This design case describes how the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) informed the development of SpectrumPlay, a digital tool created to support learning and instruction of elementary music literacy and composition in inclusive music classrooms. The learning supports embedded in the tool enable students with visual processing…

This paper presents an ongoing project to develop a freeware resource for music composition in the primary classroom. The national curriculum for music at Key Stages 1 and 2 calls for students to "compose music for a range of purposes using the inter-related dimensions of music", a challenging aim that demands significant guidance,…

Background: Previous studies have argued that technology can be a major support to the music teacher enabling, amongst other things, increased student motivation, higher levels of confidence and more individualised learning to take place [Bolton, J. 2008. "Technologically mediated composition learning: Josh's story." "British…

This article reports on the practice and evaluation of a music education model, In Harmony, which utilizes new technologies and current theories of learning to mediate the music learning experience. In response to the needs of twenty-first century learners, the educational software programs Teach, Learn, Evaluate! and Impromptu served as central…

This exploratory work describes and analyses the collaborative interactions that emerge during computer-based music composition in the primary school. The study draws on socio-cultural theories of learning, originated within Vygotsky's theoretical context, and proposes a new model, namely Computer-mediated Praxis and Logos under Synergy (ComPLuS).…

This paper draws on results of a research project InterActive Education: Teaching and Learning in the Information Age (see www.interactiveeducation.ac.uk). The overall aim of the project was to examine ways in which new technologies can be used in educational settings to enhance learning. Research was carried out across a range of school subjects:…

An innovative ICT project called "Compose" has been implemented in some New Zealand primary schools in an effort to counteract the lack of classroom composition opportunities. "Compose" combines the use of music software and online learning with attempts to address barriers to primary classroom composition. This article…

Seeking understandings of the relationships children have with electronic environments is needed in order to continue to develop our understandings of what children are doing in those environments and why. This paper looks at the musical compositions of children in an electronic environment and attempts to demonstrate how those compositions are as…

This paper serves as a brief description of research into the use of professional level music software as a learning tool for creativity and composition by primary school children. The research formed the basis of a Master of Information Technology in Education degree at the University of Melbourne. The paper examines the physical environment, the…