Program Overview

Introduction to Sistema Kingston

Sistema Kingston is an intensive music education program housed at Queen's Faculty of Education. The program aims to provide underserved children with music training, helping them build confidence, persistence, and a sense of responsibility.

Program Details

• The program started in 2015 as an initiative of Queen's Community Music and is funded through grants and donations.
• It was inspired by El Sistema, a Venezuelan program created in the 1970s to reverse the cycle of poverty for at-risk children through committed participation in music learning.
• The program focuses on choir, rhythm, and string instruments, with the goal of building musical capacities, collaborative skills, creative thinking, and self-esteem.

Program Structure

• The program runs four afternoons a week, with a 2.5-hour schedule that includes snacks, yoga exercises, and two different music lessons.
• The music lessons focus on violin, cello, or viola; choir; improvising and composing; and string ensemble.
• Before starting to play real instruments, students build papier-m‚chť models to learn how to properly hold and take care of them.

Evaluation and Research

• The program welcomes evaluation to guide future growth and has been the subject of a research study by two professors from Queen's Faculty of Education.
• The study, led by Dr. Ben Bolden and Dr. Alana Butler, aims to examine students' and their families' perceptions of their experiences with Sistema Kingston.
• The researchers are following the program for two years to understand its impacts on social and emotional development, identity, and inclusion.

Transitioning During COVID-19

• The program had to adapt to social distancing recommendations and started searching for an adequate online platform to continue.
• Teachers developed online classes and play-along videos, but not all students were able to participate due to barriers such as access to technology and internet service.

Future Plans

• The goal is to take Sistema Kingston to other schools, broadening access to music education in the city.
• The research project will help guide the program's expansion and provide recommendations for improvement.
• The program's success in breaking down barriers and providing music education to underserved children will continue to be followed and studied by researchers at the Faculty of Education.