A Reflective Lens: Music Pedagogical Research to Transform Practice | Page 93

A Reflective Lens:
Music Pedagogical Research to Transform Practice

My mentor provided me a platform to deconstruct my
lessons and helped me to reconcile my beliefs and
assumptions, thus allowing me to achieve the depth and
breadth of critical reflection that I otherwise could not
have gained by myself. After every lesson, my post-lesson
discussion would focus on how I felt the lesson had gon e,
why it went the way it did, and what I could have done
to make it better for my pupils’ learning (Hickson, 2011).
My mentor also contributed ideas and suggestions that I
found invaluable in helping me close the gaps identified
in my lessons.
During the research, my co-teacher-researcher Mr Salleh
was another sounding board for me as we discussed the
level of engagement of the pupils in the music class. I also
made friends with fellow researchers and as we shared our
research projects, we formed a support group. The safe
environment and supportive culture within the group gave
room for us to expose our vulnerabilities and question one
another, without feeling judged (Hickson, 2011).

Pupil Learning Resulting from
Singing Games
Data collected from the surveys, questionnaires, interviews
and field notes were coded. From our findings, we
categorised the data into three domains, namely cognitive
engagement, behavioural engagement, and socialemotional engagement.
Cognitive Engagement
Pupils learn better when learning is scaffolded and when
they are sufficiently challenged cognitively. Learning from
and with peers help pupils generate meaning in their
learning. Peer interactions also help to build their social
interaction skills which are part of the pupils’ development

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