Part 3b - The international music education journey (Malaysia)

I didn't know much about Malaysia when I arrived in August 2013. I knew it would be tropical, a great launching pad for travel around Asia, and that it was only an eight hour flight to Australia. Other than that, I was pretty clueless.

I'd secured a job in a reputable international school in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. The contract offer was great and the pre-arrival communication: excellent. I was excited to learn about a new culture and to continue exploring the international school 'world'. Argentina had been the perfect introduction (albeit a bit crazy) and this was a wonderful next step.

By this point, my approach to music teaching was rather diverse. My own music education background was a mix of informal and formal learning and my approach to teaching music reflected this.

The first notable change was that I now had a big team around me. The school was huge. 2000+ students and 200+ teachers. Dedicated events staff to support at concerts and events. A full-time sound technician. An in-house peripatetic program that would rival most private instrument tuition centres back in Australia. Big budgets and plenty of resources. Expectations were high, but the remit given was simple: make the subject of music enjoyable for students and build a 'culture' of singing and musical performance. Sounds doable!

Curriculum

My first challenge was to explore the taught curriculum at the school. What framework was being followed? What were some of the assessments? What were the key learning areas?

In addressing these questions, I started to develop the understanding International schools are rarely bound by strict curriculum guidelines. Schools that espouse a particular link to a country (such as Australian, American, Canadian, British or French international schools) will often follow a home-country curricula. Some follow international curriculum models such as the IB (including the PYP and MYP), IPC or Cambridge International curricula. However, many international schools are simply international 'by name' and are free to follow whichever curriculum they like. Some schools state that they follow a "British-style" curriculum and others take pride in offering a bespoke "international-style" curriculum. Curriculum in international schools can be a confusing world! For more on this, check out James Cambridge's work via the links here .

Basically, my new school didn't really follow a specific curriculum at all. There were elements of the English national curriculum in place, with a smattering of the IPC too. The Year 13 students sat the Cambridge International A Level exams, but below that was a miss-mash of curricular confusion.

In some ways it was an incredible opportunity for the team. We could build a curriculum exactly how we wanted. It could be closely aligned to the school context, the student body and the strategic vision of the school. We could pick and choose and revise and refresh the curriculum at will! It was empowering and exciting.

Yet, at other times it was incredibly frustrating. Where do we even start? Which curriculum models are best? What music education philosophy/ies do we align with?

We worked on the framework for four years and then refined it for another four. Music flourished, students seemed happy and we developed countless opportunities for student performance. If you'd like to know more about what we created, get in touch!

Co-curricular activities (CCA's)

Music education is not reserved for a classroom setting. Co-curricular music programs are a regular part of an international school offer and they can be super impactful. They often provide the link between what happens in classroom music and instrumental lessons.

They bring students together from various classes/year groups, they provide new experiences, and they create communities. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we had 20+ music Co-Curricular Activities (CCA's) each week that provided opportunities for over 300 students. Orchestra, choir, rock band, recorder group, woodwind ensemble, guitar group, bucket drumming, samba and keyboard group were all part of the program.

COVID-19 has decimated many of these groups in the international school setting. Online options were possible, but due to the inevitable lag between participants on video conferencing platforms, most of these were merely a shadow of their in-person iterations. For me, losing CCA's represented a significant sense of loss during the pandemic.

Thankfully, CCA-like experiences do not need to be controlled solely by teachers. One of the remarkable opportunities to come from the pandemic has been watching students take control and create new ways to make musical communities. In Malaysia, students worked online to create mixed-media projects, collaborate on compositions and produce music via online platforms. Others created bubbles during lockdowns to enjoy regular rehearsals/jam sessions with friends.

For me, CCA's represent dedicated opportunities for students to be involved in real-world music making experiences. Many may argue that this should be happening in the music classroom as well. Either way, I truly discovered the magic of CCA music during my time in Malaysia.

Professional Development (PD)

Professional development (PD) in the international school context was a 'next level' experience for me. During my time in Malaysia, I attended conferences and workshops in Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, India, Nepal, Hong Kong and the USA. I upskilled in pedagogy, assessment, curriculum, management, leadership, music technology, musical theatre and much more.

My favourite conference was the Broadway Teachers Workshop in New York. I spent 5 days mixing with teachers from around the world to discuss musical theatre in schools. We attended 6 musicals during the conference and had post-show discussions with the cast and crew. There were workshops on production, tech, set, costumes, dance, acting, music etc. It was epic. Musical theatre had become quite a large part of the culture at my school (check out some of the productions here ) and it was awesome to spend time discussing ideas with like-minded teachers.

The other conference that I absolutely love is the FOBISIA Music Teachers Conference . An amazing group of people and a wonderful organisation supporting music teacher professional development.

The main takeaway here is the importance of collaboration and continual professional learning for music teachers. Through sharing, discussion and openness to new ideas, music teachers can continue to find purpose and freshness. Music is constantly evolving and so should we.

My goal is to be constantly learning as a music teacher. I want to find regular opportunities to feel the joy of participating in new musical contexts. I recently bought a Maschine MK3. Check out this video to get an idea of what it is. Let me just say, my brain has been rather broken lately as I learn my way around the workflow of this amazing instrument.

My music education future?

I finished up my position in Malaysia in June 2021, after eight years. The departure from Malaysia was bitter-sweet. I was sad to leave a place that I called home for so long, where I developed amazing relationships, and found a place to develop my skills and experience so profoundly. Yet, returning to Australia meant coming back to a country that I really hadn't lived in as an adult. I'm now closer to family and am discovering the beauty of Australian nature (even though most things want to kill me!). I've now been teaching music in schools for 13 years and am excited to see what's ahead.

For now, I've been exploring a new perspective on music education in three different ways:

1) I've been working with an organisation called The Australian Children's Music Foundation . I have rediscovered the simplicity of teaching music with a focus on wellbeing and inclusion. I draw on my years of pedagogy and practice to provide music sessions to students in two small state schools. It is refreshing and grounding in many ways!

2) I am working on my PhD focusing specifically on music education in the international school context in Malaysia. I am looking at the political, socio-cultural and economic forces that influence student participation in elective music programs. It has been a fascinating deep dive into many areas of interest! 2022 will be a big year for me with this.

3) I am working with the University of Newcastle on the Creative Arts teacher training program. Thanks to one of my PhD supervisors, Dr. David Roy (Twitter: @dmsroy), I have been marking papers and developing an understanding of what is happening in primary school teacher training around the Creative Arts in Australia. I'll be tutoring at the university and will be getting more involved this year.

Honestly, I'm not sure exactly where things will go from here. But, that's great! I am passionate about exploring music education in the international school context. I believe that international schools are a unique and exciting framework for education, but more research is needed in and around what they claim to do. Music education often seems to fill bizarre dual roles in international schools: a) as part of a holistic and internationally-minded education and, b) as a strong marketing tool for an increasingly competitive private schooling sector (i.e. hey, look at our amazing music program...come and join our school!).

I'm keen to find other music teachers working in international schools who are keen to explore their context. There is so much that we can learn from investigating this.

Well, that's officially the final entry in this little reflective series. Thank you for reading. I've enjoyed writing and reflecting. I hope you've found it at least slightly enjoyable and informative!

Get in touch with me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore music education in international schools or anything else that I've mentioned in these entries. I'm a total nerd and love chatting about this stuff.

Oh yes, you can also join the Music Teachers in International Schools Facebook group here . Lots of great ideas from brilliant music educators to be found!