The Management, Growth, And Development Of The Suzuki Method Of String Pedagogy At Cork School Of Music From 1969-1999

The Suzuki method of string playing was introduced to Ireland, and indeed to Europe, by the Cork School of Music in 1969.This study examines the way the method was ' discovered' in Cork, the reasons why it was introduced, how it was misunderstood in the beginning and how, through careful management and by staff development it changed and developed into the successful programme it is today.Through empirical research I have conducted a detailed investigation into the way in which the programme was managed from its earliest introduction.Chapter 1 explains what the method is and how it operates.Chapter 2 explores the growth of the method in Japan and in the USA before it arrived in Cork. It examines the links between the programme in Cork and Suzuki programmes in other countries. It traces the early development of the method in Cork, the training of the teachers involved, the changes in the structure of the programme with the introduction of assessment procedures for its students, and the continued development of the method up until the introduction of the method at third level. It examines the role of the parent and assesses the original plan. It also looks at the development of the method in other parts of Europe with the establishment of National Suzuki Institutes and the European Suzuki Institute.Chapter 3 looks at assessment strategies used and at ways in which the success of the method can be measured, taking in success at local level within the School of Music itself, at National level with the participation of its students in the National Youth Orchestras of Ireland, at International level with the participation by its teachers and students in events abroad and at a personal level with an investigation into those who were the very first students in the programme.In the conclusion I will discuss the issues of educational management which arose during the development of the programme and which are now central to all areas of education.