srhe annual conference 2005, university of edinburgh the … · the transition from school to...

Co-directors Collaborating Institutions Janet Mills Royal College of Music · Institute of Education, University of Graham Welch London ·

Leeds College of Music · Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama · University of York

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SRHE Annual Conference 2005, University of Edinburgh The transition from school to higher education in music: four UK institutions compared Rosie Burt and Janet Mills

Learning to Perform researches musical learning in higher education longitudinally over three years at the Royal College of Music (RCM) and comparatively, over one year, at three further institutions: Leeds College of Music (LCM), the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) and the University of York Music Department. The research began in June 2004 with the issue of a transition questionnaire to incoming undergraduate and postgraduate students at the RCM. Learning to Perform builds theory of the development of musical expertise that moves beyond hours spent in a practice room, and that considers, for example, ways in which students approach their learning during this stage of their career. We consider career broadly, as a blend of the objective and subjective (Cochran, 1991; Stebbins, 1970). We investigate the degree to which students engage in deep or surface learning (Entwistle, 2005), and expansive or restrictive learning (Engeström, 2001). We build on previous work on transition from school into the RCM (Burt & Mills, in press). In June 2004, 62 undergraduates and 42 postgraduates who entered the RCM in September 2004 completed a semi-structured questionnaire about their hopes and fears – musical, academic and social – on entering the institution. Data were analysed for emergent themes, coded and crosschecked. In August 2005, the questionnaire was administered to incoming undergraduates at LCM, RSAMD and the University of York Music Department. The examination of hopes and fears as students enter different musical higher education institutions will illuminate not only potentially contrasting expectations (for hypotheses see Mills, Duffy and Burt (2005)), but also possible differences in the way that students approach their learning, and the importance that they place on different components of their programme of study. This will help to shape further the range of ways in which the project is modelling the development of expertise in musical performance. Introduction Learning to Perform: instrumentalists and instrumental teachers1 researches musical learning in higher and further education over a three-year period, and across different institutional settings. This paper describes one branch of the research, which focuses on the transition of music students from school to higher education at four UK institutions: the Royal College of Music (RCM), Leeds College of Music (LCM), the University of York Music Department (UYMD) and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD). A higher education in music contributes a stage to the career of students who often aspire to become professional musicians, or to work more generally in the music

1 A partnership between the Royal College of Music (RCM), Leeds College of Music (LCM), the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD), University of London Institute of Education (ULIE), and University of York Music Department (UYMD).



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profession. Here we consider career broadly, as a blend of the objective and subjective (Cochran, 1991; Stebbins, 1970), and as an overarching construct that ‘people use to organise their behaviour over the long term’, ‘gives meaning to the individual’s life’ (Collin & Young, 2000) and ‘allows people to construct connections among actions, to account for effort, plans, goals, and consequences, to frame internal cognitions and emotions, and to use feedback and feedforward processes’ (Young & Valach, 1996). The paper focuses on music students’ careers as they become undergraduates, but encompasses feedback to their schooldays and childhood, and feedforward beyond graduation. The transition from school to higher education is a simultaneously challenging and exciting part of a student’s career in any subject area (Lewis, 1984). For example, students move from the more controlled environment of a school to the (relatively) less controlled environment of a higher or further education institution (Lowe & Cook, 2003), while often moving away from friends and family. Students beginning higher education often have an exam-oriented approach to learning (Cook & Leckey, 1999), and may find the move from class to lecture-style teaching particularly demanding (Smith, 2002). Lowe and Cook (2003) write of the importance of a supportive peer network in counterbalancing these tensions. For music students entering higher education, however, peers are also potential competitors as a great number of highly talented musicians converge into one institution, and strive to be chosen for limited orchestral positions and opportunities to shine. Kingsbury (1988) writes further of the difficulties that students face when entering an institution where they will be surrounded by many other specialist musicians, identifying the importance of positive feedback in such a situation. Some students thrive on such a challenge, while others do not (Pitts, 2002). Two preliminary studies that were used to hone the design of Learning to Perform inform this paper. The first considered the hopes and fears of a cohort of students that entered the RCM in 2001, and tracked 13 of these students until the end of their first year at the college. Analysis highlighted the importance of the first term at music college in establishing oneself and allaying fears, and particularly the importance of the students’ first performance at music college as a ‘pivot point’ that students must pass through in order to continue on a positive learning trajectory (Burt & Mills, in press). As a subject with a very public form of assessment, and where many skilled people are grouped together, the simple occurrence of such an event can make the difference between fostering any feelings of inadequacy that may have built up, and shattering them. The second preliminary study considered whether learning cultures collide when students enter the RCM, and hypothesised about what happens when students enter the Scottish traditional music course at the RSAMD (where most students specialise in western classical music) (Mills et al., 2005). We hypothesised, for example, that



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students entering a traditional Scottish music course may fear the academic2 aspects of their course more than students entering the RCM, and may also encounter ‘collisions in style’, as they move into a diverse institution that includes opera singers and drama students, from a background that may include much informal community learning. We also know from this study that students entering the RCM vary in the collisions of learning culture that they experience, but that prior awareness of such issues can ameliorate their impact. Learning to Perform builds theory of the development of musical expertise that moves beyond hours spent in a practice room, to consider, for example, ways in which students approach their learning. Fieldwork began in June 2004 with the issue of a transition questionnaire to incoming undergraduates at the RCM. As we have followed students through their studies, using a system of questionnaires, interviews and observations – and engaged in capacity building – further insights into students’ development of expertise, for example relating to the extent to which they engage in deep or surface learning (Entwistle, 2005), or expansive or restrictive learning (Engeström, 2001), has enabled us to revisit, and consider anew, students’ responses to their transition questionnaires (Burt, 2004; Mills & Moore, in press; Mills & Burt, 2005; Burt & Mills, 2005). Here, we extend the transition study to include LCM, UYMD and RSAMD. Table 1 summarises some differences in the four institutions. Institution RCM LCM UYMD RSAMD Type of institution

Conservatoire: music

Conservatoire: music

University music department

Conservatoire: music and drama

Predominant musical genre studied by sample

Western classical

Jazz Western classical

Scottish traditional

Qualification Bachelor of Music

Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

Location London Leeds York Glasgow Relationship of sample to incoming music cohort

Whole Part (others study popular or western classical music)

Whole Part (most study western classical music)

Table 1: the four institutions from which the sample was drawn Specifically we ask:

2 ‘Academic’ refers to study that falls outside of performance. Examples may include learning about musical history or style.



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1. What are the hopes and fears of music students entering four different higher education institutions? 2. What are the job aims of music students entering four different higher education institutions? 3. How do the answers to questions 1 and 2 inform the ways in which Learning to Perform can model the development of expertise in music performance? Method We distributed a semi-structured questionnaire to incoming undergraduates at the four institutions. The questionnaire was drawn from a previous study (Burt & Mills, in press), and encouraged students to use their own words to describe their hopes and fears – musical, academic and social – about entering the music college or university. Students were asked three sets of questions, with blank space left for answers: 1. ‘What do you most look forward to (musically, as a learner, socially) when you start at [your institution]?’ 2. ‘Is there anything about the (musical, academic, social) life of [your institution] that makes you apprehensive?’ 3. ‘What do you hope to achieve in your career a) 2 years after graduation, b) 5 years after graduation?’ The questionnaire was distributed to all incoming undergraduate RCM students in June 2004, with a response rate of 85% (n=62). Over the summer of 2005, the same questionnaire was distributed to incoming undergraduate students to the BA Jazz Studies course at LCM (response rate = 36%, n=22), the undergraduate BA course at UYMD (response rate = 52%, n=31) and the undergraduate Scottish traditional BA course at RSAMD (responses pending). The transition data from RSAMD is not available at the time of finalising this paper, but we build on and draw from the earlier publication (Mills et al., 2005). The RCM students’ writing was analysed for emergent themes that were then used to code each student’s response. The same coding system was applied to the writing of the LCM and UYMD students, with further codes added where new hopes or fears were presented. The RCM responses were then checked for these new codes, and recoded as necessary. Coding was crosschecked at all stages.



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Results The 115 students expressed a total of 541 hopes (mean=4.7, s.d.=2.17) – 251 musical, 145 academic and 145 social. Fears totalled 268 (mean=2.3, s.d.=0.92) – 80 musical, 82 academic and 106 social. Table 2 shows the mean number of hopes and fears per student across the institutions.

Mean hopes/fears per student RCM LCM UYMD

Musical hopes 2.23 2.09 2.16 Musical fears 0.66 0.68 0.77 Academic hopes 1.32 1.23 1.16 Academic fears 0.61 0.68 0.94 Social hopes 1.42 1.14 1.03 Social fears 0.90 0.90 0.97 Table 2: mean hopes and fears per student In all three institutions, and across all three categories, students expressed more hopes than fears. Unsurprisingly, given that the students have chosen to study music, the highest number of hopes is musical, while the highest number of fears is social. Students appear to look forward to the musical aspects of their study, and worry about the more general social and personal implications of beginning higher education. We now turn to the four headings of the questionnaire: 1) Musical hopes and fears Table 3 shows that ‘meeting like-minded people’ is the most frequently cited musical hope at each of the three institutions. Students entering LCM look forward to this most, with hopes such as “meeting people who want to work and develop as musicians”. Students entering RCM and LCM have a similar pattern of musical hopes (Spearman’s rho=0.93), although looking forward to ‘high quality instrumental teaching’ is mentioned more at the RCM. Students entering RCM and UYMD have a less consistent pattern of musical hopes (Spearman’s rho=0.60): instead of looking forward to high quality instrumental teaching, UYMD students hope to develop as musicians, and to get involved in chamber or ensemble music. UYMD students also look forward to learning a range of different musical styles.

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Musical hopes

%3 rank4 % rank % rank Meeting like-minded people

53 1 81 1 65 1

High quality instrumental tuition

45 2 32 3 13 6

Ensemble/chamber music opportunities

44 3 41 2 42 2=

Developing as a musician/improving

37 4 27 4 42 2=

Opportunities that will be available

33 5 23 5 19 5

Learning a range of different musical styles

6 6 0 7 35 4

Studying jazz 5 7 5 6 0 7 Table 3: students’ musical hopes Table 4 shows that the musical fears of students entering RCM and LCM are similar (Spearman’s rho=0.93), while those of students entering RCM and UYMD differ (Spearman’s rho=0.12). Yet students at all three institutions fear ‘the standard of music making’ most. This is felt most acutely at LCM, where students worry about issues such as whether “my playing and knowledge [will] be up to everyone else’s standard”. It is UYMD students, though, who are most likely to be worried about their first performance in front of their new peers. Conversely, some other students look forward to “performing and producing lots of exciting concerts” (LCM student).

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Musical fears

% rank % rank % rank Standard of music making

29 1 50 1 35 1

Competition 16 2 9 2= 10 4 Availability of practice facilities

8 3 9 2= 0 5=

Acceptance of musical tastes/background

6 4 0 4= 0 5=

Performing in front of other for first time

5 5 0 4= 16 2=

Starting with a new teacher

2 6 0 4= 16 2=

Table 4: students’ musical fears

3 Derived from the number of students mentioning each code, but presented as percentages for ease of reading and comparison.



64 A popularity ranking reflecting the frequency of each hope/fear.



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2) Academic hopes and fears Students entering all three institutions mention achieving personal goals most frequently among their hopes for their academic study (see table 5). An RCM student, for example, looks forward to “having time to develop all aspects of myself as a musician”, while an LCM student hopes to gain “knowledge about jazz that could help me as a performer as well”. Students entering LCM and UYMD have very different academic hopes (Spearman’s rho = -0.09), as do those entering the RCM and UYMD (Spearman’s rho=0.2), while students entering the RCM and LCM share many hopes in this respect (Spearman’s rho = 0.83). Significantly more UYMD than RCM students, for example, look forward to learning independently (χ² (1, 93) = 11.56, p<0.01), and students at both the RCM and LCM look forward to achieving personal musical goals more than those at UYMD (χ² (1, 93) = 12.72, p<0.01 and χ² (1, 53) = 4.07, p<0.05).

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Academic hopes

% rank % rank % rank Personal musical goals5

55 1 41 1 16 4

Personal academic goals

42 2 27 2 45 1

High quality teaching

26 3 14 5 19 3

Concentrate solely on music

5 4 23 3 13 5

Resources available

3 5 18 4 0 6

Independent learning

2 6 0 6 23 2

Table 5: students’ academic hopes There is a negative correlation in the ranks of the academic fears mentioned by RCM and UYMD students (Spearman’s rho=-0.54), and RCM and LCM students (Spearman’s rho = -0.51). Table 6 shows that students at the RCM are most concerned that their academic work will not leave them enough time to practise: “I only hope that the part dedicated to academic subjects will not be too considerable so that I’ll be able to practise as much as I need/want”. Students entering LCM, on the other hand, are significantly less worried about this (χ² (1, 84) = 5.46, p< 0.05), and most concerned that they will find the academic work difficult, and the same applies to those entering UYMD (χ² (1, 93) = 5.09, p<0.05).

5 Musical goals which are enhanced by academic learning



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RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Academic fears

% rank % rank % rank Priorities between performance work and academic work

21 1 0 6 3 5

Language skills 15 2= 5 3= 0 6 ‘Music theory’ 15 2= 14 2 13 4 Approaches to work

5 4= 5 3= 26 2

Workload 5 4= 5 3= 23 3 Standard of work 2 6 41 1 29 1

Table 6: students’ academic fears 3) Social hopes and fears Table 7 shows that students in all three institutions most hope to meet new people - this is also the most frequently occurring code for hopes across all categories. Students entering LCM and UYMD share a very similar pattern of hopes (Spearman’s rho=0.95), while those entering RCM and UYMD, or RCM and LCM, share a less similar pattern of hopes (Spearman’s rho=0.63 for both).

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Social hopes

% rank % rank % rank Meeting new people

73 1 68 1 68 1

Living in a new city 40 2 14 3 16 2= Opportunities 18 3 5 4= 0 5 Independence 10 4 23 2 16 2= Personal development

2 5 5 4= 3 4

Table 7: students’ social hopes The most frequently raised social fear is managing financially, with RCM students fearing this most. Table 8 illustrates a high level of similarity in the social fears raised by students in all three institutions, with not meeting the right people or making friends being the second most frequent concern.

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Social fears

% rank % rank % rank Finances 71 1 59 1 55 1 Not making friends/meeting right people

13 2 32 2 42 2

Personal safety 5 3 0 3= 0 3= Living in a new city 2 4 0 3= 0 3= Table 8: students’ social fears



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4) Job aims Students entering RCM and UYMD have a very different pattern of jobs aims for two years after graduation (Spearman’s rho=-0.04). The majority of students entering RCM and LCM aim to be performing or composing two years after they graduate, while the majority of UYMD students hope to be engaged in postgraduate study at this time.

RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Job aims 2 years after graduation

% rank % rank % rank Performing or composing

63 1 45 1 10 5

Postgraduate study

27 2 23 3 48 1

Money and stability

15 3 5 5= 0 6=

Teaching or examining

10 4 18 4 23 3

To have status within the profession

8 5= 0 7 0 6=

Unsure 8 5= 5 5= 13 4 Making a living in music

5 7 32 2 32 2

Table 9: students’ career aims, 2 years after graduation Thinking forwards to five years after their graduation, the most frequently cited job aim across all three institutions is performer or composer. At this point, RCM and UYMD students have much more similar job aims (Spearman’s rho=0.59). For students at both of these institutions, the second most frequent aim is to be a teacher or examiner, although this is lower for LCM students who instead write of hoping to make a more general living in the music profession. There is a clear progression in the aims for two and five years after graduation, reflecting a move from postgraduate study, for example, to performing or composing, and from a PGCE course to work as a practising teacher.



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RCM n=62

LCM n=22

UYMD n=31

Career aims 5 years after graduation

% rank % rank % rank Performing or composing

74 1 36 1 42 1

Teaching or examining

29 2 9 6 35 2

To have status within the profession

16 3 18 4 10 5

Money and stability

13 4 23 3 6 6=

Making a living in music

8 5 32 2 19 3

Postgraduate study 5 6 0 7 6 6= Unsure 2 7 14 5 13 4

Table 10: students’ career aims, 5 years after graduation Discussion Music students entering all three higher education institutions expressed more hopes – musical, academic and social – than fears about their forthcoming course of study. This is perhaps not surprising given that they are entering higher education voluntarily. Common features include looking forward to meeting like-minded people, who share a passion for music and will provide a rich community of fellow musicians, as well as a hope that personal goals will be achieved during the coming years. Of the fears expressed, students shared concern over the standard of the music making that they will encounter (coupled with an often implicit hint that this will be above the level at which students feel that they themselves would perform), and being able to successfully manage with the financial resources that they will have available to them. As predicted, however, in the case of RCM and RSAMD (Mills et al., 2005), there are notable differences in both the hopes and fears of students entering the different institutions. We will discuss these in relation to students’ differing expectations, approaches to learning and the different emphases placed on various components of study. A striking difference in the students’ expectations is the extent to which they look forward to high quality instrumental teaching. Almost half (45%) of RCM students look forward to this aspect of their study, and it is the second most frequent hope for this cohort of students. This is compared to 32% of LCM students (third most frequent hope), but only to 13% of UYMD students, for whom it is the least frequently expressed hope. The higher hopes for good quality instrumental teaching at RCM and LCM may reflect the content of the courses at music conservatoires, which often place emphasis on 1-1 instrumental lessons, and progress as a performer. We can expect that students entering the RSAMD would also hold high hopes in this regard. A university music department, on the other hand, is perhaps more likely to place emphasis on studying music holistically, including learning about many different styles of music. It is possible, then, that the students entering these

institutions have very different views on what the content of their course should include and that those entering a university will be more expansive in their approaches to becoming performers or composers.

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whether some students begin to reflect such learning in what they say to us, and how this learning impacts upon their achievements. whether some students begin to reflect such learning in what they say to us, and how this learning impacts upon their achievements. Although the students express many fewer fears than hopes, institutional differences do emerge. Students entering UYMD express less concern than some RCM and LCM students at competition from peers, but show more anxiety about performing in front of their new peers for the first time than either of the other two cohorts. Students entering the Scottish traditional course at RSAMD may feel less anxiety for this performance, having often engaged in high levels of informal ensemble playing throughout their development, so that a continuation of this would perhaps feel more natural. The fact that the students entering music conservatoires are anxious about competition may again reflect the emphasis that is placed on solo performance at such institutions, while the students entering university are perhaps worried about performing in front of others merely because they do not see performance as the strongest skill in their portfolio. Students entering UYMD express the most fear over the workload they envisage, which could reflect their expectation of studying all aspects of music to a deeper level.

Although the students express many fewer fears than hopes, institutional differences do emerge. Students entering UYMD express less concern than some RCM and LCM students at competition from peers, but show more anxiety about performing in front of their new peers for the first time than either of the other two cohorts. Students entering the Scottish traditional course at RSAMD may feel less anxiety for this performance, having often engaged in high levels of informal ensemble playing throughout their development, so that a continuation of this would perhaps feel more natural. The fact that the students entering music conservatoires are anxious about competition may again reflect the emphasis that is placed on solo performance at such institutions, while the students entering university are perhaps worried about performing in front of others merely because they do not see performance as the strongest skill in their portfolio. Students entering UYMD express the most fear over the workload they envisage, which could reflect their expectation of studying all aspects of music to a deeper level. RCM LCM UYMD

1. Standard of music making (35%) 2= Starting with new teacher (16%) 2= Performing in front of others for first time (16%) 4. Competition (10%)

1. Standard of music making (50%) 2=Competition (9%) 2= Availability of practice facilities (9%)

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1. Standard of work (29%) 2. Approaches to work (26%) 3. Workload (23%) 4. Music theory (13%) 5. Balancing priorities (3%)

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1. Finances (71%) 2. Not making friends (13%) 3. Personal safety (5%) 4. Living in London (2%)

1. Finances (59%) 2. Not making friends (32%)

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Figure 2: Different fears for students entering the three institutions Figure 2: Different fears for students entering the three institutions We have seen further differences in the jobs that the students aim to pursue. For those entering RCM and LCM, performance or composition is the most frequent career aim for two years after graduation. UYMD students, on the other hand, express this aim least often, instead hoping to be involved in postgraduate study, often at a conservatoire. Indeed, students from all three institutions aim most to become performers or composers five years after graduation, indicating that despite other

We have seen further differences in the jobs that the students aim to pursue. For those entering RCM and LCM, performance or composition is the most frequent career aim for two years after graduation. UYMD students, on the other hand, express this aim least often, instead hoping to be involved in postgraduate study, often at a conservatoire. Indeed, students from all three institutions aim most to become performers or composers five years after graduation, indicating that despite other



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differences the majority of students entering these institutions are focusing on similar end points. We know from Learning to Perform that RCM students continue to rank performer/composer as their first choice of career (Burt & Mills, submitted), and from another project that careers in music are not as straightforward as these students may be imagining (Mills, 2004). RCM and UYMD students, however, share similar aspirations in this regard, despite displaying very different expectations towards other aspects of their learning. So, with the knowledge that students at all institutions share feedforward aims concerning their jobs, what can these differences begin to tell us about how students entering different institutions approach their time in higher education? Students entering the two music conservatoires place more emphasis on performance than the students entering UYMD, as illustrated through large numbers of students looking forward to high quality instrumental lessons and achieving personal musical goals, as well as fears about being able to find enough time to focus on performing. Students entering a university music department place more emphasis on the holistic experience of learning music, as exemplified through looking forward to learning about a wide range of musical genres and engaging in independent learning. It appears that at the general level students entering a university department approach their ‘learning to perform’ more expansively than those entering a conservatoire, and with perhaps more expectation to engage in deep learning. Conclusions This study will help to shape the way in which Learning to Perform is modelling the development of expertise in music performance. The most frequent job aim (five years after graduation) across the three cohorts of students is performing or composing, yet we can see clear differences in the way that these students are approaching their learning even at the outset of their higher education; the students have different ideas about how to go about realising a similar aim. The expectations that the students bring to their programme of study, and their implicit or explicit perceptions of the institution, do much to illuminate some potentially different ways in which musicians rationalise, organise and envisage their learning. From the results presented and discussed in this paper, we can hypothesise that there are at least two distinct ‘models of expectation’ that students bring with them to higher education, aligned strongly (as we might expect) to their choice of institution. These are presented in Figure 3. There are areas of commonality between these two models, most notably in the hope to meet like-minded people, and in concern over the standard of music making they will encounter when they enter the institution, but also important differences.



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‘Holistic-

centred’‘Performance-

centred’

Looks forward to: 1. Meeting like-minded people 2. High quality instrumental teaching 3. Achieving personal musical goals Is apprehensive about: 1. Standard of music making 2. Having enough time to practise

Looks forward to: 1. Meeting like-minded people 2. Developing as a musician 3. Learning in a range of different musical styles 4. Achieving personal academic goals 5. Independent learning Is apprehensive about: 1. Standard of music making 2. Standard of the academic work

Figure 3: Two emerging models of expectation The results presented indicate that a student with ‘performance-centred’ expectations may be more likely to be entering the RCM or LCM, and a student with ‘holistic-centred’ expectations UYMD, although such generalisations are made with care. It is possible that students crossover between the categories, especially once they have entered the institution, and it may be that the divides disappear after time. The expectations of RCM students are more closely aligned to those of LCM students than those of students entering UYMD. Figure 4 shows that the type of institution is more important than the musical genre to be studied in determining the students’ approaches to transition. But for all students entering a higher education in music we can see examples of (temporarily at least) helpful restrictive learning in the students’ hopes to meet like-minded peers. It is how such approaches are packaged within other hopes and fears that illuminate an individual’s approach to learning. Similarly, the students’ collective fear at the standard of the academic work may illustrate an acknowledgment that learning will need to become deeper in higher education, reflecting concern at not knowing how to go about this, or whether it will be too much to deal with. We know that students at the RCM broaden their approaches during their first year of study, engaging in many extra-musical tasks to improve their performing (Mills & Burt, 2005), and expect that students entering LCM and UYMD will follow this pattern, although perhaps in different ways, and to different levels of deep or expansive learning.

Social fears

Musical hopes and fears A Social fears

cademic hopes

Social hopes and fears

RCM

UYMD

LCM

KEY = Spearmans’s rho >= 0.65

Figure 4: Similarities (and differences) in institutional hopes and fears Figure 4: Similarities (and differences) in institutional hopes and fears At this stage of Learning to Perform, such ideas are being generated, considered and refined alongside many others, in order that we can work towards a more complete understanding of how musicians learn. This paper presents one thread of such work, and will feed into our ongoing thinking over the duration of the project. Implications arising from this paper include the importance of the individual in such endeavour; the highest proportion of students suggesting any hope or fear is 81%. While one student entering the RCM may be worried about finding enough time to practise, another may be looking forward greatly to learning musical history with a certain teacher, and both may share many other aspirations and apprehensions.

At this stage of Learning to Perform, such ideas are being generated, considered and refined alongside many others, in order that we can work towards a more complete understanding of how musicians learn. This paper presents one thread of such work, and will feed into our ongoing thinking over the duration of the project. Implications arising from this paper include the importance of the individual in such endeavour; the highest proportion of students suggesting any hope or fear is 81%. While one student entering the RCM may be worried about finding enough time to practise, another may be looking forward greatly to learning musical history with a certain teacher, and both may share many other aspirations and apprehensions. Burt and Mills (in press) examined how hopes and fears changed as a small group of students progressed through their first year of study. Learning to Perform has already collected such data for this RCM cohort, with a view to doing the same at LCM, UYMD and RSAMD. As part of this we should track whether students with, for example, ‘performance-centred’ expectations feel that these have been met, the impact on their learning if this is not the case, and how attitudes shift over time. We can then develop the relationship between models of expectation and the types of leaning (e.g. expansive or restrictive, deep or surface) that we see students engaging with during their studies.

Burt and Mills (in press) examined how hopes and fears changed as a small group of students progressed through their first year of study. Learning to Perform has already collected such data for this RCM cohort, with a view to doing the same at LCM, UYMD and RSAMD. As part of this we should track whether students with, for example, ‘performance-centred’ expectations feel that these have been met, the impact on their learning if this is not the case, and how attitudes shift over time. We can then develop the relationship between models of expectation and the types of leaning (e.g. expansive or restrictive, deep or surface) that we see students engaging with during their studies. At all points during the project, it is important that we remain aware of the fluidity between different music institutions. It is perfectly feasible, for example, that a student may have applied to all four institutions discussed in this study, and that their hopes and fears would have been the same whichever one they finally decided to pursue. Alternatively, the choice of institution in such a case may become a factor in

At all points during the project, it is important that we remain aware of the fluidity between different music institutions. It is perfectly feasible, for example, that a student may have applied to all four institutions discussed in this study, and that their hopes and fears would have been the same whichever one they finally decided to pursue. Alternatively, the choice of institution in such a case may become a factor in



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shaping the student’s aspirations and priorities. While at the general level we can draw comparisons between groups of students entering different institutions, when considering the individuals that groups comprise we must ensure that we remain focused on the intricacies of learning to perform at any institution. Acknowledgments Staff at LCM, UYMD and RSAMD including Dr Tony Whyton, Janice Turton, Dr John Potter, Celia Duffy and Madeleine Stafford. Dr David Acheson, Dr Alan Brown, Colin McFadyean, and Professor Jonathan Stephens for input at Learning to Perform Advisory Group Meeting 5. Louise Oakes and Mark Oliver for project support at the RCM. References BURT, R. (2004). A preliminary analysis of a music college as a learning culture.

Paper presented at 'Professional Learning in a Changing Society', University of Oslo, Norway, 25-27 November 2004.

BURT, R., & MILLS, J. (2005). Charting the musical histories of students who aspire to become professional performers. Paper presented at 'Performance Matters! International Conference on Practical, Psychological, Philosophical and Educational Issues in Musical Performance', Escola Superior de Educação Porto, Portugal, 14-17 September, 2005.

BURT, R., & MILLS, J. (in press). 'Taking the plunge: the hopes and fears of students as they begin music college', British Journal of Music Education 23(1).

BURT, R., & MILLS, J. (submitted). 'Music students at a UK conservatoire: building portfolio careers whilst in higher education'.

COCHRAN, L. (1991). Life-shaping decisions. New York: Peter Lang. COLLIN, A., & YOUNG, R. A. (2000). The future of career. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press. COOK, A., & LECKEY, J. (1999). 'Do Expectations Meet Reality? A survey of

changes in first-year student opinion', Journal of Further and Higher Education 23(2).

ENGESTRÖM, Y. (2001). 'Expansive Learning at Work: toward an activity theoretical reconceptualization', Journal of Education and Work 14(1): 133-156.

ENTWISTLE, N. (2005). Teaching and Learning in Diverse University Settings: Findings from the ETL Project. Paper presented at 'What a Difference a Pedagogy Makes', Researching Lifelong Learning & Teaching conference proceedings, University of Stirling, 24-26 June 2005.

KINGSBURY, H. (1988). Music, Talent and Performance: A Conservatory Cultural System. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

LEWIS, I. (1984). The Student Experience of Higher Education. London: Croom Helm.



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LOWE, H., & COOK, A. (2003). 'Mind the gap: are students prepared for higher education?' Journal of Further and Higher Education 27(1): 53-76.

MILLS, J & MOORE, H. (Eds.). “Instrumental teaching in higher education.” Special Issue of British Journal of Music Education, 22 (3). (in press).

MILLS, J. (2004). “Working in Music: becoming a performer-teacher.” Music Education Research 6 (3): 245-261.

MILLS, J., & BURT, R. (2005). 'Professional performer' - or 'professional musician'? Paper presented at 'Performance Matters! International Conference on Practical, Psychological, Philosophical and Educational Issues in Musical Performance', Escola Superior de Educação, Porto, Portugal, 14-17 September, 2005.

MILLS, J., DUFFY, C., & BURT, R. (2005). Learning to perform: do learning cultures collide when western classical, or Scottish traditional, performers enter music college? Paper presented at 'What a Difference a Pedagogy Makes', Researching Lifelong Learning & Teaching, University of Stirling, 24-26 June 2005.

PITTS, S. (2002). 'Changing tunes: musical experience and self-perception amongst school and university music students', Musicae Scientiae 6(1): 73-92.

SMITH, K. (2002). 'School to University: Sunlit steps, or stumbling in the dark?' Arts and Humanities in Higher Education 2(1): 90-98.

STEBBINS, R. A. (1970). 'Career: the subjective approach', Sociological Quarterly 11: 32-49.

YOUNG, R. A., & VALACH, L. (Eds.). (1996). Interpretation and action in career counseling. Palo Alto: Davies-Black.

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