SONGS TO TEACH THE FAITH:
SONGS TO KEEP THE FAITH

Research Questions

1. Are churches and church schools equipping their young people with a suitable body of song?
   
   
2. Do church schools prepare their pupils for participation in sung worship more effectively than other schools?

• Why is participation in congregational song important for young people?
• Does the general level of young people's participation in congregational song vary greatly between churches and denominations?
• Does what children sing in school enable them to participate more fully in the singing in church?

Abstract

Proposed Methodology and Structure

1. the number of young people in attendance
2. the number of hymns/songs sung in the course of the service
3. the number of hymns/songs that are sung while the majority of the young people are present during the service (recognising that in many churches the young people attend a separate program during some of the service)
4. the number of young people actively participating in each hymn for which they are present (either singing or attempting to join in or responding to the music in another way)
5. the number of young people failing to engage with each hymn

• I will fill in a set form to record the above information, including the titles of the hymns sung (see appendices).
• The level of sung participation will be uniformly assessed according to a set of specific observable criteria (see appendices).
• I will note the general level of adult participation in congregational song - I realise that in some churches it is not only children who are not well enabled in their congregational song!
• After the service the research team (see page 4) will assist as many young people as possible to complete a brief questionnaire (see appendices). These will ask for simple details - school attended, age, schools attended - and will leave room for the young people to offer more detailed feedback about singing in church. Many of the children interviewed will be too young to be able to in complete questionnaire unaided, and will be prompted by the researcher or in some cases by their parent. That their answers may be coloured by input from the adult to helping them is unavoidable. Any adult intervention will be noted.
• When the field work is complete I will endeavour to show the results of all the observations in a form that will allow comparison between the churches observed. From this will follow a critical analysis of the findings.

• Some churches in my chosen sample group might not want to take part in the study.
  
  
• This kind of detailed research is both labour intensive and time consuming.
  
  
• I will not necessarily be able to see all the young people in church from where I am sitting without moving around and causing disruption to the liturgy.
  
  
• Some children will refuse to be interviewed.
  
  
• The power dynamics between adult researcher and child subject are such that the results of the interviews may not be entirely accurate. Some Children will give the answer they think the researcher wants to hear, and this will not necessarily be true. There are also developmental issues involved in a child's own appraisal of their participation in sung worship. According to Pottebaum et. al. (1992 p28),
  
  
  'Even if the young child cannot read or follow music, parents can give the child a hymnal anyway because such "pretending" is, in the child's mind, full participation'.
  
  
  This then suggests that some children, who might be observed as to having never opened their mouths during the singing, will quite genuinely, respond positively when asked if they sang during the service.
  
  
• In order to guarantee the successful and discreet observation of the entire congregation, I will need to enlist the help of four research assistants. The team will be carefully picked to fulfil the following requirements:
  
  
  1. proven suitability to work with children
  2. availability to work regularly as part of the team
  3. experience of participating in Christian worship
  4. understanding and support of the project
  5. good interpersonal skills
  6. local people, similarly active and well-known in the community as myself (so as to have similar 'insider status')
  
  This will cost money, and I have applied for funding to cover this expense (see Culham Educational Foundation Grant Application in the appendices).
  
  
• I am aware that using a camera to film services might initially appear to be less labour intensive than hiring research assistants, and that the resulting data would indeed be more easily verifiable. I have decided to proceed with hired research assistants for the following reasons:
  1. I think there are serious ethical issues in filming public worship. One couldn't do that without first seeking permission from the entire congregation, who would then know they were being filmed. That would skew the data terribly - we'd end up with something that looked more like BBC 'Songs of Praise' than the normal weekly worship.
  2. Whilst some churches may tolerate the filming of significant rites of passage (often weddings, occasionally baptisms, rarely funerals), others do not allow the filming of public worship of any kind. Regular Sunday worship is a step removed from the aforementioned rites, which despite being technically defined as public worship, are in practice largely family affairs 1. Filming a communion service is a step removed from this and in many churches would not be welcomed.
  3. It is true that in this instance that the camera cannot lie. A camera, however, is only as good as what it can see.
     It is not possible to place a single camera in a position where the entire congregation is visible, especially as children tend to disappear down under pews or behind adults. Several cameras would need to be employed to ensure a comprehensive view of all the young people in the congregation, especially in churches where there are galleries, large pillars or wide side aisles. The camera would need to be facing the congregation, so as to be able to see whether or not the young people were singing. As the people sit facing forwards, this would necessitate the camera being placed at the front of the church. Depending on the design of the building, the camera would then either have to be placed in the chancel or the crossing. Both locations are liturgically inappropriate 2. A free standing camera on a tripod or a researcher with a hand-held camera would both get in the way of and distract from the liturgical action. Moreover, it would be impossible to film unobtrusively. So whilst filming the service might produce data that, as a record of that particular service is irrefutable, that data will be flawed from the outset as the service filmed will not have been like a normal Sunday service. People's behaviour changes when they know they are being filmed. Having research assistants placed strategically around the church it will be possible to observe all the young people in the congregation for each sung element of the liturgy.
  4. Due to the problems of using and positioning cameras, I believe that significantly fewer ministers - if any - would agree to their churches taking part in the study.
  5. The use of cameras to film worship in this way gives rise to a whole load of data protection issues. I would require informed consent of all present to film the service and store those images. Observing using my proposed method raises no such difficulties, as the subjects are not identified on the record sheets and therefore no personal information is stored.
  6. Using a camera, analysing the resultant data would take days. With my chosen method, all the data I need will be in my hand at the end of each service observed.
  7. I am confident that a well-trained research team, adhering to clear classification criteria, can produce accurate results. I intend to meet with each member of the team prior to the commencement of the observations to demonstrate the interpretation of the observation criteria and how the observations may be accurately recorded on the record sheet. I will offer ongoing support to the team, and regular evaluations of their work. Accuracy of results will be occasionally tested throughout the fieldwork by having two researchers observe the same section of the congregation (but from different viewpoints) and comparing their results afterwards. There should be few discrepancies. This can be occasionally tested throughout the fieldwork by having two researchers observe the same section of the congregation (but from different viewpoints) and comparing their results afterwards. There should be few discrepancies.
  
  
• For the study to be valid it is important to gain a true picture of how the young people in the congregation respond to the sung elements of worship. If the young people don't normally sing it is undesirable that they should make a special effort to sing because they know they are being observed. It is important that the research team are able to observe as unobtrusively as possible that which is the norm, rather than an orchestrated performance.
  
  
• By our very presence as a research team, the dynamic of the service we are observing will be subtly altered. The line between 'insider' and 'outsider' will shift a little from church to church, as I (and various members of the research team) will be better known in some congregations in the sample group than in others. I am hoping that because of my relatively high 'insider status' in most of the churches concerned the observation will be less of an 'event' and the worship observed will be as typical as one could expect. I will clearly identify those churches where I am less well known and will look for differences in the data that might suggest the level of sung participation had been affected by the presence of the research team.
  
  
• In contrast to the above, my 'insider' status could also skew the data if the congregation wants to 'do well' to help me.

• Is the school a church school?
• If it is not a church school, does it have a link with a local church?
• Does the school have regular visits from local clergy/ take part in church services?
• Is there a daily act of collective worship? If not daily, how often?
• Do the children sing during collective worship?
• Does the school have a regular hymn practice?
• What is sung? Hymns? Christian songs? Secular songs?
• What do the children sing from? Hymn books? An overhead projector screen? Memory?
• Which books are used when selecting songs for collective worship (Someone's Singing Lord; Come and Praise; Songs for Every Assembly, etc.)?
• Is there any dialogue between the school and any linked church as to what the children could be singing?

• Some schools in my chosen sample group might not want to take part in the study. The number of schools to whom the study is relevant is relatively small and finite - it would be pointless sending questionnaires to schools that are not in linked, either by formal church/school link or immediate locality, to the churches being observed. If there is poor response to the questionnaire there will be insufficient data to make this part of the project viable.

• The importance of congregational song
• The cultural attitudes to singing that create the climate in which this research is taking place
• Educational legislation, guidelines and general practice concerning collective worship provision in schools.

• From the above research elements and from my own work in the field over a number of years I will be in a position to identify and develop best practice regarding young people's acquisition of an appropriate body of Christian song.
• I intend to distil my findings into a usable form to enable both churches and schools to develop this best practice accordingly in their own settings.

The Limitations

• The level of sung participation amongst young people in church is generally low. In a country where one in four people believe they cannot sing (Bell 2000 P13), where the very act of congregation singing is 'profoundly counter-cultural' (Bell 2000 P118) it is no surprise that the Anglican Church is saying, 'We should be doing all that we can to promote the revival of singing' (Report of the Archbishop's Commission on Church Music 1992 P175).
  
  
• It is desirable that young people participate in the sung elements of worship. The Catholic Church '…desires that all the faithful should be led to that full, conscious and active participation in liturgical celebration…' (Sacrosanctum Concilium 14) and Pope Pius XII notes, ' hymns can be a powerful aid in keeping the faithful from attending the Holy Sacrifice like dumb and idle spectators' (Musicae Sacrae Disciplina 64). The preface to the 1933 Methodist Hymn Book reminds its readers that, '…in Methodism, in particular, the whole congregation has always been called to sing the hymns', sentiments which are reiterated in 1983 revision of the same (Jones & Jones 1983 PX). Pottebaum's words ring true, regardless of denomination - 'the quality of the rite is proportionate to the level, frequency and quality of the participation of those present' (Pottebaum 1992 P88). The quality of worship is diminished where churches fail to find ways to enable their young people to participate in the liturgy.
  
  
• Participation in congregational song is a unifying experience and reinforces a sense of belonging. John Bell comments that '…music must be one aspect of the cement that welds people together. It means that the most important music in church is that which the congregation is expected to sing…' (Bell 1996 P36). Including young people in congregational song is essential to fostering their sense of belonging in the assembly.
  
  
• Young people who feel a sense of belonging in their congregation are more likely to explore the Christian faith for themselves and keep that faith. Catholic writer, Linda Gaupin, reminds us, 'We forget that children worship naturally and have an acute sense of belonging (or not belonging)' (Gaupin 1992).
  
  
• Young people are for more likely to participate in singing a song/hymn that is familiar to them. This is the theory underlying those frequent requests that we 'sing something the children know'. It is a not an unreasonable request -
  
  
  'People in church do not usually sing when they either dislike or do not know a piece. But what is familiar is generally popular, and most people look to music to provide an enjoyable way of expressing their faith and aspirations. They expect to feel comfortable, secure and unselfconscious as they do so…' (Report of the Archbishop's Commission on Church Music 1992 P188).
  
  
  
• Familiarity with a particular song or hymn will grow with repetition. This might be seen as stating the obvious, but in the case of children's learning it is an important factor. Singing a song on one occasion only seriously limits its impact. Very young children especially like to sing the same song over and over until it becomes like an old friend (or a source of irritation to the parents!).
  
  
  'Music at church is a powerful means for enjoyable and repeated learning. A child's enjoyment of a song grows by having repeated opportunities to hear and sing it.' (Haystead 1995 P76)
  
  
  
• Repetition of a song will lead to familiarity with the text and a subsequent internalisation of the values therein. For better or worse, the fact that people remember what they sing is inescapable (Bell 2000 P42; Lawrence 1956 P6; Page 2004 P111-112; Pottebaum, Freeburg & Kelleher 1992 P97).
  
  
  'One thing is clear: liturgy (along with hymnody) plays a key role in forming the most basic beliefs and assumptions about God in the minds and hearts of worshippers…Repeated words and forms of prayer and praise become embedded in the consciousness, available to us whenever and wherever we choose to use them.' (Earey and Myers 2001 P61-62)
  
  
  Thus embedded, the songs in our hearts become an essential part of our dialogical relationship with God.
  
  
• Thinking carefully about the content of the repertoire and how songs/hymns are taught can positively influence not only the level of sung participation in church worship, but the message young people get about the Christian faith and it's relevance to their lives.
  Our ideas, our concepts of God and our concepts of our relationship to God and those around us are shaped by what we sing.
  
  
  'People learn more theology from what they sing than from what they hear preached' (Bell 1996 P46).
  
  
  Moreover, people are shaped by the theology reflected in the way they are treated as singers. The time for a good hard look at the theology surrounding the whole issue of children's songs is long overdue.
  

Definition of Terms

• 'Young people' and 'children' will be used interchangeably to identify those under the age of eighteen.
• Hymn - defined in the Oxford dictionary as 'a song of praise to God', but used here specifically to identify the more traditional style metrical hymnody.
• School Hymn - a hymn commonly used in collective worship in schools, written for, or published in collections, primarily intended for use of young people in the school setting.
• Christian song - a generic term to denote that which is not in the mould of the traditional metrical hymn but is a song expressing Christian values.
• In order to save writing an unwieldy list, when referring to a whole body of song (e.g. that which is sung in the course of a particular church service; the entire repertoire of a school, etc.), 'hymns/Christian Songs' will be used to mean anything which might be sung in Christian worship, including metrical hymnody, children's songs, worship songs, choruses, canticles, chants, psalmody (metrical, responsorial and otherwise) Acclamations and sung parts of the mass. For the purposes of this research proposal it is not necessary to further define the various forms covered by 'hymns/Christian songs'. They will, of course, be defined in the dissertation itself and used as necessary to specify a certain form of song.

Significance of the Study

'We warmly welcome the work of those engaged in developing methodologies for a distinctly Christian approach to the curriculum and materials for the theory and practice of Christian education.' (Archbishops' Council 2001 P21)

'Concern has been voiced to the Commission over the lack of a repertoire of music common both to schools and to the Church. It should be possible for clergy and teachers to ensure both that churches include some of the school's repertoire in their own, and that schools make room in their assemblies for some traditional hymns.' (Report of the Archbishops' Commission on Church Music, 1992, P207).

'Continuing co-operation between church and school will be needed if the music in our services is to improve and, indeed, if the presence of young people is to guarantee the future of our congregations' (Report of the Archbishops' Commission on Church Music, 1992 P205).

'One of the most essential aspects of the link between Church and school is to establish transferable patterns of worship. We are very concerned that collective worship in schools … does not have any common features or transferability to the worship in churches on Sunday'. (Archbishops' Council 2001 P56)

Further Research

• Short-term - Taking the same sample group (or a section of it) one could study the levels of sung participation of young people in young peoples' worship (youth service/family service/ pram service/ 'all-age' worship) compared to the levels of sung participation of young people in the main Sunday service. Does the sung repertoire in each of these settings have a bearing on the level of sung participation?
• Medium-term - Implementing the resultant guidelines for creating a body of song to pass from school to church and studying the outcomes in a number of school-church partnerships. Does the proposed method for choosing an appropriate body of song improve the levels of sung participation of young people in church?
• Long-term - Test the effectiveness of improving the levels of sung participation of young people in maintaining church attendance and nurturing faith. Are young people who grow up knowing an appropriate body of Christian hymns/songs more likely to make a faith commitment and remain part of a church community than those who don't?

Initial Bibliography

1. Archbishops' Commission on Church Music (1992) In Tune With Heaven. London: Church House Publishing / Hodder & Stoughton
   
   
2. Archbishops' Council (2001) The Way Ahead: Church of England Schools in the New Millennium. London: Church House Publishing
   [This report is commonly referred to as The Dearing Report]
   
   
3. Bell, J.L. (1996) As Fire Exists By Burning, in Maries, A. et. al. (1996) Music in the Mission of the Church. Mildenhall: Decani
   
   
4. Bell, J.L. (2000) The Singing Thing - A Case For Congregational Song. Glasgow: Wild Goose Publications
   
   
5. Bonner, C. (ed.) (1948) Child Songs for The Primary Departments of the Sunday School and Day School, and for Home Singing (20th ed.) London: Pilgrim Press/Curwen/Methodist Sunday School Dept.
   
   
6. Brierley, P. (2005) UK Christian Handbook, Religious Trends No.5 - The Future of the Church. London: Christian Research
   
   
7. Burt, P., Horrobin, P. & Leavers, G. (eds.) (1997) Junior Praise. London: Marshall Pickering
   
   
8. Churches' Joint Education Policy Committee (1995) Collective Worship in Schools
   
   
9. Dakers, L. (1991) Parish Music. Norwich: Canterbury Press
   
   
10. Earey, M. & Myers, G. (eds.) (2001) Common Worship Today. London: Harper Collins
    
    
11. Education Reform Act (1988)
    
    
12. The English Hymnal Company Ltd. (compiler) (1986) The New English Hymnal. Norwich: Canterbury Press
    
    
13. Funk, V. (1991) The Future of Church Music in Funk. V. (ed.) Sung Liturgy Toward 2000 A.D.. Washington D.C.: Pastoral Press
    
    
14. Gaupin, L.L. (1992) 'The Liturgical Life of Children', Today's Liturgy, Ordinary Time 2, 1992
    
    
15. General Synod Board of Education (1996) Youth A Part - Young People and the Church. London: The National Society/ Church House Publishing
    
    
16. Green, D. & Green, M. (2000) Taking A Part - Young People's Participation in the Church. London: The National Society/ Church House Publishing
    
    
17. Harrop, B. (ed.) (1973) Someone's Singing, Lord - Hymns and Songs for Children. London: A&C Black
    
    
18. Haystead, W. (1995) Teaching Your Child About God - How to Establish and Nurture Your Child's Relationship with God. Ventura, California: Regal Books
    
    
19. Huijbers, B. (1974) The Performing Audience - Six and a Half Essay on Music and Song in Liturgy. Phoenix, Arizona: North American Liturgy Resources
    
    
20. Hymns and Psalms (1983) London: Methodist Publishing House
    
    
21. Johnson, M. & Johnson, H. (1998) Songs for Every Assembly. Hersham, Surrey: Out of the Ark
    
    
22. Johnson, M. & Johnson, H. (2002) Songs for Every Occasion. Hersham, Surrey: Out of the Ark
    
    
23. Johnson, M. & Johnson , H. (1991) Songs for Every Season. Hersham, Surrey: Out of the Ark
    
    
24. Jones, R.G & Jones, I.H. (1983) Preface in Hymns and Psalms (1983) London: Methodist House Publishing
    
    
25. Lankshear, D.W. (2002) Churches Serving Schools - Helping Churches to Support Their Local Schools (2nd ed.). London: National Society/ Church House Publishing
    
    
26. Lankshear, D.W. & Hall, J.R. (2003) Governing and Managing Church Schools, 2nd ed.. London: Church House Publishing
    
    
27. Lawrence, D.H. (1956) Hymns in a Man's Life in Beal, A. (ed.) (1956) Selected Literary Criticism. London: Heinemann
    
    
28. MacMahon, D. (1938) The New National and Folk Song Book - Part 1 London: Thomas Nelson and Sons
    
    
29. Marshall -Taylor, G. (compiler) & Coombes, D. (arranger) (1990) The Complete Come and Praise. London: BBC Educational Publishing
    
    
30. The Methodist Hymnbook With Tunes (1933) London: Methodist Conference Office/ Novello
    
    
31. National Curriculum Handbook for Primary Teachers in England (Key Stages 1 and 2). London: Department for Education and Employment/ Qualification and Curriculum Authority, 1999.
    
    
32. Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) (1996) The Annual Report of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools, Standards and Quality in Education, 1994-5. London: HMSO
    
    
33. Page, N. (2004) And Now Let's Move Into a Time of Nonsense - Why Worship Songs Are Failing the Church. Milton Keynes: Authentic Media
    
    
34. Pottebaum, G., Freeburg, P. & Kelleher, J. (1992) A Child Shall Lead Them - A Guide to Celebrating the Word With Children. Loveland, Ohio: Treehaus
    
    
35. Pottebaum, G. (1992) The Rites of People. Washington D.C.: Pastoral Press
    
    
36. Pritchard, G.W. (1992) Offering the Gospel to Children. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Cowley Publications
    
    
37. RE Council of England and Wales (1996) Collective Worship in Schools. Abingdon: Culham College Institute
    
    
38. Rendler, E. (1994) In the midst of the Assembly. Portland, Oregon: OCP Publications
    
    
39. Seaman, A. (ed.) (2004) Be Bold - Inspiring Primary School Collective Worship. London: Church House Publishing
    
    
40. Stanford, C.V. & Shaw, G. (eds.) (1958) The New National Song Book - Revised Edition. London: Boosey and Hawkes
    
    
41. Tamblyn, B. (1971) Sing Up - A Guide and Encouragement to Sing in Church. London: Geoffrey Chapman
    
    
42. Tarasar, C. (1983) 'Taste and See': Orthodox Children at Worship. in Cappadona, D. The Sacred Play of Children. New York: The Seabury Press, 1983.
    
    
43. Westerhoff, J. H. III (1980) Bringing Up Children in the Christian Faith. San Francisco: Harper & Row
    
    
44. Winter, M.T. (1984) Why Sing? Towards a Theology of Catholic Church Music. Portland, Oregon: Pastoral Press
    
    
45. Wright, J. (????) Sing Out 1. Newport: Gottalife Productions
    
    
46. Wright, J. (????) Sing Out 2. Newport: Gottalife Productions