Music education marginalised due to curriculum constraints

UAE's GEMS schools ensure that students receive music education from specialist music teachers throughout their time in the school.

Music Education is often marginalised in schools due to the constraints of the curriculum, and is given far less teaching time than subjects such as English, mathematics and science that are perceived as more "academic" in nature. The essential thing, therefore, is that a school places a high importance on music and that it is promoted by and within the school as a high value subject worth studying. After all, school music concerts and productions can be great learning opportunities for students.
GEMS schools ensure that students receive music education from specialist music teachers throughout their time in the school and try to promote music as an important part of school life.
Research has proven that the study of music ensures the development and education of the whole child and that it also can help students to develop and improve both musical skills and skills that are transferable across the curriculum. Rhythmic studies, for example, involves similar processes to some solving some mathematics sequences. Music is mathematical, visual, linguistic, physical and social as well as musical.
The areas of musical study in the classroom (performance, composition, listening and appraising) help students to develop skills such as confidence, the ability to work as part of a team, communication (verbal and non-verbal), problem solving skills, and creative thinking. Students in the music classroom will create music, solving problems and making decisions as part of a team. They will also translate and interpret notation into performance and communicate the meaning of a piece of music to an audience. Music in the classroom promotes cultural understanding, as students listen to and understand music from different times, places and traditions.
Where certain families are looking for an opportunity outside the classroom to extend their musical learning, through the GEMS Music Academy, they are given the opportunity to learn a musical instrument - this may be as part of a group in the curriculum, or individually through one-to-one lessons with fully qualified teachers. Learning to play a musical instrument has several benefits as students improve their time management and organisational skills, coordination and fine motor skills, as well as focus and concentration. Learning an instrument also teaches perseverance, increases responsibility, can help with self-expression and stress relief, improves self-confidence and presentation skills, creates a sense of achievement and, of course, promotes happiness!

• Dubai