Music

[|Meeting Special Needs in Music Class]
 * Will Gearhart**

This article presents a variety of strategies for working with special needs students in music class. The author really does a wonderful and concise job of presenting possible education scenarios, and strategies that can be implemented to assist in meeting learning needs for a variety of special needs. She also covers ways of assessing special needs students, and suggests that music teachers be flexible in their expectations of student output, as well as how students prove that they understand the content material. For instance, some students might perform better giving verbal responses. Others, will do better with written responses, and still others would do better with a more hands-on approach.

Students with physical disabilities may or may not be able to perform the same tasks as other music students. However, when teaching non-performance based music content it is important that all students, including those with physical disabilities, can prove that they understand the content being taught. One of the examples she provides is a formative assessment for a student with cerebral palsy. This student cognitively functions at the same level as the rest of his class, yet he cannot speak, nor can he write. He does, however, a device that allows him to communicate. This device must be programed and used in way that allows the teacher to assess the student's understanding of the content material. In conclusion, music teachers need to be flexible in finding ways to assess students with physical disabilities.