One of the ways I have been trying to integrate culturally diverse teaching in my classroom, is in the media I choose to share with my students. Particularly, in the musical listening examples and repertoire that we study. Sharing music is not just limited to the music classroom however; this is something you can do in just about any classroom, with any age group of students.
Nowadays, music streaming services make sharing music easier and more accessible than ever before. The Swedish streaming service Spotify allows you to easily curate music into playlists, collaborate with other users to create collections, and share music to the world with just a few clicks. Spotify stores data from the music that you listen to in order to recommend similar music that you may enjoy. This is all based on genre, mood, artist, and location. (Anbuhl, 2018). Users can search for new music by typing in keywords and discover vast selections of artists and playlist recommendations. (Anbuhl, 2018).
Using music streaming services in the classroom allows students to explore music that they would not have otherwise known about. The possibilities for student-centered learning projects are endless.
For their final culminating assignment last semester, I asked my secondary school Music classes to research an artist of their choice. I compiled the music from the artists that they researched into a playlist. I was amazed at the variety of genres, cultures, and different musical eras that my students explored. Some of the genres that the playlist features include; indie, classic rock, hip-hop, rap, and jazz.
In addition to this, I would open my lessons each day with music playing as my students entered our classroom. It was my way of sharing music that they may not have heard of before and showcasing a diverse selection of artists. I shared music that had personal, sentimental meaning to me, but also minimalist, R&B, contemporary, electronic, and BIPOC artists. This is a playlist of some of the artists I featured.
References
Anbuhl, C. (2018, June 19). Social and Cultural Practices around Using the Music Streaming Provider Spotify. Retrieved July 15, 2022, from http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1482394/FULLTEXT01.pdf
March 2022
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