It seems that oftentimes when I learn a concept I learn it long enough to be able to use the information for that class and never think upon it again. To know whether or not you have really learned and understood a concept is to use it outside of environment in which you learned it.
Application of the concepts taught throughout the semester will be in the best interest of the students which I will teach. One of the most difficult things with the application of these concepts is that in order to do so it will require me to not only change the way rehearsals are run, but to convince administration that the current way that music classes are taught doesn't meet the needs of the majority of students. There needs to be a larger variety of classes taught other than the typical band, orchestra, choir which is present in the majority of public schools throughout the country at this time.
Since a curriculum overhaul isn't a very reasonable thing to ask, especially as someone who hasn't entered the teaching system yet, I will have to find other ways to incorporate the concepts taught throughout the semester into the classes I am given to teach.
As a music teacher, administrators expect results of students being able to play music. Therefore it is difficult to apply many of the things taught because teaching is dominated by rehearsing. The key is to be as efficient as possible. I will need to set aside a short amount of time everyday to incorporate a variety of lessons and teaching styles to add to the value of a rehearsal.
How do you make the time to teach students about a variety of cultural influences, different genres of music, use a variety of texts, and use technology when what is expected from you to keep your job is have a good an ensemble that can perform well? Some of the aspects such as vocabulary are naturally part of music education because if the vocabulary is not understood the music cannot be performed. Even the way you select music, which can be viewed as a variety of texts, is often dictated by what the administration wants from the school's music program. I will need to find ways of making the administration happy along with finding the most effective way or providing a productive environment for my students.
How can I use digital technology in such a way that their playing will improve? I can use digital technology as a way to assess students bringing in more time to have the students rehearse as a class.
How can I incorporate comprehension instruction into my lessons? I can make the time to have students sight-read music on occasion to see how quickly they can read and understand a new "text" that is placed before them.
The real question is how do I reach out to a variety of academically, linguistically, and culturally diverse students when music programs are only designed to reach a certain demographic? The model of the band, orchestra, choir program does not reach everyone. This defines Western Music as defined by the European model. In order to reach other demographics within a school, the only thing that is going to work is to offer a wider class selection.
The ideas and concepts taught in this class are some of the best ideas I have ever heard in relation to teaching, but in order to apply what I have been taught, it will require that I go against the norm not only in my own classroom, but in the approach I take in working with administration and convincing them to create new opportunities by creating new class options.
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
How do you get kids to like music?
A lot of times having students motivated about music is not necessarily the issue. Often times the motivation needs to be more directed towards parents and administrators. I recently attended a music educators conference and there was a very eye opening fact presented. As a music educator, I will spend my entire life recruiting and trying to get students to join in music classes. This is an aspect that no math, science, English, or history teacher will ever have to experience. At times it doesn't seem quite fair, but that means that I will have to just work that much harder once I am in the work place. This introduction is just an intro to the remainder of the blog post, but these are things to just keep in mind.
It seems that everyone has been exposed to music in their life, but it is rather a limited exposure. Because of this limited exposure, often times, many styles of music are ignored and receive little to no notice. Here are just a few new styles of music you may not have heard that are very interesting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NausAboQwRE
This first style of music is called gamelan. It originates from Indonesia and is a very sacred type of music. In fact, in order to have a gamelan you have to have special permission from the government of Indonesia because the gamelan is considered to have a soul of its own.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTPxqUtlLdo
Another style of music is sitar music. This originates from India and has a strong Hindu influence. This music can be loosely compared to American jazz because it is based significantly on improvisation and other elements that are used in jazz music.
Another thing about music is that it can be applied to your lives in several different situations. That includes other subjects in school. One such example is in your history class. There have been many sound tracks written that are focused specifically around historical events. One such example is the movie Gettysburg. As you listen to this soundtrack, it allows you to feel like you are right there at Gettysburg when the battle was happening.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TohunFbq5Lk
Then there is music that is listened to just for enjoyment. One style of music that I enjoy listening to just for enjoyment is jazz, but you may enjoy listening to rock, country, pop. classical, or new age music. An example of music that I enjoy can be found at this link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GgXqIf9h4s
It seems that everyone has been exposed to music in their life, but it is rather a limited exposure. Because of this limited exposure, often times, many styles of music are ignored and receive little to no notice. Here are just a few new styles of music you may not have heard that are very interesting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NausAboQwRE
This first style of music is called gamelan. It originates from Indonesia and is a very sacred type of music. In fact, in order to have a gamelan you have to have special permission from the government of Indonesia because the gamelan is considered to have a soul of its own.Another style of music is sitar music. This originates from India and has a strong Hindu influence. This music can be loosely compared to American jazz because it is based significantly on improvisation and other elements that are used in jazz music.
Another thing about music is that it can be applied to your lives in several different situations. That includes other subjects in school. One such example is in your history class. There have been many sound tracks written that are focused specifically around historical events. One such example is the movie Gettysburg. As you listen to this soundtrack, it allows you to feel like you are right there at Gettysburg when the battle was happening.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TohunFbq5Lk
Then there is music that is listened to just for enjoyment. One style of music that I enjoy listening to just for enjoyment is jazz, but you may enjoy listening to rock, country, pop. classical, or new age music. An example of music that I enjoy can be found at this link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GgXqIf9h4s
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Dimensions of Reading in Music
Being a "good reader" seems to be a rather subjective idea. As I was growing up I would have said that I was an excellent reader. I could always read several grade levels ahead and I was able to comprehend most the the material. I remember reading my older sister's geometry textbook one day. She was having a difficult time with a certain concept, but I picked up on it just after reading the book. Needless to say my sister, who is four years older than me, resented me a little after that. I had the ability to understand almost any text that was placed before me throughout middle and high school. That all changed when I reached college.
When I began music school, I figured that the textbooks would be rather simple to understand, because I understood conceptually how music worked. I was very wrong. My first encounter with this was music theory class. I wasn't too worried at the time because I had played the piano since I was five and the bass since I was nine. I felt I had had enough exposure to know what I needed to. What I didn't realize was I was entering a world of a new language. I could read the textbook just fine. I could read the musical passages fine as well, but putting the two together was very difficult. My comprehension was much lower than I had hoped it would be. It was difficult for me to admit that I was struggling because I had never struggled in this regard in my life before. As time went on, I was able to understand how to comprehend theory and by doing so, this transferred to all of my other classes.
Another aspect to consider with being a "good reader" in music is the ability to sight-read. Sight-reading can be compared to the reading tests that are given in school to see how fast you can read without any mistakes. Often times a new piece is given in an ensemble, but how well can you read it on the first time? How well can you read it the second time? Also with reading music, there is an element of repetition that exists with pieces. When reading a novel, you may learn word by seeing in many different contexts, but in music, the note in the context is what gives it meaning. It must be considered how well can a person emote the meaning of the notes, not just understand it him or herself. In these aspects, after much training, I would say that I am a decent reader, but there is a lot of improvement to be made in the ability to emote what the piece is trying to say.
Moving beyond being a good reader is what do I enjoy reading. It is interesting that what I enjoy reading both textually and musically have similar characteristics. The main characteristic is that it offers a variety. I have read a large spectrum of books from adventure and science fiction to classics and biographies. I usually read whatever has piqued my interest at the time. With music this is similar. I play a wide variety of music in a variety of settings. I play in large and small groups. I have played in classical, jazz, rock, and bluegrass settings. I have even played as accompaniment for a large choral setting. Each of these situations is enjoyable in its own right. Because of the enjoyment I find in reading, there has been little occasion that I have disliked the activity. I can only think of three times that I really disliked reading. That is when I read Hatchet in the fifth grade, Whirligig in the tenth grade, and A Separate Peace in the eleventh grade. None of these books have anything in common except they were required reading and most of the questions associated with the books were subjective. Even thought they were subjective, according to the teacher they were not. As far as musically disliking music, I have enjoyed it mostly, but occasionally there is a piece that is too easy which takes away from the experience. Also, if a piece is too hard it discourages and distracts.
In order to give students the opportunity to be "good readers" in a musical setting, I need to give them the opportunity to read a variety of "texts." Students need to be given different genres and styles of music to play so they can find joy in more than just one style of music and be educated in just more than one style of music. Another important, but difficult, aspect is finding music that is challenging, but not to difficult to learn. Everyone in the group is at a different level, so how do you reach this balance? Do you focus strictly on the most advanced students, the least advanced, or do you find somewhere in the middle to teach hoping to reach as many of the students as possible? Finding the correct music is important in helping students feel they can read and play the music. This is why a variety of music is needed so different pieces can reach various students at the different levels in which they find themselves.
When I began music school, I figured that the textbooks would be rather simple to understand, because I understood conceptually how music worked. I was very wrong. My first encounter with this was music theory class. I wasn't too worried at the time because I had played the piano since I was five and the bass since I was nine. I felt I had had enough exposure to know what I needed to. What I didn't realize was I was entering a world of a new language. I could read the textbook just fine. I could read the musical passages fine as well, but putting the two together was very difficult. My comprehension was much lower than I had hoped it would be. It was difficult for me to admit that I was struggling because I had never struggled in this regard in my life before. As time went on, I was able to understand how to comprehend theory and by doing so, this transferred to all of my other classes.
Another aspect to consider with being a "good reader" in music is the ability to sight-read. Sight-reading can be compared to the reading tests that are given in school to see how fast you can read without any mistakes. Often times a new piece is given in an ensemble, but how well can you read it on the first time? How well can you read it the second time? Also with reading music, there is an element of repetition that exists with pieces. When reading a novel, you may learn word by seeing in many different contexts, but in music, the note in the context is what gives it meaning. It must be considered how well can a person emote the meaning of the notes, not just understand it him or herself. In these aspects, after much training, I would say that I am a decent reader, but there is a lot of improvement to be made in the ability to emote what the piece is trying to say.
Moving beyond being a good reader is what do I enjoy reading. It is interesting that what I enjoy reading both textually and musically have similar characteristics. The main characteristic is that it offers a variety. I have read a large spectrum of books from adventure and science fiction to classics and biographies. I usually read whatever has piqued my interest at the time. With music this is similar. I play a wide variety of music in a variety of settings. I play in large and small groups. I have played in classical, jazz, rock, and bluegrass settings. I have even played as accompaniment for a large choral setting. Each of these situations is enjoyable in its own right. Because of the enjoyment I find in reading, there has been little occasion that I have disliked the activity. I can only think of three times that I really disliked reading. That is when I read Hatchet in the fifth grade, Whirligig in the tenth grade, and A Separate Peace in the eleventh grade. None of these books have anything in common except they were required reading and most of the questions associated with the books were subjective. Even thought they were subjective, according to the teacher they were not. As far as musically disliking music, I have enjoyed it mostly, but occasionally there is a piece that is too easy which takes away from the experience. Also, if a piece is too hard it discourages and distracts.
In order to give students the opportunity to be "good readers" in a musical setting, I need to give them the opportunity to read a variety of "texts." Students need to be given different genres and styles of music to play so they can find joy in more than just one style of music and be educated in just more than one style of music. Another important, but difficult, aspect is finding music that is challenging, but not to difficult to learn. Everyone in the group is at a different level, so how do you reach this balance? Do you focus strictly on the most advanced students, the least advanced, or do you find somewhere in the middle to teach hoping to reach as many of the students as possible? Finding the correct music is important in helping students feel they can read and play the music. This is why a variety of music is needed so different pieces can reach various students at the different levels in which they find themselves.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Music: A School and Home Experience
When considering a prototypical experience I had as a child with my discipline, several experiences come to mind, but there is one in particular that stands above the rest. The interesting thing about this experience is that is is more of a series of experiences because it happened on more than one occasion. This experience is that of watching the classic Disney movie Fantasia.
I am not sure why watching Fantasia had such a lasting effect on my life. My parents never watched it with me. In fact, they both avoided watching it at all costs. The sequences of dancing alligators and hippos or the creation and destruction of the dinosaurs set to Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring had no appeal to anyone in my family except myself. I would watch it often and be excited for each new sequence. The music told a story. It was more than just the sound. The sound represented a an event or an experience.
This experience has perhaps influenced my approach to music more than any other single event. Whenever I am learning new music, a story is created in my mind. Music is never just music, it has to have meaning. Because of this visualization, music became applicable to me in English classes when I was writing papers. Music became applicable when considering events in history. As my knowledge of music has continued to grow and expand, it has even begun to influence my views of mathematical and scientific concepts because of learning of the developments of electronic and twelve-tone music.
Another important series of events that influenced my pursuance of music is spending time with my father. Often times when I am with my father music is a important aspect of the time spent together. Something important that he always taught me was that all music is beautiful and that you need to give every type of music a chance.
As a bassist, this influenced me significantly. Whereas many of my colleagues are stuck in one genre of music, I move from genre to genre with great enjoyment and find it an exciting experience to be learning as much about every type of music that I can. All genres of music can be taught. It does not need to be limited to the classical world. The more that a person knows about all genres the more qualified they become in the more "academic" settings of music.
These two series of experiences have already greatly influenced the way that I approach my own music education, now it is just a matter of teaching it to my future students. Music can be connected to all fields of academia. It may require special effort to find what interests every student and finding a special project for each, but music is about identity. For those who find special interest in math, I could have students do a twelve-tone project with using a matrix. For students who find special interest in English I can give a piece to a student to write a short story related to the piece. For students interested in history I can go the route of assigning a project related to a specific composer. Different people identify with different parts of the academic, social, and/or political world. There is music that represents each of these various ideas, practices, and cultures.
As I plan rehearsal schedules and the repertoire that will be performed, it will be important to consider a wide variety of styles of music. There are musical elements to be learned from classical, jazz, rock, country, pop, and rap music. By having this wide selection of music presented, students may feel that their voice is heard and they have more of a presence in the classroom.
This experience has perhaps influenced my approach to music more than any other single event. Whenever I am learning new music, a story is created in my mind. Music is never just music, it has to have meaning. Because of this visualization, music became applicable to me in English classes when I was writing papers. Music became applicable when considering events in history. As my knowledge of music has continued to grow and expand, it has even begun to influence my views of mathematical and scientific concepts because of learning of the developments of electronic and twelve-tone music.
Another important series of events that influenced my pursuance of music is spending time with my father. Often times when I am with my father music is a important aspect of the time spent together. Something important that he always taught me was that all music is beautiful and that you need to give every type of music a chance.
As a bassist, this influenced me significantly. Whereas many of my colleagues are stuck in one genre of music, I move from genre to genre with great enjoyment and find it an exciting experience to be learning as much about every type of music that I can. All genres of music can be taught. It does not need to be limited to the classical world. The more that a person knows about all genres the more qualified they become in the more "academic" settings of music.
These two series of experiences have already greatly influenced the way that I approach my own music education, now it is just a matter of teaching it to my future students. Music can be connected to all fields of academia. It may require special effort to find what interests every student and finding a special project for each, but music is about identity. For those who find special interest in math, I could have students do a twelve-tone project with using a matrix. For students who find special interest in English I can give a piece to a student to write a short story related to the piece. For students interested in history I can go the route of assigning a project related to a specific composer. Different people identify with different parts of the academic, social, and/or political world. There is music that represents each of these various ideas, practices, and cultures.
As I plan rehearsal schedules and the repertoire that will be performed, it will be important to consider a wide variety of styles of music. There are musical elements to be learned from classical, jazz, rock, country, pop, and rap music. By having this wide selection of music presented, students may feel that their voice is heard and they have more of a presence in the classroom.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Hello from Thomas Pratt
I have wanted to be a teacher ever since I can remember. Originally I wanted to be a history teacher, but as I progressed through school, I found that my real passion was with music. This passion was with a variety of styles of music. I found enjoyment with classical and jazz, but I also enjoyed listening to country, rock, and pop music. In fact, music became such a fundamental part of my life it is difficult to identify other hobbies that exist outside of that realm. I do enjoy reading a good book or seeing a good movie, but I truly enjoy being able to create music alone and with others. Since my primary instrument is the string bass, creating music consists of working with others.What drew me to teaching in the music discipline can be directly correlated to the influence of one of my orchestra teachers I had while I was attending public schools in Cache Valley. Richard Kline is one of the orchestra teachers in the Cache County School District and teaches at White Pine Middle School, North Cache 8-9 Center, and Sky View High School. Not only was he my orchestra teacher, but he was my private instructor for my personal instrument the string bass. Mr. Kline inspired me to push myself and to go beyond what I thought I could do myself. As such, I began to see what influence music could play in life beyond only being a hobby. It can be a source of learning how to listen, create, and cooperate not only in music but in all aspects of life as well.
Currently my definition of literacy is the ability of a person to be competent in a certain area so as to be able to express one's own ideas and understand the ideas of another in a specific content area. Literacy most definitely relates to music education. In music there is a unique style of language that is not used in any other field of study. In music there is notational literacy, aural literacy, historical literacy, and many other types of literacy that are specific to different genres of music. Being able to communicate in the classical world does not mean you can communicate in the jazz world. Being literate in various styles of music can be as comprehensive as being literate in various cultures in the world.
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