Speakers & Sessions

Week #4 - Pedagogy

July 27, 2026

Erin Parkes, Jeffry Sabo, Olivia Adams

Biography coming soon...

Session #12: Beyond Accommodations: Taking a Positive Approach to Teaching Neurodivergent Students
LIVE 9-10am PST

Traditional music teaching approaches can create barriers for neurodivergent learners. Typical requirements in music learning like reading music and sustained attention may be challenging for these students. Often an approach focused on providing accommodations is suggested, such as using colour coding for notes for dyslexic students. In this roundtable discussion, we propose going beyond accommodations and towards a truly neuro-affirming approach. Rather than adapt typical approaches and expectations, this roundtable discussion will introduce new perspectives on teaching neurodivergent students. The session will be led by three researchers and music teachers, bridging research and practice to bring an evidence-informed view of teaching neurodivergent students with practical applications. An overview of conditions under the “neurodivergent umbrella” will be discussed, with a focus on outlining the unique learning profiles for those that music teachers are most likely to encounter in their studios, including those with autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, and sensory processing disorder. The social, cognitive, communication, and sensory differences for each and how they impact learning will be discussed. Emphasis will be not only on the support needs for each student but also on their strengths, setting the stage for a positive, strengths-based approach. By finding the balance between supporting areas of challenge and leaning into strengths, we can create a learning environment that allows students to thrive. Teachers will develop a toolkit of strategies for teaching musical elements like note reading, rhythm, aural abilities, and music appreciation in engaging and creative ways that maximize the unique learning styles of their neurodivergent students. Pedagogical approaches that include multimodality, holistic learning, and differentiation will be explored. Practical applications will be shared, including tips on creating supportive tools like visual schedules and activities that can be used to promote regulation. Teachers will leave the session ready to create a positive learning experience that harnesses the incredible potential of neurodivergent students.

Dr. Merlin Thompson

Award-winning music educator, workshop clinician, piano teacher, and keynote speaker, Dr. Merlin Thompson is an internationally renowned authority in music studio teaching. With nearly five decades of teaching experience, Merlin’s most recent projects have taken place across Canada, USA, China, New Zealand, Australia, and Finland. He is author of “More than Music Lessons: A Studio Teacher’s Guide to Parents, Practicing, Projects, and Character”. Now as founder and creator of Teach Music 21C, his goal is simple - to help music teachers expand and enhance their teaching with 21st century tools and strategies. For more information on how Merlin is inspiring music teachers to rethink what successful music lessons look like, please visit www.TeachMusic21C.com.

Session #14: Repertoire Review/Refinement: Lessons from the Language Learning Model

Drawing on insights from the framework of language learning pedagogy, this session examines the Review & Refinement (R&R) strategy to stimulate skill development and ensure student engagement. R&R is based on the language learning principle in which our confident/secure vocabulary provides the foundation for learning new vocabulary; and our “old” vocabulary always outnumbers our “new” vocabulary. In a music learning setting, this means teachers use students’ “old” pieces as the ongoing fertile ground for developing students’ musical skillset rather than relying on students’ “new” and least familiar repertoire.The R&R strategy differs considerably from a traditional music teaching approach wherein students may focus on one or two pieces at a time, with teachers checking off each piece as students achieve mastery. In this traditional music teaching model, students may confidently perform their repertoire only for a brief time compared to the extended period they spend learning new repertoire. Whereas in the R&R setting, students’ accumulated repertoire serves as the ongoing foundation for learning new repertoire, similar to the way a person’s accumulated vocabulary provides the secure foundation for learning new vocabulary.For this session, participants will explore the R&R benefits and specific tools teachers may introduce to infuse each lesson with freshness and spontaneity. This session also considers the importance of meaningful follow-up each week, as when teachers overlook “old” pieces, students may infer they are unimportant and discontinue with the R&R process.Participants will leave with R&R strategies to make repetition engaging, tools for supporting long-term habit formation, and a renewed understanding of how a language-learning approach can sustain both musical growth and student enthusiasm.

Helena Aung

Dr. Helena Aung is a Thai-born pianist and pedagogue currently serving on the piano faculty at the University of British Columbia in Canada. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, a Master of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma, and a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Arkansas.A prizewinner of the 2011 Bangkok Chopin Piano Competition, Dr. Aung has received numerous honors, including the Yamaha Artist Scholarship and the Princess Galyani Vadhana Classical Music Foundation Scholarship. She has performed internationally as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician, and frequently collaborates with violinist Xun Xu. A dedicated advocate for contemporary music, she actively works with composers to bring new repertoire to life. Her research on the piano music of Martin Bresnick was published in the MTNA e-Journal in 2023.An active and committed pedagogue, Dr. Aung’s students have received national and international recognition. She is the founder of the Innovative Piano Program, where she integrates creative teaching approaches with online learning platforms. In addition to maintaining an active teaching studio, she has given masterclasses across Canada, the United States, India, and Thailand, and has served as an adjudicator for major competitions, including the 2025 Canadian Music Competition.

Session #14: From the Gym to the Keyboard Lab: Rethinking Group Piano through Engagement and Spiral Learning

Group piano courses are a foundational component of post-secondary music curricula, supporting both piano majors and non-piano majors in developing functional keyboard skills. Despite their central role, these courses often face persistent challenges related to student engagement, varied levels of prior experience, and the effective sequencing of technical and musical content. This lecture examines pedagogical strategies for designing and implementing group piano curricula that address these challenges through intentional structure, active learning, and longitudinal skill development.Central to the discussion is the application of spiral learning, a pedagogical approach in which core concepts—such as coordination, technical patterns, harmonic understanding, and sight-reading—are revisited across the curriculum at progressively higher levels of complexity. The lecture further explores how principles commonly found in group-based fitness instruction, including incremental progression, consistent routines, and collective participation, can inform more engaging and sustainable models of group piano teaching.Drawing on classroom-based practice, the session will address curriculum planning, lesson sequencing, repertoire selection, and assessment within group piano contexts. Emphasis will be placed on aligning learning outcomes with instructional design in order to support diverse learners while maintaining pedagogical rigor. This lecture aims to contribute to ongoing conversations in Canadian music pedagogy by offering practical and theoretically informed strategies for enhancing student engagement and long-term skill acquisition in group piano instruction.

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