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Derrington 2012 thesis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

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John’s results were remarkable for a student at The Centre School because he<br />

benefitted so much from the limited amount of twenty sessions. There was a great<br />

deal of fun in his sessions and much of our communication was through the playful<br />

use of kazoos. This is why this quotation from his interview after music therapy is<br />

particularly striking. Unlike some students who choose to talk, John preferred to play<br />

and communicate through non-verbal means yet when he was asked about music<br />

therapy, he felt he had told me his problems and they were heard. This highlights how<br />

meaningful such non-verbal means of communication were for him.<br />

John made a marked improvement and the biggest increase among all Centre School<br />

students for the change scores in self-concept (+15). His score remained within the<br />

range of below average but it is still a substantial change for a student who had barely<br />

any self-esteem at the start of the process. His change scores for anxiety had the<br />

biggest decrease among the students in his group and his BDBI scores did not change.<br />

John’s intervention was timely and it helped him considerably (appendix 6.2.a.19).<br />

He was keen to resume music therapy as soon as the project had finished and<br />

continues to use every session to be playful and creative.<br />

8.5 Case study 4: Harry<br />

Harry was frequently absent from school and when he was on site was usually in<br />

trouble: he was prone to swearing at teachers, bullying other students and being<br />

disruptive in lessons. When he was referred to the project he was 15. His head of year<br />

wanted Harry to have music therapy but was not confident that he would attend and<br />

told me about his frequent periods of exclusions, both internal and external.<br />

I met Harry in the main reception before his first session. His hair covered most of his<br />

face and made eye contact difficult. He stooped and seemed unsure of how to hold<br />

himself. When I suggested that we made our way over to the music therapy garage,<br />

he did not say anything but grunted in agreement. During that session, and all<br />

subsequent ones, he concentrated on playing the drums and the electric guitar but he<br />

never played for long. The fact that I joined him in his playing created a trust that<br />

allowed him to talk which seemed to be what he really wanted to do.<br />

! #+&!

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