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Jean XXIII teacher Sylvain Caron with some of the 200 students enrolled in the school's music program. (JOHN MAHONEY)
Music program strikes positive note with students
Dorval high school focuses on music
Karen Seidman
The Gazette
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Jean XXIII teacher Sylvain Caron with some of the 200 students enrolled in the school's music program. (JOHN MAHONEY)
Music is much more than just another subject at École Secondaire Dorval-Jean XXIII.
It is a discipline that helps students succeed in all their studies; it is a program that unites students and gives them a sense of belonging; it is a passion that motivates them.
“It’s something that has really become a big hit in our school,” said Sylvain Caron, who runs the program with Serge Nolet. “There are some students who come to this school specifically for the music program.”
Caron has created a kind of Music Étude program at the school by offering a music concentration. However, it’s not something that is only open to gifted students. In fact, you don’t even have to play an instrument to get into the program.
“You have to submit a letter saying why you want to be in the program,” explained Caron. “The concentration is to encourage students to succeed. We use music to motivate them.”
The 200 students in the program take music six times in a nine-day cycle. There are five concentration classes and five bands. They take a trip every two years to expand the program’s cultural experience. Next summer, they will go to Greece. Last year, they went to Prague and Vienna.
The bands focus on progressive rock and rock from Quebec. The choice of music helps the program’s popularity, but Caron believes the program’s success lies with the familial environment it creates.
“Kids really like the atmosphere of the program,” he said. “They eat here, we talk to them a lot, there’s a real team spirit. It gives them a sense of belonging.”
It also gives them an edge in all their classes, Caron said.
“Music helps math and science and it just gives them the discipline they need to succeed,” he said.
Anne Marie Cuccia has two children at the school – in Grades 7 and 9 – and she has witnessed the benefits of the program.
“It requires them to pass all their courses and it motivates them to do well because they love it so much,” she said. “The teacher really becomes a mentor to them. Sometimes, they learn basic life skills through music.”
The program has been recognized in two very distinct ways this year. In January, it was granted full governmental approval. Then, Caron was asked to put together a group of students to write a rock song for the Education Department’s 2009 Week of the Arts.
“It was a very demanding project, but the students showed they were very capable.”