Derrington 2012 thesis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction to the thesis
Adolescents 1 at risk of underachievement or exclusion often have emotional
difficulties which, left ignored for whatever reason, can lead to disruptive and
challenging behaviours, affecting all areas of school life including their ability to
form relationships and access education. This pattern and my experience 2 of music
therapy with young people with special needs and/ or complex emotional difficulties,
in a mainstream and special secondary school, have led me to undertake this research.
The study sets out to examine the effectiveness and value of music therapy as an
intervention for these teenagers who have emotional and behavioural difficulties and
can be at risk of exclusion from school. My hypothesis is that music therapy can
effectively address students’ emotional needs and therefore help them to be more
motivated at school and engaged in learning.
Statistics show that young people are experiencing an ‘increased amount of stress
upon their social and emotional development which, in turn, is impacting on their
behaviour and their mental well-being’ (Carr and Wigram, 2009, p.3). The
government recognised the need to improve the emotional and social well-being of
children with the policies Every Child Matters (2003), the Children’s Act (2004) and
the Education Act (2005). In addition, the National Institute of Clinical Excellence
highlighted the need for more research into the suitability and effectiveness of
specialist interventions, recommending that schools need to take action by ‘providing
specific help for those children most at risk of social, emotional and behavioural
problems’ (NICE, 2008, p.6). There is therefore an urgent need for research into
music therapy, as one such intervention, with this client group.
‘Evidence-based Practice is increasingly applied in order to determine what
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
" !Throughout this thesis, the words adolescent, teenager, pupil and student are
interchanged however they always refer to the young people that the music therapist
works with who are aged between 11 and 17.
2 The thesis is written in the third person apart from when the researcher/therapist is
talking specifically about her own work.!
! "!