Interview questions

BJ: There’s a big improvement, 12% to 56. I’ll just go through these seven questions in order.

1. So how many times did you watch the animations?

Probably about six or seven.

2. And would you say they were helpful overall?

Yes.

3. Now for improvements, mentioned pace. She thought they were too fast. Part of the idea of that was to make it streamlined knowing that you could watch them again. Can you think of other improvements along those lines or just anything really?

Possibly having the opportunity to pause it because that’s why I watched them so many times. I felt like it was going quickly. If I had the opportunity to pause I could have then processed the information.

BJ: That’s a good point. I could have done it that way but I didn’t think of that. (Note to reader: This has now been addressed and all of the animations have been converted to video files allowing the viewer full control of the playback).

4. Now do you think that children would be able to understand them?

Umm…older children, yes.

BJ: Primary age?

Yes I’m thinking of older primary. Not having a musical background, it was really unfamiliar to me. Perhaps children are more familiar because they’ve been working with you. Perhaps younger children because they would be familiar with these terms because they’re hearing them with you all the time.

5. Speaking of your background, what was the first concert you remember attending?

Do you mean big concert?

BJ: Anything really.

I can remember going to a school dance…do I have to say which year? Only joking! Daryl Braithwaite with Sherbet were playing.

BJ: Do you realize they’re touring again? I saw them playing on the Logies.

Yes. That was a school dance and they weren’t big at all. They were just doing country towns.

BJ: At your own school?

Yes. So this would have been in the early 70s. Maybe 1971. Probably the first really big concert I attended was Wings in about 1975.

6. And what’s your favourite album?

Favourite album?

BJ: I don’t know if I have one.

Well as you know I really like the Eagles. I’m really poor at remembering names of albums. I more remember artists. As far as albums go I can’t really say. Probably Eagles.

BJ: They’re good songwriters too.

Yes. I mean I could name some albums like Bee Gees “Staying Alive” and Michael Jackson “Thriller” but I couldn’t say they’re favourites.

BJ: That’s OK. Eagles will be fine.

7. Now is there anything else you would like to add about this whole process because one thing you mentioned got me into a whole new research tangent which was memory. Some research says it’s better to test immediately after but others say that if it’s a conceptual thing then there should be a day or so to give you a chance to forget and see what has really stuck.

I think with any skill you need to be practicing it for it be become learned. That’s what I felt I was doing when you said you were going to ask me about it, or that I was going to fill in something, that I was doing a memory test. I don’t have music background.

BJ: Even now, even though you’ve technically achieved a pass by getting 56%, unless you could apply that on an instrument you don’t feel you’ve learnt much.

Yes. I actually feel if I took the test again there’s no way I’d get 56% because that what I was doing. I was memorizing what you had there.

BJ: That’s interesting because it’s whole other issue. What is learning? Is it being about to recount something or apply something.

My view is application. Learning is being able to apply something. You could see Pavlov’s dogs being able to press buttons but that’s just conditioning. If they were put into a different situation they would be able to get their food.

(we both laughed)

BJ: Excellent. Thanks for that.