In June 2014, National Coalition for Core Arts Standards adopted new standards for Music, Media Art, Dance, Visual Art, and Theatre. In the new standards there are four categories with eleven anchors or standards within the categories. Below are the new standards categories for Music Education:
Creating
Anchor 1: Imagine: Generate musical ideas for various purposes and contexts.
Anchor 2: Plan and Make: Select and Develop musical ideas for defined purposes and contexts
Anchor 3: Evaluate and Refine: Evaulate and refine selected musical ideas to create musical works that meet appropriate criteria/ Present: share creative musical work that conveys intent, demonstrates craftsmanship, and exhibits originality.
Performing
Anchor 4: Select: Select varied musical works to present based on interest, knowledge, technical skill, and context/ Analyze: Analyze the structure and context of varied musical works and their implications for performance/ Interpret: Develop personal interpretations that consider creators' intent.
Anchor 5: Rehearse, Evaluate, and Refine: Evaluate and refine personal and ensemble performances, individually or in collaboration with others.
Anchor 6: Present: Perform expressively, with appropriate interpretation and technical accuracy, and in a manner appropriate to the audience and content.
Responding
Anchor 7: Select: Choose music appropriate for a specific purpose or context./ Analyze: Analyze how the structure and context of varied musical works inform the response.
Anchor 8: Interpret: Support interpretations of musical works that reflect creators' and/or performers' expressive intent.
Anchor 9: Evaluate: Support evaluations of musical works and performances based on analysis, interpretation, and established criteria.
Connecting
Anchor 10: Connect #10: Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make music.
Anchor 11: Connect # 11: Relate musical ideas and works with varied context to deepen understanding.
Illinois State Standards for Music
STATE GOAL 25: Know the language of the arts.
Why This Goal Is Important: Through observation, discussion, interpretation and analysis, students learn the “language” of the arts. They learn to understand how others express ideas in dance, drama, music and visual art forms. In addition to acquiring knowledge essential to performance and production, students become arts consumers (e.g., attending live performances or movies, purchasing paintings or jewelry, or visiting museums) who understand the basic elements and principles underlying artworks and are able to critique them.
A. Understand the sensory elements, organizational principles and expressive qualities of the arts.
25.A.1c Music: Identify differences in elements and expressive qualities (e.g., between fast and slow tempo; loud and soft dynamics; high and low pitch/direction; long and short duration; same and different form, tone color or timbre, and beat).
25.A.1d Visual Arts: Identify the elements of line, shape, space, color and texture; the principles of repetition and pattern; and the expressive qualities of mood, emotion and pictorial representation.
B. Understand the similarities, distinctions and connections in and among the arts.
25.B.1 Identify similarities in and among the arts (e.g., pattern, sequence and mood).
STATE GOAL 26: Through creating and performing, understand how works of art are produced.
Why This Goal Is Important: Students acquire skills to produce and perform dance, drama, music and visual art. They learn to use media, tools and technologies. They learn to shape ideas and emotions into sounds, images and actions. As students create and perform their own artworks and review the works of others, they become more imaginative, strengthen their problem-solving skills and learn to respond to the creativity of others. Creating and performing are at the core of the fine arts. Students also learn about the role of the artist (e.g., dancer, painter, actor, director, scriptwriter, musician).
A. Understand processes, traditional tools and modern technologies used in the arts.
26.A.1c Music: Identify a variety of sounds and sound sources (e.g., instruments, voices and environmental sounds).
26.A.1d Music: Relate symbol systems (e.g., icons, syllables, numbers and letters) to musical sounds.
26.A.1e Visual Arts: Identify media and tools and how to use them in a safe and responsible manner when painting, drawing and constructing.
B. Apply skills and knowledge necessary to create and perform in one or more of the arts.
26.B.1c Music: Sing or play on classroom instruments a variety of music representing diverse cultures and styles.
26.B.1d Visual Arts: Demonstrate knowledge and skills to create visual works of art using manipulation, eye-hand coordination, building and imagination.
STATE GOAL 27: Understand the role of the arts in civilizations, past and present.
Why This Goal Is Important: The arts are a record of civilizations, past and present. Artists are influenced by—and influence—the times and places in which they live and work. As students learn through the arts about people and civilizations, they learn about others and themselves. Also, students learn about careers related to this goal (e.g., animator, curator, art historian, sound technician).
A. Analyze how the arts function in history, society and everyday life
27.A.1a Identify the distinctive roles of artists and audiences.
27.A.1b Identify how the arts contribute to communication, celebrations, occupations and recreation.
B. Understand how the arts shape and reflect history, society and everyday life..
27.B.1 Know how images, sounds and movement convey stories about people, places and times.