Use of information technology and music learning in the search for quality education

This paper focuses on the paradigm shift in teaching that has resulted from the use of information technology (IT) and the ways in which IT in the curriculum enhances music learning in Hong Kong. In 1998 the government proposed a five-year strategy plan, Information Technology for Quality Education, and since this time the Hong Kong education system has changed rapidly, with increasing demands on teachers to upgrade their technological skills and practices. Semi-structured interviews concerning concepts of IT with 29 primary and secondary school teachers and their 543 students, held between February and August 2002, give situation-specific insights into their views. The paper concludes that when IT is carefully planned, designed and integrated into good music practice in classrooms, it can support students' motivation and enhance the quality of learning.