A new redesigned music education program at McPherson College now offers a faster time-to-degree than any other traditional music education program in the state of Kansas. The new streamlined degree offers a more efficient and practical approach that allows students to trim a semester, or even a year, off their college experience.
Most undergraduate music education programs require courses that prepare students for research or graduate-level pursuits, rather than for teaching at the elementary, middle, or high school levels. As a result, most students take longer than four years to complete their degree. The redesigned degree was designed by music teachers to prepare students to become music teachers.
“I once had a professor say to me that colleges and universities are training music education majors like it’s 18th-century Vienna,” Kyle Hopkins, professor of music, said. “Our goal is to produce outstanding music teachers, not necessarily musicologists, so we made significant changes to our curriculum.”
The new curriculum includes an orchestration and arranging course, skills teachers need, especially when directing smaller ensembles. Additional changes emphasize conducting, rehearsal skills, and methods courses tailored to specific grade levels. Hopkins stresses that this is not a “watering-down” of the subject matter, but rather a more streamlined program that focuses on teaching music at any level, instrumental or vocal.
“This new focused method of instruction is catered to high-achieving music education majors,” Hopkins said. “The restructured program saves our students time and money, and will get them out into the field sooner, making an impact in the classroom.”