University Times

Pitt's Center for American Music is launching an educational program that will incorporate historic American music into the curricula of history, language arts and literature throughout southwestern Pennsylvania.

Voices Across Time is a curriculum guide that allows music to be used as a classroom tool to teach students in grades 8 through 12 about the life and the history of the nation. The guide, designed by curriculum consultant Susan Donley and reviewed during its development by a teacher advisory committee, is organized by units dedicated to a specific historical era. Within each unit, American music will be used to shed light on six themes: diversity, labor and protest, home and family life, war and peace, migration and immigration and faith and ideals.

For example, students will listen to "Follow the Drinking Gourd" to better understand the Underground Railroad and pre-Civil War events; they will listen to "John Henry" to help grasp changes brought about by industrialization; and John Len-non's "Give Peace a Chance" will help students understand the anti-war protests of the 1960s.

"The sound of history is missing from our classrooms," said Deane Root, curator of the Center for American Music. "Over the years, songs have allowed everyday people to voice their attitudes, opinions or beliefs, and they are an especially important voice for the many ethnic groups who did not leave written accounts of their lives. Music provides a very real soundtrack to events throughout history."

Organizers of the project, which is funded by the Vira I. Heinz Endowment, are seeking 20 area middle and high school teachers to participate during the 1998-99 school year. Teachers selected for the project will attend a half-day workshop in August, use the curriculum guide all year and provide periodic feedback to the project staff.

The pilot curriculum guide will include written and recorded music, video, discussion questions and proposed related classroom activities. Where possible, supplemental materials such as posters, photos and engravings will be included. Each piece of music will be accompanied by a brief text, explaining the song's background and its link to the period of history under study.

Plans are underway to make the Voices Across Time curriculum guide available via the World Wide Web. The ultimate goal, according to Root, is to form a National Teaching Institute to be held at the Stephen Foster Memorial each summer, where master teachers would be trained in techniques for using American song in their curricula.

Teachers interested in participating in the pilot project should contact Root at 624-4100 or via e-mail: dlr+@pitt.edu