MUSICAL TRAINING ON TEACHING EFFECTIVENESS: INSIGHTS FROM NCHIRAA PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Authors: Augusta Arko-Mensah & Richard Arhin

ABSTRACT

The study sought to investigate the status of music education within the creative arts curriculum, with a specific focus on Nchiraa primary schools in the Wenchi municipality of the Bono Region of Ghana. The primary aim was to investigate the factors contributing to the limited attention given to music instruction by teachers in Nchiraa primary schools within the performing arts strand of the creative arts curriculum. Drawing on the Music Theory Learning by Edwin Gordon, the research adopted a qualitative paradigm with a case study design. Four schools were included in the study, within the Nchiraa circuit, selecting two teachers from each school. Purposive sampling was used to select the two teachers from each school making eight participants for in-depth exploration. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews and observation, with thematic analysis employed for data interpretation. The findings revealed that while teachers in Nchiraa primary schools acknowledge the importance of music in the creative arts curriculum, they lack the expertise due to a lack of formal musical training. Recommendations include sensitising the Ghana Education Service (GES) to the need for teachers with appropriate competencies in creative arts education and establishing training opportunities for generalist teachers in creative arts in the various schools.

Keywords: Wenchi, Nchiraa, creative arts, musical training, music education

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