Fostering boys’ creativity through problem-solving in Music
James Balmer, Music Director
Fairfield Country Day School, Fairfield, Connecticut USA
Abstract
Problemsolving isaskillnecessary forstudents toacquire inorder for them tobest
succeed in their lives. This includes the students inmy ninth gradeMusicHistory
coursewhoare required to studymusic fromGregorian chant through theTwenty‐
FirstCentury.Giventhatagooddealofthiscoursemusicisnew,foreign,andremoved
from themusic towhichmost fifteen‐year‐oldboys listen, Isetout toprovideanew
learningavenueforthesestudents.WiththeuseoftheirMacBookProcomputersand
our sixCD setofmusicrecordings, I set forth severalnewchallenges to theseyoung
men.
I presented the challenge of problem solving to my students and their choices of solutions
to the first two problems involved creativity. Each student solved the first problem by
selecting a video for his research and then solved a second problem by selecting a
musical piece, or more than one, to create new music underscoring for the existing film.
First, I suggested that each boy find a film clip and learn how to download this film clip
from the original location into iMovie. Second, I suggested that each student learn how
to replace the existing music underscoring in his selected film clip with music from our
six CDs in our Music History course. Third, each student was required to learn how to
best match his new music underscoring to the film clip that he selected.
Results indicate that students found creative ways to solve the problems posed by the project, which
included selecting a film clip, transferring the film clip into iMovie, removing the existing music
underscoring from the film clip and attaching their choice(s) of new music for film underscoring. The boys
also learned how to manipulate the speed of the film so as to best align with the tempo and accents within
their new music. These skills can be employed in multiple disciplines throughout our students’ course of
studies at Fairfield, and in the years ahead at the secondary schools to which these young men will
matriculate. Students worked both individually on their own project and collectively in developing their
problem-solving skills. By developing the skills to problem-solve within this research, our
ninth grade students used their applied imagination to create their new music
underscoring for their video.
Introduction
In his definition of creativity, Ken Robinson (2009) notes:
Imagination is not the same as creativity. Creativity takes the process
of imagination to another level. My definition of creativity is “the
process of having original ideas that have value.” Imagination can be
entirely internal. You could be imaginative all day long without anyone
noticing. But you never say that someone was creative if that person
never did anything. To be creative you actually have to do
something. It involves putting your imagination to work to make
something new, to come up with new solutions to problems, even to
think of new problems or questions. You can think of creativity as
applied imagination (p. 67).
Developing problem-solving skills in students is necessary in each academic discipline.
It is critical that we as educators provide an environment whereby our students are able to
gain insight into new skills and grow in confidence to develop their abilities to problem
solve. Professor Rufus Black (2012) speaks to the ever-present need for this tenet to be
true in preparing students of today and tomorrow. Avril Loveless (2007) writes that:
Digital information and communication technologies, which can be
viewed as a set of tools for students in this twenty-first century, can be
used to support imaginative expression, and will allow students to learn
through autonomy and collaboration. These new tools, in media and
new technology environments, guide learning to be creative and
learning will occur through being creative. Creative collaborations can
be supported by digital technologies in a variety of ways, offering
opportunities for connections between learners and practitioners, and
for shared spaces for making and developing work with others (p. 12-
13).
The purpose of this research was to empower students with the skills necessary to use
technology creatively to solve several problems. I selected action research as a method
by which to evaluate how students could learn problem-solving skills, our course
repertoire, and then develop creative solutions to the problem of creating new music
underscoring for an existing film. Moreover, by using music from our Music History
course, students became engaged with multiple musical works early on in our school year
and this new familiarity provided keen awareness and knowledge of course material.
Students developed great confidence in their technology skills through their own failures
and subsequent successes in their problem solving.
I also chose the method of action research for this project, as it is community based
(Stringer 2007). I wished to provide a method for the students to develop new problem-
solving skills individually and to provide an opportunity for students to work together in
their solutions and skill development.
My research question was, “How does the use of iMovie, used to create and replace an
existing soundtrack, foster the development of creativity in problem-solving skills for a
class of ninth grade boys?”
These problem-solving skills would be developed both individually and collectively.
Prior to this research project, only two or three students had ever attempted the challenge
of downloading a short movie into iMovie, removing the existing music underscoring,
replacing the original underscoring with a new musical choice, and aligning the speed of
the film with the tempi and accents in the replacement underscoring.
As mentioned above, creativity is “the process of having original ideas that have value,”
and to be creative one needs to “put your imagination to work to make something new, to
come up with new solutions to problems, even to think of new problems or questions.
You can think of creativity as applied imagination.” (Robinson 2009, p.67) In my
research, students were asked to problem-solve by creating the new music underscoring
for their video of choice.
Literature Review
Challenges presented to our students have, and will, continue to increase in complexity,
according to Dr. Rufus Black (2012) of the University of Melbourne. Therefore, as
educators, we are responsible for fostering improvement in developing problem-solving
skills in our students of the 21st century. Regarding problem-solving skills, Black
encouraged those gathered at the IBSC Conference in Melbourne, Australia in July of
2012 to incorporate problem-solving skills into all curricula. Black also noted that the use
of technology within our classrooms can and will greatly enhance the creative process of
problem solving. Further, a study at the University of Leicester suggests “boys are more
confident in their use of music technology” and “that they are showing an increase in
interest in music as a result of this confidence.” (Comber, Hargraves, and Colley, 1993
pp. 123-134).
Given the consistent and regular improvements to existing technology, our students
serve as learners and teachers. Their adaptability to the many and frequent technological
changes allow our students to pioneer the path forward as we incorporate technology into
our creative problem solving in education. In so doing, we instill a strong sense of
confidence, sense of courage, and sense of leadership within our young men. Reichert
and Hawley (2010) note:
Students are encouraged to work together as a class or in small groups
to solve problems so there is usually no hesitation for at least one
student to volunteer an answer and for others to either support him or
add their own solution. Students are very engaged as problem solvers,
sharers of strategies or seekers of strategies (p.184).
In her article of September 2007, Avril Loveless writes:
Creativity can be regarded as not only a quality found in exceptional
individuals, but also as an essential life skill through which people can
develop their potential to use their imagination to express themselves,
and make original and valued choices in their lives. Societies of the
21st century require active participation in the fast changing
‘Knowledge Age’ in which there is an interaction between people,
communities, creative processes, knowledge domains and wider social
contexts (pp. 12-13).
When examining the role of digital technologies in the creative process, Loveless (2007)
states:
Digital information and communications technologies (ICT) can be
seen as a set of tools which can be chosen as and when they are
appropriate in the creative process. In addition, it can be argued that the
characteristics of ICT can also make a distinctive contribution to those
processes, providing new tools, media and environments for learning to
be creative and learning through being creative. (PP. 12-13).
Loveless further notes that:
ICT can be used to support imaginative expression, autonomy and
collaboration, fashioning and making, pursuing purpose, being original
and judging value. Creativity can also be promoted and extended with
the use of new technologies, where there is understanding of, and
opportunities for, the variety of creative processes in which learners can
engage (pp. 12-13).
Loveless (2007) goes on to write:
Schools and classrooms, models of access to ICT resources should
reflect characteristics of creative environments and teaching strategies
which include:
awareness of the ways in which creativity is related to knowledge across
the curriculum
Opportunities for exploration and play with materials, information and
ideas
Opportunities to take risks and make mistakes in a non-threatening
atmosphere
opportunities for reflection, resourcefulness and resilience
flexibility in time and space for the different stages of creative activity
teaching strategies which acknowledge ‘teaching for creativity’ as well
as ‘teaching creatively’ (p. 13).
In answering the question, “How are people using digital technologies creatively?”
Loveless (2007) suggests:
Many learners and teachers have established a wide range of activities
to support approaches to creativity and exploit the features of digital
technologies in processes such as: creating and making: engaging in
making meanings though fashioning processes of capture, manipulation
and transformation of media.
It is precisely this concept of “capture, manipulation and transformation of media,” which
I hoped would engage my students and thereby encourage them to create their own music
underscoring.
Founded in 1943 the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (in
Gurian & Stevens, 2012) indicates the following tenets:
“when teachers use pictures and graphics more often (even well into high school),
boys write with more detail, retain more information, and get better grades on
written work across the curriculum.
The more learning is project-driven and kinesthetic, the more boys' bodies will be
engaged in learning—causing more information to be retained, remembered, and
displayed on tests and assignments.
Goal-oriented activities are often essential for boy-learning.”
This second point speaks directly to the research I engaged in with my students at
Fairfield Country Day. Guided by procedures listed at E How Tech, students learned the
problem-solving skill of how to remove music from the background of a film and then
selected and installed their own background music from pre-existing recorded music
within our Music History Curriculum.
Research Context and Participants
This action research project was undertaken at the Fairfield Country Day School in
Fairfield, Connecticut in the United States. FCDS is a private, independent school
serving approximately 260 boys in grades Pre-Kindergarten through Nine since 1936.
The Country Day School community shares a common purpose of academic excellence.
Our curriculum is rigorously designed to stretch each boy to reach his full potential.
Technology is fully integrated across all grade levels and disciplines. We are leaders in
the application of technology in the classroom, with over 15 years’ experience, including
national recognition for our cutting-edge laptop and iPad programs.
Nineteen students, who make up my ninth grade class, formed the focus of this research.
Letters of consent were completed by parents, which included permission to use all data
collected and video footage of interviews with students, as well as the students’ projects
throughout this process. The data remained confidential within the findings and context
of this report. Projects were assigned numbers and student names were not included in
reports.
Action
Students were given a task designed to develop their creative problem-solving skills. This
task required students to replace existing video underscoring. Students viewed a sample
film clip, approximately five minutes in length, and were then given the task of selecting
one musical piece contained in our set of CDs to replace the existing underscoring.
Initial attempts at this task included “near misses” by each individual, with many
struggling to solve the steps within this problem-solving process. Students quickly
learned, however, to seek assistance from one another throughout the process. They
began to work collectively to solve the problems at hand.
Students were guided through the process of video underscoring replacement. Each
student searched for a video segment of his choice, between three and ten minutes in
length. Students then searched through our six CD set of recordings including music
from Gregorian Chant through to, and including, Twentieth Century Music. Each young
man selected his own new music for underscoring in order to best match the film clip he
had selected. Several students selected more than one video to underscore with new
music and many students employed more than one piece of music in their new
underscoring.
Data Collection
Students completed surveys before, during, and after the project. These surveys
contained multiple choice questions as well as open-ended questions, which permitted
each student to state his thoughts, reactions, concepts, and suggestions as to how best to
problem solve. Students also completed a Compass Points Activity (CPA) upon
completion of their project. The CPA allowed the students to anonymously indicate their
preferences and opinions regarding all stages of this project.
A critical friend interviewed each student upon completion of their project. During the
interview, students discussed the challenges in creating the new underscoring for an
existing film clip.
Student work was sent to iMovie through an Airport Drop box and organized by an
assigned number for my viewing of each film. Two students guided others in the process
of Air Dropping their projects into one file. I observed each anonymous submission in
private and I tallied and coded the information collected by my critical friend.
Data Analysis
My colleague delivered the completed surveys and the Compass Points Activity data to
me for analysis. Student project data were placed into an Excel spreadsheet, which
included categories of responses, both similar and different, in order to code the
information and gain valuable insight as to percentages of various responses and choices
made. Once coded into categories of similar and different choices made by each student,
graphs reflecting student choices in problem solving were created in Excel. I observed
progress, in the problem-solving skills mentioned earlier, made by each subject, as new
editions were submitted. Each student submitted up to four improved versions.
Discussion of Results
Nineteen ninth grade students completed the research project. Students were allowed to
select their own video, with restrictions around suitable content, and they were also
allowed to select their music for underscoring from our Music History course six CD
collection. As data were analysed, problem-solving skills were measured, which revealed
student thoughts and reactions before, during, and upon conclusion of their project; as
well as measuring success and accuracy within their specific underscoring replacement
project.
The problem of replacing the existing sound track began with a search for both a video
choice and at least one, music choice. Students learned how to replace the soundtrack,
how to download a video from YouTube, and how to manipulate the speed of the video
in order to best match up with the tempo and accents in their music underscoring.
Data collected in the surveys indicated that five of the students worked alone on their
project, while fourteen of the students sought out assistance from one or more classmates.
Eight of the students were excited with their project to such a degree that they chose to
select a second video and create new underscoring to both videos; while eleven percent
selected one video for their project.
Figure 1: Videos employed in student projects
Video adjustments employed included two students made one adjustment, seven students
made two to three adjustments, eight students made many adjustments, and finally two
students made no adjustments. At the outset, three students guided their classmates in the
skills of video adjustment. Several other students then began to assist in the guidance of
developing the skills necessary to adjust the speed of the videos. Again, students made
both individual and collaborative efforts, as they accomplished the tasks for their
projects.
Figure 2: Video Adjustments made by each student
With regards to the selection of their new sound track for video underscoring, students
shared the following data. Prior to the beginning of the project, one student had an
obvious music choice, seven students had from one to ten choices in mind, one student
had more than ten choices, and ten students needed to complete a total search in order to
find their music selection(s) for underscoring.
Figure 3: Sound track replacement process at outset of project
Each student chose an action-based film of some variety. Students were instructed that
their film choices needed to be suitable in content for viewing by our student body,
faculty, and parents. They were also guided to select a film segment from three to ten
minutes in duration. This length restriction was assigned in order to give each student
sufficient time to thoroughly complete his project.
Students shared their individual concerns through two surveys before, during, and
following their projects. Before the project began, only two to three students of the
nineteen had previous experience in the skills necessary for solving the replacement of
music underscoring. During the project, three students felt frustrated in their ability in
problem-solving skills. Sixteen students expressed that they felt their confidence
growing in their abilities to make the changes required through learning the problem-
solving skills.
Figure 4: Student feelings during work on project
Upon completion of the project, Nineteen students indicated that they were “more confident,
successful, happy, and smarter,” regarding their ability to accomplish the problems presented,
while completing this research.
Student written responses indicated that problems to be solved included:
Student 1: “Aligning the speed and pulse of the song(s) to fit with the action in my
video.”
Student 2: “Selecting the best song and mood within a song to match the overall feeling
created in the video.”
Student 3: “I had trouble downloading my video into an MP format.”
Student 4: “At first my video had very poor visual quality and I needed to find the same
video with higher resolution for my project.”
Student 5: “Finding the movie to fit the music which I chose.”
Student 6: “ Slowing down the music to fit the dance moves in my video.”
Student 7: “ Replacing the original music in the film with the music I selected and
finding the best speed for the film to fit the new music.”
Student 8: “ Making the movie speed slower in each scene, so that I could fit the music
to the film.”
Student solutions to these problems included:
Student 1: “I Listened to over one hundred songs to find the best match in speed and
overall pulse to my video.”
Student 2: “I simply kept trying and I asked for other opinions.”
Student 3: “I sought help from two different classmates who were very comfortable
downloading videos.”
Student 4: “I worked harder and longer hours in total. Finally asked my Aunt, who has
had a good deal of experience working with videos.”
Student 5: “Once I found the best movie, I separated the movie into several parts, and
then slowed the movie to best fit the music.”
Student 6: “I received help from a friend to slow down the movie speed.”
Student 7: “I kept working until I found the best speed of the music to match the movie.”
Student 8: “A friend helped me slow down the movie speed by looking on YouTube for
further guidance.”
Fifteen students chose consonant, tonal music; three chose dissonant, tonal music; and
four chose consonant and dissonant tonal music.
Figure 6: Student Tonality Choices in their Music for underscoring
Within the process of selecting, downloading, replacing, and matching video speed and action to align
with the tempo of the music and accents in the music, students experienced a wide range of
Near Misses in their project. While two students were totally successful all of the time,
other students had between two and fifteen Near Misses; at one time or another within
the process of this research.
Figure 7: Near Misses by numbers of students
Regarding the success rate of matching the tempo of the music to the video speed and
action in their selected film, students aligned from as few as five action and music
matches in one film up to eighty action and music matches in another. Students chose to
match action moments and scene changes in their videos to match with accents and
tempo changes within their music choice(s). Several students employed more than one
musical piece for underscoring as they realized they were able to stop the videos between
scenes and begin new music with the subsequent new scene.
Students gradually increased their success with their Matching Points between the Action
and Scene changes in their Video in accordance with the Tempo and/or Accents in the
Underscoring Music, which they selected. Individual students matched from five through
and including sixteen moments in Video and Music. Other students matched as many as
eighteen, twenty-one, twenty two, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, thirty-two, and even as
many as eighty matches by one student. Several of these film clips had fewer matching
points available due to a slower pace in the action and/or very few scene changes.
Students selected music for underscoring from Music History periods including
Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Post Romantic and Nationalism, and
Twentieth century Music.
Figure 8: Period of History chosen for music underscoring Upon conclusion of this project, students participated in a Compass Points Activity,
which yielded the following results:
Figure 9: Student Reactions upon conclusion of their project
Students expressed confidence in their problem-solving skills acquired in this research.
Through the Compass Points Activity, eleven students indicated that they have the
problem-solving skills necessary to complete this research again and additionally,
incorporate some of their own iTunes as music for the underscoring. Seven students
indicated that they now possess the problem-solving skills necessary to complete this
research again and additionally, incorporate some of their own iTunes as music for
the underscoring; and, add their own original compositions to their underscoring, as
well as film the video for a new research project. Confident in their abilities to
problem-solve, these nineteen subjects indicated that they are interested in more and
varied problems to solve.
Conclusion
Based upon the success recorded in the data yielded by these projects, I believe that
problem-solving skills were developed and enhanced in the group of participants both
with autonomy and with collaboration among many students. Students gradually solved
problems both individually and collectively as they supported one another throughout this
academic process. Therefore, I recognize that this project of study is worthy of inclusion
in future course work by our ninth grade students.
Students were engaged with energy throughout the process of this research. The chance
to observe their confidence improve, as they sometimes stumbled through the hurdles
ahead of them and finally then flew over these same hurdles, was a gift to this educator.
While I did not explicitly measure creativity in this process, creativity was evident from
the outset. Students became increasingly aware that their video choice was quite
important to the success of their project, as too was their audio selection(s). Matching the
mood of the film with a piece of music which most had never heard before in their lives
was a major accomplishment. Aligning this same music to fit their film choice was their
second major accomplishment. As they downloaded the film clips, transferred this film
clip into iMovie, removed the original underscoring, attached and fit their new music
underscoring, and then aligned the speed of the action in their film with the tempo of the
music, I became increasingly aware that this project opened the minds and spirits of these
young men. Now at the end of our year together, I have witnessed first hand how each
student is more completely familiar with our course music.
Implications for practice
Based upon the success of this action research, I will continue to organize this method of
developing problem-solving skills in this ninth grade curriculum. The benefit of guiding
and then observing students work both individually and collectively as they develop their
problem-solving skills is a benefit which will enhance all subject areas in our school.
Future plans include refining the process of video manipulation with respect to the speed
of the films and audio manipulation with regard to tempo and accents within the music.
Also, I plan to include the selection of student music, both composed by the student and
music which the student listens to on a regular basis, as portions of their audio
replacement music for video underscoring.
Reflection
I am most pleased with the results of this project. As a result of using our course music in
their video underscoring, we have been able to discuss these pieces at greater depth much
more quickly than in years past. These great works of Art have become another color on
the palate of colors with regards to great music. Even now, I am startled to listen to the
unexpected student discuss these pieces of music with great ease and care for the content
of life expressed in these many pieces. Furthermore, I fully believe that one of these or a
ninth grade student in these next few years will indeed become a major music producer
scoring music for film and for television, commercials, and more. To observe them work
in this medium, I can and do marvel at their technical ease and their youthful agility with
which they play with these toys of learning. Had we been fully ready to receive these
educational gifts of technology in our youth, I truly wonder what my classmates and I
might have done and might now be doing as a result of these tools at our fingertips. In
the words of the character Buzz Lightyear… “ To infinity, and beyond!”
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank John Munro, Headmaster, and Clifford Paige, Head of Upper
School at Fairfield Country Day School for their support of my participation in this IBSC
action research project. I am also grateful for the support of my colleague John Hoover
in casting his critical eye over this work. I wish to thank Chris Littrell for his guidance
early on in this process. I am most grateful to my colleagues from around the world for
their support throughout this process. Finally, I wish to thank the young men in the Ninth
Grade at Fairfield Country Day School for their initiative, their support for one another,
and their energy in completing this project. I would specifically like to thank two young
men, Zachary Sweedler and Liam Lowsley-Williams. They led their classmates by
example in sharing their technology knowledge and skills with everyone involved.
Finally, I wish to thank my wife and colleague, Mary Nelson, for all of her support and
love throughout this research project.
References
Alton, S. (2011). Recording and Producing Audio for Media. Course Technology PTR;
Safari Books On-line.
Black, R. (2012). Practical Disciplines for the 21st Century Mind.
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Cohen, P. (2010). Charting Creativity: Signposts of a Hazy Territory.
N.Y. Times.
Chris Comber, David J. Hargreaves and Ann Colley (1993) Girls, Boys, and Technology
in Music Education. British Journal of Music Education, 10, pp. 123-134 doi:
10.1017/S0265051700001583 Web Database
http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0265051700001583(Accessed October
2012)
Crowell, G. (2012). 7 Tips for Using Copyrighted Music in Professional Videos &
Slide-shows: Video and the Law, Reel SEO.
Gagne, C. (2011). Film Music. Web Database www.e-filmmusic.de Web Database
(Accessed October 2012)
Gurian, M. & Stevens, K. (2012) 10 Essential Strategies for Teaching Boys Effectively
Web Database http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol6/604-gurian.aspx (Accessed
November 2012)
Harvard Project Zero (2012) Compass Points Web Database
http://pzweb.harvard.edu/vt/VisibleThinking_html_files/03_ThinkingRoutines/03
c_Core_routines/CompassPoints/CompassPoints_Routine.html(Accessed October
2012)
Loveless, A.M. (2007, September). Creativity, technology, and learning. Futurelab, and
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McNiff, J. (2010). Action Research for Professional Development: Concise advice for
new and experienced action researchers. Dorset: September Books.
Mertler, C. (2006). Action research: Teachers as action researchers in the classroom.
Thousand Oaks, CA:Prentice Hall.
Nelson, R. (2008) Learning and working in the Collaborative Age: Edutopia
Web Database http://www.edutopia.org/randy-nelson-school-to-career-video
(Accessed September 2012)
Reichert, M. & Hawley, R. (2010). Reaching Boys, Teaching Boys. San Francisco, CA:
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Robinson, K. & Aronica, L. (2009). The Element. New York, NY: Penguin Putnam, Inc.
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(Accessed October 2012).
Stringer, E. (2002) Action research in education. Prentice Hall Publishers
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http://www.ehow.com/how_4443779_edit-music-imovie.html
(Accessed September 2012)
Appendices:
Appendix 1: Initial Survey
1) Do you feel excited or nervous prior to beginning this Ninth Grade IBSC Music Project 2012?
2) Have you attempted to complete a project such as this prior to learning about this project?
3) Having viewed some film footage on Youtube already,
do you have a film clip in mind for your project?
4) Have you listened to some of the song choices in your Listen CD series,
from which you will choose?
5) How do you feel about using your MacBook Pro for this project, in terms of your comfort level?
6) Have you watched film clips on Youtube before beginning this project?
7) Roughly, how many film clips have you watched on Youtube,
prior to learning about this project?
8) Has this IBSC AR Project been explained to you prior to beginning this project?
9) Do you feel confident in what problem you will be creatively solving by completing this project?
10) Having answered these initial questions, do you now feel more anxious,
less anxious, or the same as when we began this survey?
Appendix 2: Survey #2
Survey #2/ Questionnaire
Re: Video/Underscoring Project
1) How did you select your Video for this project?
2) Did you stay with your first Video Choice or did you select a second or third choice
Video for this project?
3) Name each Video, which you considered using:
4) Name the Video, which you decided to use:
5) Did you make a second or third Video/Underscoring Project and if so name these
Videos:
6) Name the Music Selection(s) which you decided to fit to your Video as NEW
Underscoring:
7) Did you have more than one Musical Selection, which you used in your Video project,
please name all that you considered using
8) List the Challenges, which confronted you in this process:
9) How did you overcome these challenges and solve the problems of changing the
Underscoring to your Video?
10) If you stumbled at anytime while creating this New Underscoring, please describe
your stumbling moment(s):
11) Did you receive assistance in creating this Video/Underscoring and if so from whom
and how did they help you?
12) Now that you have completed this process, do you feel capable of solving this
problem once again and can you guide others to solve the Video/Underscoring in the
future?
13) How did you feel before you began this project?
14) How did you feel during the creation of your project?
15) How do you feel now after completing this project?
Appendix 3: Compass Points Activity
Using Blank Note Cards to remain anonymous:
Place ONE card in ONE Direction Location for each Question.
North= Gym Wall, South = Elevator Wall, East = Back Drop on Stage, West = Dining
Room
1. Before we began this project you felt: North – Frightened/Nervous, South –
Comfortable, East – Totally Uncertain, West - Anxious/Excited
Answers #1 – North – 4, South – 10, East – 0, West 4
2. As we began your possible video was: North – Fixed and Certain in your mind, South
– Totally NO Idea, East – A couple of choices, West – Needed to Search
Answers #2 – North – 8, South – 0, East = 10, West = 0
3. Musically speaking, my soundtrack replacement choice was: North – Obvious First
Choice, South – One to Ten possible choices, East – More than Ten choices,
West – Total Search
Answers #3 – North – 1, South – 6, East – 1, West – 10
4. Once I decided on my Video, I: North – made no adjustments to the video
itself South – Made 2 to 3 adjustments to the video East – Made 1 adjustment West –
made MANY adjustments
Answers #4 - North – 2, South = 7, East – 2, West – 7
5. Throughout the project, I: - North – worked completely on my own, South – received
help from ONE or more classmates
Answers: North - 5 South -13
6. Having completed this video/soundtrack project I: - North – am interested in
completing more projects with even greater refinements
South – am relieved and do not wish to complete another project of this exact nature
Answers: North - 13, South – 5
7. Having completed this video/soundtrack project I: - North – Feel Confident that I can
teach others how to complete this task South – Do not believe that I can teach this skill
to anyone East – Wish to learn more so that I can teach others how to complete this
task West - am happy with my accomplishment
Answers: North – 11, South –0, East – 1, West – 6
8. I: North – would like to complete this same task again with a new video and music
South – would like to complete this project again with new video and music from the
class and from my iTunes favorites
East - – would like to complete this project again with new video and music from the
class and from my iTunes favorites and compose my own music in Finale
West - – would like to complete this project again with new video and music from the
class and from my iTunes favorites, compose my own music in Finale and create my own
video
Answers: North = 0, South – 10, East – 0, West – 8
Composers selected for New Underscoring Music included:
Will Kemp
Josquin de Pres
Johann Sebastien Bach
George Frederic Handel
Antonio Vivaldi
Franz Josef Haydn
Franz Schubert
Johannes Brahms
Hector Berlioz
Frederic Chopin
Modeste Musorgsky
Peter Tchaikovsky
Claude Debussy
Aaron Copland
Edgar Varese
Alban Berg
Steve Reich
Igor Stravinsky