Reflecting is the best way to grow and learn as a human being and especially as a teacher. I gave another mock general music audition lesson yesterday. The topic again was tempo and ironically enough I definitely changed the tempo of my lesson. Last lesson I relied to heavily on technology and although I believe technology can help teach a lesson, I have noticed that it can hinder a lesson and stop it dead in its tracks. If a teacher is not fluid with the computer then there is a lot of dead time that needs to be filled up. I think I need more practice multitasking to better incorporate technology.
So for this lesson I cut out as much technology as I could and just tried to switch the flow of the classroom. I tried to get my students more involved in the class and not talk as much as I did last lesson. I began by getting the class clapping together and asking questions about tempo while we clapped and changed the tempo of our clapping. I then wanted them to break into groups, use a metronome, and create their own rhythmic patterns which would then be subject to varying tempos. I did not give many requirements aside from having at least one steady pulse rhythm to keep them grounded and having at least 3 varying rhythms and body percussions. I let groups work independently and they were able to come up with good rhythm patterns that worked at varying tempos. I might reconsidered letting students make their own rhythms because that could take a majority of the class period. I might have made some rhythms samples that they could choose from and play around with. The lesson was about tempo, not creating rhythms and I need to stay focused in my lessons. While I was teaching during the lesson I got held up trying to put up the clock example. I think this slowed the lesson down but I recovered quickly from it and let the students use their own metronomes to practice different tempos. I think it was good to have the students try out different tempo markings to help learn the name of the tempos and feel how fast or slow those tempos markings are supposed to go. At one point the whole class was stomping along to the beat of one group to assess whether each group was getting the right tempo. This can assess how groups understand tempos and how other groups can learn to feel tempos.
Overall I think it was a more enjoyable lesson for my students because it didn't have them waiting to get to the activity and kept the active the whole time. It evens gives students a chance to be a part of the assessment process for each other which is a good skill to have.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Monday, April 20, 2015
How to Build an Audience
I think that any music teacher should be concerned if his or her concerts are only drawing in a small amount of audience members. Not only is it disheartening for the students if they just worked on their music for months to only perform it for an audience of 50 when the auditorium can hold 5 times as many people, but it also does not look good to the administrators. Music teachers are constantly trying to prove the value of their program to administration and a small audience turn out to concerts is not going to help the cause. So what can we do?
First off, build a bigger ensemble. The more students in the ensemble, the more parents and guardians that will be in attendance at concerts. It also doesn't hurt to have more bodies in your program!
Secondly, low hanging fruit. My college orchestra director always gave a speech during the rehearsals before an upcoming concert about how we needed to reach out to the all the low hanging fruit in ours lives (family, friends, relatives, teachers, co-workers, roommates) and tell every one of them about our concert. It made sense, we saw these people almost every day and had contact with them so it was easy to tell them about our concert. Since we knew them personally it made it easier for those people to come to our concerts, maybe not to see the ensemble but to see the individual play. Most of the people close to us in our lives know we are involved in music and a concert would be a good chance for them to see what we have been working on. The other half of this is getting strangers to come to our concert. My college orchestra director had the whole orchestra write their own 1 minute "elevator speech" so that everyone would be prepared to sell the concert to any person they met.
In order to get people in the door, we as directors need to push our students (sometimes very hard) to talk about their show and hopefully they have all worked hard enough and would want to share their hard work with family and friends because it is something they are proud of. It is the student's time to show off what they can do.
Furthermore, in building a music program around a community it helps to get your students playing and performing in the community. If the ensemble is active in the community then the concerts will not just be school events, but community events. If we are willing to share our music, people will listen. Hopefully over time a tradition can be built around the community coming together to attend concerts and celebrate the hard work that our music students do.
First off, build a bigger ensemble. The more students in the ensemble, the more parents and guardians that will be in attendance at concerts. It also doesn't hurt to have more bodies in your program!
Secondly, low hanging fruit. My college orchestra director always gave a speech during the rehearsals before an upcoming concert about how we needed to reach out to the all the low hanging fruit in ours lives (family, friends, relatives, teachers, co-workers, roommates) and tell every one of them about our concert. It made sense, we saw these people almost every day and had contact with them so it was easy to tell them about our concert. Since we knew them personally it made it easier for those people to come to our concerts, maybe not to see the ensemble but to see the individual play. Most of the people close to us in our lives know we are involved in music and a concert would be a good chance for them to see what we have been working on. The other half of this is getting strangers to come to our concert. My college orchestra director had the whole orchestra write their own 1 minute "elevator speech" so that everyone would be prepared to sell the concert to any person they met.
In order to get people in the door, we as directors need to push our students (sometimes very hard) to talk about their show and hopefully they have all worked hard enough and would want to share their hard work with family and friends because it is something they are proud of. It is the student's time to show off what they can do.
Furthermore, in building a music program around a community it helps to get your students playing and performing in the community. If the ensemble is active in the community then the concerts will not just be school events, but community events. If we are willing to share our music, people will listen. Hopefully over time a tradition can be built around the community coming together to attend concerts and celebrate the hard work that our music students do.
Creating a Love for Music
As a music teacher, the big question that I face is how can I create a love for music and performing in my program? I recently watched a documentary called "Thunder Soul" which is about the Kashmere Stage Band, an all black high school jazz/funk band that became a national sensation in the 70's. The band was lead by director Conrad O. Johnson or "Prof" and the band won many jazz band competitions and even recorded top selling albums. It takes a special kind of person to take a group of high school students and make them into a professional band. Johnson believed that if his students could play with the same quality as a professional, then they would stick with their music. He gave his students a means to be amazing and he pushed them and challenged them to be the best they could be. These high expectations are what some of the members said "saved their lives." Many of the members of the band did not have father figures in their lives and were not motivated or committed to school but Johnson became a father figure all of his students and he trained and shaped his student's minds. He gave them something that they could lean on for the rest of their lives. He believed that there was no limit to a child's ability to play music, so he set high goals and inspired them to put everything into it and he could see the future inside of each of his students.
Johnson not only inspired his students, but he has also inspired me to be the the teacher that could have such a profound effect on his students. To create a love for music I must remember that every child can play music and like Johnson said, there is not limit to a child's ability to play music. I have to believe in my students because in some cases they might not believe in themselves or their family might not believe in them. Giving a student that hope will motivate them to continue playing. I want my students to know that they are part of something great and that they are representing the school and the community and that they are creating an identity for themselves and their home. Music is extremely powerful, even if students do not continue to pursue music after graduation, they still have something to lean on for the rest of their lives that many people are not lucky enough to have. My goal is to create a life long love and appreciation for music and be able to open a new world for students to explore and be a part of.
Johnson not only inspired his students, but he has also inspired me to be the the teacher that could have such a profound effect on his students. To create a love for music I must remember that every child can play music and like Johnson said, there is not limit to a child's ability to play music. I have to believe in my students because in some cases they might not believe in themselves or their family might not believe in them. Giving a student that hope will motivate them to continue playing. I want my students to know that they are part of something great and that they are representing the school and the community and that they are creating an identity for themselves and their home. Music is extremely powerful, even if students do not continue to pursue music after graduation, they still have something to lean on for the rest of their lives that many people are not lucky enough to have. My goal is to create a life long love and appreciation for music and be able to open a new world for students to explore and be a part of.
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Lesson Reflection
Yesterday, in my Secondary Music graduate course, I gave a 10 minute "audition" lesson on the topic of tempo. Ironically enough, my teaching tempo was pretty inconsistent. My colleagues noticed that when I was teaching, demonstrating, or having my "students" practice something, that I was fluid and consistent with my presentation. It was the transitions that were killing me. I had great activities and examples planned out but when it came to changing from one to another, I lost the class's attention in the process. In a real middle school setting (and I am well aware of this after interning in one for 2-3 months) that downtime between instructions and during transitions can be deadly. A great amount of time can be spent trying to settle the class down and regain focus. I need to make sure that I am not leaving my class hanging at any point during the lesson. Even if I have to pause, I should do it with purpose. I need to hold the attention of the entire class no matter what. This means I need to be more deliberate with my teaching and directions so that there is no confusion about what I am asking of the students. In my lesson yesterday I started off with the students singing the ABC's in different tempos. I was too laissez faire with my instructions and this left my students feeling confused. As a teacher, I need to give thorough instructions for every task so that we are not wasting time revisiting instructions that were not clear enough. I think with more time and practice I will develop this meticulous method of giving instruction. I cannot assume that every student will understand what I am asking them to do if I am too vague with my directions. I had a plan going into the lesson, but now I know that my plan needs to be broken down into smaller pieces. I need to stick to my plan and follow the directions I write for myself. It may feel like I am micromanaging everything that could happen in the classroom, but I believe that practicing teaching at this level will help greatly. If I have a solid foundation going into the classroom then my lessons will run extremely well. Purpose, passion and persistence are what I want to incorporate into my next lesson. I think my ideas are well founded and are great ways to engage students, but the lesson itself isn't going to teach the class.
Monday, March 30, 2015
Should we have to rely on parents and fundraising to support a modern BOJC (Band, Orchestra, Jazz, Chorus) program?
I am not an expert on how much funding a school puts into its music and arts programs, but from my experiences in schools I can tell that school funding is not enough to support these programs. I think that a schools music program can get by with the funding from the school but it takes much more for the program to grow and cannot solely rely on school funding. The music classroom requires all the same materials as any other class but it cannot survive on just that. It needs instruments, music, repairs, replacements, uniforms, tuxedos and dresses, extended field trips, competitions, performances, and on and on.
In a modern BOJC class we cannot guarantee that all students will be able to afford or have access to all of these "necessities." Purchasing instruments and concert attire can be a hardship for some families and it becomes the schools responsibility to provide instruments and concert attire for students who wish to participate in music. We cannot turn away students who want to be in the music classroom if they cannot afford an instrument, but the school alone cannot pay for every student to have their own instrument and uniform. In order to have a successful BOJC program the members and students of these classes need to realize that this class is not like their other classes and that as a part of an ensemble, they are part of a team. A team that works together to make sure that every member has an equal opportunity to play and perform. that means that if Student A wants to play bassoon but the school does not have a bassoon and he cannot afford one, then the members of this ensemble will raise the money to get a bassoon into their ensemble. Helping Student A helps the entire ensemble, but how do we convince our students of that and how do we go about raising that money?
Students need to know that being a part of a BOJC ensemble is like being a part of a sports team and if a sports team wants to travel, or get new equipment, or new uniforms or really do anything they will need funding. The BOJC ensembles are bigger than students other classes like math and english in that the whole class suffers if one person is left behind. Once students realize this and can become invested in something bigger than just themselves, then they can start to brainstorm ways to make their experience in the ensemble the best it can be. This is not going to happen overnight, but the mentality and culture of a team needs to be built around the ensemble.
I do not believe that parents should be held responsible for covering costs of ensemble expenses. No individual parent should feel that they need to pay for their child to be involved in a school ensemble. Parents already have to pay enough for their child's instrument and attire and sometimes even lessons. As music educators, we cannot expect parents to cover the cost of maintaining our ensembles. We need to raise our own money in a way that teaches students responsibility to a group and a team. The best programs thrive off of community support and the best programs raise as much money as they can to make them the best that they are.
The only flaw with raising money from the community is the inevitable fact that some communities are much more affluent than others which means that some schools have an advantage in community funding just by being lucky enough to live where they live. While this is an unfortunate truth, the value of taking ownership and being responsible for the success of a group is a great lesson to teach our students and any amount of money that is raised is more than they had to start. It takes time and practice but in the end a modern BOJC program cannot grow without support from outside the school. The future of our ensembles and classes in our school districts is really in our hands and we can take them as far as we want them to go with the right attitude, support and school culture.
In a modern BOJC class we cannot guarantee that all students will be able to afford or have access to all of these "necessities." Purchasing instruments and concert attire can be a hardship for some families and it becomes the schools responsibility to provide instruments and concert attire for students who wish to participate in music. We cannot turn away students who want to be in the music classroom if they cannot afford an instrument, but the school alone cannot pay for every student to have their own instrument and uniform. In order to have a successful BOJC program the members and students of these classes need to realize that this class is not like their other classes and that as a part of an ensemble, they are part of a team. A team that works together to make sure that every member has an equal opportunity to play and perform. that means that if Student A wants to play bassoon but the school does not have a bassoon and he cannot afford one, then the members of this ensemble will raise the money to get a bassoon into their ensemble. Helping Student A helps the entire ensemble, but how do we convince our students of that and how do we go about raising that money?
Students need to know that being a part of a BOJC ensemble is like being a part of a sports team and if a sports team wants to travel, or get new equipment, or new uniforms or really do anything they will need funding. The BOJC ensembles are bigger than students other classes like math and english in that the whole class suffers if one person is left behind. Once students realize this and can become invested in something bigger than just themselves, then they can start to brainstorm ways to make their experience in the ensemble the best it can be. This is not going to happen overnight, but the mentality and culture of a team needs to be built around the ensemble.
I do not believe that parents should be held responsible for covering costs of ensemble expenses. No individual parent should feel that they need to pay for their child to be involved in a school ensemble. Parents already have to pay enough for their child's instrument and attire and sometimes even lessons. As music educators, we cannot expect parents to cover the cost of maintaining our ensembles. We need to raise our own money in a way that teaches students responsibility to a group and a team. The best programs thrive off of community support and the best programs raise as much money as they can to make them the best that they are.
The only flaw with raising money from the community is the inevitable fact that some communities are much more affluent than others which means that some schools have an advantage in community funding just by being lucky enough to live where they live. While this is an unfortunate truth, the value of taking ownership and being responsible for the success of a group is a great lesson to teach our students and any amount of money that is raised is more than they had to start. It takes time and practice but in the end a modern BOJC program cannot grow without support from outside the school. The future of our ensembles and classes in our school districts is really in our hands and we can take them as far as we want them to go with the right attitude, support and school culture.
Monday, March 23, 2015
Technology in the Music Classroom
Technology is taking over our schools whether we want it to or not. Technology is evolving at a rate that educators can hardly keep up with; so much so that we may lose our students to technology if we do not embrace it. Our students were born into the technology revolution and it would only make sense to teach them the through a way that they know how to learn; technology. Technology means: computers, laptops, iPads, Chromebooks, cellphones, Smart Boards, iPods etc. Students come into school every day with these devices and teachers are forced to deal with them. Some think that these devices only serve as a distraction, but in this age students are exposed to terabytes of information (the quality of the information that they are receiving is up for debate...) and ultimately end up doing a lot of learning from the internet. The entire catalogue of human existence is just a click away now and teachers may not be fully aware of this. Students are able to learn what they want when they want through the internet and come to school knowing more than students did 20 years ago. Think about it, the average American student has access to the internet in some way and is already absorbing information where as the average student in the 1930's only knew their own backyard and whatever mom and dad taught them. The amount of information of students know is astronomically more than past students which is a large change, but has education changed as drastically to meet the needs of these tech revolution students?
Some teachers I have talked to embrace technology and the fact that information is readily available for students. For this teacher, it meant that students would not have to spend as much time memorizing facts and could focus on projects which developed critical thinking skills. The goal of education should not be to create well oiled test taking machines but to create a generation of people who can think and create to ensure the success of the human race.
Educators should not feel threatened by technology, it should not be a burden nor something to dread. Technology offers the means to reach students in a way that can make sense to everyone. Technology is the muse of this new generation of students and it should be fostered and shaped so teachers and students can get the most learning usage out of it.
In the school that I am interning in now, the music teachers are utilizing the rise of technology in their music classrooms. One specific program they use in their general music classes is Synthesia. Synthesia is like the popular video game Guitar Hero, for piano. What I like about technology in the music classroom is that it caters to students with unique learning styles. While music can be a lot of listening and ear training or rote, technology puts music into different mediums so that anyone can learn it. Synthesia allows students to watch the notes they are playing (sight) while hearing the same notes on their pianos. We are lucky enough to have a piano laboratory for our general music students, with 16 macs fully equipped with music software as well as 16 Yamaha piano keyboards for each computer. Students are able to listen (with headphones) to what the assignments that the teacher assigns (also through the computer). The class is structured so that the teacher can e-mail the assignments to students. The assignments are broken down into sections with links to various exercises for each lesson. The lesson includes links to note reading drills and games, compositions assignments, scale practice, and songs in Synthesia. All of this material is right at the student's disposal as soon as they walk into the room, all the teacher has to do is direct them to the e-mail and they can get started. She will pause them to explain new concepts, but usually will go around the classroom, while everyone is working independently, and work with individual students to help them develop their skills. It is almost impossible for teachers in any other classrooms to get this one on one time with a student, especially in music, and technology makes this possible.
Another elementary music teacher has adopted even more mediums of technology through which to teach music, such as the Smart Board and iPad. Through the Smart Board she was able to write rhythms with her 1st grade class and recorded them playing their rhythms on the Smart Board. She was then able to play back what they recorded with the written rhythms so they could see their music come to life.
There are endless ways that technology can help us teach and reach our students on a new level. We need to be educated about these technologies and able to harness their potential to make them as effective as they can be. The biggest obstacle for teachers is learning how to use these technologies as well as use them in a classroom setting. Keeping an open mind and knowing how much of an impact technology has on our students is the first step. Once we are able to accept that it is here to stay, we need to work hard to eventually have technology work for us and our students to become the most successful individuals they can be in this technological revolution.
Some teachers I have talked to embrace technology and the fact that information is readily available for students. For this teacher, it meant that students would not have to spend as much time memorizing facts and could focus on projects which developed critical thinking skills. The goal of education should not be to create well oiled test taking machines but to create a generation of people who can think and create to ensure the success of the human race.
Educators should not feel threatened by technology, it should not be a burden nor something to dread. Technology offers the means to reach students in a way that can make sense to everyone. Technology is the muse of this new generation of students and it should be fostered and shaped so teachers and students can get the most learning usage out of it.
In the school that I am interning in now, the music teachers are utilizing the rise of technology in their music classrooms. One specific program they use in their general music classes is Synthesia. Synthesia is like the popular video game Guitar Hero, for piano. What I like about technology in the music classroom is that it caters to students with unique learning styles. While music can be a lot of listening and ear training or rote, technology puts music into different mediums so that anyone can learn it. Synthesia allows students to watch the notes they are playing (sight) while hearing the same notes on their pianos. We are lucky enough to have a piano laboratory for our general music students, with 16 macs fully equipped with music software as well as 16 Yamaha piano keyboards for each computer. Students are able to listen (with headphones) to what the assignments that the teacher assigns (also through the computer). The class is structured so that the teacher can e-mail the assignments to students. The assignments are broken down into sections with links to various exercises for each lesson. The lesson includes links to note reading drills and games, compositions assignments, scale practice, and songs in Synthesia. All of this material is right at the student's disposal as soon as they walk into the room, all the teacher has to do is direct them to the e-mail and they can get started. She will pause them to explain new concepts, but usually will go around the classroom, while everyone is working independently, and work with individual students to help them develop their skills. It is almost impossible for teachers in any other classrooms to get this one on one time with a student, especially in music, and technology makes this possible.
Another elementary music teacher has adopted even more mediums of technology through which to teach music, such as the Smart Board and iPad. Through the Smart Board she was able to write rhythms with her 1st grade class and recorded them playing their rhythms on the Smart Board. She was then able to play back what they recorded with the written rhythms so they could see their music come to life.
There are endless ways that technology can help us teach and reach our students on a new level. We need to be educated about these technologies and able to harness their potential to make them as effective as they can be. The biggest obstacle for teachers is learning how to use these technologies as well as use them in a classroom setting. Keeping an open mind and knowing how much of an impact technology has on our students is the first step. Once we are able to accept that it is here to stay, we need to work hard to eventually have technology work for us and our students to become the most successful individuals they can be in this technological revolution.
Monday, March 9, 2015
Rubrics, What Are They Good For?
In Alfie Kohn's article "The Trouble With Rubrics" he describes rubrics as "a tool to promote standardization, to turn teachers into grading machines or at least allow them to pretend that what they’re doing is exact and objective." I agree that, if used incorrectly, rubrics can inhibit true learning. If students learn that getting the A is the most important thing, then students will learn to do whatever it takes to get that A, even if they do not actually learn the material. I feel that teachers who not enthusiastic about what they teach often use rubric to sort out their students and assign grades based on predetermined standards. If the teacher does not care about each individual student's success then how can we expect students to care about their own success. Rubrics can be misused to set unachievable standards for some students, and the teacher might not even know it. How can we measure the learning of all students collectively with only one rubric? Kohn states that "observers criticize rubrics because they can never deliver the promised precision; judgments ultimately turn on adjectives that are murky and end up being left to the teacher’s discretion...and in order to be successful...we need check our judgment at the door, so we can all learn to give a 4 to exactly the same things." Every teacher has their own unique personality and they have their own life experiences which can reflect in their interpretations of rubrics and ultimately their grading. I agree that teachers need to make sure they are being conscious of their own judgements and that they refrain from giving grades from an opinion based approach.
This can relate to our music ensemble classrooms; how can we as music teachers grade every student fairly and know that if we had another music teacher come in and grade the class, that he would give the same grades? If we used the same rubric we could narrow our differences but what would still be different? It is difficult to grade students who have diverse musical backgrounds. How do grade the all-state violinist who took private lessons his entire life and the violist who only knows what she learned in school and had to switch from violin because there weren't enough violas in the orchestra? That's a dangerous dichotomy which music teachers will have to compare and grade from the same rubric. While the violinist excels the violist may be struggling with learning a new clef which may prevent her from excelling. If you have near music prodigies as well as students who can barely read music in your ensembles, how do you go about grading them. Does it become a matter of effort vs. music talent. I do not believe I could honestly give someone a grade based on their musical talent. The violinist may be good, but if he does not apply himself in class and is disruptive and tardy then maybe his effort should determine his grade. I know he can play the instrument, but how will he apply what he knows to better the ensemble. If he lead the section, helped others learn their parts, took on new challenges and difficult repertoire, then I could give him a good grade for his effort and his commitment to success. If the violist does not both to learn alto clef and pretends to play during rehearsal then she might not deserve a good grade because she is not putting in any effort to become successful. If she tried to learn the clef, did drills online, practiced scales, stayed after for help on technique, then I could visibly see that she was attempting to achieve a higher level of learning which would warrant a good grade. Even if she still has trouble playing correct notes in orchestra, without any effort then there would never be any progress.
Overall it seem that music teachers need to find a common ground that every student can be graded on fairly despite their musical backgrounds. Everyone will be at different levels and it is not fair to grade only on raw talent. It should be based on how students apply what they know and how they learn from doing so.
This can relate to our music ensemble classrooms; how can we as music teachers grade every student fairly and know that if we had another music teacher come in and grade the class, that he would give the same grades? If we used the same rubric we could narrow our differences but what would still be different? It is difficult to grade students who have diverse musical backgrounds. How do grade the all-state violinist who took private lessons his entire life and the violist who only knows what she learned in school and had to switch from violin because there weren't enough violas in the orchestra? That's a dangerous dichotomy which music teachers will have to compare and grade from the same rubric. While the violinist excels the violist may be struggling with learning a new clef which may prevent her from excelling. If you have near music prodigies as well as students who can barely read music in your ensembles, how do you go about grading them. Does it become a matter of effort vs. music talent. I do not believe I could honestly give someone a grade based on their musical talent. The violinist may be good, but if he does not apply himself in class and is disruptive and tardy then maybe his effort should determine his grade. I know he can play the instrument, but how will he apply what he knows to better the ensemble. If he lead the section, helped others learn their parts, took on new challenges and difficult repertoire, then I could give him a good grade for his effort and his commitment to success. If the violist does not both to learn alto clef and pretends to play during rehearsal then she might not deserve a good grade because she is not putting in any effort to become successful. If she tried to learn the clef, did drills online, practiced scales, stayed after for help on technique, then I could visibly see that she was attempting to achieve a higher level of learning which would warrant a good grade. Even if she still has trouble playing correct notes in orchestra, without any effort then there would never be any progress.
Overall it seem that music teachers need to find a common ground that every student can be graded on fairly despite their musical backgrounds. Everyone will be at different levels and it is not fair to grade only on raw talent. It should be based on how students apply what they know and how they learn from doing so.
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