Academic
Exchange Quarterly
Summer
2003 Volume 7, Issue 2
Dr. Pearl Yeadon McGinnis,
As the Director of Opera Workshop, the Collectors
Series, and the School Outreach Program, Dr. Yeadon
coordinates service-learning opera productions for K-12 audiences within the state
of
Dr. Debra McDowell,
Dr. McDowell has served as
the Director of Citizenship and Service since 1998, has co-chaired the SMSU Public Affairs Advisory Board, helped coordinate
funding to non-profit organizations as a result of the United Way giving
campaign, and obtained the Templeton Award for outstanding service-learning
programming at SMSU.
Abstract
In the present climate of
reduced budgets for the arts and education, the continuing challenge is to
provide increased cultural opportunities for rural public school children. By enhancing traditional opera performances
with experiential learning techniques and emphasizing interdisciplinary study
and the Nine National Standards for Arts Education,
As noted by
Robert G. Bringle and Julie A Hatcher, (“Making the
Case with Quantitative Research,” 2000), research for a project is most
beneficial when “… the design is guided by theory … when the data collection is
relevant to supporting, developing, refining, and revising a theory.” The theory, Opera as an Intervention for
Rural Public School Children, is based on nine years of Southwest Missouri
State University Opera Workshop service-learning performances.
The
hypothesis derived from this theory is that a performance of an opera on tour
in rural elementary and high schools can significantly alter not only the
school-age child’s knowledge and appreciation of music, but could also influence
the school age child’s perception of related social, multi-cultural, and
interrelationship issues. A related
hypothesis is that the students participating in Opera Workshop as
service-learning would benefit from the additional performance venues and
receive an enhanced educational experience through experiential learning
opportunities as defined by C.R. Rogers and H. J. Freiberg (1994) in Freedom to Learn. According to
Background: The Development
of Opera as Service Learning
Nine years of
opera performances in
In
designing opera workshop performances with Roger’s concepts in mind,
experiential and interactive learning were implemented in the following ways. 1) In order to
promote a higher level of critical thinking, the project encouraged the
contribution of the student directors and performers to all aspects of the new
Curriculum Guide, including the production process, suggestions for the lesson
plan, art projects, interactive exercises, costumes, make-up, and suggestions
for quantitative and qualitative assessment.
The immediate positions of responsibility included a Student Stage
Director, Assistant Director, Choreographer, Set Designer, Costume Designer,
Lighting Designer, Technical Director, and Stage Manager. 2) Practical, social,
personal and research problems were addressed by a lesson plan for
participating elementary and high schools which suggested interactive learning
exercises, meaningful discussions, and ways to relate the resultant discussions
and performance experience to the school-age student’s personal life. The research hypothesis, that opera performances
for rural school children significantly alter their musical experience,
interest, knowledge, and the conception of music and the cultural arts as it
pertains to their personal and public lives, was measured by qualitative and
quantitative analysis. All students
involved in the project, including the school-age children and their teachers
and supervisors, were asked to participate in qualitative post-performance
surveys. Quantitative
results measured the number of attending public school audience members, the
type of school represented and the students’ ages and their musical knowledge
and experience. Additional analysis tools included
post-performance surveys, question and answer sessions, thank-you letters and
drawings, reflection journals, synthesis papers, a Service-Learning Guide, and
a Director’s Notebook.
Fall 2001: Hansel & Gretel
The
production of Hansel and Gretel
during Fall Semester 2001 was the first attempt to define an opera production
as a research project. Although the
operas presented prior to Hansel and
Gretel had been effective as performances, several questions were raised
which suggested that opera as research would be more beneficial to the audience
as well as the student performers. These
questions included whether or not an involved (and expensive) set and costumes
was necessary for a successful production; how the different ages of public
school students perceived the performances; how the performance space
contributed to or detracted from the performance; whether or not the
performances were adding to the public school child’s musical and artistic
knowledge; how to involve the public school child in the actual performance,
and if the performances were significantly contributing to the public school
child’s learning and critical thinking abilities.
Hansel and Gretel was specifically designed
to provide research data that would begin to answer the above questions. The opera was based on the theory, Opera As
an Intervention for Rural Public School Children. In order to facilitate an ongoing application
of the theory, four goals were defined to allow for both qualitative and
quantitative analysis, as defined by Bringle and
Hatcher, of the process of preparing and presenting an opera and for effective
measurement of observational and statistical data resulting from the
performances.
The
goals were: 1) Development of a
production that is “fun” and provides a basis for interactive and
interdisciplinary learning. 2) A study of effectiveness of opera
performances by both qualitative and quantitative means, including questions
about prior musical knowledge and experience of school age audiences and their
reactions following the production. 3)
The use of opera performances as a means of incorporating service-learning
interactive and interdisciplinary learning into both higher education and K-12
school settings. 4) An enhancement of
the training and experience of the SMSU students
involved in “Opera Viva” by their direct involvement in interactive and
interdisciplinary learning and in community outreach and public Affairs.
An
additional benefit of selecting the story of Hansel and Gretel is that it was widely known, even by the youngest
school-age child. This resulted in many
invitations to perform in schools, providing a large base from which to collect
statistical information. Over 4,000
people attended the various performances of the opera. Of these, approximately 3,000 were K-12
students representing eight different schools.
Trochim’s “Idea of Construct Validity”(2000) was an effective guide for the degree
from which inferences could be made from the data gathered at the performances
of Hansel and Gretel. Eight initiatives were formulated to provide
a basis for the theoretical constructs designed to test the theory and the
resultant hypotheses. Through
observation, as well as a statistical evaluation of the production of Hansel and Gretel, effect constructs
then resulted in new information that is being used to enhance the Opera
Workshop Service-Learning School Outreach program.
A
professionally staged production of the opera Hansel and Gretel was designed with the following initiatives: 1) offer opera that is accessible and “fun,”
2) provide enhanced reading and comprehension skills and meaningful discussions
about sociological and emotional concerns in the student’s educational and
private lives, 3) provide a model to school-age children of the Nine National
Standards for the Arts, 4) based on experiential learning, 5) provide a lesson
plan and interactive and interdisciplinary exercises, 6) present performances
for Title I schools and on tour in rural Missouri schools, 7) feature audience
participation, and 8) provide new forms of qualitative and quantitative
analysis.
Several
innovative features helped shape Hansel
and Gretel as a model for future Opera Workshop performances. Careful advance planning as well as the
cooperation and input from the proposed community and school partners allowed
interaction that was equally effective whether performed on a stage or in a
small classroom.
The
elements of “fun” in Hansel and Gretel
included additional characters as the Witch’s helpers, set pieces and props
provided and/or made by the school age audience members, dances and songs
prepared prior to the performance by the school age audience members and then
performed during the opera, innovative and beautiful costumes, action with
great contrasts (i.e. a scary Witch, gentle angels, the mysterious woods, the
Dew Fairy) as well as an emphasis on good diction and effective vocalism from the
singers.
In Sound Ways of Knowing, Barrett, McCoy
and Veblen (1997) suggest that the capable learner
possesses a natural “… tendency to connect, relate, associate and join features
of experience and that tendency leads to new understanding” (p. 15). This new understanding “… constitutes the
fundamental rationale for interdisciplinary study in schools” (p. 14). Based on the results of the quantitative and
qualitative analysis, the opera Hansel
and Gretel provided the ideal forum in which school-age audiences could be
introduced to interdisciplinary learning through a non-threatening and “fun”
experience. A more direct way of
illustrating the learning goals for service-learning through music is the
following Chinese proverb:
I hear, and I forget
I see, and I remember
By
participating in the opera performance, the school age child was able to “do”
rather than just see or hear.
One
of the most innovative features was audience participation. This was best demonstrated by one performance
for a rural elementary school in
The
story of Hansel and Gretel was also
ideal in formulating discussions about history, opera, music, and sociological
and emotional concerns. Some of these
discussions included learning to use a compass to find directions (Hansel and
Gretel were lost in the woods), learning to define a proper balanced diet and
determining if Hansel and Gretel were eating properly (first act included songs
describing food, and in the 2nd act Hansel and Gretel were looking
for strawberries when lost) and a consideration of family dynamics (one of the
basic themes of Hansel and Gretel is the relationship between the four
characters, brother, sister, mother, and father).
The
opera was also a model to school-age children of the National Standards for the
Arts, (1994, MENC).
The lesson plan included songs for the school-age children to learn and
perform. Orff
instrumental arrangements of the music were provided as well as suggestions for
improvising melodies for similar stories.
The Witch’s motif, “nibble, nibble,” was learned and then changed. Older elementary students were encouraged to
read the score and to suggest their own ideas for tunes. “Brother come and dance,” was taught by rote
(students repeat teacher’s words and tune until song is learned; older students
were encouraged to recognize and define the themes). School-age students were asked to evaluate
other performances and styles they might have seen and to compare these to Hansel and Gretel. The school-age students created their own
dances and art projects based on their study of the opera. Other stories of lost children, various types
of family relationships, styles of living, and types of diets were discussed.
Howard
Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences is an effective guide for music
educators (1993).
The
basic idea behind the use of multiple intelligences as an educational strategy,
that even if students (university as
well as public school students) have problems with any one or more of the
areas, they would possibly also excel in one or more, is immediately applicable
in Opera Workshop productions. Those
students with highly developed bodily-kinesthetic intelligence (dance) can help
to train the other students. Set
designers and choreographers who have enhanced spatial intelligence (building
and designing sets and planning the overview of dance routines) help train
their fellow students, and so on. Any
contact with dance improves general rhythm and enhances singing skill. The interrelationships from a performance and
expressive standpoint are endless and enhance every aspect of an opera
production.
Opera
is also an ideal medium for experiential learning. In
Freedom to Learn, (1994) Rogers stated that “learning is facilitated when
1) the student participates completely in the learning process and has control
over its nature and direction; 2) it is primarily based upon direct
confrontation with practical, social, personal, or research problems; and 3)
self-evaluation is the principal method of assessing progress or success.” In order to assure that Hansel and Gretel would be a true experiential learning exercise
for the university student performers, the SMSU
students contributed to all of the steps in the production process, the lesson
plan, art projects, interactive exercises, costumes, make-up, and
questionnaires. The student director and
crew assumed the primary responsibility for the production and helped to
formulate their own qualitative learning exercises to evaluate goals, the
process, and the resultant performances.
The student director also wrote a detailed synthesis paper about
personal expectations, the process of the production, and the outcome. As this was the first paper of this type by a
student director, it was used as the basis for an Opera Workshop Director’s
Notebook, which will be updated by each subsequent student director.
Qualitative
and quantitative analysis was used to evaluate Hansel and Gretel. Musical
surveys were sent to participating schools prior to and following the
performances. The pre-performance
musical questionnaires were designed for two age groups, K-4 and 5-8, to query
the school-age audience member’s musical knowledge, interest, and
experience. The qualitative Performance
Survey asked the audience to evaluate the effect of the performance and to
comment on the performance in relationship to similar performances they might
have seen. The school-age students were
also asked about their interest in participating in a similar performance.
Approximately
1,300 students responded to the post-performance performance survey. 85 % of respondents were in the 4th
and 5th grades, 15% from the 2nd and 3rd
grades, and 5% from pre-K to 1st grade. A significant difference in survey results
was created by the performance space.
The Title I school students from the 4th and 5th
grades were bussed in to a 2,200-seat performance arts center on the SMSU campus. They saw an hour-long show on a professional
stage with lights, scenery, a large gingerbread house, orchestra, conductor,
large ballet troupe, and full costumes and props. These students chose either the Witch or the
Angels (ballet dancers) as their favorite characters, and they perceived the
acting as the best component of the performance. Although 85% liked the show and about the
same proportion could understand the story, only about 55% could understand the
words when sung, most likely due to the difficulty of projecting young opera
voices over an orchestra in a large hall without amplification.
Most
of the 4th and 5th grade Title I students said they would
like to take part in an opera and almost half had already seen a live
performance. For 90%, this was their
first opera. That the Witch was the
favorite character was an indication of the effectiveness of the stage set at
the performing arts hall where the Witch was pushed into a large oven and the
students were able to see the Witch jump out of a big house and lock Hansel in
a large cage. The lighting and set also
heightened the “scary” atmosphere of all the Witch’s dances and movements.
During
“Opera Viva’s” tour to neighboring
In
order to provide additional information for future Opera Workshop productions,
the following question was included on the Performance Survey. If you have seen other SMSU
Opera Workshop performances in your school, which one have you liked best? And why?
The following sample comments stress the importance of a performance
being capable of engaging the interest and attention of the audience.
I didn’t yawn once. 1st grade
The dragon (The
Reluctant Dragon) because it had more action. 4th grade
Hansel & Gretel cause it was cool. 5th
grade
This opera stuff is really cool. 4th grade
Because he got cooked. (The Witch was shoved in the
oven) 4th grade
The
responses on the pre-performance questionnaire as well as from the
post-performance survey indicated an age-related appreciation of live musical
performances, a conclusion that was not anticipated: the younger the audience member, the more
interest in and acceptance of life music in their classroom. Another conclusion could have been
predicted: the older the audience, the
more they liked action sequences, as opposed to gentle moments such as the
angel’s ballet.
A
conclusion that was anticipated was that the younger the audience, the more
acceptance of opera as a performance medium and the more attentive. When the performance was held in a gymnasium
or classroom, the younger audience has an enhanced capacity to imagine the set
and the surrounding action. The older
the audience, from 5th grade on, the more critical the students are
about the physical setting such as props and set, diction, story comprehension,
and opera as an art form. The older
student is also more hesitant about declaring an interest in singing or
participating in an opera or similar musical experience.
Learning
from experience is the very essence of Barry Green’s The Inner Game of Music (1986) in which he stressed that learning
is all about exploring your own potential.
“Each one carries within us a reservoir of potential … we develop this
potential when we face situations that challenge us to perform at new heights
of achievement.” One result of the new
service-learning emphasis in Opera Workshop is the corresponding emphasis on
experiential learning for the students involved in the class and the
performances. The experience gained by
the performers in having to adapt to new spaces and audiences is now enhanced
by the added responsibility of planning and being responsible for the entire
project.
The
student stage director had the greatest amount of responsibility. The director prepared a detailed report
following the performances including preconceptions about the process and
conclusions about what was learned. One
of the most perceptive statements was the understanding that just performing
could not teach a vocal student everything about working with people or about
music and social interaction. The
director realized that only by taking on the responsibility as a director,
could new capabilities as a performer be addressed.
The
service-learning aspect of the Hänsel and Gretel
production was a positive reinforcement of the purpose of the Opera Workshop
program, to involve people of all walks of life and ages in the ongoing
creation of something of beauty. By
designing the opera around the specific needs of the school to be visited on
tour, the bond between audience and SMSU student
performer was enhanced. The simple
expedient of sharing the creation of a performance with a community partner
strengthened the impact of the opera and enhanced the pride of performer and
audience member alike in sharing the creation of a work of art.
Armstrong, T. (Ed.). (1994). Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom.
Barrett, J.R., McCoy, C.W. & Veblen, K.K. (Eds.).
(1997).
Bringle, Robert G. and
Hatcher, Julie A. “Meaningful Measurement of Theory-Based Service-Learning
Outcomes: Making the Case with
Quantitative Research.”
Gardner, Howard (1993). Frames
of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences.
Green, Barry, (1986). The Inner Game
of Music,
Rogers, C.R. & Freiberg, H.J. (1994).
Freedom to Learn (3rd Ed).
Trochim, William M. K. (2000). “Idea of Construct Validity.” Research
Methods Knowledge Base. http://trochim.human.cornell.edu/kb/considea.htm
Blakeslee, Michael, Editor. (1994) Dance Music Theatre Visual Arts: What Every Young American Should Know
and Be Able to Do in the Arts: