Creative learning and communities of practice: Perspectives for music education in the school

Abstract

Abstract This article discusses processes and practices of creative learning in musical education in schools, reflecting on the contributions of this approach to the construction of communities of musical practice in the classroom. The discussion is based on a case study carried out in a primary school in Porto Alegre, in southern Brazil. In this study, the creative learning is triggered in group-composition activities, through collective musical presentation and criticism of the students’ productions. The music teacher created the conditions needed to establish an environment of social relations that favours the construction of a community of musical practice in the classroom. Over time, these forms of social participation configure an engaged and committed community of musical practice, sharing ways of making and thinking about music. Detailing this proposition, the role of the composition activities, presentation and critical in the articulating process between the dimensions of creative learning are analysed, considering the children’s perspective and the teacher’s role in this process, reflecting on opportunities for teaching music in schools.