1800A- reflections
17/09/17
Re positioning 'The Elements': How Students Talk About Music
Rose, L. S., & Countryman, J. (2013). Repositioning ‘the elements’: How students talk about music. Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education 12(3): 45–64.
After reading this article, I was conflicted about what to think of L.S. Rose and J. Countryman’s views toward music education. Their main point of exploring past traditional lessons of musical elements and such had me quite frustrated as I read. I believe that yes, much like what they were explaining in their work, people have their own experiences with music and therefore create their own understanding and outlook on it but, I do believe, if you are going to teach people in a classroom setting, and you acknowledge that people process music in different ways, you have to realize that because of individuals’ unique interpretations, you cannot always tailor your teaching to be around every single pupil’s view in the classroom. This is why I disagree with this article in the sense that I think teaching musical elements is essential and is not a restriction, but only a stepping-stone for individuals to go off of when experiencing music for themselves. As a student who has been taking lessons and has been attending music classes for many years, I may have a bias in saying so but, the elements are an important foundation for music exploration and comprehension.
In relation to this thought, I would therefore express this frustration with the authors of this article about how I acknowledge that music is unique to every individual but, every individual needs framework for their thoughts and interpretations.
Something that surprised me when reading this article was that the authors wrote that music educators have a hard time or are hesitant to explore music past what is in curriculum. To me, it only makes sense that those who teach music are those who are passionate and have acquired their own personal appreciation for it and therefore, are the ones that should be advocating to explore music and to think of it in your own personal way.
Lastly, one thing that I really found interesting was how students that were interviewed who had minimal lessons / instruction, expressed their interpretation of music with emotion rather than referring to things like the elements. Even without knowledge of the elements, you would still think that people would think of trends and attributes in music synonymous to the elements you are taught in school due to their simplicity and importance to the music. As someone who is aware of the elements, it is now natural for the elements to be some of the first traits that I notice when I listen to a piece of music or create my own music.
Re positioning 'The Elements': How Students Talk About Music
Rose, L. S., & Countryman, J. (2013). Repositioning ‘the elements’: How students talk about music. Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education 12(3): 45–64.
After reading this article, I was conflicted about what to think of L.S. Rose and J. Countryman’s views toward music education. Their main point of exploring past traditional lessons of musical elements and such had me quite frustrated as I read. I believe that yes, much like what they were explaining in their work, people have their own experiences with music and therefore create their own understanding and outlook on it but, I do believe, if you are going to teach people in a classroom setting, and you acknowledge that people process music in different ways, you have to realize that because of individuals’ unique interpretations, you cannot always tailor your teaching to be around every single pupil’s view in the classroom. This is why I disagree with this article in the sense that I think teaching musical elements is essential and is not a restriction, but only a stepping-stone for individuals to go off of when experiencing music for themselves. As a student who has been taking lessons and has been attending music classes for many years, I may have a bias in saying so but, the elements are an important foundation for music exploration and comprehension.
In relation to this thought, I would therefore express this frustration with the authors of this article about how I acknowledge that music is unique to every individual but, every individual needs framework for their thoughts and interpretations.
Something that surprised me when reading this article was that the authors wrote that music educators have a hard time or are hesitant to explore music past what is in curriculum. To me, it only makes sense that those who teach music are those who are passionate and have acquired their own personal appreciation for it and therefore, are the ones that should be advocating to explore music and to think of it in your own personal way.
Lastly, one thing that I really found interesting was how students that were interviewed who had minimal lessons / instruction, expressed their interpretation of music with emotion rather than referring to things like the elements. Even without knowledge of the elements, you would still think that people would think of trends and attributes in music synonymous to the elements you are taught in school due to their simplicity and importance to the music. As someone who is aware of the elements, it is now natural for the elements to be some of the first traits that I notice when I listen to a piece of music or create my own music.
24/09/17
The Invisible Student: Understanding Social Identity Construction within Performing Ensembles
Hourigan, Ryan. M. (2009). The Invisible Student: Understanding Social Identity Construction within Performing Ensembles. Music Educators Journal 95(4): 34-38.
I found The Invisible Student: Understanding Social identity Construction within Performing Ensembles to be a very accurate article. For the most part, I agreed with the author’s ideas on how to approach situations of social anxiety and conditions in a classroom or band setting as an educator. I agreed that educators should be responsible for getting to know their students and knowing which students are “invisible”, to make arrangements to help ensure that all students feel comfortable and safe in a group setting.
Although I agreed with the overall idea of educators helping their students socially, I did disagree with a couple of points that were made in efforts to help the students. One point that was made was to use peer tutoring or peer help to force kids to interact. Although this can be helpful in some cases, I think that a lot of kids that have social anxiety or trouble interacting with their peers would feel even more intimidated and uncomfortable in a situation like that, especially if it is one-on-one help. Similar to the idea of peer tutoring is assigned partners on trips. This idea of assigned partners can be effective in some cases and ensure that invisible students aren’t left by themselves, but forcing two people who don’t regularly communicate to spend time together one-on-one can be very awkward and create even more anxiety for the students.
One thing that surprised me during the article was that in the case of the boy Jason, his lack of social connection to his fellow bandmates made an impact on his idea of him as a musician; two totally unrelated things. The article said that Jason was a good musician but he never thought of himself as worthy because he didn’t regularly socialize with those he was playing alongside each week. I found it very surprising and sad that a lack of recognition from or social interaction with the other young musicians would impact his view of himself that much, even though it was evident to his teacher and those around him that he was a good player.
I found it very interesting that as an educator, making a point of greeting your students at the door and other small gestures such as this really make a classroom or band a more comfortable environment. By creating a more comfortable environment right off the bat, the students are more likely to feel more inclined to socialize without being forced or prompted.
Lastly, if I were to talk to the author about the article, I would point out how I liked a point made at the end of the article. I liked how the author acknowledged that all of the ideas and tactics listed throughout the writing are only ways to set up conditions that encourage social interaction, rather than believing that teachers can force relationships onto students.
24/09/17
Think Everything's "Normal?" Then It's Time To Reconsider And Promote A New Narrative Of Disability
Serres, Drew. "Think Everything's “Normal?” Then It’s Time To Reconsider And Promote A New Narrative Of Disability." Organizing Change. Accessed September 24, 2017. https://organizingchange.org/think-everythings-normal-then-its-time-to-reconsider-and-promote-a-new-narrative-of-disability/.
I agreed with many of the ideas that were expressed by the author in this article. The main, overall message I agreed with was to not conform to society’s version of “normal” and to not exclude those who don’t meet this standard. I too believe that people should not conform to stereotypes that are considered “normal” in hopes of seeking normalcy as “normal” is a very subjective and exclusive term.
Although I did agree with many of the ideas in the article, there were some parts that frustrated me and seemed a bit contradictory to the original ideas of the author. One being the idea of recognizing that disability is an identity. Throughout the article, the author talks about how society gives a negative connotation to the word “disability” and that those with disabilities do have the same quality of life as those without them just with different accommodations. So why set yourself apart from others if you are trying to prove that your life is just as happy and full as those without disabilities? I do believe that yes, people who have a disability should embrace it and live a full and happy life with it, but I don’t think one should label themselves with it. A disability is one aspect of a person’s life, not their entire identity. Also, identifying as disabled is a very general label when disabilities are unique to each and every person who has them. The idea that a disability is an identity just sets those with them apart from those without them even more.
One thing that surprised me in the article was the statistic that black boys are 4 times as likely to be misclassified as intellectually disabled, and 4 times as unlikely to be classified as mentally gifted. It’s very sad and disappointing that in today’s society, where racism and prejudices are frowned upon and fought against, that that statistic is true in the education system, a system that strives for safe and healthy learning environments.
Something I found very interesting in the article was that a lot of the deaf community classify themselves as not having a disability, but as being a part of a linguistic minority. I really admire how positive and accepting people can be and how people do not dwell on their differences, but think about them in a more positive light.
Lastly, I wonder if the author has a personal affliction involving the “Culture of Normalcy” to influence him to raise attention towards the stigmas and negative connotations towards disabilities. Could this connection be what influenced them to write about the subject in order to create a positive change in society?
01/10/17
Fumbling Towards Vulnerability: Moving Out of the Familiar for Music Education's Sake
Dawe, L. (2016). Fumbling Towards Vulnerability: Moving Out of the Familiar for Music Education’s Sake, Canadian Music Educator, (57)2, 22-24.
I really enjoyed reading Lesley Dawe’s ideas towards her pedagogy. She explains in the article that, due to her formal training and strict music education growing up, she is afraid to stray away from strict, formal ideas as a music educator now, but that she has an appreciation for musical creativity. She explains further that, it took her time to feel comfortable allowing students to use their skills taught to them in their own creative ways, exploring their own musical ideas. I had no frustrations reading this article. I really liked Dawe’s ideas towards a more creative and personal approach to music education. Dawe expresses that, it takes time to be comfortable teaching in a less strict environment, but overall, it benefits the students a lot better and makes them more inspired to learn, something I could see to be very beneficial in the classroom.
Something that I found interesting in Dawe’s article was that, she describes her initial emotions towards this creative teaching as feeling vulnerable, something most students would not picture their teacher being. Dawe goes on to say that, being an effective teacher in this way of teaching music requires vulnerability, which I thought to be a trait teachers would try to suppress in a classroom setting.
Because I agree with Dawe’s ideas of a creative classroom so much, it really surprised me when she wrote that there is still a chunk of students in the classroom that are disengaged, even with her “Follow Your Dream” Program. When in an environment that is only prompting you to be creative and be yourself, I would find it hard to not be engaged.
Lastly, to Lesley Dawe I would ask, are there any points/ instances in her teaching when giving students this freedom has proven to be a problem? If so, what/when? And how would you resolve it without oppressing the ideas of the student(s)?
01/10/17
Workshop with Dr. Sandy Stauffer Reflection
Dr. Stauffer’s workshop was a fun and musical lesson on effective musical pedagogy. Throughout the course of the morning, we sang different songs and improvised different rhythms, which I found to be a very cool experience in a room with different musicians of all ages and skills.
I really liked how Dr. Stauffer introduced different ways to interpret and produce music without using actual music terminology and tools. For example, the exercise where the group drew dots and lines to create our own melodies. I liked how even though we weren’t using our knowledge of music by reading a staff with notes and markings, we were still able to successfully make music. This showed me that music can be expressed and understood without having actual knowledge of the way music is read and written, which would be very useful in a classroom where there isn’t much musical knowledge, or when instructing younger grades and introducing them to music.
Some points that Dr. Stauffer made that I hope to hold on to and utilize when I become an educator is to know when to step back and allow for connections and comprehension to be done on its own. Allow your students to use the tools that you teach them to further understand a concept by having them explore and make connections for themselves. Teaching isn’t always about instruction, but knowing when to instruct, when to allow for exploration, and when to intervene if needed. Another point is to try to allow for students to have a choice in matters. Try to always allow for students to feel like they have a say in what they are doing and when they give their input or make a decision, give them praise, for the best encouragement is praise.
Overall, I found Dr. Stauffer’s workshop on creativity in music education to be a very fun and informative morning. Through doing these activities and having the chance to explore, I really related to her ideas of musical pedagogy and I hope to utilize these ideas in my life as a future educator.
08/10/17
Skype Interview with Lesley Dawe Reflection
I found the interview with Lesley Dawe to be a little chaotic due to the technical failures we had trying to start it and the amount of time we had to accomplish it. Once the technical issues were fixed, we had a short, yet lovely, discussion with Dawe on her philosophy of music pedagogy relating back to her article. I agreed with and thoroughly enjoyed her article and therefore I really enjoyed hearing her go into further depth on her ideas. I was also given the opportunity to ask her a question that I ran into when reading her article which was helpful in clarifying my thoughts. As well as getting clarification with my question, it was also nice to hear the questions of the other students in the class and her answers to them as well to also give me a different perspective on her article than I had had before. Overall, the interview was a very nice way to get a further understanding of Dawe's article and her ideas and tips for music pedagogy.
14/10/17
Music Education, Multiculturalism, and Anti-Racism – Can We Talk?
Bradley, D. (2006) “Music education, multiculturalism, and anti-racism: ‘Can we talk?” Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education, 5/2: http://act.maydaygroup.org/articles/Bradley5_2.pdf
I found this article to be quite informative yet to be a fairly difficult piece to read. This article had very complex and academic language that I am not used to using or hearing in everyday life and therefore the article was not as enjoyable or easy to read. I was quite frustrated with the fact that due to its complex language, I felt that the messages may not have been as clear as they could have been using different terms, and therefore some of the ideas may have been lost or missed by the reader, especially in an article of great length such as this one.
Something that surprised me when reading the article was that the author believed that when race is brought up into conversation, even with a group of educators and/or adults,that the parties involved become uncomfortable and usually conversation decreases, in fear of perhaps saying something offensive or wrong. I found this odd that a topic so relevant in everyday society causes discomfort in people, especially educators and adults who are exposed to different races and cultures in their jobs and life every day.
After reading this article, I feel as though I have been sheltered as a growing musician in a part of the world greatly influenced by western culture. The repertoire I play and have played, and the music I listen to and am influenced by, is all a part of western culture and therefore, I have never had exposure to or insight into other kinds and areas of music not influenced by western culture. It really interested me when I read about the idea of a music hierarchy and how the music that I have grown up with and have known to be the world’s music, is at the top of this hierarchy of many different tiers.
If I were to ask the author a question concerning the article, I would ask, how can I as a future music educator make sure I give my future students the opportunity to experience and respect music other than traditional western music?
21/10/17
Another Perspective. The iPad is a REAL Instrument
Williams, D.A. (2014). Another Perspective. The iPad is a REAL Instrument. Music Educators Journal, 101(1), 93-98.
Overall, I found the ideas in this article to be very interesting, but not all ideas that I could agree with. I thought that the idea of exploring music through non-traditional tools such as iPads was very interesting. The idea of using iPads I find cool in the sense that, it may allow more opportunities for people without access to instruments, or people with limited mobility, etc., to engage in creating music. What frustrated me was that, the article compared the “worthiness” of iPads as musical instruments to traditional musical instruments using the explanations such as “both can be used to produce sounds wanting in musicality” and “an oboe will do nothing if a person does not touch it. An iPad will do nothing if a person does not touch it. Neither device will produce sound without help. Both are inanimate objects”. Yes both of these statements are true, and although I believe that iPads can and should be considered instruments, I find it hard to believe that an iPad takes as much discipline and technique as traditional musical instruments. One way I can argue that they are not the same is that, an iPad has a programmed sound and pre-set tone to that sound whereas, musicians that play traditional instruments have to work to improve their tone and quality of sound over time and with practice.
Something that surprised me in the article was the amount of apps and resources that can be accessed with iPads to create music. The article talks about how with an iPad, the capabilities are big and are expanding with the development of different apps and tools. I was surprised that there were so many resources for creating music on the iPads, enough for a serious music quintet to use when performing. I would have thought that there would be too many limitations and not enough resources for a group like that to be happy and successfully make the music they want to create.
I found it interesting that, the article claimed that due to the lack of physical movement needed to play an iPad, it makes it hard for the performers to stay in time and to be rhythmically correct. It goes further saying that, due to this lack of movement, it is hard for the students to visualize and internalize beats and therefore, they aren’t always successful at being in time. Because of this, they have to make a point of exaggerating movements to cue and be together as an ensemble.
After reading this article, I can’t help but wonder if the students who play iPads as their instrument of choice have a different understanding or have a harder time understanding certain principles of music such as tone and even reading music. It would be interesting to me to find out if there are any disadvantages or differences in students understanding of music if they don’t have to apply certain aspects to the instrument that they are using, in this case the iPad.
21/10/17
Deb Bradley Reflection
The time I had listening to Dr. Bradley was very interesting but unfortunately due to a performance I was a part of, my time with Dr. Bradley was cut short. The time that I was in class was a lot of fun, as we sang and reflected on her article in a more physical way. I really enjoyed that she put her article into further context by giving us more examples of the terms she brought up such as the difference between 'Anti-Racism' and'Non-Racist' through visual representation (a video) and through physical activity (singing and harmonizing). Overall, I feel as though her visit gave more insight into her ideas and more clarification of terms and ideas in her article in a very engaging and interesting way.
11/06/17
St. George Catholic School Reflection
On Monday October 30th, I had the pleasure of visiting the grade 3/4 class at St. George Catholic School in London with the fall 2017 Introduction to Music Education class. The visit started with a nice greeting from the school principal and shortly after we made our way to the classroom where we were approached by students of the grade 3/4 class. I could tell by looking at the students initially that some of them were very eager to interact with us ‘big people’, whereas some seemed fairly intimidated, as they were not used to university-aged people roaming the hallways of their school. Fortunately, I feel as though those feelings of intimidation subsided shortly into our visit as they were able to warm up to and interact with us through various activities.
I noticed immediately as we entered the classroom that without any introduction or instruction, Cathy started singing to the class. This grabbed the attention of the students right away and allowed for all of the students to have their attention on her, as well as allow the kids to warm up to the activities ahead. I found both Cathy and Kelly to be very successful in engaging the students and having their attention throughout the visit. They both took the same approach; less talking, more doing. Both Cathy and Kelly did not allow for much time between activities, eliminating time for the students to become unfocused. Cathy and Kelly both lead by example rather than giving explanations to start, giving the students the chance to learn by watching and to then collect an understanding through experience. They would then do a short debrief of each activity to allow the students to express their individual thoughts and ideas about the activity and to reflect on what they may have learned.
Throughout the course of the visit, we experienced many musical ideas and concepts in the various activities we engaged in. I found it interesting that neither Cathy nor Kelly addressed/ explained these concepts, but allowed for them to be experienced in the activity using terminology that was relevant to the students rather than musical terms. For example, in the “Shoulders, Chest” activity, the students demonstrated an understanding of musical dynamics by whispering the lyrics rather than being told to sing pianissimo.
Overall, I found our time with the elementary school students to be a lot of fun and it appeared as though that was the case for many of the people involved including the educators, university students and the elementary school students. Together, we made beautiful music and it was a very satisfying and insightful experience.
11/16/17
Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture
Tobias, E. S. (2013). Toward Convergence Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture. Music Educators Journal, 99(4), 29-36.
I really enjoyed the ideas about music pedagogy shared in this article. I think the idea of musical convergence seems very useful in the classroom, as it embraces music as it adapts through technological advancements and musical media, yet still includes aspects of traditional music education. I agree that, due to the variety of ways people practise music outside of the classroom, integrating these practises alongside traditional music curriculum and ideas, can both be an aid to the learning process as well as further engage students. I also like this idea of convergence because it seems to allow for students to be more creative in the classroom; something that I have learned through my student interviews is something students look for from music programs.
As I was reading, I didn’t come across anything that I disagreed with or that frustrated me. The views in this article embraced both sides of music pedagogy, the technological and creative side, and the traditional side, respecting and acknowledging both to be of importance in the classroom. Due to this compromise of using both, there weren’t any strong, one-sided views that would cause me to become frustrated or to question the ideas of the article.
Something that surprised me and that was of new knowledge to me was the plethora of platforms and resources that are unlicensed and available to the public online. The article talked about how artists would release music online for the purpose of allowing others to manipulate it and to make renditions. I didn’t realize how accessible such resources are and that there are contests and activities people participate in with these resources.
If I were to ask the author a question regarding the article, I would question how a music educator creates a marking scheme when the students have the freedom to choose how they analyze and present subjects in class. Would the teacher choose what platform the students use for each assignment and topic?
St. George Catholic School Reflection
On Monday October 30th, I had the pleasure of visiting the grade 3/4 class at St. George Catholic School in London with the fall 2017 Introduction to Music Education class. The visit started with a nice greeting from the school principal and shortly after we made our way to the classroom where we were approached by students of the grade 3/4 class. I could tell by looking at the students initially that some of them were very eager to interact with us ‘big people’, whereas some seemed fairly intimidated, as they were not used to university-aged people roaming the hallways of their school. Fortunately, I feel as though those feelings of intimidation subsided shortly into our visit as they were able to warm up to and interact with us through various activities.
I noticed immediately as we entered the classroom that without any introduction or instruction, Cathy started singing to the class. This grabbed the attention of the students right away and allowed for all of the students to have their attention on her, as well as allow the kids to warm up to the activities ahead. I found both Cathy and Kelly to be very successful in engaging the students and having their attention throughout the visit. They both took the same approach; less talking, more doing. Both Cathy and Kelly did not allow for much time between activities, eliminating time for the students to become unfocused. Cathy and Kelly both lead by example rather than giving explanations to start, giving the students the chance to learn by watching and to then collect an understanding through experience. They would then do a short debrief of each activity to allow the students to express their individual thoughts and ideas about the activity and to reflect on what they may have learned.
Throughout the course of the visit, we experienced many musical ideas and concepts in the various activities we engaged in. I found it interesting that neither Cathy nor Kelly addressed/ explained these concepts, but allowed for them to be experienced in the activity using terminology that was relevant to the students rather than musical terms. For example, in the “Shoulders, Chest” activity, the students demonstrated an understanding of musical dynamics by whispering the lyrics rather than being told to sing pianissimo.
Overall, I found our time with the elementary school students to be a lot of fun and it appeared as though that was the case for many of the people involved including the educators, university students and the elementary school students. Together, we made beautiful music and it was a very satisfying and insightful experience.
11/16/17
Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture
Tobias, E. S. (2013). Toward Convergence Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture. Music Educators Journal, 99(4), 29-36.
I really enjoyed the ideas about music pedagogy shared in this article. I think the idea of musical convergence seems very useful in the classroom, as it embraces music as it adapts through technological advancements and musical media, yet still includes aspects of traditional music education. I agree that, due to the variety of ways people practise music outside of the classroom, integrating these practises alongside traditional music curriculum and ideas, can both be an aid to the learning process as well as further engage students. I also like this idea of convergence because it seems to allow for students to be more creative in the classroom; something that I have learned through my student interviews is something students look for from music programs.
As I was reading, I didn’t come across anything that I disagreed with or that frustrated me. The views in this article embraced both sides of music pedagogy, the technological and creative side, and the traditional side, respecting and acknowledging both to be of importance in the classroom. Due to this compromise of using both, there weren’t any strong, one-sided views that would cause me to become frustrated or to question the ideas of the article.
Something that surprised me and that was of new knowledge to me was the plethora of platforms and resources that are unlicensed and available to the public online. The article talked about how artists would release music online for the purpose of allowing others to manipulate it and to make renditions. I didn’t realize how accessible such resources are and that there are contests and activities people participate in with these resources.
If I were to ask the author a question regarding the article, I would question how a music educator creates a marking scheme when the students have the freedom to choose how they analyze and present subjects in class. Would the teacher choose what platform the students use for each assignment and topic?