Date

5-20-2026

Department

School of Music

Degree

Doctor of Music Education (DME)

Chair

Thomas Goddard

Keywords

Assessment Practices, Standards-Based Instruction, Music Curriculum, Assessment Uses, Creating Assessments, Non-Performance Standards, Music Education

Disciplines

Education | Music

Abstract

Developing a well-rounded musician must be the goal of every music teacher. In today’s modern educational system, assessment is a tool used to help shape the curriculum of all subjects. Music assessment must be no different. The National Core Arts Standards (NCAS) utilize anchor standards for assessment in four categories: creating, performing, responding, and connecting. Standards that fall within performing are quickly evaluated in formal and informal assessments, but other standards, such as creation, responding, and connecting, often need exploration. One needs to craft assessments to determine student understanding of performance and non-performance standards and explore development in those areas. This qualitative case study aims to determine the assessment practices and uses of those assessments regarding creative, historical, and responsive standards in Georgia middle and high school band programs. Band directors often avoid the exploration of non-performance standards for a multitude of reasons. Primarily, many directors cite a lack of time or guidance in those areas as a critical hindrance to introducing the lesser-known standards into their curriculum. Through surveys and interviews, band directors across Georgia will be asked to provide their insights into assessment development and how the NCAS guides assessment practices. The data collected and analyzed from this study will aid band directors in crafting assessments within creation, historical, and responsive standards that will give their curriculum a modern approach.

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