Module 4 Reflection Post: Informing People about Music Education

Music education, in my opinion, is often overlooked at the elementary level. While I am a strong advocate for music education (obviously), most parents don't even know I exist. Through the discussion this week, I've had a chance to really think about ways to inform people about the importance of music education.

• One of the first things I had in mind would include setting up various stations in my classroom during meet and greet. At each station, students would work with their families in a variety of ways. One way could be instrument exploration with a "name-that-tune" game, another could be an "Are you my family?" scavenger hunt - where students and parents have to use the resources in the classroom to figure out which family certain instruments belong in, and another station could be a creative station using the app "Tune Train." While these are all simple, it would get the families into the classroom and I could give families a ticket out the door with curriculum information and a link to my website. 

• This is my first year at the high school since student teaching. While I'm only there for one class, I'm amazed to see that EVERY student has a smartphone. I'm assuming that if the students are constantly connected than the parents are as well. I've started using Twitter to give my high school students important information, but I've also started using it to document some of the things we are working on in the elementary classroom. My hope is that parents will being "following" me and have an easy way to see what their students are learning about in music. Here's an example of one of my tweets:

• Finally, I love the idea of inviting families and administrators/teachers into the music classroom for a student-led lesson. I'd work with the students and together we would decide what they want to teach their families about. On the day of the lesson, I'd ask the students to explain what the guests would be learning and then have them divide into small groups to being working. 

Module 4 Reflection Post: The Landfill Orchestra

The first time I saw this video, was probably 4 years ago when it was sent to me by another musician. I remember sharing the video with one of my 5th grade classes and although the subtitles went by very quickly, the students' response to what they saw was amazement. They couldn't believe that children that were probably around the same age as them were playing instruments made out of recycled trash.

When one of the musicians in the video talks about getting butterflies in her stomach every time she hears a violin, it reminds me of the readings from module 3. Music is an aesthetic experience. From my point of view, life in that little village in Paraguay is probably more challenging than I could imagine. Those people are living a life where they are trying to make money from re-selling other peoples' garbage. As a child, there probably isn't a lot of joy being experienced. However, having a recycled violin (which isn't even a real instrument in most Westerners' minds) can bring so much joy. Music give this girl, and others in the orchestra, a way of self-expression.

The other view expressed by another musician, "without music, life would be worthless," really stresses the importance of music and music education for all. These children are learning so many things - how to read music, express themselves, learn discipline through practice - are giving these children something positive in their lives.

This video shows us the power of music education. It can be the bright light in a world of darkness. It can provide the happiness that so many people long for. Music education is something that should be available to all children.

Module 3 Reflection Post: How Would you Teach Tchaikovsky?

If I were to teach this excerpt to a 5th or 6th grade general music class, the first thing I would do is provide them with a listening map for the first 0:02:40. It would look something like this:

1. :00 - :51 Oboe & Strings
2. :51 - 1:37 Cellos, Basses, Flute
3. 1:37 - 2:40 Full Orchestra

I would ask the students to just listen to the music the first time and I would call out the numbers when the instrumentation changed. 

I personally feel that students connect with music better when they are given creative freedom. I would ask students to prepare to hear the excerpt again. This time, they would be told to focus on how the music makes them feel or what it makes them think of. To help them keep track of their ideas I would encourage them to write the emotions they feel or to draw what the music is making them think of. 

I think it's important for the students to have two separate listening experiences. The first time we focus on the instrumentation and the second time the students mentally engage with the music to determine how it makes them feel. I've done an activity like this with a younger grade, but I used a song that some of them had heard before. In an attempt to introduce students to a variety of genres and styles I played "Here Comes the Sun" by The Beatles. I was surprised to hear students connect the song to a sad event (ex. a grandmother's funeral). 

Module 3 Reflection Post: Making a Case for Music Education

Part 1:

1. Students who studied music performance and music appreciation scored higher on the SAT than students with no arts participation. (Source: The College Entrance Examination Board)
2. Students who report consistent, high-level involvement in instrumental music over the middle and high school years show significantly higher levels of mathematics proficiency by grade 12.(Source: Champions of Change: The Impact of the Arts on Learning)
3. Playing an instrument helps youngsters better process speech in noisy classrooms and more accurately interpret the nuances of language that are conveyed by subtle changes in the human voice. (Source: Physiology and Communication Sciences at Northwestern University)
4. A correlation exists between the amount of music training and the amount of improvement inreading fluency in children. (Source: Learning, Arts and the Brain)

Part 2:

1. Music is more than just improving learning in other subjects. Art music can provoke an emotional response (Source: Foundations of Music Education)
2. Many curricular and extracurricular activities can provide the same thing. An example is that music can improve teamwork, but so can team sports (like basketball). (Source: Foundations of Music Education)
3. The research evidence that supports most of these claims are lacking (Source: Foundations of Music Education)
4. It's not enough to just attend a music class. You need to be mentally engaged in what is happening. (Source: Foundations of Music Education).

Module 3 Reflection Post: Aesthetic Experience

I feel that everyone who listens to music will, at some point, have an aesthetic experience. As one who listens to music, for the sake of listening to music, I can say that I've had these experiences many times in my lifetime so far. One experience takes me back to my freshman year of college.

I'll admit that as a vocal major, my listening habits centered around vocal music. Yes, I'd heard instrumental and classical music before, but it wasn't my first choice when looking for something to listen to. I remember walking into the concert hall without any expectations. The lights dimmed and I listened to the various works, but nothing really hit a chord until the final piece.

The music began and I literally felt like I was being transported. When the cello came in, I was in awe. I honestly don't know what it was about the piece, but it was beyond beautiful. Like the text states, it's something that can't be described. I just know that for the first time I was brought to tears by the sheer beauty of an instrumental work.

If I thought the first movement was stunning, the second was even better. Listening to it again, I'm filled with a mix of emotions. At times the yearning and cry of the viola fills me with a great sense of loss. At others, I feel as if I'm weightless - floating over the world.

I'm so happy that this assignment allowed me to experience a similar emotional connection when searching (and finding) the composition I was looking for. It was actually a world premiere by one of the professors at the University. (Concerto for Viola and Cello by David Gillingham)

Module 2 Assignment: Sage vs. Guide

Grade/Subject: 3rd Grade - General Music
Lesson objectives: Singing as an ensemble; playing a rhythmic ostinato independently of the singers.

Sage/Guide Checklist:
Sage: 19 tallies
Guide: 30 tallies
Undetermined: 9 tallies

Sage/Guide Percentage Breakdown:
Sage: 33%
Guide: 51%
Undetermined: 16%

Did the results surprise you? Why or why not?
I recorded myself on a Friday with one of my "rowdier" classes. I decided to record myself for this lesson because the students were somewhat comfortable with ostinatos and it would give a better indication of my teaching compared with a lesson that involves a brand new topic.

I wasn't too surprised to see that most of my teaching fell in the guide column. I believe this is mainly due to the fact that students have had previous experience working with rhythmic ostinatos in class. However, this ostinato and song were more challenging than previous lessons. Most of my "guide" tallies came from the assessment portion of the lesson, where I was encouraging students and making corrections when needed.

I found that most of my "sage" instruction occurred at the beginning of the lesson when I was describing the lesson objective and what I was looking for. I also gave myself marks in the "sage" section when I was redirecting the class/specific students.

I was undetermined during the questioning portion of my lesson. I like to use questioning to engage students and help them connect ideas on their own, but I'm not sure if that was "sage" or "guide." Part of me thinks that by asking the questions and giving the prompts results in the "sage" role, but then I also feel that by having students come up with the answers makes my role a "guide." I also question whether call-and-response (when learning the song) would be considered "sage" or "guide."

If you were to teach the same class or rehearsal again, what improvements would you consider making regarding the sage/guide dichotomy?
I think I would try to spend less time talking at the beginning of class. Instead, I would give the overview of the objective and begin making music almost immediately. I think it's important for an elementary music teacher to be seen more as a "guide" rather than a "sage." It's our job to foster the creativity and love of music in our students. 

Which philosophical position is best represented by the sage?
I think the "sage" is most like the philosophy of rationalism. I believe this because the text references preferred methods of learning/instruction include lecture - which is what I was doing at the beginning of class. The text also explains that rationalists want students to understand the "big picture" and favor discipline in the classroom.

Which philosophical position is best represented by the guide?
The "guide" is a pragmatist. They are more interested in evaluation (in comparison to the other two philosophies). The main difference between pragmatists and the other two philosophies is that pragmatists are interested in helping students learn how to learn. They want to make sure the students have the tools to figure out the problems in a new setting. They also do not have a set way of teaching; in this lesson, I noticed that I had to use a variety of methods when assisting students in the ostinato.  

Module 1 Assignment: Book Comparison

As an elementary music teacher I am well aware of the Silver, Burdett, and Ginn series. In all honesty, it is what helped to get me through in my first year. Looking through the various textbook editions, it's interesting the progression of songs and curriculum maps based on newfound knowledge on the development of children's voices.

Comparing all textbooks curricular plans, I personally think the 1995 edition of The Music Connection is the best. In the 1920 text, the curricular plans were based off of the tonic chord and diverged from there. In the 1903 version, the songs are arranged by key. To me, this is just ridiculous. Then the 1995 edition started to sort out songs based off of units of study or lesson objectives (Ex. melody, form, harmony). Unfortunately, in the 2000 text, I didn't understand how the music was arranged. I think the first unit is supposed to get the student accustomed to singing again and singing with other children and the second unit is focused on rhythm.

I was very surprised to see how wide the ranges were in the early texts. In the song "Little Miss Tulip" the range was over an octave. I can't believe that this was intended for 2nd/3rd. My students really struggle with singing above a D5, so I try to choose songs that don't go any higher. I also noticed that this song had a lot of skips (and some of them were big skips). Usually songs that I choose are skipping within the chord (do-mi-so). I suppose there wasn't really an attempt to connect this song with another aspect of the curriculum, other than singing a song for spring.

In "A Lesson for Giving" I was surprised to see the song written in 3-part. Thinking back to when I was teaching middle school choir, we were only just beginning to introduce 3-part in the 8th grade choir. 7th grade was still singing 2-part. Looking at the music, I wonder what part the boys would sing because this is usually when the changing voice begins. For middle school. I didn't find the range for the soprano or alto I part to be too challenging. However, I felt the alto II part was way too low. I also thought that there were too many non-chord-tones.

"Don Gato" is still a 3rd grade favorite! I honestly don't know who likes the song more, the students or myself. Comparing this song to "Little Miss Tulip" you can see that the range has changed dramatically. The song is less than an octave and I believe the tessitura lies mainly between D - A. The song could easily be connected to units on world music, specifically Mexico, and perhaps a verse could be sung in Spanish.

"Free at Last" has appeared in several texts that I've seen. I noticed that of all the songs, this one has the smallest range (when looking at the group singing part only). The song would be a great connection to how slaves used to teach each other songs (call and response) and the connection to American history. The solo singer has one line where they have to sing up to a D5, but it isn't anything that is unattainable. I think, the reason for the small range and tessitura, is meant for the male changing voices.

I think that the books have come a long way since 1903. Most of the books have improved with a better organization of songs and songs that are vocally appropriate for children. It's interesting to also see that the newer textbooks include chord symbols in the vocal score. Perhaps this is for people like me, who would rather play melody in the right hand and chords in the left.

Module 1 Reflection Post: Music and Morality

Reflecting on my childhood, I think my parents did an above-average job of exposing me to various music genres. Of course, their musical tastes were played a majority of the time. However, I can distinctly remember various occasions where our old conversion van was playing Broadway showtunes one day and jazz the next. Now, as I'm an adult that spends 5 days a week with children, I'm surprised and slightly appalled at what students are (or are not) listening to.

I'll say that my parents only played lyrically-appropriate music for me when I was a child. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be taken into consideration anymore. When I read the article, " Is Mainstream Music culture Affecting Our Morality System?" I found myself shaking my head in agreement. The article gives examples on how many times we just subconsciously sing along to songs without really thinking about how degrading the lyrics are. The example given was referencing using a date-rape drug on a woman and taking advantage of her. We try to justify these lyrics by telling ourselves, "oh it's just a song." But then we, as a society, are surprised when this happens in real life.

In this week's reading, Plato gives a direct correlation with the music you listen to and your morality compass. Essentially, if you listen to good music you are a good person; if you listen to bad music then you don't have very good morals. In regards to this first article, I think Plato hit the nail on the head. If you are constantly listening to music with lyrics that objectifies women, degrades another race or religion, or talks about immoral things (ex. adultery, murder, theft, etc.) sooner or later you will be influenced by those things.

Prior to doing some article searching for this week, I had no idea how the idea of warning labels on records came about. When I read about Tipper Gore's experience on buying her child music and being appalled at the sexually explicit lyrics that Prince is now known for, I was surprised that it had taken that long for someone to raise awareness on music. The NPR article goes on with an excerpt from a book, insisting that the sexually explicit and violent lyrics need to stop. I definitely think that Plato is turning over in his grave if he's hearing some of the music being released today.

While I know I can't control what my students listen to outside of school, I think it's my job to at least expose kids to as much "good" music as possible. Who knows, perhaps my influence will inspire one of my students to stop listening to gangsta rap.

References 
"Is Mainstream Music Culture Affecting Our Morality System" by Zelena Williams at uptownmagazine.com
"Tipper Gore and Family Values" by Robert Siegel on npr.org