Written Response 6

One important thing to consider as an educator is what to teach within the classroom. How do we determine the curriculum? The state provides standards to guide curriculum, but lesson plans should not be limited to these standards alone. William Ayers states, “Eventually I realized that no curriculum or text could ever suit the needs of everyone. We all more or less assume that curriculum will sum things up, and that’s a mistake. In a dynamic forward-charging world, there is no final word, no ‘the end.’ Instead of pursuing definite answers, I began asking questions” (p. 69, “To Teach, the Journey in Comics”). No school year, week, or day should look the same. Each lesson plan should based on the unique needs of the students. Each student is different in terms of ability, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and so forth. This does not mean that we as teachers should be “colorblind” and confuse equality with sameness (Bridget Sweet, “Diversity in the Classroom”). We cannot treat students the same way because they are unique individuals. But all students should be treated with equal respect. At the completion of each lesson, educators should reflect and make sure the standards and individual student needs have been met.

I know I need to improve in this area. I teach private piano lessons and I use the same method book for all of my students. I have a tendency to have my students go through the book page by page and learn every song in this one book. My lessons look largely the same from day to day and from student to student. I can improve by asking myself what each specific student needs to learn. Then I can personalize games, activities, and assigned repertoire to each individual student. After each lesson I can to continue to ask questions to refine and individualize the lessons. As I take this approach, both me and my students will have a more exciting, active, and effective learning process.

Written Response 5

How are musical preferences formed? Daniel Levitin states that our preferences “…have a large social component based on our knowledge of the singer or musician, on our knowledge of what our family and friends like, and knowledge of what music stands for” (p. 246, This is Your Brain on Music). While nature can play a role in musical preferences, my musical preferences are largely based on the social aspects of my life.

Take for example, my preference concerning opera. My mother absolutely hates opera, so growing up I did too. However, when I began to study music at the collegiate level, I found that most of my friends were vocalists. These friends loved and often participated in operas. As they exposed me to more and more opera I grew to enjoy it. There are still some operatic works and vibrato-heavy voices that I cannot stand, but in general I now like opera because of the influence of my friends.

Levitin also states that “Researchers point to the teen years as the turning point for musical preferences” (p. 231) and “our early exposure is often our most profound” (p. 246). This is also true for me. In high school I was exposed to the piano guys. I watched many of their music videos, bought their albums, and attended one of their concerts. They became my favorite group and to this day I keep up-to-date on new music videos and album releases.

Since musical preferences are formed early and are largely social, that means that music educators can largely influence the musical preferences of their students. Therefore, it is important to expose student to a variety of genres so that they will not close themselves off to musical opportunities for the rest of their lives. There are other influences of course, but educators do play a role and as such should strive to have variety in their curriculum.

Written Response 4

While there are many reasons to teach music, its aid in childhood development is one reason why music education is important. The research in this area is still new and not yet thorough, but existing research points towards music’s positive role in aiding development. So, how can parents and educators use music to help childhood development? Donna Fox’s article “Music and the Baby’s Brain: Early Experiences” addresses some ways to do so. Fox suggests that educators should focus on actively engaging their students rather than trying to entertain or merely have their students listen to music (p. 25). I agree with this idea because passive learning may lose student interest and does not allow students to explore music. Rather, educators can actively involve their students in the learning process through singing, movement, and playing instruments. It is through these actions that their development is aided.

Now for parents. The more we practice and do, the more we learn. So, students will more effectively progress if they are learning and experiencing music both in and outside the classroom. This does not require parents to be musicians themselves. Parents can simply add music to their existing routines by playing music during play time, listening to music with their children (in a concert or on the radio), and so forth (Fox p. 26). Ultimately, music educators have limited say on what occurs outside the classroom and can only encourage parents to further expose their children to music. But, if parents will do so, they can also actively aid in the development of their children through music.

Written Response 3

I found the article “Groove” by Victor Wooten to be very interesting because it compared learning music to learning language. Two elements that help us learn language are 1) being surrounded by it and 2) jamming with the pros (pp. 24-25, Wooten, 2006). As infants we were immersed in the English language because we were surrounded by English speakers. We began by repeating some of their phrases and eventually began to “jam” as we experimented with the language and began to formulate sentences on our own. We “jammed” with the pros by conversing with those who had already mastered the language.

We can also learn music by being immersed in it and by “jamming” with the pros. We immerse ourselves in music by listening to it on the radio, attending concerts, practicing, and so forth. “Jamming” is a little more difficult in traditional music classes because there is typically one professional to an entire group of students. The slow progress of one individual can also limit the entire class. Private lessons can help one “jam,” but it is not guaranteed to work. Just because one plays an instrument does not mean they are “jamming.” “Jamming ” is the formulation of new music in a conversation of sorts, rather than rote repetition (just like the formulation of new sentences). This is often done through improvisation.

How do I encourage this new kind of musical learning? I can immerse my students with music while they are in my classroom, and encourage them to attend concerts, take private lessons, and listen to music in their free time. I can encourage “jamming” by allowing my students to improvise in the classroom and encourage them to converse through singing or playing an instrument when listening to music in their free time. It is my hope that as I teach using this approach, that my students can learn to converse through music just as they do with language.