Assessment in secondary music

4.3 Teacher as musical critic

In this final section, you will consider the questions teachers might ask when evaluating the extent to which their assessment approaches support young people’s musical learning.

Table 7 Assessment of young people’s work musically

Questions to consider Related issues
What are the criteria for musical success in the tasks I have set for the young people?

How do I define the criteria for musical achievement and how do I communicate this to my young people?

How do I support students in developing their own understanding of musical achievement and what they need to do to improve?

How can I demonstrate to young people the musical possibilities of the task they are undertaking? How might I use my own musical skills to demonstrate what I want the young people to achieve?
Is the young people’s work musically coherent and interesting?

How do the young people and I define musical coherence and interest?

Does what I assess and how I assess support the development of interest and coherence?

How is interest and coherence exemplified in different musical styles and traditions?