Both GCSE and A-level Music have been criticised in the past for either not demanding enough in the way of essay writing, in the case of GCSE, or, at A-level, adopting a tick-list approach to musicological analysis that did not prepare students well enough for undergraduate thinking.
Ross Walker, head of music at Calthorpe Park School in Hampshire, outlines some of the principal amendments at GCSE: ‘In comparison with the old specification, the requirements for students to write at length, in essay form, are significantly different.’
‘Our students are now encouraged to write in prose with correctly formed sentences – bullet points or brief notes are no longer acceptable. Where students were previously required to write at length about one of the set works they had studied, they are now required to write a longer answer. This involves comparing a set work which they have studied together with a piece that is unfamiliar to them, but is in some way related to one of the Areas of Study (AoS). Pupils are more actively engaged in analysing the music as they answer the question, drawing comparisons between the two pieces, thinking about what makes each piece unique, and noting compositional or instrumental features of each piece which may help to define its genre or historical place’.
Ben Dowsett, curriculum manager for music at The Sixth Form College Farnborough, notes a similar trend at A-level: ‘The essay writing requirements for the new specification and the old legacy course represent the single biggest challenge’, he says. ‘Previous essays relied on formulaic answers, requiring little demonstration of musical understanding but being reliant on memorising bar numbers and buzz words. In the new course, the essays require students to construct a balanced argument drawing on analysis related to a broader musical and social context, more akin to undergraduate level’.
Earning marks
The onus at Key Stages 4 and 5 does now appear to be upon more integrated, considered academic writing than a regurgitative process of listing musicological points. But, there is still a mark scheme to be considered – how do teachers get a balance between both meeting all of the assessment objectives, and writing a genuinely engaging piece of academic writing? James Manwaring is director of music for Windsor Learning Partnership, and author of the education blog, Manwaring Music: Life as a director of music. ‘While AoS are important, I get students to write from a point of view of knowing, appreciating and understanding the piece rather than writing to tick boxes,’ says Manwaring. ‘I encourage them to show knowledge of a piece as a result of listening and identifying key features. What is important is that students write about a piece of music from a place of real understanding – that is where wider listening and understanding culture and context is crucial. Writing fluidly also takes practice and time. So I get my students to write as many essays as possible and get used to writing as much as they can’.
The new specification demands a more nuanced understanding from musicians © PESHKOVE/SHUTTERSTOCK
Walker explains that at GCSE, establishing a clear framework to work in is important: ‘Our students begin the process of learning how to respond to the essay question right at the beginning of the course. It is important that this isn't left until the run up to the examination in Year 11, since students need regular practice if they are to get it right.’
‘The assessment objectives for the essay question are always shared with the students. Much more effective than that, however, is sharing exemplary responses with the students. For many, the greatest barrier to success is the blank page with no prompts or choices of answer to review. The use of writing frames, when practising, and worksheets which separate into musical dimensions such as melody, harmony and rhythm help students to meet all aspects the mark scheme demands.’
Like more practical aspects of musical study, practice seems to be at the heart of success. But how many essays should they be writing? ‘The short answer is as many as possible’, says Dowsett. ‘However, this is fairly pointless for them until they have a foundation to write from with a sense of authority. As students need to write at least one essay on every AoS covered, essay writing has to start when piece analysis begins. This first essay can be extremely daunting for students – the steep learning curve is overcome by huge gains in confidence and ability with each essay written. Initially the essays might need more support, but I have been genuinely surprised at the rate of student progress.’
Walker believes that, at GCSE, practice is also at the heart of successfully communicating to students the importance of meeting the requirements of the mark scheme: ‘The mark scheme can easily be shared with the group and model answers can be distributed and discussed, but students only really know if their answer is in line with the mark scheme when they practise questions regularly, get marked, and discuss shortcomings and areas for improvement.’
Improving
Effective feedback is one of the most crucial aspects of dealing with the new challenges of extended writing. Manwaring uses a bespoke approach: ‘I use a clear essay feedback form when I mark my essays. This shows students the features that they have included, linked to the mark scheme, and the features that need work. On the back, I print the mark scheme bands and highlight the band they are in so that it is really clear. The whole process saves time when I am marking because it has common features on it, so I can note when they have featured them or not – it is both clear and useful.’
For Dowsett, one aspect of feedback appears as the most in-demand at A-level. ‘One-to-one feedback is overwhelmingly the most popular form, from a student perspective. From a teacher's point of view, however, it is also incredibly time-consuming. I don't anything can replace written feedback, which is incredibly useful for students, though I think that they often need guidance in its worth and how to interpret it.
‘The way I like to give feedback is more holistic. Having marked a class of essays, I then listen to and discuss a piece of music at the start of a lesson. However, I pick a piece that incorporates many elements of the essay – for example, identifying stylistic features that didn't seem to be understood from when I marked them. This acts as sort of contextualised feedback and the students find it incredibly useful’.
For Walker, variety is the key at GCSE: ‘Our students experience a range of feedback with regards to the essay question. Sometimes they work individually on an essay, whereas at other times they may work as a pair to answer the question. The interaction that this produces always results in more thoughtful and considered responses.
‘At other times, we may even work as a whole class to answer a question. Small groups may be given responsibility for producing two sentences of the essay – in this way, students begin to see the importance of each element and how this can build together to formulate a full response. When essay questions are teacher-marked, an individual feedback session will often follow, offering the student the opportunity to ask questions and understand where they have gone wrong. For many students, this individual time is undoubtedly the most effective way for them to make progress.’
In addition to cautiously welcoming some of the changes made to extended writing at GCSE and A-level, teachers are working hard to enable students to meet the challenges of new and more demanding specifications, with often only limited assistance from examination boards. With the focus increasingly shifted from formulaic responses to evaluative perspectives with a comparative and contextual dimension, only time will tell whether teachers, students, and boards have pitched it right.
