Promoting Music Engagement for Students with Profound Intellectual Disabilities

Of individuals with an intellectual disability, 1% are recognized as having a profound intellectual disability and commonly present at a mental age of roughly three years or below. This session includes strategies that promote engagement for individuals with profound intellectual disabilities, who represent a historically disenfranchised population. Accordingly, the application of specialized curricula, pedagogies, and pacing strategies allows this vulnerable population to access music education to the greatest extent possible.

This presentation includes a clinical primer on characteristics of individuals with profound intellectual disability, application of Fink’s taxonomy in relation to the Core Arts Standards, analysis of the emerging model of adaptive music classes, and a discussion of pressing issues facing educators. Implementing these strategies will position music educators to provide equitable access to music education and more effectively serve this vulnerable population of individuals.

Cameron R. Siegal is a PreK–5 music teacher in the Dartmouth, Massachusetts, public schools and an adjunct music education faculty member at Rhode Island College. He holds a Ph. D. in Music Education from the University of Oregon, an M.M. in Performance in jazz studies from Florida State University, an M.A. in Teaching from Western Oregon University, and a B.A. in Music from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. His research interests include individuals’ perceptions of belonging in music ensembles, persistence in music beyond high school, and promoting engagement in music for individuals with profound or severe intellectual disability. Field experience in Adowa funeral drumming in the Asante Region of Ghana, West Africa, and the samba-reggae tradition of Salvador da Bahia, Brazil, inform his approach to teaching, research, and performance.

NAfME presents this live virtual event at no charge to all as a service to the music education profession. To register, you must enter your NAfME member information or create a nonmember account. After registering, check your email for instructions. A recording of this program will be available to all registrants for one week following the live event. Members can also view archived NAfME webinars in the NAfME Academy.

The views expressed are those of the presenter; they do not necessarily reflect the views of NAfME.