Fine Arts Administrator says QuaverEd “Brings Music Education to Life”
By Kristin Clark Taylor
QuaverEd “Makes Music Personal”
There’s a vital distinction, says Fine Arts Administrator Scott Scrivner, between studying the fundamentals of music from the lifeless pages of a textbook and experiencing music – deeply and directly – on a personal level.
QuaverEd, says Scrivner, understands this distinction. Scrivner is the just-announced winner of South Carolina’s Arts Administrator of the Year 2023 award.
“From the very first moment I was introduced to Quaver many, many years ago,” Scrivner says, “I just knew I had to have it in my classroom.”
Scrivner, who spent ten years as a classroom music teacher and ten years as a band director before becoming a Fine Arts Administrator for Horry County Schools (South Carolina), is quick to concede that he is not a “tech guru” by any stretch of the imagination, “but I understood, from the moment that I saw it and the minute I heard it, that Quaver was providing something that had never been provided before, by anyone,” he says.
Scrivner was impressed by the lively songs and the engaging lessons, of course, but what he also found so compelling and unique was that Quaver was providing access to music itself.
“Before Quaver, students didn’t really have access to the sound of music,” he says. “You can’t take the sound of a quarter note home in your book bag. You just can’t. Quaver changed all of that. Quaver helps make music a personal experience.”
By going beyond the pages of a textbook and allowing students to feel the texture and the sound of the music, he says, a new level of learning and appreciation is achieved, ensuring a more holistic approach to music education.
“You can’t really read about a ‘short sound,’ a ‘long song,’ or a ‘high pitch,’ and understand its depth,” Scrivner explains. “But using Quaver, a student will see and hear the bird chirp, for instance, and fully appreciate the concept of a high pitch.”
Scrivner also likes the fact that Quaver’s superior technology extends the learning experience far beyond the classroom. He thinks back to his classroom days.
“When I was in the classroom,” he reflects, “I was really able to see how a student’s access to Quaver made such a difference in how they learned. The digital access Quaver provided meant my students could use it from home or from wherever they were.”
He continues with a smile in his voice: “One of my students used his mother’s cell phone to access Quaver and stayed on so long that her battery died, which, to me, was thrilling because it showed how much they appreciated the access!”
A State Song, a Short Survey, and a Sweet, Sweet Sheep named Perry
Scrivner, who was tremendously instrumental in working with the state Board of Education to bring QuaverEd into South Carolina schools, fondly remembers his first days with Quaver many years ago.
“They gave me a 30-day free trial and I used it every single day. I also invited all of the other music teachers in the county to see this innovative new program,” he says.
“In fact,” he continues, “when the folks at Quaver were first designing the program for South Carolina, I asked if they’d consider recording the South Carolina state song, and they were happy to do it. They put it on the playlist and we included it into the state standards!”
The outspoken educator believes in going the extra mile.
To prepare for his interview for this article, he conducted a quick, informal survey of all 31 of the elementary music teachers in his district, asking them to share their favorite Quaver songs. The results?
“’Sailing’ was definitely a favorite!” he reports.
Another favorite? “You-Nique.”
But Scrivner’s hands-down favorite? Perry the Sheep! “I could sing Perry the Sheep all day long!”
Scott ends our interview by sharing a quote he says he shared often with his students: “When words fail, music speaks.”
Thanks to extraordinary educators like Scott Scrivner — and to resources like QuaverEd — music does more than speak.
Music also teaches.
Kristin Clark Taylor is an author and a journalist.
For more information on QuaverEd, visit www.quavered.com.
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