Veblen, K. K. (2018). Adult music learning in formal, nonformal and informal contexts. In G. McPherson & G. Welsh (Eds.). Special Needs, Community Music, and Adult Learning: An Oxford Handbook of Music Education, Vol 4. Pp. 243-256. London: Oxford University Press. ISBN-10: 019067444X/ ISBN-13: 978-0190674441.
What Interested me and surprised me the most about this article was the different learning styles when it comes to teaching music. The formal, the nonformal, and the informal styles. As someone who has thought to have only ever been taught formally, I found this really interesting. I had never thought about choir practice as a Nonformal learning. It was interesting to think about it like that.
I felt that I was challenged. I always assumed that the only way to learn music was formal. In my eyes, teaching has always been a one on one, serious time where I would be told how to do things properly, with specific rules and mannerisms to follow. Now thinking about it, I'm not sure what I was even thinking. I'm happy that I was able to become more educated on this matter.
The one thing I was ultimately frustrated with was at the beginning of the article. I felt that Velben was trying to explain that adults have a more difficult time learning music. I could not disagree more. As someone who has taught both children and adults how to play brass, I feel that the two age groups have similar difficulty. You just have to explain it differently to the age groups. I don't understand why someone can just go and assume that.
Finally, if I were to say something to the author of this article, all I would have to say to him is that I disagree about adults' difficulty of learning music. Many people have different learning styles, abilities, and some absorb the information differently than others. Some may be quicker to learn, while some may be slower. It's just how you have to explain to people. People are different, and many learn much differently than others. So becoming frustrated and agitated by someone who has a more difficult time learning shouldn't be happening. You just have to be peaceful and explain to them more thoroughly and spend more time teaching them. It may take longer, but they will get it. So, don't give up on them!