A Case Study On Implementation Of Kindergarten Music Curriculum

Music, to the development of humanity, has its unique function, being called "the language of the soul." To a child, music is an indispensable element along his/her living, learning and maturing process. It is the essential approach to ensure the all-round development of children. Kindergarten is one of the major environments for music education. The implementation of music curriculum within the kindergarten is directly related to the effects of its early childhood music education. The implementation of music curriculum is a process based on the understanding of the music curriculum from the teachers, as well as their consideration and fabrication of its text form, thereafter being converted into practice. This study is initiated to investigate the kindergarten teachers’understanding of music curriculum and their treatment manners related to several essential elements of music curriculum (such as the objective, the context, the implementation orientation, approaches, methods and evaluation of the curriculum), therefore displays a clear picture of the present implementation of music curriculum in kindergarten "A" based on the combinational comprehension rooted inside the conceptual level as well as the behavioral level. Further analysis is presented of the affecting factors on the implementation of kindergarten music curriculum, and constructive proposals are put forward in the end. In this study, methods of observation, interview, literature and physical collection, etc. are employed. This research mainly deals with the following parts:Part1:Results on the investigation of music curriculum implementation in kindergarten "A". According to this research, divergence exists among this kindergarten’s teachers on the understanding and management related to the goals of music curriculum. On the aspect of understanding of the goal of curriculum, teachers in kindergarten "A" emphasize the aesthetic function of music education, however, in real practice, point out exaggeratedly on the mastery of musical knowledge and skills. On the aspect of music curriculum content, the practical selections from the teachers in kindergarten "A" look like scientific; however, most of them are picked up from supplementary books, with the tendency of relying on teaching textbooks. On the aspect of curriculum organization and implementation, without a clear image of the manners of music curriculum, the teachers in kindergarten "A" tend to choose those teaching approaches and methods which are simple and easy to operate, even though they seem rich in resources, and on the other hand, they have the tendency to ignore the subject status of the children during the curriculum activity. On the aspect of curriculum evaluation, the teachers pay particular emphasis on the evaluation of teaching methods and activity effects, with some relatively homogeneous evaluation methods. At the same time, inconsistency is still displayed between the concept and behavior.Part2:There are three main aspects affect the implementation of music curriculum in the kindergarten. First of all, the extent of being recognized, the degree of clarity and the application level of the music curriculum itself. Second, the primary factor affects the implementation of kindergarten music curriculum is the teachers’ attitude and awareness toward music education and their professional standards; to some extent, the support from the kindergarten principal will promote the progress the music curriculum; the culture in the kindergarten, especially the culture within its pre-school teachers will affect the implementation of the kindergarten music curriculum as well. Third, the parent association plays an important role in the implementation of kindergarten music curriculum. On the other hand, the guidance and supports from the education administrative department are also indispensable elements.Part3:In order to promote the implementation of the kindergarten music curriculum, the author of this thesis propose the followings:first, optimize the music specialization of the serving pre-school teachers, improve the implementation level of music curriculum effectively; second, give full scope to the kindergarten principal’s leadership, strengthen the support and training to the teachers; and last, attach great importance to the cooperation between the parents and kindergarten, seek support from the education department of government.