Authors:
Beatrice Miotti
;
Luca Bassani
;
Enrico Cauteruccio
and
Marco Morandi
Affiliation:
INDIRE, Istituto Nazionale di Documentazione ed Innovazione e Ricerca Educativa, via Buonarroti 5, Florence, Italy
Keyword(s):
Music Teaching, Laboratory Teaching, Open-source, Lego®.
Abstract:
The Italian National Guidelines (Miur, 2012) and in particular the legislative decree no. 60 highlight the
competencies in the artistic and expressive field which students must acquire by the end of the first cycle of
education. Indire in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Education started research activities in order to
support music teachers in the teaching activities and in the implementation of best practices in their classes.
The research presented in this paper results from listening to teachers’ needs. It describes the ideation, realisation and future developments of the experimentation of MusicBlocks: a tool patented by the research group, which enables tangible music production, overcoming the difficulties deriving from learning how to play a
musical instrument. MusicBlocks is an easy-to-use tool due to its structure especially conceived to be used by
students as a stand-alone tool. Students can compose their own melody and listen to its execution by laying
L
ego® bricks. If this does not provide practical help to learn how to play an instrument, it surely helps to
acquire the propaedeutic competences: rhythm, melody, and harmony, which are necessary in order to develop
an interest in playing a musical instrument. Experimentations with MusicBlocks are currently undergoing in
lower secondary schools, receiving a high degree of interest and appreciation from students and teachers.
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