Ham’avaaz – Polyphonic: Music Pedagogy in Basic Education and Language Learning

<< Background >>Our project idea started with the desire to develop suggestions for the implementation of music-pedagogical activities in basic education and (second) language learning. The Ham'avaaz partnership was formed by institutions that offer various programs for adults and/or trainers, including language classes and basic education for learners facing multiple forms of discrimination. On a small scale, music had been integrated in our routine; with this project however, we wanted to take an in-depth look at the benefits of music for resource-orientated, critical and emancipatory educational work. The advantages of music for the mental health and cognitive development of children and adolescents are widely recognised. In recent years, research has also focused on the needs of adult learners. Although links have been established between language learning and music education in this regard, in our opinion there is a lack of didactic material tailored to the needs of educationally disadvantaged learners. Intending to close this gap, Ham'avaaz aimed to create an inclusive learning atmosphere in which diverse groups of learners work together on songs, lyrics, melodies and rhythms from diverse (sub-) cultural contexts. << Objectives >>1. The co-creation of an appreciative learning environment at the interface of music and language acquisition for educationally disadvantaged learners;2. Strengthening learning skills and memory strategies for learners in different areas of adult education, especially basic education and second language acquisition. A wide range of music and methods was presented to transmit strategies that help memorise language structures;3. Promoting social skills and the ability to articulate feelings, opinions and attitudes. The methods used aimed to improve learners' ability to analyse information in a social context;4. Promoting resilience by supporting participants in recognising and building upon their resources and skills, such as multilingualism. That includes fostering creativity which plays an important role in developing and maintaining resilience, as it involves the ability to develop alternative scenarios;5. Building transcultural and social dialogue through the use of a variety of different linguistic and cultural elements beyond the clichés and stereotypes sometimes associated with music;6. Strengthening the competences of adult educators by expanding their repertoire through music-based activities and tools. << Implementation >>The project kicked-off with a transnational meeting on 2. + 3.5.2022 in Vienna. During the initial phase, the consortium contacted trainers to gather their perspectives on music education in different areas of adult education. The results of a survey among 105 trainers were incorporated into the development of the Methodology, a publication exploring the benefits of music education with a focus on resilience and language learning. During 2022, we approached learners to find out how they would like to learn through music-based activities. We invited them to share multilingual songs with us, which were later incorporated into the development of the Music Box, the core project result. This publication is linked to the YouTube channel where we collected tutorials, workshop presentations and promotion videos. In September 2023, we presented the developed techniques and exercises at a transnational workshop with trainers in Spain and incorporated their feedback. The Music Box was piloted at the beginning of 2024 with support of 8 trainers and 127 learners. At our multiplier event on 23.2.2024, we presented our results to a wider audience in an interactive format. We disseminated the project on over 80 occasions.<< Results >>1. A project website providing updates on the activities carried out, as well as access to all project results and the Discord forum for trainers on music education (to give feedback on activities that have proved beneficial, share music suggestions, etc.);2. a 20-page Methodology exploring the benefits of music-based activities for adult education in general (e.g. in terms of promoting resilience, body awareness, concentration) and language acquisition in particular;3. a YouTube channel with 38 videos and tutorial, in which we present our approach on music education, numerous exercises and activities; warm-up exercises; playlists with song suggestions suitable for use in second language classes in English, Spanish and German etc.;4. a train-the-trainer workshop in Teruel, Spain (September 2023), in which we shared and discussed the Music Box content developed with numerous trainers from our institutions;5. a 90-page publication (Music Box), which encompasses a total of 53 teaching ideas divided into five chapters and 20 teaching units around music-based activities; 6. a final multiplier event in February 2024, in which we discussed the results in an interactive format with 23 stakeholders from Spain and Austria.