Aligning Student Attitudes, Assessment, and Curriculum Design: A Case Study Using the “My Life as a Musician” Vocational Preparation Strand

Abstract

Following a review of the Bachelor of Music program, the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University introduced a vocational preparation strand, My Life as a Musician (MLaaM) in 2011. This is a sequence of compulsory courses offered for one semester each year for the duration of the Bachelor of Music (three or four years), and Bachelor of Music Technology (3 year) degree. It includes a suite of tasks ranging from identifying personal career development and planning, small-to-medium business enterprise skills, to creative entrepreneurship and new venture management. With no prior model to duplicate, the MLaaM curriculum and assessment design has been predominantly inspired by previous research regarding student career attitudes, and an audit of music industry elective and core courses. Amongst the many considerations concerning the implementation of this strand, a primary challenge has been identifying the most pertinent forms of assessment for students of varying stages of professional development and identification. To assist with this, research determining the non-music skills and attributes of Queensland musicians, attitudes and industry activity of tertiary music students, and tertiary music lecturer opinions of industry education, is currently in progress. This paper explores the results of components of this research utilising students’ perceptions of the educational value and relevance of the third year MLaaM assessment together with lecturer reflections. The implications of these results are relevant to the design of other vocational preparation courses in tertiary music programs.