Contrary to many of the constructivist teaching philosophies of today, Ausubel believed that instruction should begin with a focus on teaching metacognition rather than student perception or induction models (Joyce, 2015). He advocated for the use of advance organizers as a mean to scaffold student learning. Advance organizers facilitate students' cognitive structures by allowing them an organizational framework with which to process new information. Educators can prepare students for learning by providing a general context or structured outline before launching into the more detailed and specific content.
In my high school ensemble classes, I utilize advanced organizers when we begin our music history unit. Students are given a handout that gives them a general timeline of the musical periods and the main idea "Music is a mirror of the society that created it." This main idea provides the lens through which they process the more specific concepts and information for the remainder of the unit. Moreover, I restate this theme before each lecture and facilitate student discussion about the conclusions they can draw about society based on their new knowledge of the musical elements at the conclusion of each class. Not only has this instructional model has allowed my students to better retain the information they learn, but I've found that they are far more engaged in learning about music history when they understand the relevance to the greater society.
*Joyce, B., Weil, M., & Calhoun, E. (2015). Models of Teaching. Boston: Pearson Education. Ed. 9.
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