Lessons from history : Provision for classroom music teaching in Victorian government primary schools : implications for future policy formation

Despite recognition of the value of music in education, the policies of governments have not always been reflected in the provision for music teaching in schools. This article represents a retrospective analysis and review of government policy in relation to the provision of music teachers and teacher training in Australia, with a focus on the government school system in the State of Victoria. This analysis takes account of changing social influences and particularly economic circumstances, and identifies the lessons to be derived from past policies and practices that need to be considered in future policy formation. Music was introduced to school education in Victoria during the 1850s. Over the following decades of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, there were several oscillations in government policy that have failed to adequately address adequate provision for music in schools. Drawing on findings from government reports and commissions of inquiry over a period of 170 years, the evolution of music education policy is documented. The value of an historical perspective on issues such as educational policy enables us to gain an understanding of past deficiencies so that we can become more informed and impartial as decision-makers and therefore avoid making the same errors in the future. [Author abstract]