NAfME Works with GRAMMY Music Education Coalition and ‘Coco’ to Bring More Music to Schools

The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) will take part in a new initiative to broaden the musical resources available to schools.

The GRAMMY Music Education Coalition (GMEC) has brought together more than 30 of “the nation’s most forward-thinking music education organizations,” including NAfME, to bring about change in school music programs. Through strategic collaborations, the groups who are a part of GMEC will bring resources for teachers to use in their classrooms to reach more students with quality music education programs.

Soon-to-be-released new findings from a nationwide report on music education in U.S. public schools show that while “traditional ensemble-based music education [band, choir, orchestra] continues to be successful in bringing music to many students, scholars and leaders in the profession have suggested that music education for students would be improved if expanded to embrace additional types of engagement.”

“At NAfME we seek daily to advance music education by promoting the understanding and making of music by all—and ‘all’ is the operative word here,” said Michael J. Blakeslee, NAfME executive director and CEO. “The unfortunate fact we endeavor to overcome is that not all students are receiving a quality music education—or have any music program for that matter—due to decisions by district leaders regarding course schedules or the lack of available funding. Moreover, due to lack of professional development geared specifically for music educators that meets their needs to reach the students they have in their programs with the music that resonates with them, many students are missing out on music-making opportunities.”

The coalition has also teamed up with Disney●Pixar’s soon-to-be-released film “Coco” in order to “bring best-in-class music from the film and learning content to teachers and youth. . . . ‘Coco’ tells the story of 12-year-old Miguel, a self-taught guitarist who dreams of becoming a great musician.”  The coalition is working with Berklee to provide teaching materials to music educators, to which NAfME has contributed as well.