What’s stopping you?: A multiple case study of impediments to incorporating music technology in Norwegian schools

Abstract

In a world where technology evolves rapidly, with the creation of more powerful software and hardware than ever before, the increasing selection of technology available to the consumer has implications for education. This raises an important question: Why is music technology not more widely incorporated into Norwegian schools when there are numerous technological products designed for educational purposes? This study explores four cases of music technological products: Rocksmith 2014, Soundation, GarageBand and Skoog. They create the foundation for the study’s discussion. Through interviews with four music teachers in Norwegian primary and lower secondary schools, the study explores what the participants see as impediments to utilising these specific products, as well as music technologies in general. In analysing the interviews, themes emerged from their statements, revealing four factors as impediments: expense, accessibility, attitude and usability. The findings suggest that none of the four factors is necessarily more important than the others, and each can potentially stop the entire process of acquisition and incorporation of music technologies in schools. Further, the factors of other agents besides the music teachers themselves plays a vital role in this process, such as the school’s administration or characteristics of the municipality. The results of the study identify several subjects for further investigation, such as sociological aspects surrounding upbringing and influence, public document investigation and investigation of the companies that make such technologies.