Hindrance of Music Creativity by Post Secondary Music Institutions - Research Paper Example

?Hindrance of Music Creativity by Post Secondary Music s Introduction All new ideas, the contemporaryproblems, inventions, as well as music, theatre, film, and visual arts all come through the creative individuals. As crucial as we might then agree that is creativity, actually little is being done in our educational institutions to locate it, validate it, and thereafter support it. The methods of teaching continue to be primarily teacher oriented, and the assessment methods whether product or process based, continue to be either descriptive, prescriptive or both. This fanned by the misconception that prevails in the society with regard to business and education that creative persons are the minority and majority of persons are otherwise. Creativity is therefore defined as the application of divergent thinking (Humphreys, 2006). Our traditional approach top music education typically is the 19th century ethic of the teacher directed sequential instructions. This is coupled by repetitive practicing of the students and regular testing of the rote skills. It, therefore, seems that the skills required to play are taught before the knowledge to comprehend what is actually playing. As a result classroom management overwhelms the best intentioned teacher; the curriculum is to be covered at the expense of music creativity in our classrooms. Discussion According to Sullivan (2005) asserts that in essence, creativity is three skills: the ability to generate, relate, and develop ideas with fluency and sensitivity; the ability to select and organize ideas in a perceptual and intellectual manner; the ability to effectively express ideas through a medium. Ultimately, it is our task to establish how creativity can be determined or measured, how can it be recognized and encouraged. The music schools while teaching about musical performance, theory and history should squeeze in a creativity unit whenever it is possible. The music schools do not encourage the skills that are prerequisite to creativity. To commence with, the essential skill to creativity is a problem formulation. The ability to isolate and formulate a problem, its essence is a key to the eyes of a creative person. Having the knowledge of what the problem is sets the mind in motion to begin searching for solutions. Observation and experimentation follows, perhaps leading to innovation technique or approach. Another skill not encouraged by conventional teaching is tolerance to ambiguity. Holding of two opposing yet plausible truths simultaneously, the wrestlings of questions which have no clear cut answers and with conundrums that need patient contemplation too are creative skills. Just like the composer of a harmonic technique will struggle, one has the idea of what is looking for, but can not quit grasp it (Nickerson, 1999). Moreover, the capacity for dogged perseverance is also something that is prerequisite for creativity. This is because the problems one will encounter will not be easily solved, thus only hard work and concentration will succeed something which the music schools do not emphasize. The following are creative attributes which the music educationists should recognize: exhibition of verbal, ideational and imaginative fluency; risk taking and excellence despite making mistakes; exhibition of curiosity, inquisitiveness and excitement; flexibility and adaptability; tolerance to ambiguity and responding to ingenuity and spontaneity; production of unique and realistic ideas; rebellious yet able to operate within the traditions; extroverted and introspective at appropriate times. Games can also be used as a portal to creative teaching during our day to day teaching and performance of musical practice. Games are not encourages in many of the music schools as it is over looked at the expense of music education. However, games cut directly to the essence of the creative self, where present strategies, past experiences, and new ideas bled together with one sole purpose of succeeding. The connection to games is actually lost in the post secondary institutions where play is dispensed in favour of the more serious and productive modalities of learning process (Sullivan, 2005). The schools should then view course content from the perspective of creativity. Also, play can engage students on a level of learning of which they do not see it as instruction. Therefore, creative play with course material can provide the introductory phase of a unit often referred to as ‘priming the pump’. Moreover, it also provides engaging methods for assessment of the student’s resourcefulness, comprehension, and expression. Play is by nature creative, and creativity is by nature playful. According to Legault, Pelletier, and Seguin-Levesque (2009) argue that an impulse to learn is essentially a ply instinct. Games which are actually not highly embraced by the post secondary music institutions, it is that games define the outer parameters of work and certain rules of conduct within. Ultimately, learning game is encouraged because it provides instant feedback as to student results. The game non-linear since there is presence of multiple variables to the order and the expertise of student’s decisions. The game is self respecting because there is latitude of variations for the students to become more proficient at playing the game thus enhancing their creativity. According to Amabile (1990) in her studies on social psychology found out that the following are regarded as inhibiting factors to the expressions of creativity: evaluation expectation, competition, restricted choices, time pressure, surveillance, over emphasis on the tangible reward, unclear goals, lack of resources, and lastly lack of skill The post secondary music institutions should ensure creativity by using a five-step plan on a daily basis. According to Sullivan (2005) asserted that the steps included the following; becoming interested in and aware of the environment. Notice the patterns. Should also notice the ambiguities and contradictions; inviting of your criteria to grow. This is attained by creation of a space for your perceptions, and reflecting upon them; imagination, practicing of internal visualization; formulate questions, ideas. This is because creativity requires action and attention; exposure, continuing to seek and hear the work of others; expressing your ideas through any medium that is accessible. There is no right time for you to begin performing or writing, but once you have prepared the ground allow yourself to commence creating. Creativity is much of a habit than it is a talent and a skill. Creativity like intelligence is not an exotic talent; but it is a capacity just like intelligence which can be enhanced with effort and attention. Creativity is a skill that is within the grasp of educators and students alike (Nickerson, 1999). Most of the post secondary music institutions have the tendency to punish the creative students because of them has the ability to produce work that is divergent from the course content and expectations, or raising divergent questions, or for questioning the methods of teaching and judgment. This also poses a challenge as it is quite hard to distinguish between a creative student and a behavioral student. Creative individuals have the traits expressed below in the following collective character traits; independence, self discipline, fluency, tolerance for ambiguity, perceptive power which include the sense of humour, playfulness and sensitivity. They also have the ability to defects. Teachers have at their disposal a variety of assessment tools for their student. Some are process oriented, whilst others are product oriented. Of these tools, the assignment and the written or oral test, still remain the classical favorite. This is what hinders creativity in the post secondary music institutions. The use of assessment tools like play are under emphasized along side many others. This is because these other under emphasized tool are known to increase the knowledge domain and the mastery of required skills, therefore the student performance is greatly enhanced. For example, the creative games build on the existing skills, stimulates both imagination and understanding by presenting a situation that provides the opportunity for experimenting. The goal of teacher education is production of good teachers for the future. A good musical teacher needs to combine musical artistry with the artistry of teaching. The creative teacher needs to inspire, motivate, and develop the students so that they can function at various levels of engagement. Creativity is a nebulous concept thus requiring some thought and study to establish how it functions in the world of music (Brinkman, 2010). Some creative activities which the students of the post secondary institutions can engage in include; composition class, improvisation classes, instrumentation and arranging, jazz band and choir with the utilization of improvisation, and lastly the theory class of composition. These activities are good musical idea but the commitment by the teachers to encouraging creativity in all the students throughout the course in colleges and universities is missing (Amabile, 1990). Approaching teaching with creativity in mind focuses on attempt to think how the students are different from one another. Therefore, creativity is an attitude that we must develop in the pre-service teachers. This is tantamount so as to inject creativity in the students. This is to develop orientations and techniques for approaching situations in new ways. To ensure creativity in the music institutions, the teachers must also have a structure that aids them to utilize their expertise, motivation towards a reward, and helping them to think about the tools prerequisite of creativity. They consist of expertise in a certain set of skills like pedagogical skills, people’s skills, and classroom management. Motivation is gained if the school administration supports creativity. Next are creative thinking skills. By establishing those individuals who are creative and knowing about their personal traits, this will help the teachers to be more creative. Conversely, it has been reported that teaching others to become more creative is a step that many teachers do not take (Brinkman, 2010). To encourage creativity by the teachers, the teacher is to get involved in problem solving with the students. By outlining the problem to the students, and helping the students in the generation of ideas of what can be done to fix the problem. Creative people have the ability to recognize and understand problems. They can then represent them in way that stimulates actions. They are usually curious, willing to surmount obstacles, willing to grow, having intrinsic motivation, willing to take risks that are perceived as moderate, and to sum up have the desire and ability to work for recognition (Amabile, 2008). The knowledge of how the professional composers compose depicts the potential of establishing the missing link in the music education. This is the writing of music by the students within the curriculum of the school. The students will have that chance to express themselves in way by writing their own music systematically. An involvement of such magnitude will deepen their comprehension of musical relationships, and how one articulate feeling through sounds beyond the currently available rudimentary improvisational and creative activities. This is attributed to the fact that the fundamentals building blocks of creativity are imagination and intelligence (Davidson & Scripp, 1988). According to Lapidaki (2007) is reported that composers in many schools are hindered by the fact their dreams are discarded as mere divergence from the conventional content. However, in most cases these dreams are provide them with sound images per se. They do not act as stimulus capable of under going transformation into a musical material. Another crucial facet of music creativity is that process of making choices: it is fulfilling, even though it is torturous. For a compositional outcome, it requires quality creativity, dedication, extensive and disciplined work. These are some of the processes that most post high school institutions have little emphasis on. The idea of music composition implies the overriding presence of the personality of the composer which is typically influenced for the most part by the unconscious. Consequently, it is important for the teacher to view as the facilitator of the student’s process of composition. As a result aiding the students to explore and continuously discover their own creative personalities, thus empowering their personal involvement with music (Lapidaki, 2007). Music teachers who wish to have student composers to express and exercise their ideas, should grant them ample time to work on their compositions as most professional composers do something which lack in colleges and universities. Conclusion The music institutions should encourage creativity in their teaching programs so as to encourage uniqueness and innovation in the music industry. They should have the following criteria for an educational environment that is conducive to creativity: accepting of an individual who is having unconditional worth; a period where external evaluation is absent; understanding empathetically; allowing psychological freedom. The inhibiting factors to creativity can be mitigated through democratic approach to assignment design. The teachers are to teach techniques and avoid overly restricted applications. This can be attained by giving the students a variety of assignments, and allow the students to select that one which interests them. Teachers are encouraged to model creativity through their own performances, compositions, conductions, and writing. Conversely, having teachers who are creative does not necessarily influence the students to be creative themselves. To encourage creativity in music education, the teachers at all levels are to teach creatively in addition to teaching for creativity for their. Resisting of the notion that all the standardized tests will answer our problems in music education, this is because in creative arts more than one answer can be correct. Another point is that working on the various aspects of college music education, so that all the majors in music education have the required tools to be the future teachers of creativity (Brinkman, 2010). Music creativity has been a major component of musical education for many decades. Some of the themes that come up from the experience of professional composers of their creativity, for example the significance of the unconscious, the apprehension towards discovering ones’ language of the music, or the social and personal tension between tradition and innovation have not been adequately captured and recognized by the literature of music education in post high school institutions. Reference List Amabile. (2008). How to Kill Creativity. Harvard Business Review , 3 (2), 77-87. Amabile, T. (1990). Within you, without you: The Social Psychology of Creativity and beyond. Newsburry Park CA: Sage. Brinkman, D. J. (2010). Teaching Creatively and Teaching for Creativity. Arts Education , 1 (1), 48-52. Davidson, L., & Scripp, L. (1988). Young children's early learning of music. In J. Sloboda (Ed.), The generative process in music: The psychology of performance, improvisation and composition (pp. 195-230). Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press. Humphreys, J. (2006). Towards a reconstruction of Creativity in Music Education. B. J. Music Education , 23 (2), 351-361. Lapidaki, E. (2007). Learning from Masters of Music Creativity: Shaping Compositional Experiences in Music Education. Philosophy of Music Education , 15 (2), 93-117. Legault, L., Pelletier, L., & Seguin-Levesque, C. (2009). Determinants of teachers' motivation and Teaching Behaviors. Journal of Educational Psychology , 95 (2), 186-196. Nickerson, R. (1999). Enhancing Creativity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sullivan, T. (2005). Creativity and Music Education. Ontario: Harper and Row Publishers. Read More