Innovations in Education and Teaching International Vol. 43, No. 4, November 2006, pp. 435–444
Learning to play the drum: an experiential exercise for management students Sarah Moore* and Annmarie Ryan University of Limerick, Republic of Ireland SarahMoore Innovations 1470-3297 Original Taylor 402006 43
[email protected] 00000November & Article Francis (print)/1470-3300 in Education 2006 (online) International 10.1080/14703290600974065 RIIE_A_197307.sgm and Francis Ltd and Teaching
This paper proposes that introducing musical/percussion activities to university classrooms represents an opportunity for innovative teaching that could create positive experiences replete with learning potential. An analysis of 17 students’ written reactions to a ‘drumming circle’ activity demonstrates that the experience created a positive, energised classroom climate. The value of the exercise was demonstrated in the observations that students made about how the experience engaged them emotionally and how it could be linked to insights about specific aspects of their programme of study. With some preliminary guidance provided in advance of the activity, students were able to identify analogies between aspects of the experience and topics within their management curriculum. The paper provides suggestions and ideas that can help teachers to introduce similar learning experiences into their own classroom settings.
Introduction This paper describes how an unconventional experiential classroom intervention gave rise to a variety of learning insights and experiences for a group of management students. A group of 26 students participated in a drumming circle led by an experienced drumming teacher, and in the space of two hours together learned how to play a series of complex rhythms. They were encouraged to reflect on how this experience might be compared with or analogous to different aspects of group work and team development and were asked to provide written versions of these reflections which are also reported and explored in this paper. The paper highlights the emerging importance of music and percussion in a range of professional fields including management education and training. It locates the reported innovation within the now well-established field of experiential learning and it provides a detailed account of the drumming circle activity in which the students participated. In addition, it highlights the possible skills, resources and orientations required to reproduce this type of exercise in other settings. By analysing the immediate responses and reflections of the students, we have identified some evidence, provided by the learners themselves, which suggests that ‘drumming circles’ * Corresponding author. Centre for Learning and Teaching, Millstream Courtyard Building, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland. Email:
[email protected] ISSN 1470–3297 (print)/ISSN 1470–3300 (online)/06/040435–10 © 2006 Taylor & Francis DOI: 10.1080/14703290600974065
436 S. Moore and A. Ryan can create a resonant and complex way of exploring some of the central themes associated with organisational dynamics and teamwork. These are themes that are central to most programmes of study in the area of management education. Our analysis of the learner feedback shows that spontaneous links were made between aspects of the experience and important features of organisation and management theory. We believe that the nature of the experience can generate emotional depth within a learning group as well as acting as a symbolic trigger for comparison with other group experiences. We also suggest that the experience could give rise to an orientation towards collaborative learning that could pave the way for more satisfying and effective learner relationships. We propose that the drumming circle described here can represent an active encounter through which a wealth of learning insights may be gained. Change in the classroom: the innovation imperative The literature on educational development in general and on management education in particular contains increasing calls for the introduction of new innovations and active learning experiences within formal classroom settings. For example, Marcic (1989) presents a range of experiential exercises that allow students in classroom settings to explore a range of management and organisational concepts that she argues would not be as effectively learned or as deeply understood if encountered through conventional teaching sessions. Boud et al. (1998) emphasise how important it is for students to make sense of their course curriculum through experience and remind us that emotions play a crucial role in learning. Brockbank and McGill (1998) also emphasise the significance of emotion and action as well as cognition in learning. Cowan (1998) outlines the importance of innovation in university teaching in order to encourage interaction, reflection, engagement and commitment to learning goals, and Wlodkowski (1999) explains how meaning needs to be enhanced in a diversity of ways if teachers are to ensure that their students are motivated and effectively orientated towards learning. For at least the last 30 years, experiential learning has been championed as an effective route to energising, catalysing and facilitating learning in universities, especially in such areas as organisational behaviour and management. Experiential learning theory also provides a strong backdrop for allowing concrete experience to enhance theoretical, transferable knowledge. Using more than one route to learning, and creating a diversity of access points to learning is recognised as an important strategy for management educators to avail of, as is recognising the different learning styles (Kolb, 1984) and multiple intelligences (Gardner, 1996) that people bring to the contexts in which they learn. All of these established perspectives which encourage innovation and engagement in learning settings provide a strong imperative for introducing novel and unconventional activities into classroom settings. We argue that activities involving music and rhythm provide a relatively underexplored route which could help to give rise to enhanced levels of engagement and learning among adult students. The explanation that is contained in this paper which outlines how the use of rhythm worked in one classroom setting, and what the learner reactions were, may provide encouragement to other teachers to try something similar in their own teaching and learning contexts.
Experiential exercise for management students 437 The use of drumming, rhythm and percussion in education and professional development The study of the social and personal uses and effects of music can be seen in a number of related but diverse fields of inquiry. This form of study may be described as the study of ‘extra-musical’ benefits of music, where the emphasis lies less within the study of music for its own sake, but more of music as a facilitator of social and personal development. For instance, within the psychology of music field there is the discourse relating to the effect of music, playing and listening, on both emotional and cognitive processes (Overy, 1998). The relationship between drumming in particular, and personal and social health has also been explored (Friedman, 2000). There is also a growing body of literature relating to the instrumental use of music and percussion as access points to learning, as ways of enhancing professional management practice and as experiences that help to enhance interpersonal effectiveness. For example, Atik (1994) explores several aspects of the orchestral setting that may provide new perspectives on leadership theory. Sicca (2000) explores the particular dynamics within chamber music and how these can give rise to new insights about other fields such as organisational behaviour. There is a growing interest in using the principles of jazz improvisation to give rise to a range of analogous insights about how organisations and teams work (Barret, 1998). Drumming and percussion are also starting to emerge as tools and techniques used in management education and training (Hull, 1998), and because of the participatory and collaborative nature of rhythm-making activity, offer great promise as routes to active classroom-based learning experiences.
Description of the drumming circle This section provides a description of the classroom intervention, and a brief outline of the methods used to gather data generated by the participants’ experience. Students involved were those enrolled on a module entitled ‘the psychology of strategic decision making and change’ as part of a Masters Programme in Human Resource Management offered by the Department of Personnel and Employment Relations at the University of Limerick. A total of 26 students participated in the learning intervention. During the week preceding the experience, students had been informed that their next session would be an active experiential exercise on which they would later be invited to respond with written reflections. They were also asked to prepare to reflect by revising material that they had encountered during previous lectures. In particular, they were asked to think about how the experience they were about to encounter might throw light on such ideas as the stages of group development, group cohesiveness, and the theoretical models of conflict and collaboration within organisational structures. Two academic lecturers (the authors of this paper) and one drumming teacher, discussed several issues in advance of the experience. Even though students had engaged in a range of experiential exercises up to that point, none of the previous exercises had involved the development of musical or rhythmic skills. We wondered if this activity would feel risky or threatening to students and worked to create as safe an environment as possible for them to participate. We were concerned that they might question the relevance in this activity, given that it was not
438 S. Moore and A. Ryan explicitly or clearly related to the rest of the curriculum. To address this concern, students were briefed in advance about the fact that the session was going to be very different from what they had come to expect and encouraged to try to find connections, parallels and analogies themselves. We were concerned also that students would feel forced into active participation in an activity in which they might feel ill-equipped or unwilling to engage. In attempting to address this concern we explained that the activity was not about perfection or the performance of music, but more about accessing tools to gain deeper insights into the ways in which groups act and work together. On entering the room the participants were faced with a collection of drums and chairs placed in a circle. Participants were asked to take a seat and choose the drum that they would like to use during the workshop. The teacher asked the students to introduce themselves, to tell the class where they were from, how they were feeling at that moment, and what they hoped to get from the exercise. The early part of the drumming experience involved introducing the basic notes or sounds that were to be used for the rest of the workshop. This included a rim sound (high) and a base sound (low). The students practised these sounds in a follow-the-leader exercise, where the teacher moved from rim to base, and participants reproduced those sounds. This initial exercise helped students become familiar and comfortable with the basic techniques that were built upon for the rest of the session. The group was then introduced to a number of basic Yoruba rhythms that are usually taught to drumming students from an early age in Nigeria, thus allowing the creation of sound together on the drum. Up to six of these basic rhythms were introduced, where the teacher moved from one to the other without pausing. This introduction was designed to help students to feel more comfortable with a basic rhythm, and to develop or engage with their own sense of timing and rhythm. The main objective of the workshop was to bring the group to a point where they were able to attempt a complex polyrhythm. A polyrhythm is a term widely used in the tribal music of Africa and South America, where the rhythm becomes a collection of layers that are interwoven between the base, lead rhythm, counter-rhythm and light percussion (bells, clave etc). The power of the drum circle lies in the fact that, through the skill of the drum leader, the group can quickly develop skills required to play a complex rhythm together. In order to reach this point the group was introduced to three parts or aspects of the polyrhythm; the base, the lead and the counter-rhythm. Each part was broken down into stages and then brought together. The group practised until each member was comfortable with the piece. Participants were not forced to play the part perfectly. The need to start again was treated as a positive feature of the activity. It was emphasised that even if certain members were grasping the technique more quickly, bringing everyone back to the basics strengthened everyone’s ability to play their part more effectively. By the end of the workshop, following a rehearsal of all the different drum patterns, participants were invited to choose one of three different groupings (‘the bass posse’, ‘the lead rhythm posse’ and ‘the counter-rhythm posse’). At this stage, all aspects of the rhythm had been introduced. As the group members developed proficiency and competence, the teacher and the co-facilitator improvised by adding other dimensions to a then competently functioning set of rhythms created by the group.
Experiential exercise for management students 439 Learner reactions to the drumming circle experience Participants were asked to respond in writing to a ‘learning reflection form’ that included a small number of questions. Questions were posed in a deliberately open-ended way. In particular, students were asked to reflect on how the experience may have helped them to understand more about working together in teams. Seventeen responses were received from a participating class of 26. Exploration and analysis of the written student reactions revealed that most responses focused on a relatively small number of general themes which can be summarised under four broad headings: (1) emerging emotional states; (2) behavioural dynamics; (3) teacher orientation; and (4) organisational insights. Emerging emotional states When asked to describe the drumming circle experience, almost all respondents referred to their feelings at different stages during the workshop. On first encountering the circle, the negative emotions invoked included apprehension, nervousness, fear, scepticism, confusion and uncertainty: people were unsure of their own ability as [drumming] was new to most of us. (respondent 3) I was nervous when I saw the room first and was thinking ‘Oh God, what will I have to do here?’ (respondent 9) Initially I thought, oh no, not another group exercise. (respondent 11) Most people felt nervous at first, myself included. (respondent 15) The mood was one of shyness, as it is when we are put in a strange environment. (respondent 16)
Positive initial feelings included intrigue, excitement, anticipation and surprise. Many of the initial feelings were linked specifically to the novelty associated with the room configuration and with the unconventional nature of the activities that learners were being asked to engage in: The experience was very different from anything else I had participated in through my college life. (respondent 10) I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived for class to discover the plan for the next 2 hours. (respondent 13)
Emotional states changed as the workshop got under way. Participants typically reported that their initial feelings disappeared, giving way to a range of positive and sometimes intense feelings. Most commonly cited emerging emotions included involvement, confidence, relaxation, enjoyment, pride, interest, immersion, unselfconsciousness, stimulation and warmth. At the end you wouldn’t have thought that two hours had passed. (respondent 2) We had all begun to relax and enjoy the music that the class produced. (respondent 3) A thoroughly enjoyable experience. (respondent 5) Found it stimulating. (respondent 6)
440 S. Moore and A. Ryan I particularly enjoyed the experience of playing the drum and being part of a sound that appealed and moved me emotionally. (respondent 9) It helped me get to know the people in the group and made me feel at ease with myself in their presence, i.e. I was no longer afraid of what they thought of me. (respondent 11) Within the first few minutes, all feelings of nervousness were abated and the class immersed themselves fully in what turned out to be 2 hours of great fun. (respondent 12) To some extent it’s been quite a cathartic exercise because we could think of some of the issues arising in class … in a dynamic and relaxing way. (respondent 14)
So, many of the responses identified an experience that appeared to be intense, positive, satisfying and atypical. Many recognised positive features of the experience that could be transferred to organisational settings. Everyone worked well with each other in an atmosphere of fun and trust. Each participant tried their best and helped others who encountered difficulties. Members talked about feeling good and being proud of the group’s achievement. Behavioural dynamics: moving from ‘inability’ to competence The descriptions of the experience also referred to the behaviours and activities the group had engaged in along with the development of specific skills. Behaviours mentioned included cooperation, working together, watching each other carefully, listening, transforming beats into intelligible music, putting together a beat, learning and integrating complicated interlocking rhythms. The participants frequently referred to moving from inability to competence in a whole range of ways: At the end of the class I was pleased that I had been able to play my drum. (respondent 11) We had come from a group with little or no drum experience to being able to put together an amazing beat pattern. (respondent 16)
The relatively short time within which participants developed a sense of competence received explicit reference: Almost before we knew it [we were] playing integrated rhythms. (respondent 4) It was a revelation to see how a diverse group could … work as a co-ordinated whole so quickly. (respondent 1) In just an hour and a half … [we were able to] put together a … beat pattern. (respondent 16)
Teacher behaviour and orientation Ten of the 17 respondents referred to the behaviours and orientations of the drumming teacher who led the group learning throughout the workshop: The leader of the session quickly put everyone at ease. He explained … that mistakes were OK. (respondent 4) The facilitator assisted … through a very empathetic approach with clear and concise instructions. (respondent 6) The leader of the session used humour, informality and tools to … set us at ease. (respondent 9)
Experiential exercise for management students 441 He put me at ease straight away, he was aware that people would be nervous and did everything to relax us … I could laugh when I made mistakes rather than feeling uncomfortable or embarrassed. (respondent 10) He constantly reassured and praised the group. (respondent 12)
Organisational insights: evocative and heuristic Respondents linked many of their immediate reactions to the classroom experience with some of the management concepts they had already learned about in more conventional didactic settings. Some of these links represented ‘evocative insights’, where the immediate experience called to mind similarities and useful comparisons to organisational experiences. Insights that could be labelled evocative were those that appeared to bring to light existing knowledge, clarify some dimension of an organisational experience or remind respondents of previous group encounters, perhaps further explaining the nature of those experiences. The following quotes provide examples of statements indicating that evocative insights had taken place (emphases added): I noted that students tended to play their drums as loud as possible. Personally I found this necessary in order to hear my own drum and distinguish it from others. This reminded me that people like to be heard once their confidence is high. (respondent 1) I think this experience brings to light the fact that people work well in groups when they come with no agenda. (respondent 2) Personally I would relate [the drumming experience] to ‘first day in a new job’ and would be delighted if anyone who started in the company was made to feel even half as relaxed as I was. (respondent 10) This experience reminded me of the times I began a new job. The initial fear, intimidation, feeling of being lost and on your own. Breaking into a group is very difficult, it takes time, effort and emotionally drains you … when people help you realise your role. (respondent 11) Tonight I experienced musically, our strong tendency to lose our own rhythm because of the intrusion of someone else’s pace. (respondent 14)
All of the above statements reminded, evoked or re-displayed knowledge in a new way. Respondent 14’s statement implied that she was already aware of a specific human tendency but that the drumming circle allowed her to experience this awareness in a new way. Other statements (e.g. those of respondents 10 and 11) were more explicit examples of how the experience brought to mind workplace encounters. Insights that could be labelled ‘heuristic’ were those that appeared to give rise to new ideas regarding the general conditions in which positive group dynamics were likely to emerge, to imply recommendations or imperatives for changes in workplace situations or to stimulate the consideration of specific action on the part of the respondents. The following quotes provide examples of statements indicating that heuristic insights had taken place (emphases added): Organisations that allow direct involvement are likely to generate greater commitment to company goals. Watching the drumming is not the same as participating in the action. (respondent 4) Organisations should ensure that every employee realises their contribution is necessary not just for the organisation but also for fellow employees. (respondent 4)
442 S. Moore and A. Ryan When people lose their way being given a set path to follow can help keep them going. (respondent 5) Organisations should be open to new ideas, cultures, methods, insights even if they seem miles away from their relevance. (respondent 9) I believe a session such as this could have benefits on the forming stage of groups within organisations (e.g. startup) which is a time when many individuals feel uncertain about relationships in their new company. (respondent 4)
Other themes that respondents referred to included the importance of participation and encouragement in collective learning environments, the need for people to find their own ‘voices’ while also listening to others, the development of a sense of responsibility and competence and the importance of the non-verbal aspects of group engagement.
Discussion Almost all of the 17 respondents indicated that the group had been initially tense but that through participation and engagement, it had quickly made them feel more part of this learning group and allowed them to gain insights about the nature of group dynamics that might otherwise have been difficult to achieve. The emotional changes that came from involvement in the drumming circle suggest that this type of activity offers another technique which could provide a reliable antidote to disengaged, individualistic and passive learning experiences. The use of drumming circles, or of similar approaches to introducing music and rhythm, has the potential to increase teachers’ repertoires of pedagogical techniques, and to create novel, satisfying learning experiences. Wlodovski (1999) reminds us that using collaborative activities in class is intrinsically valuable, and enhances the conditions for subsequent learning. The drumming circle is another option that teachers can use to build more collaborative orientations in their classrooms. However, in addition to the generic benefits that this activity can engender, the active participation of students in drumming- and rhythm-related activities may have unique benefits giving rise to levels of engagement that are more effective than could otherwise be achieved. Clynes (1982) has demonstrated that engaging in rhythmic activity can provide relief from fatigue, increase energy levels and release emotions that are less likely to be experienced with other types of learning activities. Gardner (1983) and Lazear (1999) argue that musical or rhythmic intelligence is a unique way of gaining insights about our world and ourselves. Indeed it is precisely the impact of music and rhythm on the state of the brain that makes it a powerful learning instrument, allowing us to experience ideas and feelings in a learning setting that might otherwise be inaccessible. There is a strong connection between music and rhythm and emotions (Gardner, 1996; Friedman, 2000). The changes in emotional states reported by the respondents seem to suggest that the activity was a particularly powerful experience. This was a group that had engaged in a variety of experiential, interactive exercises as part of the module they were engaged in, but the intense language they used to describe the drumming activity suggests that there was a kind of magic about it that differentiated it from other group encounters. Our observations of student behaviour during the session also suggest that there is something about the physical, collective expression of complex rhythm that creates a unique and significant learning environment.
Experiential exercise for management students 443 Immediate reactions of students suggest that this experience has the potential to add significant emotional value to their engagement in a management curriculum. Clear insights emerging from this innovation are that drumming circles engage students emotionally and that diverse personal and course-related insights can be achieved. Participants discovered that successful performance is related to making room for each voice in the group. Playing one’s part of the rhythm while still listening to what is going on in the group is full of important lessons for other contexts. Students learned to maintain their own strong rhythms and keep to their parts, but also maintained an awareness of and respect for the rhythms that other people in the group were playing. Playing in drum circles emphasises the importance of active listening and emulates the interdependence often associated with any healthy community. The willingness on the part of participants to uncover and articulate early feelings as part of the group was an important dimension of the experience. We believe that the value of this experience goes far beyond that of a ‘feel-good’ group exercise. The evidence provided by participants has shown that not only can a drumming circle have powerful transformative emotional effects, but that also a range of evocative and heuristic learning insights can be generated through a collective reflection on the lessons that it brings alive. The use of drumming circles and other rhythmic or musical interventions carry untapped potential that could contribute significantly to a transforming pedagogy of higher education. Conclusions, recommendations and practical suggestions Based on our experience with introducing the drumming circle to this management classroom setting, we are confident that other teachers will find similar activities of benefit in their own contexts. It contains important characteristics that are associated with collaborative learning, and the novelty and engaging nature of rhythm in the classroom has the potential to be highly motivating both for students and their teachers. In addition, the exercise has the potential to give rise to both evocative and actionable insights that relate in particular to the field of management education as demonstrated by the participants’ comments outlined earlier in this paper. The benefits of this particular experience can also be achieved using different variations of the drumming circle activity. Similar group rhythms can be accomplished through voice (e.g. singing in ‘rounds’), or where drums are unavailable, by having participants tap out different sounds and rhythms using available classroom resources. We have run a comparable workshop by teaching three different dimensions of a rhythm using song and voice without the expertise of a skilled drumming teacher (Moore & Ryan, 2003). This did, however, require us to become very familiar with the rhythms ourselves and this necessitated considerable preparation, training and practice with the help of a skilled instructor. In order to initiate an activity like this for the first time, we estimate that almost all teachers would require some expert coaching. To endeavour to teach students interconnecting rhythms and to apply their insights to course content is not a quick action exercise like many other shorter classroom-based experiential activities. It requires considerable planning and preparation as well as a commitment to preparing students for a different kind of experience than those they are likely to be accustomed to. Hull (1998) provides a detailed guide to the facilitation of drumming circles and could provide an excellent informational resource for those planning to introduce
444 S. Moore and A. Ryan this into their classrooms. Once teachers have learned and mastered a set of rhythms, this skill can provide a tool that could be applied in a range of classroom settings, as well as in a range of creative ways. This exercise also provides an ideal opportunity for teachers, to seek out collaboration with music departments within higher education settings or to co-operate with other experts in rhythm within their own communities. It is an activity that is accompanied by the chance to avail of inter-disciplinary skills and could give rise to a new and engaging access point to learning in higher education. Notes on contributors Sarah Moore is Dean of Teaching and Learning at the University of Limerick and a member of the Higher Education Authority in Ireland. Her research interests include professional development in higher education, performance feedback reaction and innovation for collaborative learning. AnnMarie Ryan teaches marketing and management in the Kemmy Business School. She uses many innovative classroom techniques in the course of her teaching activities. She has a particular interest in transformative pedagogies and in incorporating musical and rhythmic experiences into learning environments. References Atik, Y. (1994) The Conductor and the orchestra: interactive aspects of the leadership process, Leadership and Organisation Development Journal, 15(1), 22–28. Barret, F. (1998) Managing and improvising: lessons from Jazz, Career Development International, 3(7), 283–286. Boud, D., Cohen, R. & Walker, D. (Eds) (1998) Using experience for learning (Buckingham, Open University Press). Brockbank, A. & McGill, I. (1998) Facilitating reflective learning in higher education (Buckingham, Open University Press). Clynes, M. (1982) Neurobiologic functions of rhythm, time and pulse in music, in: M. Clynes (Ed.) Music mind and brain (New York, Plenum Press), 171–216. Cowan, J. (1998) On becoming an innovative university teacher (Buckingham, Open University Press). Friedman, R. (2000) The healing power of the drum (Reno, NEV, White Cliffs Media). Gardner, D. (1983) Frames of mind: the theory of multiple intelligences (New York, Basic Books). Hull, A. (1998) Drum circle spirit: facilitating human spirit through rhythm (San Francisco, California, White Cliffs Media). Kolb, D. A. (1984) Experiential learning (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Prentice Hall). Lazear, D. (1999) Eight ways of teaching: the artistry of teaching with multiple intelligences (3rd edn) (Faldon, Illinois, Sky Light). Marcic, D. (1989) Organisational behaviour: experiences and cases (Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage). Moore, S. & Ryan, A. (2003) Using rhythm in the classroom, paper presented at the 30th Annual Organisational Behaviour Teaching Conference, Springfield, June. Overy, K. (1998) Music and the mind, Psychology of Music, 26(1), 97–99. Sicca, L. M. (2000) Chamber music and organisation theory: some typical organisational phenomena seen under the microscope, Studies in Cultures, Organisations and Societies, 6, 145–168. Wlodkowski, R. J. (1999) Enhancing adult motivation to learn: a comprehensive guide for teaching all adults (San Francisco, CA, Jossey-Bass).
