Orchestras of the Americas for Social Inclusion_Organization of American States

Mission Statement

The OAS Orchestra Program in the Caribbean, also known as OASIS-Caribbean, is geared towards contributing to the reduction of risk factors that result in violent behavior among youths. The Program redirects children and youths’ spare time to an activity that takes advantage of their inherent strengths and talents via a systematic orchestral and choral training program five days a week, two hours a day.

The Organization of American States and its Member States are committed to encourage social development programs with a strong cultural component as a foundation for democracy, social justice, and progress.

Programs like OASIS-Caribbean are aimed at reducing poverty and promoting social cohesion for sustainable and economic development. The Program complements intellectual and cultural growth and ultimately contributes to instilling civic values and increasing schooling retention levels.

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Method

The OAS Orchestra Program in the Caribbean, also known as OASIS-Caribbean, is an adaptation of the Orchestra-School methodology successfully used by Venezuela’s National System of Youth Orchestras and others. The Orchestra-School methodology is a pioneering initiative that, in Venezuela, has provided musical training to over two million youth via 126 community-based centers.

The Program created three orchestral and choral training centers that offer a pioneering instruction method customized for youths at risk in urban communities in Haiti, Jamaica and St. Lucia. The centers offer group classes at least five days a week, two hours a day.

The basic instruction method simultaneously integrates theoretical, instrumental, and orchestral practice and execution from the outset. This group work ensures that participants get involved in joint activities from the very moment they enroll. Students engage in instruction collectively, which is not the case in other traditional teaching methods. The Program’s method ensures early and continued exposure to great music works and seeks continuous contact between the beneficiary and his or her community.

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Strategy

The Program’s strategy is based on four key activities:

1 Customized Program operational plan design and monitoring system that responds to institutional capacities of the co-executing agencies. The Program began by developing an institutional evaluation and execution plan that involved adjustments and commitments expected from the music education and Government entities involved.

2 Musical instrument acquisition. Three sets of 52 string instruments were delivered to each of the three centers at the onset. Wind and percussion instruments were added at a second stage.

3 Implementation of a three-year training Program (gearing it towards self-sustainability after OAS assistance ends). After a training workshop with international instructors, all three centers started their activities between December 2009 and January 2010. The faculty was chosen with the supervision of each country’s preeminent school of music. Private sector representatives of each country have already been engaged in diverse sponsorship roles.

4 Impact assessment and evaluation and an expansion Program design. A best practices manual will follow the fist three years of the program’s implementation. A baseline has been prepared that will allow for the evaluation of the Program’s impact assessment and monitoring, all of which are necessary for improvements and future expansion and determine the operation’s cost-effectiveness.

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Benefits

The primary benefits that will be attributed to this Program include improvements in academic achievement and in the psychological development of children and youths. Its social benefits include reducing the rate of youth violence and school dropout rate. All of this has led other countries in the region to implement similar systems.

In addition to promoting the development of the young participant’s cognitive, musical, personal, and social skills, the Program’s three orchestral and choral training centers also will also benefit communities via concerts and recitals. This link with the community generates a supportive spirit that ensures that beneficiaries remain motivated and stay in the Program.

According to a 2004 Universidad de Los Andes study developed for this type of Program in Venezuela, beneficiaries participate in it for an average of 10 years, allowing them to absorb teamwork values and the pursuit of collective excellence. As a result, 85% of students achieve a good or excellent level of music proficiency.

The same study suggests that 63% of the beneficiaries have good grades in school (compared to 50% among their classmates who do not participate in the System). Parents also report improvements in their children’s punctuality, responsibility, and discipline while in the Program (95%, 96%, and 86%, respectively).

Also, a cost-benefit analysis (part of the same study) stated that benefits represent about 1.68 units for 1 unit invested in the Program that results from the decline in the school dropout rate and violence rates. There are also significant benefits in terms of formal employment expectations for working age children (14 and up).

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