Playing the changes: an expanded view of higher music education through the use of collaborative learning and teaching

Playing the changes: an expanded view of higher music education through the use of collaborative learning and teaching

In Australia, higher music education faces challenging times— university reform has ushered in an era of public accountability and budget cuts; the sector has become portfolio career-focussed and a university education must prepare students for uncertain futures. Within higher music education, collaborative learning has been identified as one way to address these types of challenges. There has recently been increased interest in the use of collaborative learning in a variety of higher music education contexts. To date, however, collaborative learning for music practice or performance in higher music education remains little used and under-researched. Situated within a practitioner inquiry framework, this study employed narrative approaches to discover participants’ experiences of collaborative learning in first year music practice courses at the University of Southern Queensland, a regional Australian university. The participants in this study were students who completed the first year music practice courses in 2014 and the teacher/researcher. Preliminary research during 2012 and a pilot study in 2013 shaped the focus and design of the study. Data were collected from students’ essays, journals and short answer questionnaires. Teacher’s data took the form of a teacher/researcher diary. Thematic analysis of students’ essays and journals established the ways in which collaborative learning built students’ individual and collective agency. Narrative analysis of the entire data set was undertaken to develop a robust picture of the value created through learning music practice collaboratively.