Format
In this program, an educator details specific listening devices: gramophone, record player, transistor radio, iPod, Walkman, Discman, iPod, and boombox. For each device, the educator shares cultural and historical context for each device, as well as the specific technological advancements of each. The educator then demonstrates how each device works, playing a sample of music that was popular during the era in which the device was popular. Throughout, the educator asks student questions and uses their observations to direct their presentation; often, devices are compared and contrasted. The culminating activity has students place the devices on a timeline as a review, then asks them to design their own device.
Objectives
The participants will:
- learn the history of listening device technology
- understand that technology changes over time through innovations in technology and improvements in materials
- hear music of eras past
- think like engineers as they analyze listening devices
- experience the intersection of science, technology, engineering, and art
Standards Alignment
State Standards
Tennessee
Science:
2.ETS1.4 Compare and contrast solutions to a design problem by using evidence to point out strengths and weaknesses of the design.
3.ETS2.1 Identify and demonstrate how technology can be used for different purposes.
3.ETS1.1-2 Design a solution to a real-world problem that includes specified criteria for constraints. Apply evidence or research to support a design solution.
4.ETS2.3 Explain how engineers have improved existing technologies to increase their benefits, to decrease known risks, and to meet societal demands (artificial limbs, seatbelts, and cell phones).
9-12 PSCI.PS4.5 Research and communicate scientific explanations about how electromagnetic waves are used in modern technology to produce, transmit, receive, and store information.
9 - 12.SCRE.ETS2.1 Explore the impact of technology on social, political, or economic systems
General Music:
ALL GRADES: GM.Cn2.A Demonstrate understanding of relationships between music and the other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and/or daily life (such as understanding the science of sound)
Social Studies:
3.17 Compare and contrast how goods and services are exchanged on local and regional levels.
5.51 Discuss the development of the music industry in Tennessee, including: Country music (e.g., Grand Ole Opry, WSM, and the Carter family); Blues music (e.g., W.C. Handy and Bessie Smith); Rock ‘n’ roll (e.g., Elvis Presley, Stax Records, and Sun Studio)
5.22 Examine the growth of the U.S. as a consumer and entertainment society after World War II, including: Suburbs; Increased access to automobiles; Interstate Highway System; Television, radio, and movie theaters
5.52 Identify influential Tennesseans from the late 20th century, including: Dolly Parton
TN.59 Discuss the development of rock ‘n’ roll music in Tennessee and its impact on the changing American culture, including the significance of: Elvis Presley, Stax Records, and Sun Studio.
TN.60 Describe cultural developments in Tennessee during the 1970s and 1980s, including: Country Music Hall of Fame, Music Row, Opryland, and the 1982 World’s Fair.
TN.61 Identify the contributions of influential Tennesseans of the era, including Dolly Parton.
US.75 Analyze the increasing impact of television and mass media on the American home, politics, and economy.]
US.76 Describe the emergence of a youth culture, including beatniks and the progression of popular music (from swing to rhythm and blues to rock ‘n’ roll), and the impact of Tennessee on the music industry, including the influence of B.B. King, Elvis Presley, Stax Records, and Sun Studio. (T.C.A. § 49-6-1006)