Learning and Outreach Policy

Aims

The aim of the Trust is to contribute to the understanding and performance of the traditional folk music of East Anglia including songs, tunes, dances, customs and traditions. In pursuit of this aim, our objectives are:

(i) to organise workshops, classes, sessions, courses, lectures and other such educational activities

(ii) to present, research, produce, promote, organise and manage events, broadcasts, exhibitions or any other activities conducive to the attainment of all or any of the objects of the Trust

(iii) to research, conserve and archive material on the region's traditions for public benefit

(iv) to commission, publish, sell and distribute books, pamphlets, recordings and other material

Statement

Education is viewed in its widest sense, with an emphasis on life-long learning. We live in a society where diversity of background, culture, knowledge and skills should be valued and nurtured. Lifelong learning contributes to the development of society through the achievement of other social goals such as civic participation, sustainable development, improved health and wellbeing, reduced crime and greater social cohesion. We want a society where people actively engage in their communities, local and national, and learning can enable people to do that.

Access:

· Age will be no barrier to attending our courses and events.

· Traditional music, being part of an oral culture, is uniquely placed to offer access music-making to those without formal musical education.

· It also offers an unusual inter-generational model of informal learning, by example and practice rather than by task and test.

· It is also recognised that people learn in different ways, and in different contexts

· Rural areas – work with communities in villages, provide classes etc in hubs where interest already high and/or public transport & facilities are good – market towns rather than urban centres.

· We aim to keep fees low to be accessible, through subsidising with project funding whenever possible, and to provide some free activities through the year.

Oral learning:

· The oral tradition provides an alternative method to ‘school’ methods: it is seen as more accessible to those who have failed or rejected conventional music education.

· The oral tradition enhances social cohesion through inter-generational learning and respect for older people.

· The oral tradition promotes creativity in the recognition of different interpretations of the material, which is not restricted by the conventions of written music.

Quality:

· We aim to work with the best of local and regional traditional performers, together with professional musicians and academics expert in their area.

Target audiences

Children

Work with:	To provide:	Examples:
Pre-school children		· Our materials and methods are not very appropriate for use with groups of children of this age, although we welcome them in a family setting.
Children in primary schools	Music song and dance in a historical and social context	· Victorian Harvest · Victorian Christmas · The Silver Herring · Other programmes based on specific themes
	Traditional dance	· Stepdancing & jig dolls · Broom dancing · Social dancing
	Music	· Melodeon – encouraging the provision of mini-melodeons in schools where there is a teacher able to take this on · Percussion – jig dolls and stepdancing
	Songs and singing	· Unaccompanied · Local folksongs · Creative songs such as ‘The Herring’s Head’ · Themed projects, including performances
Other agencies	Individualised programmes in primary schools	· Mendlesham school: 2006 · Gislingham School 2006 · Bramfield School 2004-6 · Diss Primary School 2007 · King's Lynn Primary Schools 2004-2007 · Hingham Primary School 2009 · Cambridgeshire primary schools 2009
Children in secondary schools	Structured sessions within the National Curriculum requirements	· We do not have the in-house capacity to provide regular structured sessions for this age group at present. However, we are pleased that in 2009 we are working with Year 7 students for the first time.
Work with:	To provide:	Examples:
Home-educated children	One-off or series of activities as appropriate	· Dance activities with Education Otherwise
Out-of-school activities	Taster activities at country shows, fairs, festivals etc	· Village Fetes · Traditional Music Day · National Trust · We hope to be able to provide opportunities for taster sessions on playing the dulcimer and stepdancing through the launch activities associated with planned resource development (see below)
	Access to traditional instruments and other resources	· Melodeons may be hired by parents for children aged 7 or over · Mini-melodeons for purchase · Brooms for broom-dancing · Jig doll collection · Maypole for hire (4 groups in 2009) with resources
	Access to informal performance contexts	· Village Hall sessions · Open dance sessions (TMD) · Village Fetes

Adults

Work with:	To provide:	Examples:
Open access groups	Workshops, talks, concerts, lectures, taster sessions	· Suffolk Carers · Otley College Open Day · Eye Show · British Legion, WI · Lowestoft Library · We hope to be able to provide opportunities for taster sessions on playing the dulcimer and stepdancing through the launch activities associated with planned resource development (see below)
Local communities	Workshops, classes, performance contexts	· Musical Roots · Harleston & Waveney Festival dance and song groups · Blyth Valley Voices, North End Voices 2003 - 2008 · Kenninghall 2005-6 · Blaxhall 2009
Independent interest groups	Workshops, talks, concerts, lectures	· Bury Theatre Royal users group · Greenshoots music group · Stowmarket Local History Group · Traditional Song Forum

Homes & day centres		· Culture Club · Tuning In · Musical Roots
Individual researchers, students and performers	Resources for information, academic study and performance	· Publication of Blyth Voices book · Publication of ‘Before the Night was Out’ book · Forthcoming publication of jig dolls book · Playback research forum · Broadcasts · Exhibitions, including RVW in 2008 · Website (Tuning In, Blyth Valley Voices, North End Voices research published) · We hope to be able to provide study access to our collections of recordings, documents and images for educational use – currently collating published resources on a county basis · We hope to be able to provide a web resource on the Playback research – particularly regarding the dulcimer, and to develop this further to provide information about the construction, tuning and playing of this particular instrument · We hope to be able to provide educational information in the form of a DVD on stepdancing to enable individuals to learn more about the artform
Interest groups	Workshops, classes, extended courses	· Fiddle, song, melodeon, dance workshops · Dulcimer canes craft workshop · Evening classes · Melodeon-making course (2007, 2008) · Maintenance course (2009)
Individual performers	Training, mentoring, networking and development opportunities	· Tuning In · Research projects – Chris Coe · Evening class tutors · We hope to be able to provide access to our collections of recordings, documents and images for performance use
Individual volunteers	Opportunities for involvement in music-making, arts administration and events management, including training opportunities	· Music transcription · Photography · Event stewarding (FAE training course) · Musical performances and tutoring · We are now able to provide further volunteering opportunities in our new premises
Other arts organisations	Information, resources and tutoring	· Wonderful Beast · Red Rose Chain · Gypsy & Traveller Family History Group · Dunwich Museum · Ipswich C.R.E. · M.E.A.L. May Day dance activities

Other agencies

Develop and deliver educational programmes

· DanceEast

· Churches Conservation Trust,

· Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival,

· Folkworks

· Aldeburgh Productions

· We hope to be able to provide more efficient access to our collections of recordings, documents and images for our own and others’ educational programmes

· We hope to work in partnership with educational training providers to provide teacher-training sessions. At present, opportunities are very limited.

Training

· Tuning In, AFO courses

Management and resources

At present we provide:

· A hire scheme at low cost for up to 16 people at any one time (melodeons)

· Regular tuition throughout the year to support this

· Tuition through regular events

· Tuition on a project basis: eg Musical Roots (ten months)

· Tuition on an occasional basis (Stepdance, fiddle workshops)

· Instrument hire or purchase for specific courses

· Educational publications to support independent learning (Blyth Voices)

We have several local tutors for instrumental courses, and one or two for song and dance tuition. We have one regular primary school worker, and others to draw on occasionally.

In order to maintain, develop and improve our educational provision, we need to:

· Build capacity through recruiting suitable tutors and trainers. This is a serious problem in the Eastern region, but not an unusual one: the formalised teaching of traditional music in England as a whole is quite a recent development, and the two richest areas of the country in this respect are the south-west and the north-east, which each has a long-established folk development agency and a history of high-profile folk artists. The vast majority of participants in folk/traditional music are amateurs, and while they may be skilled musically, they are not often available or able to take on a teaching or tutoring role. In this region we have few professional or freelance musicians able to do this, which means that development will be a long-term issue that needs to be addressed nationally as well as regionally, and it is one of the reasons why membership of, and partnership with, organisations such as EFDSS, Folk Arts England, Folkworks etc, is so important.

· Provide resources to facilitate independent study

a) through publications (tunebook, stepdancing DVD, dulcimer website)

b) by making more reference material available through public access libraries or study facilities (Record Offices, MEAL)

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