Ongoing Research Notes

Classroom Observation Sessions

Before I started drumming with students with ASD, I was invited to observe a local school special needs class for six sessions. There, I began to take notes of the students’ behavior during the classes. For any observations that struck me, I researched possible scientific explanations behind the observations. I then used the observations to generate insight for the design of my drumming activities. 

Pilot Sessions

My initiative started with some pilot sessions with a small group of students at a local school. Before I began drumming with these students, I gave the “Get-to-Know-You Form” to the special needs teacher, who filled out the form about each student. This gave me an idea about each student’s strengths and weaknesses, which helped me plan the sessions accordingly. 

I have made notes on the activities during each pilot session, and made observations of student behavior. Here are some of the notes I used to analyze their behavior, and progress over their sessions. I have used these sessions as learning experiences for me to improve my activities. After running these pilot sessions, I formally launched March to Your Beat, recruiting volunteers with five different schools to help out.