ordinators and senior leaders in three primary school settings were gathered via focus group interviews with children and one-to-one interviews with adults. The analysed data show that there are factors which contribute to the low status of music education: vulnerability, priority, exclusivity and invisibility. In contrast, the factors which contribute to the high status given to music are performativity, personal development of the child, and enthusiasm among teachers. Findings from this study indicate that there are two musical perspectives in primary schools underpinned by two distinct beliefs. Firstly, there is the traditional approach to learning music as a subject-based discipline, where the mastering of technique and the transmission of knowledge are the goals. Secondly, there is the more progressive sldlls-based approach, which nurtures an understanding of music through immersion in practice, with knowledge being created in context. Both ii approaches are to be found in music education in the primary school but in different contexts and used by different types of teacher. This small scale study provides valuable insights not only into the intrinsic and instrumental benefits of musical engagement, but also into the link between self-perception and musical ability, noting the common societal view that a person is either ‘musical’ or ‘non-musical’. Overall, it is argued that if teachers had a better understanding of the purpose of curriculum music, focusing on its instrumental worth and planning for musical engagement, rather than the development of musical skill, the teaching of music to all children would be less complicated with fewer personal demands, and children would feel comfortable working within their natural capacity. For this to happen there needs to be greater awareness of the purpose of music in the curriculum and for teachers to be more accepting of process over product so that all children can be individual in their musical endeavours, with emphasis placed on creative thinking and decision making. It is also argued that extra-curricular music is central to the fulfilment of potential and nurturing of talent, laying the foundation for those children who wish to pursue musical performance as part of their future. Therefore it is concluded that both music education pathways within primary schools are necessary for a complete musical experience, and for each individual child to realise his or her potential fully.

In 2011, the UK Coalition government introduced a strategy for music education in England - the National Music Plan (NMP). Founded on Darren Henley’s (2011) review of English music education, the NMP outlines arrangements for the funding, organisation, staffing and management of English music education. This thesis is founded on the idea that policy initiatives such as the NMP reflect government thinking about the nature of policy problems. Policy problems are constituted by a particular social view about truth and knowledge. Drawing on Scheurich's (1994) policy archaeology framework (PA), this study sets out to explore the social rules by which NMP policy problems are constituted and how the NMP is perceived amongst music education policy enactors. This PA is conducted through the critical discourse analysis (CDA) of three Coalition government music education policy texts and the thematic analysis of fifteen semi-structured interviews. CDA findings suggest that Coalition government music education policy discourse is infused with both neo-liberal and neo-conservative ideology. The interview data suggests participants perceive four pre-NMP music education policy problems: ‘inequality,’ ‘incoherence,’ and ‘inefficiency’, which reflect neo-liberal policy influences; and ‘musical excellence’, which reflects a neo-conservatism influence. Participant responses suggest that the NMP has enhanced music education provision and workforce training in all regions, but that local history, politics, ideology and vision, and geography are limiting factors. Participant responses also indicate increased confidence for job security; however, this belies the ongoing impoverishment of music teachers’ pay and conditions, reported by many participants. The findings of this study resonate with Spruce's (2013) claim that the NMP has ‘tamed’ English secondary music education. I engage with this claim to show how the NMP has ‘tamed’ primary music education and the music education workforce. The ubiquity of neo-liberal/neo-conservative discourse denies the possibility of a broad, creative general music education, centred on musical exploration and discovery. Furthermore, the failure of the NMP to address existing regional inequalities in terms of provision, training, and teachers’ pay and conditions means that inequalities remain between the quality and breadth of musical opportunities for children in different schools across the English regions. I conclude by offering nine recommendations for policy and practice.

Previous research suggested that specialist music teacher was of vital importance to the delivery of high quality music education, both school music lessons and extra-curricular music activities, to our next generation. The present study sets out to test this finding in Hong Kong primary school context. Drawing on a Bourdieusian lens, it suggests that there are strong relationships between (1) habitus, (2) social capital and (3) cultural capital possessed by music teachers and the provision of extra-curricular music activities based on a survey of extra-curricular music activities in a representative sample of Hong Kong primary schools, and on in-depth interviews with ten music teachers. The study findings indicate that the inclusion of specialist music teacher is associated with five out of sixteen types of extra-curricular music activities and a significant difference between the mean numbers of extra-curricular music activities offered by schools with specialist music teacher and schools without specialist music teacher. The nature and consequences of these findings are then analyzed based on the Bourdieusian approach. The present study recognizes that specialist and non-specialist music teacher acts the same way when making choices among different kinds of extra-curricular music activities according to our qualitative findings. The present study concludes that _,311' music teachers - are 'dominated-dominant' within the sub-field of the provision of extra-curricular music activities in Hong Kong primary schools. Implications for policy makers, school administrators and music teachers are given towards the end of this study.

This study examines why so many generalist primary teachers lack confidence in teaching music, what contributes to this lack of confidence in some, and what creates confidence in others. Current thinking on musical identities, musical knowledge, learning and teaching is examined, and through the use of recorded semi-structured interviews, the life-musical experiences of a group of fifteen primary teachers are documented and categorised initially in a negative to positive range. Singing is remembered by all the interviewees as the most positive experience, and it is also the most confident area of their current music teaching. Negative remarks about performance, some of which caused humiliation, are revealed to be highly influential in forming a poor musical identity. Little or no memory of ITE curriculum music is common, with few participants observing music teaching or lesson planning before qualifying.

Conceived in response to earlier research confirming the consistent and long-standing trend of low musical confidence among primary school teachers in the United Kingdom, this study examines the concept of partnership between class teachers and visiting musicians within the primary music classroom. From the dual perspectives of music educator and ethnographic researcher, I investigate dynamics of power and hierarchy present within the primary class teacher and visiting ‘specialist’ musician relationship, which is a typical aspect of current music education teaching practice. Using Christopher Small’s concept of musicking, issues of expertise, talent or giftedness, musical identity, musical confidence and power within the teacher/musician relationship are closely examined. In turn, through study of a programme of collegial classroom musicking, I seek to trial and propose a specific model of dialogic partnership for music education within the primary school that aims to disrupt the continuing cycle of low musical confidence among primary teachers which, in turn, affects their attitudes to teaching music and to their perceptions of musicality among the children whom they are teaching.

Sound-based music (sbm), which is an umbrella term created by Landy (2007) for music where sound is the main unit rather than the musical note, rarely features in music curricula in schools and currently has a relatively small audience outside of academia. Building on previous research conducted at De Montfort University concerned with widening access to sbm, this thesis investigates whether sbm composition can provide an engaging experience for Key Stage 2 (7-11 year olds) pupils supported by the development of heightened listening skills. The research is interdisciplinary spanning sbm studies, music technology and education, and involved case studies in eight schools with 241 children conducted from 2013 to 2015. Each case study included a series of workshops in which the pupils developed listening skills, recorded sounds and created sound-based compositions. Using a grounded theory approach, qualitative and quantitative data was gathered over three phases through questionnaires, teacher feedback, observations, recordings and pupils’ work. The results of the research indicate that the children had a high level of engagement with the workshop activities. The data also suggests that the heightened listening training helped to support the pupils in their compositional work. The main factor in this engagement appeared to be the opportunity to be creative, which is something that reports since the 1990s have highlighted as essential for all children. Additionally, a range of complex local conditions influenced engagement in each case study and there were indications that engagement also decreased with age. Pupils chose a variety of different approaches for composing sound-based work that ranged from incorporating detailed narratives to focusing purely on experimenting with the sound itself without reference to any external themes. The compositional pathway chosen by each pupil seemed to be partly influenced by previous musical experience.

Music in the primary school has long been a subject of debate. Advocates from the fields of research and policy-making have frequently stressed its importance, campaigning for time and resources within the packed primary curriculum. However, for individual teachers, music continues to create divisions: whilst some educators are extremely passionate about ensuring regular, inclusive delivery of the subject, there are others who find it anxiety-inducing and question the ability of generalist practitioners to even attempt to engage with it. Investigating the perceptions and beliefs of current teachers, who are actually involved in the day-to-day delivery of music becomes vital, in order to add their often-ignored perspectives to the debates surrounding music’s place in primary education. This thesis explores the issues surrounding primary school teachers’ responses to music, through the lens of motivational theories, in particular self-efficacy theories and value judgements. In particular, I examine how teachers’ engagement with the subject stems from a complex interaction of both personal and social factors, considering the relative and inter-dependent impact of these. Through the use of an exploratory pilot survey and extensive narrative interviews, an eight-point model of motivation is proposed. The complex nature of these eight dimensions, which span both personal-cognitive elements and socially-situated elements, suggests that it may well be possible for schools to impact positively on the ostensibly personal motivation of teachers; an in-depth investigation of one case-study school demonstrated this could occur even when the practitioners themselves may have had negative experiences with music in the past. Through engagement with this institution, I make explicit the circumstances through which this was made possible, highlighting their whole school approach which encouraged dialogue, reflection, autonomy and collaboration. In this way, the theoretical understanding of teachers’ motivation for music can be linked to the potential to improve real-life practice.

The subject of this thesis is primary music in-service education in the Republic of Ireland. The central aims are to investigate what can be learned from the study of historical and recent aspects of music in-service education and to reflect on how this knowledge might be used to inform future policy and practice. There are therefore two distinct strands in this study - the historical research and the research on presentday practice. Historical research was undertaken on the music curriculum and music in-service education from 1900, when music was first introduced as a compulsory subject, to the present day. Three periods in the history of the music curriculum were investigated, leading to the music in-service programme scheduled for 2004 to introduce the 1999 music curriculum. The perspectives of present day teachers and trainers were investigated. Questionnaires were used to elicit the views of teachers who have attended music courses as well as those who have never attended music courses. Following evaluation of this data, semi-structured interviews were held with a sample of music trainers. The research focused on how the current model of music in-service courses could be improved, so that they might be more responsive to the needs of the participants. Finally, the outcomes of the historical research were related to those of the research on the current provision. The findings highlight the fact that certain themes have recurred since music was first introduced as a compulsory subject to the primary curriculum. These issues are: the status of music, the curricular content, the lack of confidence of many generalist teachers, gender and music in schools, and the provision of an advisory service and graded music in-service courses. The study concludes with a set of recommendations for future practice as well as some reflections on the outcomes of the thesis.

This study aimed to uncover the issues affecting the effectiveness of music lessons in primary schools in Cyprus, when these are carried out by general teachers. This was achieved by testing the hypothesis that these issues are caused by general teachers' limited musical awareness; their negative attitudes towards (teaching) music; and inadequate support they receive in-service. This research was conducted during two waves. A positivist approach was initially employed using a survey (wave 1) amongst teachers who were appointed in public primary schools in Cyprus. However, a phenomenological approach was significant for the purposes of this study because no explanations of the issues uncovered by the survey (wave 1) were collected. Thus, in-depth interviews (wave 2) were carried out with a small sample of general teachers who discussed their past musical experiences, current feelings about and experiences in (teaching) music, and their views of the various forms of in-service support with special reference to music books, music curriculum, school musical facilities and the music inspector. The overall findings of this research confirm all three areas of the hypothesis, suggesting that current practice for preparing general teachers to teach music is inadequate. This study has implications and thus will be useful for: general teachers in realising their responsibility in providing children with positive musical experiences; teacher educators in understanding the kind of knowledge and skills that would enable student teachers to teach music effectively and with confidence; and the Cypriot Government to consider music as one of the primary subjects within the curriculum, and thus provide those who teach music with the appropriate in-service support. Suggestions for future research relate to recent developments in primary education in Cyprus, which have not been explored in this study (introduction of the 'new' music curriculum, 'new' music books and the use of music technology).

Kuwait, post-oil (1932), invested heavily in educational development at all levels. A curriculum was developed which included music, both Eastern and Western. Initially the piano was adopted, but the curriculum was broadened to include other Western instruments, more recently the clarinet. A need for a programme of training to produce versatile clarinet teachers in Kuwait was therefore identified. In order to ensure that the curriculum to be designed met the specific needs of Kuwaiti clarinet students, an analysis was made of the social, historical and geographical situation of the country, Kuwaiti Folk Music, Music in Islam, and curriculum and instrumental music teaching in Kuwaiti schools. From these initial findings the specific needs of Kuwaiti clarinet students were identified. These include adult beginners, no aural model of the clarinet, little familiarity with the clarinet repertoire, and no transferable instrumental technical skills. In order to support these students in their learning, theories of motivation were analysed, and situation-specific teaching strategies have been identified and developed. Simultaneously an analysis was made of clarinet teaching, past and present in Kuwait. From these recommendations best practice was identified. These informed curriculum development. As a consequence the Ahmad Alderaiwaish Clarinet Curriculum (AACC) for the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, Kuwait, was developed. Peer review and critical response followed. The AACC, which is in the form of five parts, delivers the clarinet teacher education element of the Bachelor of Arts programme. These parts are designed primarily for the student and include scales,arpeggios, exercises, pieces and recommended sources, both Eastern folk and classical, and Western music. The former have the additional benefit of preserving and promoting Kuwait’s cultural heritage. Complementary teaching equipment has been invented to introduce students to specific playing techniques with which they were not familiar, for example, breath control.