About

Why the Flame Awards?

The Flame Awards run against the backdrop of research which shows:

1. The unique benefits to students’ emotional, social and intellectual development when they learn music, and
2. school music education has been in decline for the last few decades, despite the bodies of research which support its benefit to students and communities.

By highlighting positive and inspirational school communities where music IS fundamental to school life, we build a network of music education schools whose success becomes an inspiration to others to follow their lead.

A snapshot of last year’s national winners (theme: instrumental music)

Padstow Park Public, NSW

This diverse program involves all 340 students regardless of age, family background, intellectual or physical ability. Commendable aspects of the music program include: the fact that teachers join the kids as fellow learners; older or more capable students teach others; music happens in and out of normal classroom time, drawing on the cultural backgrounds of students; it provides lots of performance opportunities for students and permeates many areas of school life.

Basket Range Primary School, SA

This program revolves around a unique musical playground, built out of recycled materials including scrap aluminium, ag pipe, wrecked MAG wheels and old chemical drums. Teachers now incorporate more rhythm work and music into the classroom, and use the instruments for science as well as maths and literacy. The musical playground is a great solution. It’s comparatively cheap and it's indestructible! Most families were involved in the construction and ongoing use of the playground, it engages every student in the school and it brings the whole community 24 hour access to music.

Judges

All entries are reviewed by a panel of education experts from ASME, the Australian Society for Music Education. This panel develops the shortlist of no more than 40 entries which go on to be assessed by the National Judges. The National Judges include:

• Dr Richard Letts, Executive Director, Music Council of Australia
• Ms Jane Law, Australian Primary Principals’ Association
• Suzanne Rogers, Australian Society for Music Education

The overall winner/s will be announced in October 2011.

Please note that, due to the volume of entries, no correspondence can be entered into about the progress of individual entries.