Over the last few weeks I have been talking about choirs in schools. It is a topic that I am passionate about, and at Music Teachers Association we are launching a choir campaign.
I am pleased to say that today we launch “A Choir in Every School” a campaign with a clear vision and mission. We want to see all young people having access to a choir in their school. Alongside this, we want to support teachers, music teachers and anyone who wants to lead a choir. Our vision is simple – do whatever it takes to ensure there is a choir in every school.
From today we will be looking for anyone who wants to join this campaign. We will be working with our own teaching and corporate members. But in addition to this we will work with anyone who believes in this campaign. I have spoken to so many people who want to get on board and support this, and I can’t wait to speak to more. I have already heard from teachers who don’t have a choir yet, and some who do but need support.
So what is this campaign all about, and how can you get involved?
Why this choir campaign?
Back in December, I was asked to give comment on some data that clearly shows less singing is going on in schools. I spoke to BBC Breakfast alongside the amazing Jenny Trattles, and it is clear that there isn’t enough singing going on in schools. It was during these interviews that I coined the phrase – we need a choir in every school. From there it was clear that I needed to do something about this, and Music Teachers Association were primed to support me.
This campaign has a simple message, but a powerful narrative. If there isn’t enough singing in schools, then we need to change that. Singing is not only a good thing in its own right, but it supports mental health, develops a sense of community and can (and should) include every student who wants to get involved. The term “choir” can have negative connotations, but yet it is a universally understood term for a singing group. I want to change the narrative around the word “choir”, allowing us to use it with young people. I want young people to hear the word choir and see it for all its benefits.
I also believe that the more we can get young people singing, the more will take up GCSE & A-Level music. Just the other day a student asked me if he could do GCSE music “even though he was just a singer”. I of course said to him that he can – but it reminded me of the common misconceptions that exist in music. This campaign aims to see a choir in every school, but behind that we believe that we will then see more student engagement throughout the key stages.
What will it look like?
So what exactly I am thinking when I say a choir in every school? What will that look like if successful?
A choir is simply a group of students singing together. This could be in a classroom setting, a formal choir or a well planned singing assembly. A choir can be big or small, and it can include anyone who wants to get involved. It might take place as part of a weekly lesson, or it might be at a lunchtime. The choir might have just girls, just boys or a mix of both. There could be a year group choir, a whole school choir or a community choir that brings all schools together. Wouldn’t it be exciting to have a choir made up of staff & students!
What it looks like will differ in every school and I am big on taking into account school context. A choir is any number of students, singing in any style. It can be led by a music teacher, an instrumental teacher, a classroom teacher – or anyone who wants to lead it. The choir can be at lunchtime, before school, after school or during lesson. It might be that every Friday afternoon in a Year 4 classroom, a choir rehearsal takes place. Students stand, they sing songs to backing tracks and they have a great end to their week.
A choir in every school is going to look different depending on the school. It will also depend on the leader, the age range, the time of day and the repertoire. My mission is simply to see a choir, in whatever form that is, happening in every school.
What do we aim to do?
At Music Teachers Association we are committed to this mission, we want to see a choir in every school. Therefore we want to ensure that we can support this, resource it and be there to make it happen. We are aware of the barriers that exist in schools, and the issue that might surround a choir taking place. The committee is made up of classroom teachers, and we are all volunteers who come together to support the sector. But we also have a committed staff team, who are either former teachers, current teachers or musicians. We feel well positioned to lead this campaign.
3 key areas
So we want to support it and there are three key areas that we are going to put our energy into.
- We want to support music specialist teachers who are designated music leads, music teachers, heads of music or directors of music. We want to make sure that they are equipped to lead a choir in their school.
- Not every school will have a music lead or teacher – a bigger topic that we are also interested in. But that doesn’t mean they can’t have a choir. We want to support any adult, in any school, that is prepared to run a weekly choir rehearsal but maybe needs some musical support & understanding.
- The good news is that lots of schools do have a choir, and so we want to work with them to look at growing what they do, diversifying what they do and celebrating what they do. Sharing good practice is essential to this campaign.
So you could start we are all about – Starting, Supporting & Growing choirs.
Where there isn’t a choir, let’s start one.
Where there isn’t a leader, let’s support one.
Where there is a choir, let’s grow more!
What will this campaign include?
Our aim is to provide the following as part of the campaign
- Resources – we will be creating the resources needed to get a choir started, lead a successful choir and enhance an existing choir. This will include bespoke arrangements for schools, as well as practical resources for how to start, lead, sustain and grow a choir.
- Webinars – I want to gather the best practitioners in the world and get them in front of music teachers sharing what they do. Our aim is to host a launch webinar where we will hear from choir leaders, teachers and singing professionals. We are then committed to regular webinars and gatherings that will support this campaign.
- WhatsApp Community – We want to connect all those who are on board with our mission to put a choir in every school. We believe that supporting the networking of teachers is going to lead to success. We want to create safe-space digital communities that allow teachers to ask questions, share good practice and celebrate what they are doing for young people.
- Links to the right people – Part of this campaign is about linking up with those who are already doing amazing things with singing and choirs. We don’t want to be alone in this, and we also can’t do it alone. We need companies, publishers, choirs leaders and businesses who can help to make this happen. We want to link up with towns, cities and communities that are already running projects. We will only achieve this if we can link up with the right people and then help others create those links.
What’s next?
We are in the early stages of this campaign and what’s next is simple – we need to know what is happening in schools. We want to find out where there are choirs, and also find out who is wanting to start one. Next steps will include creating resources, holding a lunch webinar online and gathering together the key stakeholders. There is no real time frame on this, and it is a big mission to achieve. But we are starting somewhere and I am personally excited to see what we can do over the next 12 months.
Personally I want to hear from anyone who wants to get behind this campaign.I want to learn about your choir, or find out why there isn’t one in your school. I am keen to understand the barriers, embrace the challenges and find the solutions. If you run a choir, a company or an organisation that supports singing, then please get in touch. If you want to sponsor this, partner with us or just get involved, then I want to hear from you. I am going to start building a team, and Music Teachers Association will then bring all this together. We will be at the Music & Drama Education Expo in February and we are excited to talk to teachers and corporates about how we can move forward.
A Choir in Every School
I believe this is the right thing to do, the right place to put my energy and something that as a nation we should want for our schools. I don’t think it’s easy, and I know there are barriers. But that doesn’t mean a choir it isn’t possible. The benefits to students, schools and communities is huge. Not only will it give young people a musical place to belong, it will also benefit their mental health and well-being. Every school needs a choir!
What’s not to love about a choir in every school? Why would we not want to see this! And maybe it will help solve some of the other issues that we face in music education? Who knows, but for now, I want to see a choir in every school!
Will you join me? I look forward to hearing from you.