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[bdawg]

I've decided to incorporate music listening exercises into my culture lessons.

They want, yup, you guessed it...pop music...ie. Backstreet Boys, Avril, N'Sync....

I personally cringe at this style of music...and I cringe even more over the the image of western music I'll be sending my students if I use this genre. There are multitudes of far, far superior pieces out there (in lyrics, music and message)...and I've used a few (Bob Seger, U2, Live, Billy Joel, Sting, Sarah McLauchlan...artists which I feel add some substance to their tracks, yet can still be understood by English learners)...yet my students are just not interested...they want pop.

Since that is what they want, I'll deliver...however, I'm completely out of touch with any new pop music...and anything that would be decent for the classroom.

What sort of music do you use? Looking for specific examples here.

Thanx.

[go_ABs]

bdawg - what ages and levels do you teach?

I teach mostly young learners, so I use Genki English CDs. They are good because they repeat the simple language over and over, but in an interesting way. However, some can be a bit tough for my pre-starters.

I also had one class of 14-16 year olds last year. I played them one Avril (which went down a treat, unfortunately), but a few Elvis tracks, and some Split Enz - which was a New Zealand pop band in the 80s. The older stuff works well because the lyrics are slower... but I'm sure you know that. You could try them out with a popular hip hop song, and when they all fail to hear ANY words, tell them that this is why you're going to play older songs instead...

[Volodiya]

I applaud your use of music in the classroom (use it myself), and there's bound to be some good that can come out of the music chosen by your students, but...,

Who's in charge in there, anyway! Some music, with the lyrics, make a lot better teaching tools than others do. With you doing the choosing, you can make sure there's a real teaching point to your efforts and avoid that all too common pitfall of letting the "entertainment factor" take over.

[bdawg]

I have 13 students, aged 17-21 which I see everyday, for 18 hours a week. It's a special IELTS program...they are taught (by myself and two other teachers) non-stop english 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.

I give 2 hours of culture each week, which I consider to be a 'fun' or 'relax' class...given their barbaric schedule...so I thought I'd let them have some input into what they want to do.

Several of them have told me that they don't want to hear anymore of my 'english music'....Personally...I think my music taste is very good...

Thanks for the suggestions

[lily]

From the teaching manual from my training course:
Hello Goodbye - The Beatles
Love Me Tender - Elvis
Hero - Enrique Iglesias
Homeward Bound - Simon and Garfunkel
What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong
You're Sixteen - Ringo Starr

I've also used:
Everything - M2M
There you'll be - Faith Hill
Jingle Bells

Hope these help,
Lily

PS PM me if you'd like the lyrics!

[Roger]

Using music in an IELTS class? Sounds a bit weird to me! I am not against using music per se - and I too would favour the Beatles or Simon & Garfunkel over the Backstreet Boyz! - but IELTS students have little time for such entertainment during their classroom lessons!

[ChinaMovieMagic]

There are MANY music-related articles in...

http://www.njcu.edu/cill/journal-index.html

BELOW is ONE.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Volume VII - 2002-03

Enhancing Acquisition through Music
by Robert Lake

Bob Lake has used music in ESL classrooms for over 10 years in a variety of settings. He began with Southeast Asian High School students in Atlanta. He also worked with the refugee population from Eastern Europe and the Balkans in Utica , NY while finishing his M. S. in TESOL at SUNY Albany. bob@southeasterntech. org .

Introduction

Music is three-dimensional. A song is more than just words and notes on paper. Music is an environ-ment that expresses emotion and conveys a message. Could this be part of what Plato had in mind when he said, �Music is a more potent instrument than any other for education �? Recent studies at the University of California support this ancient observation. Researchers there have found that music trains the brain for higher forms of thinking. In the study, two groups of preschoolers were observed. One group of students took piano lessons and sang every day in class. The other group of students did not. At the end of three months, the musical three-year-olds scored 80% higher in tests involving spatial intelligence �the ability to visualize the world accurately (Hancock1996). The survey concluded that �early music training can enhance a child 's ability to reason � (Shaw, cited in Hancock, 1996).

The use of music in first language acquisition is easy enough to substantiate. Children sing in coos and baby-babble before they learn vocabulary. Indeed an infant 's first means of communication is comprised of a series of pitch ranges that communicate hunger, tiredness, alarm and pleasure. Mothers can easily discern what pitch level communicates specific needs. '�The emerging pleasure sounds contain acoustic properties which act as a precursor for the vowels that will later be used in words; and the differentiation between the melody of distress and that of pleasure has been identified as the baby 's first step towards the acquisition of speech (Newham 1996). The tonal quality of babyese operated on a musical scale that paves the way for phoneme and morpheme formation.

Out of these observations emerges an interesting question: Can music enhance the acquisition of a second language? If so, how can it be utilized in the four modes of learning a language; i. e. reading, writing, listening and speaking? This question has led me to research the literature of language learning, as well as to consider a wide range of music itself. With an adaptation of Krashen 's Input Hypothesis as a foundation, I will present both the theory and the practice of music and language learning.

Krashen 's Theory

There are several features of Krashen 's theory of Language Acquisition that are strongly relevant in explaining the use of music in language learning. Let us consider three of the most widely accepted components of Krashen 's hypotheses; �affective filter considerations, � the ��monitor �model, and the role of natural input in acquisition. Krashen 's affective filter hypothesis states that optimum learning occurs in an environment of �high motivation, self-confidence, and low anxiety � (Ellis, 1986, p. 263). According to this theory, the emotional state of the learner acts as a ��filter �. �Krashen sees the learner 's emotional state or attitudes as an adjustable filter that freely passes, impedes, or blocks input necessary to acquisition � ((Richards and Rogers1986, p. 133).

Application

Many ESL students come to class while still in the state of what has been described as anomie: that is a �feeling of social uncertainty or dissatisfaction �as a significant aspect of the relationship between language learning and the attitude toward a foreign culture � ((Brown 1994, p. 171). Anomie can be described as the feeling of homelessness. ESL students often feel cut off from their native cultures and find a struggle in adapting to a new culture. I have often seen �music time � bring an almost visible change in the state of the student 's �affective filter. � Let 's face it, songs in the English language have made their way into every major city in the world. Movies and pop culture have had an influence for better or worse. If English music can help the acculturation process along, it would be sheer foolishness not to use it.
Woody Guthrie wrote and sang a song, �This Land is Your Land, � that resonates among virtually all who encounter it �especially newcomers. Most of us recognize it from the first verse:

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND

This land is your land
This Land is my land
From California, to the New York Island,
From the Redwood Forest, to the Gulf stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.

[Newbs]

And now for a completely different genre. There's some research going around, and one day I'll actually look it up, that says that Baroque classical music is the go. This is the music of Handel, Pachebel, Purcell etc. I've used it in Australia with teenagers when I have wanted them to quiety do something creative, eg. write an essay. The music is on really low, so you can just hear it but it is not intrusive. Some of the kids have said that it did seem to help them with their creative work. I've used it a little here in China and again it seems to work.

The theory is that this type of music, with about 60 beats per minute, and repetitions of themes, with slight variations, assists the right and left hemispheres of the brain to connect.

I post this here for what it's worth.

[ChinaMovieMagic]

This research on Dr. Lozanov and Suggestopedia has been going around since the 1970s, initially popularized by the books "Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain" and "SuperLearning--both by Ostrander and Schroeder. In 1977 I attended the 1st International Conference on Suggestive/Accelerated Learning, and Dr. Lozanov came from Bulgaria and gave us Suggestopedia Teacher Training. Since then, the organization of this movement has developed into the International Association for Learning (www.ialearn.org)

NOTE: Dr. Lozanov and others now emphasize that it's not ONLY Baroque music which has the effect, but that New Age music--such as Steve Halpern's--also can be used.

Halpern, Steven
music for inner peace that nurtures, uplifts, and enhances meditation, creativity, and well-being.
Category: New Age Music > Steven Halpern
www.innerpeacemusic.com

[latefordinner]

<Stretching the topic a bit, but not too much I hope...>

Lilly, nice choices. Agreed Roger, tempo and clarity are critical. I've used:
Mark Knopfler- Quality Shoe Daddy's Gone to Knoxville from Ragpicker's Dream I've tried Sultans of Swing, The Gallery and Setting Me Up from the Dire Staits album, but only with adults.
The Mamas and Papas- California Dreaming and Dream a Little Dream of Me
Simon and Garfunkel- Sounds of Silence, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, and of course [i]Scarborough Fair/Canticle/i]

I've also recently used the movie The Blues Brothers. The kids loved it, even though I had to fast forward through large stretches of it and still didn't get it all in. Sad to say though the parents complained that they didn't llike the music, and the headmaster has decreed no more DVDs or music in my classroom. One of the most productive activities I've had so far is to have the students rewrite dialogues changing names places and other particulars. I had hoped to have them act out favourite scenes from the movie, changing what they wanted. <sigh> Back to the dull old grammar...

Oh, and my classes might get too boring if I just teach grammar exercises (the book is very dull in that regard, so if I just follow the book you know what's going to happen), so would I mind skipping the lessons and just playing games? I suggested that perhaps the Chinese teacher should just play games and leave the grammar to me. Ever seen a monkey examining a watch? That's what I think of whenever I see a Chinese teacher trying to teach grammar. But that's another thread entirely.

[kev7161]

If you want to show a DVD that has an emphasis on music (and I will almost guarantee that most of your students will love it): School of Rock . Trust me on this one.

Also, type up some lyrics and keep key words out of it - - leaving "fill in the blanks". Have the kids listen to the song (usually 2X) and see if they can fill in the missing words. Great listening exercise and you can play almost any (slow, clear) song that you'd like. They won't even realize you are exposing them to something besides Backstreet Boys because they'll be too busy with the task at hand.

For oral practice, I've seen this mentioned here at Dave's and I'm going to try it in a few days. Have one student per class session bring in their favorite English song, let them play it, and let them explain WHY they like it so much. Give them a focus paper if they need it: Name of song, artist, country of origin, how does the song make them feel, what other songs by this artist do you like, when did you first discover/hear this song . . . anything else you can think of that you'd like them to talk about.

You can also play "Name That Tune". Get the students to write down some of their favorite songs (and the artist) - - see what you can find (or ask students to bring in the CDs if they have them - - although things are leaning more towards MP3 these days) and they can challenge each other:

Cao Feng: "Sun Yi, I can name that tune in 5 seconds" (it used to be in how many notes, but that would be a little difficult)

Sun Yi: "Cao Feng, I can name that tune in 3 seconds"

Cao Feng: "Okay, Name That Tune."

[bdawg]

[lily]

Just bumping this thread back to the front page for Austrian

Also, there is this thread in General Discussion:

Using songs in class
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?p=228386#228386

[NateM]

Just play something good and tell them it's incredibly popular in the U.S. and that it's going to be the next big thing to hit China. I'm sure they'll eat it up.