What motivates and engages boys in music education?

This article examines two sites of excellence in which music education is making a difference for boys. One of the sites is a primary school in Australia's Northern Territory and the other a high school in urban New South Wales. The article grows out of research (Motivation and Engagement of Boys: Evidence-Based Teaching Practices) conducted in 2005 for the Department of Education, Science and Training in Australia by a team of researchers. The two sites are examined through the lens of a Motivation and Engagement Framework developed for the DEST research. This framework looks at the element of engagement in two ways under the name Motivation, e'ngagement, E'ngagement (MeE) Framework, developed by researchers Munns and Martin (in Munns et al, 2006); and these sites provide opportunities to discuss educational benefits associated with the study of music: fostering multiple literacies, building self esteem, creating equitable access to the arts regardless of socio-economic background and most importantly, developing musical intelligence.