Musicians need to strengthen the cognitive domain of musical activity in order to complement the strengthening of the psychomotor and affective domains. This means that the main learning goal is for students to develop the intellectual abilities and skills needed to perform and enjoy music on the highest levels. This course helps music students around the world and on any academic level to transform from a basic awareness of music to being able to recall, understand and apply knowledge to breaking down classics, creating novel compositions and judging composers and compositions based on criteria.
Shosys Academy is a flexible online music education system, while the Sholar System is the name of the course itself. The Sholar System course is broken down into six hierarchically arranged modules, each with twenty compact lessons. Students can decide for themselves whether to engage with 120 unique videos, course and module textbooks, extensive tests and tasks focused on relevant behaviors. And they can do that on a Reference, Lecture, Mastery or Tutor level of engagement. This means that students can decide where to learn music, when to learn music, how intensely to interact with the instructor and how much to pay for music education – anywhere from 0$/0€ to 20$/16€ per lesson!
- A Global Network
The lessons of Shosys Academy help music students around the world on any academic level to transform from knowing little about music to being able to recall, understand and apply music to breaking down classics, creating novel compositions and judging composers and compositions based on criteria.
Though education is a human right, good schools and teachers do not exist everywhere that there are motivated students. And there are not enough physical seats to accommodate everyone that wants to learn, even at the largest schools. As the lectures of Shosys Academy are hosted online, students from around the world are able to control the speed of learning while engaging in deep discussions, in-depth tasks and practical tests with the guidance of an experienced instructor – award-winning pianist and composer Kelvin Sholar.
Study groups can be formed along age-based, cultural-based or linguistic grounds; as well as independently of them. Peer review can be implemented. Independence from location enables talent to be found where it exists, not just where good schools or teachers already exist.
- Compact And Discrete Lessons
In Shosys Academy, the entire course is only 5 1/2 hours long, while 6 modules range from 40 minutes to 70 minutes long. 120 lessons range from 1 to 8 minutes long; lessons are scheduled three times per week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) for 42 weeks.
The comprehensive course focuses on the wide-ranging topic of musical knowledge, while modules break musical knowledge down into six major behaviors: appreciation, apprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Lessons focus on more than 120 different ways to discover and demonstrate musical knowledge.
By organizing the material in Shosys Academy in a compact and discrete format such as this, the student can concentrate on one thing at a time and learn at their own pace.
- Intensive But Guided Activity
There are four levels on which students can engage in learning music: Reference, Lecture, Mastery and Tutor. On the reference level of Shosys Academy the student only needs to access the lesson videos. On the Lecture, Mastery and Tutor levels of Shosys Academy, each lesson is based around the student’s intensive but guided activity. Standards define a group of learning goals or things that the student will be able to do when the lesson is completed. Lesson content is abridged in dedicated videos, but they are given in-depth in the course textbook or any of the six module textbooks, so that the students can read for themselves on their own time and find appropriate examples of important concepts.
Through discussion on the Tutor level of Shosys Academy, the students can debate important musical problems with the teacher or with each other in study or chat groups. Tasks are given which the student is to complete so that the student has the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of the behaviors necessary. Criteria are given which outline what the teacher requires for good performance on tasks. A test score rubric is included to explain how levels of knowledge are assessed by the tutor. Finally, test questions are assigned which are to be completed before the next lesson can begin. Each lesson contributes a grade of 100 points. Successful completion of a module requires 12000 points. Successful completion of the course requires 72000 points. Grading criteria: the recall of given Discussion and Content is complete. Bibliography selections are read thoroughly. Tests are fully completed within the given timeframe.
- Unique And Direct Instruction
Shosys provides a unique learning experience. Not only are major ideas of 18th and 19th Century western music learned, but also major ideas of 20th Century western music. These ideas are learned without focusing on the history of western music and its practitioners or technologies. The very important modern concept of information is introduced in Shosys Academy. This means that students learn how information technology concepts like entropy, uncertainty and freedom of choice link music to domains of learning like communication, thermodynamics and digital binary technology.
Mr. Kelvin Sholar is the primary content producer; yet, thorough references are given to well-established literature so that students can trace the evolution of ideas for themselves.
Though the content is organized so that students can learn at their own pace, students (on levels higher than the reference level) are not left to figure out things for themselves. Mr. Kelvin Sholar provides direct tutoring via video chat or personal consultations, applying his 30 years of experience as an educator at top-level global schools and performer with the world’s top talent to helping the students transform.
- Education Not Entertainment
The purpose of Shosys Academy is for students around the world on all academic levels to learn about music. Some motivated students may only need a textbook or videos as a reference or supplement; a situation where an instructor is not necessary. Other students may only need to refresh previous music education or catch up when no previous music education was available. Automated tests and instructor involvement provide students with instant feedback.
It is not the aim of Shosys Academy to produce entertainers. This course does not necessarily involve learning to perform on an instrument, (or with the voice). Nor does it involve learning how to use analog or digital musical technologies. Nor, does the course involve learning how to “feel” the music, critique music on purely subjective grounds or learn subcultural values. These aims can be addressed in future courses.
- Professional-Grade Content
The textbooks and video content of Shosys Academy are high-quality. We do not promote gross writing errors, unclear audio, and low-resolution video. Texts have been professionally edited for spelling and grammar. Audio content is in 24bit resolution and is free from distracting noises. Video content is in 16:9 aspect ratio, filmed in 1920p x 1080p resolution, and 30fps frame rate. This ensures best viewing results whether on a smartphone or computer. Videos and images have been compressed according to H.264, a standard format. Slides change anywhere from 30 seconds to one minute to ensure that video lessons are always dynamic and visually engaging.
- Hands-On Activity
Though the focus is not on musical performance with the voice or an instrument, students (on Lecture, Mastery and Tutor levels of learning) are expected to interact with the instructor and to complete tasks or tests in a timely manner. Video content only contains part of the information that is needed – as the textbooks provide much in-depth information which can lead the student down various paths to discover and demonstrate knowledge.
- Short Lengths And Flexible Scheduling
We break the traditional one-hour one-lecture-fits-all approach to learning via lessons that range from one to eight minutes long. This means that lessons are short enough for students to engage in learning several times within a day or week. This allows the student to control the pace of learning from a module a day for very fast learners, to one lesson a week for learners who lead a busy life. Furthermore, online lesson content can be accessed indefinitely; not just immediately – so that lifetime learning can be achieved.
Though everyone has the same amount of time in a day, the schedule of a good school or teacher might be too fixed for a given student. It is our experience that fixed learning schedules only ensure a variable outcome anyway; students can only earn a grade of a, b, c, d or f when they are not expected to master every lesson. With a fixed learning schedule full-time or part-time workers who need training will miss out when schedules collide. These problems are addressed by variable learning speeds as video content can be paused, repeated or reviewed anytime. Allowing students to learn when they want will improve lesson attendance. On the Lecture level of learning, students are supposed to learn at the same rate as a study group, but above the Lecture level of learning, students are not required to keep the pace of a study group.
- Maintain Health And Security
The Corona Pandemic has forever changed the way that schools, students and teachers interact. A major advantage of Shosys Academy is that learning is not based on an enclosed classroom within a given school at a central location. Nor is learning based on immediate physical contact between teacher and student. Distance learning online ensures that students maintain levels of health and security, while still accessing the highest level of learning and interaction.
In Shosys Academy, the interaction between students and the instructor is always to be timely, respectful and mindful. Tardiness, bad attitudes, inappropriate language, content or behavior will not be given by the instructor to the students, nor tolerated from the students to the teacher.
- Personality And Clarity
We consider the popular talking-head approach to online education to be a visual distraction. Gaining musical knowledge is the focus of this course; not necessarily the look and style of Kelvin Sholar (as snazzy as it may be!). However, (via dynamic video chat, video conferencing or direct private consultation), personal interaction between the student and instructor is fostered so that real conversations about music are had; not dispassionate lectures.
All of the given textbooks contain a preface that outlines the personal journey behind the creation of Shosys Academy, demonstrating that Kelvin Sholar is a real person who has experienced the same problems faced by music students today. Shosys Academy is not the business concept of an army of business persons. Lesson content has been designed solely by Mr. Sholar – it is a labor of love. Slideshows feature Sholar’s voice, and texts have been read slowly and clearly for the best impact. Furthermore, each module includes an introduction, so that the student is already familiar with the direction and goals before engaging in lessons.
- Consistent Organization
In each module’s textbook, the same eight items are given in every lesson as objective points of reference: 1). the title of the lesson, 2). a set of standards, 3). discussion question, 4). lesson content, 5). tasks, 6). criteria, 7). test score rubric, and 8). test questions.
The textbook is formatted as a linear schedule of work, lesson plan or course outline so that the overall structure of learning is as organized as possible.
- Clear Presentation
All lesson videos have Closed Captions. This helps those students whose second language is English. Closed Captions also make it easier for the hard-of-hearing and deaf, and for learning in noisy environments, or conversely, for learning in environments that are meant to be low-noise. This means that a dynamic live transcript of each video lesson is provided via Closed Captions, and texts are directly derived from in-depth textbooks. As lessons include video content, (via slideshow), with onscreen text, static text in the textbook and dynamic video conferencing, the content of the course is varied and engaging.
- Results And Benefits
By registering at Shosys Academy, music students will learn to recall a spectrum of important musical knowledge, and develop the intellectual abilities and skills that they have always dreamed of. The knowledge and skills gained can be directly applied in performances or the enjoyment of music.
We at Shosys Academy will meet you where you are, through an internet connection and your smartphone or computer. There will be no need to relocate to another location in order to get the musical education that you want. We will be available anytime that you need us, so you don’t have to miss out on work or dodge care-taking duties. We will provide instant feedback on tests and guide you on tasks at your own pace so that you don’t have to keep up with a classroom of figure texts out alone.
According to what level of engagement you choose, you will pay from as little as 0$/0€ to as much as 20$/16€ per lesson. This means that YOU won’t pay too much or too little to learn what YOU want. You will interact with an award-winning instructor with over 30 years of global teaching and performance experience, giving you the trust and security you need.
If you have any questions about Shosys Academy, visit our FAQ page. To Enroll in Shosys Academy, visit our products page.