An accountable program of elementary classroom music must have an educational function. In other words, it must perform an educational service. This involves more than the singing of songs or the attempt to hold the interest of children with ‘fun’ activities.

The educational assumption behind most elementary classroom music programs is that the children through their musical experiences in the classroom will somehow learn to ‘appreciate’ music. The term ‘appreciate’, however, is vague and means different things to different people. Does it mean that children will learn to love the music of the masters by listening to great music on recordings and being told stories about the meaning of the music and the lives of composers? Does appreciating music mean identifying instruments and labeling the form? Does it mean identifying the composer and the period of the music from hearing it? Does it mean naming a certain number of composers and a certain number of the works of each? Does it have anything to do with preference for and liking of the music of the masters?