Ukuleles and More: Building social & cultural capital through Music

Working in conjunction with Soundwaves and Bill Roberts, Knowle West Children's Centre conducted a research project using music as a focus. KWCC is a researchful setting and before the project started we thought carefully about the process we might use and how we might measure the impact. We know that action research is a way of bringing about self reflection and this project was no different.

“The metaphor that might best represent my image of the school is that of a construction site, or a permanent laboratory, in which children’s and teachers’ research processes are strongly intertwined and constantly evolving…Learning does not proceed in a linear way, determined and deterministic, by progressive and predictable stages but rather is constructed contemporaneous advances, standstills and ‘retreats’ that take many different directions.” (Rinaldi 2006)

Children, practitioners and parents were all part of this ‘permanent laboratory’ and the weekly visits of Bill kept a thread of constancy, challenge and aspiration. As an outside agent, Bill was able to ‘give permission’ to the practitioners to be musicians and to ‘be’ in the moment as they made their own music and music with the children.

The full case study is available to download here