Derrington 2012 thesis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

and counter-transference. In chapter four, set within a theoretical framework and
illustrated with examples on DVD, characteristics of my approach are explored.
1.5 Outline of the research study
The fact that I established a permanent music therapy post at a secondary school is
evidence in itself that music therapy is recognised locally as making a positive
difference. There is an understanding within the senior leadership team at The
Cottenham Academy (the combined name for the mainstream school Cottenham
Village College and the special school called The Centre School) that music therapy
is beneficial, but how exactly and to what extent
One research project, ‘Minority Voices’ led by Young Minds (Street et al., 2005),
provided rich evidence from verbally articulate adolescents about their access to and
experience of mental health services. However, the material proposed in my project is
unique in that it gives voice to vulnerable students who have not been involved in
such a systematic study before.
My study of the role of music therapy in secondary education (Derrington, 2006)
suggested that music therapy can be a successful intervention with teenagers who are
excluded from school and with those at risk of exclusion. The study focused on one
mainstream secondary school with a learning support unit and, through case studies,
showed how music therapy sessions encouraged adolescents to express their feelings
creatively and spontaneously and, in particular, how they were able to explore issues
of identity through songwriting and play. Following on from this study I was
interested to investigate more specifically how music therapy affects a student’s selfesteem,
anxiety, disruptive behaviour and levels of anger, and whether any effects of
music therapy are sustained.
In June 2009 I obtained a three-year scholarship from The Music Therapy Charity to
be the lead investigator of the ‘Youth at Risk Project’ (appendix 1.5). At this time, I
was working three days a week at The Cottenham Academy which continued
throughout the period of research alongside two days a week dedicated to this project.
The charity has supported and fully funded this research investigation, which has
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