[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-594178-105":59,"doc-detail-594178-en":129},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":122,"head_meta":124,"extra_data":126,"updated_unix":128},105,"en","teaching-music-to-deaf-students-a-personal-reflection","Teaching music to Deaf students - A personal reflection","","Teaching music to Deaf students in Melbourne is presented as a long-term, one-day-a-week residency lasting over twelve years. Supported by Musica Viva’s Equal Music program and the Marian and E.H. Flack Trust, the program develops full participation through instruments, dance and movement, Auslan choirs, and composing and performing music. The author recounts early challenges in understanding Deaf culture, Auslan communication, appropriate pace, and additional disabilities, concluding that given opportunities to learn and perform, Deaf children succeed.",{"@graph":69,"@context":121},[70,84,104],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/teaching-music-to-deaf-students-a-personal-reflection/594178/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":98,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":99,"interactionStatistic":100},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/teaching-music-to-deaf-students-a-personal-reflection/594178.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Kurz","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":101,"interactionType":102,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":103},"ViewAction",{"@type":105,"mainEntity":106},"FAQPage",[107,113,117],{"name":108,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":110},"What is the core purpose of the Equal Music residency described in the document?","Question",{"text":111,"@type":112},"To deliver an experiential music program one day a week, allowing Deaf students to learn to play and perform music through visual communication and structured activities.","Answer",{"name":114,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":115},"Which early teaching challenges does the author identify?",{"text":116,"@type":112},"The author highlights lack of Auslan understanding and limited grasp of Deaf culture, teaching pace that made students bored, and not recognizing that many students have additional disabilities.",{"name":118,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":119},"How does the document describe the outcomes for students and the wider community?",{"text":120,"@type":112},"Students participate fully in instruments, dance and movement, Auslan choirs, and composing and performing music, with major showcase through an end-of-year concert that demonstrates achievements to family and the Deaf community.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":123,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":125,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":127,"site_id":62},594178,1792078669,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":130},{"doc_id":127,"user_id":131,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":132,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":133,"file_id":134,"file_url":135,"file_type":136,"file_size":137,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":39,"language":138,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":139,"faqs":140,"seo_title":141,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":128,"read_time":46},2336478945635,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","Teaching music to Deaf students: A personal reflection  \na u s t r a l i a n  \na  \ns o c i e t y  \ns  \nf o r m u s i c  \nm  \ne d u c a t i o n  \ne  \ni n c o r p o r a t e d  \nKaren Kyriakou  \nAbstract  \nFor the past 12 years I have been involved teaching music at a deaf school in Melbourne, philanthropically supported by Musica Viva’s Equal Music program. The students use Auslan as their primary language and prior to the residency there had not been a music program in the school for more than a decade. Students now participate fully in the program, playing instruments and participating in dancing and movement activities, Auslan choirs, and composing and performing music. The end-of-year concert is the major date in the school calendar and students are able to demonstrate their achievements to family, friends and the Deaf community. The journey for all involved has not been a linear one, but rather one forged through trial and error due to so little research being available in this area. What is now known about teaching music to deaf children is that if they are given the opportunity to learn to play and perform music, the students succeed.  \nKey words: Auslan, music classes, deaf  \nIn 2010, I commenced a music teaching residency through Musica Viva’s Equal Music Program at a school for deaf children in Melbourne.  \nThe intention of the project was to teach an experiential program one day a week for 26 weeks. There was no expectation that funding would continue beyond that first year, however thanks to the very generous and continued philanthropic support of the Marian and E.H. Flack Trust, we are now in our twelfth year!  \nI did not know what to expect when I first started teaching at this school, but the experience has been both life-changing and challenging, yet immensely rewarding, and one which saw me profoundly reevaluate my priorities about teaching and playing music. My once-honed approach to teaching required reimagining, with new skills desperately needed. I have continued my learning and working in this residency now for over a decade, and in doing so, I have become a better teacher for every student I now work with—from Early Learning to tertiary, but most significantly for a community of children who have often been excluded in music-  \nmaking activities.  \nAccording to the Australian Government1, hearing loss affects 3.6 million Australians. Hearing loss can be defined as mild, moderate, severe or profound and the students I teach largely have severe hearing loss or are profoundly deaf. Before this residency, I had very little experience teaching students with disabilities, let alone teaching music to students who were deaf. With very little to go on, my instincts were,(and I know others would assume the same), to begin focusing on vibrations and rhythm.  \nIt turned out that I could not have been more wrong about ‘vibrations’ as something that would capture the attention of these students. In fact, very little captured the attention of these students, and there were several very legitimate reasons why.  \nFirstly, I had no understanding of Deaf culture and the perspectives of music within that culture. I was not able to understand the students who communicated in Auslan (Australian Sign Language). The classroom teachers (if they were hearing) or alternatively the Education Support Staff  \n1 [https://www.health.gov.au/health-topics/ear-health](https://www.health.gov.au/health-topics/ear-health)  \nif the teachers were deaf, acted as interpreters forme, therefore the students’ eyes were never on me. I felt somewhat self-conscious with the teachers and ES staff in the room while I tried to find my feet. Very quickly it was obvious that I needed to learn Auslan. Not being able to communicate with half of the staff and most of the students was not acceptable, and it was going to be almost impossible to develop relationships and teach without it.  \nSecondly, I missed the mark on pace. I was teaching too slowly, requiring ","cbCaiqJ7KCS988SH","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiqJ7KCS988SH","pdf",123573,"English","# Abstract\n# Program background and goals\n## Funding and duration\n# Early teaching approach and challenges\n## Understanding Deaf culture and Auslan\n## Adjusting classroom pace\n## Addressing co-occurring disabilities\n# Research context and communication foundations\n## Limited available research\n## Learning language and music visually","[{\"question\":\"What is the core purpose of the Equal Music residency described in the document?\",\"answer\":\"To deliver an experiential music program one day a week, allowing Deaf students to learn to play and perform music through visual communication and structured activities.\"},{\"question\":\"Which early teaching challenges does the author identify?\",\"answer\":\"The author highlights lack of Auslan understanding and limited grasp of Deaf culture, teaching pace that made students bored, and not recognizing that many students have additional disabilities.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the document describe the outcomes for students and the wider community?\",\"answer\":\"Students participate fully in instruments, dance and movement, Auslan choirs, and composing and performing music, with major showcase through an end-of-year concert that demonstrates achievements to family and the Deaf community.\"}]","Teaching music to Deaf students - A personal reflection | PDF"]