Tyler Shepard April 21, 2014 Personal Philosophy of Music Education

As a musician and educator, it is important to reflect on how music and my past music teachers have affected mefor better or for worseand why these experiences are so. Some of the personal benefits of my study of music through the years, starting at age 4 with Suzuki violin lessons, are: a deeper appreciation for the arts; improved interpersonal skills; improved communication skills; and development of self-discipline. The reason I am now a music teacher is because of a great respect for the people who helped cultivate these qualities in me, and a love for the young people whom I want to see have equal opportunities to have the same experiences and develop similar qualities. In musical terms, students should be able to listen to, read, analyze, and play music while thinking critically and making judgments about their own and others playing and/or singing. Further, this stimulation of thinking bolsters the students confidence while simultaneously opening them up for correction and suggestions for improvement. The goal is to create learners who are not afraid to express their intellectual and emotional faculties even if there is a possibility of messing up. Music is an essential part of every students education that fosters learning about and experiencing many cultures, including their own; learning how to think critically and creatively; and learning how to interact constructively with their peersall while learning to enjoy the unique, beautiful art that is music. Making music is a very natural thing for humans to do, and it should never be approached with the attitude that it is something extra or that it is only for a few people. Students should know that they can achieve anything through practice and hard work. Students should be set up for success by getting proper instruction, first and foremost, on singing and instrumental
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techniques and being encouraged to take lessons with a private teacher who can give them more in-depth personalized attention. In the book, A Philosophy of Music Education, Bennet Reimer states that all the theorizing in the world cannot, by itself, yield musical meaning.1 He states that music education is a way to develop in individuals the ability to gain more meaning from musical experiences and that every individual has the ability to experience music and its meaning, often in different ways.2 Reimer discusses the idea of choosing to approach either music as a form or music as a practice.3 It is important to have a balance between the two ideas. When students learn to make music, they should realize that music is both a product and a practice. For example, when composers write music, they often take much time and thought into factors such as instrumentation, key, style, musical form, and others before they even begin to compose. In the process of composition, there are many things that may happen that alters their plan or what they expected they might write. So composition is a practice. Just as importantly, composition is also a productthere would be no music to learn if composers did not produce a product. Music is a beautiful art that should be studied for aesthetic reasons, but as Reimer says himself, process (praxis) and product (form), each dependent on the other, are necessary components of the experience-based philosophy...4 The music educator should select repertoire that is challenging but within the ability level of the group. Presenting them with a varied, quality repertoire will make the music-making experience much more enjoyablenot only for the students but for all the people who hear them.

1 2 3 4

Reimer, Bennett. 165. Ibid. 165 Ibid. 49 Ibid. 51

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Students will more easily appreciate music that is well-written and that they can play well. With a varied repertoire, students can be introduced to various cultures, some of which they may not be familiar with. In his article, Choosing Repertoire: A Balanced Diet, Joseph Allison discusses important factors in choosing music that is educationally sound, attainable and enjoyable for students, and that is enjoyable for the audience as well. Some of the factors that must be taken into consideration include: composer, structural elements, historical perspective, cultural perspective, theoretical elements, technical demands, musical demands, and hit lists.5 The music educator must know about the composer in order to interpret the piece of music correctly. He or she can then not only instruct students how to play it correctly but give them some context into what the meaning of the music might be as well as give them some background information about the composer.6 For structural elements, the type of composition, period of composition, and compositional techniques are all important factors in knowing how to perform a piece of music. This ties into some of the other factors such as the composer and what time period he/she was living. Technical Demands is an important factor when selecting repertoire for performing groups because they must fit within the groups comfortable ranges and technical abilities.7 While it is important to select repertoire that will set students up for success, it is also important to pick repertoire that will challenge them to become better musicians. Vygotskys theory of learning lead to the idea of the Zone of Proximal Development, which is characterized as the gap between a learners current level of development and their potential

Allison, Joseph; Choosing Repertoire: A Balanced Diet; School Band and Orchestra magazine; April 2010
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6 7

Ibid Ibid
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level of development.8 It could also be stated as a set of knowledge and abilities that a learner is not aware that he or she has.9 The basis of this theory is that what people learn with the help of others can be later demonstrated independently, meaning that the more a person experiences something, the more they can learn.10 However, musical demands must be factored in and decided whether the performing group will be able to grasp and handle the expressive techniques, transparency of texture, pitch exposures, and soloistic responsibilities.11 Allison mentions hit listslists of music that is performed often or may be suggested by music publishers. Although it would give an educator a good idea of what is popular it may not be the most reliable way of picking quality repertoire. For Cultural Perspective, Allison mentions that diversity and variety have always been valued as artistic musical characteristics.12 Terese

Volk states that a multicultural education should be based on the two ideas that the United States is a diverse population of people and students will better understand the world and American society.13 Being able to experience other cultures in multiple ways is an excellent method in introducing students to whole cultures. In her book, Music, Education, and Multiculturalism, Volk gives some materials and methodologies to teaching music with multiculturalism. One of
8

Kelly, Steven N.; Teaching Music in American Society, A Social and Cultural Understanding of Music Education; Routledge, 2009. Pg.109
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Ibid. 106 Ibid. 106 Allison, Joseph. Allson, Joseph.

10 11 12
13

Volk, Terese; Music, Education, and Multiculturalism; Oxford University Press, 1998, New York. Pg 3.

these methods is through folk songs and folk dancing. She emphasizes the importance of not only teaching the students how to sing the music and dance the steps, but also giving them the opportunity and the tools to explore the culture so they can take the music and dance in context.14 Ms. Volk emphasizes that the music educator make informed decisions about the music they pick, because a lot of music from different cultures has been mainstreamed to fit the idea of what the publisher may think will sell. She does state that in recent years, more care has been taken to preserve the authenticity of these arrangements from other cultures.15 Another aspect of teaching that meets several goals is the implementation of student leadership. In Music Advocacy and Student Leadership, Tim Lautzenheiser states that student leaders are no longer a luxury in our educational world, but a necessity, particularly in the field of music.16 Every student can be a leader and should be given the opportunity to lead on some level. However, not all students are ready to be leaders. Dr. Tim outlines some important characteristics for a music educator to look for in potential student leaders. First of all they must be selflessalways helping those around them before and after rehearsals.17 The next trait is persistencecompleting ones assigned responsibility with tenacity and positive enthusiasm.18 A music educator should also look for students who are consistentpredictable and emotionally stable.19 Student leaders should also be affablethey must have a sense of rapport with their
14 15
16

Volk, 169. Ibid. 170

Lautzenheiser, Tim; Music Advocacy and Student Leadership; GIA Publications, Inc., 2005 Chicago. Pg 86
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Ibid. 88 Ibid. 89 Ibid. 89

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fellow students and musicians and do not necessarily have to be the best musicians. Honesty is also key. This shows that the student has some integrity. Lastly, student leaders must be faithful and loyal, and committed to the group.20 Having section leaders commands a sense of responsibility and commitment and gives the students something to strive for. It keeps the student in the position accountable to maintaining their playing ability while getting other students to practice, and it can be done in non-threatening ways. Having sections divided into parts, where there is a leader for each part, is a good way to distribute leadership while still maintaining a high standard. Student leadership also provides a forum for increased student-tostudent interaction as well as student-to-teacher interaction. Students will be more inclined to practice if there is incentive to do so. Lautzenheiser uses the acronym C.A.R.E to describe the attitude of the ideal ensemble. The acronym stands for Communication, Attitude, Responsibility, and Excellence.21 It is important for student leaders to be reaching out to other members of the group, and good Communication works toward conflict resolution and problem solving. Dr. Tim says there is no substitute for healthy attitude; it is as important as good intonation.22 Students should look forward to the time that they have together in the music setting and student leaders should exemplify this for the others. Good student leaders model Responsibility in that they are serious in their endeavors; they are investing in the groups goals; they know their role and the importance of each individual for the group to succeed; and they respond to the director in ways that will advance the entire organization to the next level of

20 21 22

Lautzenheiser, 89. Ibid. 106. Ibid. 106.

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artistry.23 The ultimate goal of student leadership is selflessness and an ever-expanding base of support and enthusiasm for the program and the students learning. One way to teach students how to practice is by being consistent in rehearsalsstarting with warm-ups, and progressively moving to more complex musical concepts each rehearsal. Music curriculum is really well presented and received when using the Spiral method, where basic concepts are taught, but still may need lots of practice, and progressively more difficult and complex concepts are taught while constantly revisiting earlier concepts. This idea of a spiral curriculum, developed by Jerome Bruner, reflected some of Jean Piagets ideas of the stages of cognitive development, as knowing when a student is ready to learn is crucial.24 It is important to present material in an age-appropriate manner. Transfer of information and skills between situations is an essential facet for educators to assess in order to properly sequence transitions to more complex material.25 It is therefore important for the educator to plan how the more basic ideas and concepts will be presented so that the students will be able to grasp them and be able to apply them on a higher level. Benjamin Blooms Taxonomy of Learning is also representative of the idea of going from simple to complex. Three categories exist within this taxonomy: Cognitive, which deals with mental skills and intellectual ability; Affective, which deals with ones attitude and feelings or emotions; and Psychomotor, which deals with kinesthetic abilities.26 Within each of these categories, there are levels that range from the simpler to the

23 24 25 26

Lautzenheiser, 106. Kelly, 107. Ibid. 108. Ibid. 108.

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more complex, and each level must be mastered before moving on to the next category.27 Within the music program, it is important to have in mind a learning objective, which is a statement of what the student will know or be able to do after the lesson. As students are challenged to perform at the higher levels, more abstract musical skills can be achieved and demonstrated, and they can be more meaningful.28 Another interesting way to encourage critical thinking that I have used is the development of interdisciplinary lesson plans, where Music and Art are taught alongside Science and Math. When students make connections that we as educators set up between these disciplines, new synapses start firing and a really unique time of learning happens. Music can be used not only to enhance learning of other subjects, but other subjects can enhance the learning of music as well. Students begin to get a big picture idea of concepts such as observation, adaptation, composition, theme, and others as they apply to many arts and sciences and life in general. In Fall of 2009, I participated in a class called STEAM3which is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math, Medicine, and Music. In this class, I developed with my team of threeone math science major, one art major, and one music majora three day interdisciplinary teaching unit which we got to teach in a seventh grade natural science classroom at Stivers School for the Arts in Dayton Public. Our unit was centered on the Arctic Ecosystem. Some of the activities we had the students take part in included: building Inukshuk rock sculptures based on real examples of Inuit Inukshuks; adapting an animal not native to the Arctic by describing and drawing characteristics that would allow it to live in the Arctic; and singing and composing an Inuit song after listening to and describing Inuit music. This
27 28

Kelly, 109. Ibid. 110.

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interdisciplinary approach to the Arctic ecosystem gave the students a much more thorough understanding of the material and was an excellent way to differentiate instruction. Some of the adapted animals that students drew included the Wooly Frog and the Snowshoed Fuzzy Pig. With the music composition, the students were to sing in the style of one of these animals, and the class would echo their melody. At times, this obviously would get pretty silly but the students and teachers alike had a lot of fun, and the students were thinking very creatively and critically. Much of what I will be doing as a music educator in the way of assessment is first-hand observation of students progress. One tool I will use to measure this is playing tests. I will comment on and rate each students playing abilities, while keeping track of each students progress. I will record digitally each playing test for my recordsjust in case I need to go back and refer to themmaking note of improvements in playing. The student will then get feedback from me and encouragement to keep on practicing. I will also keep note during rehearsal who answers my questions, and whether there are any people not paying attention. This will serve as incentive for students to participate and to keep thinking. A specific method I can use is the questioning of students about their own or their peers playing. I can assess at least two students at a time that waythe one playing and the one listening for nuances of their peers performance. As Kaplan and Stauffer write in their book Cooperative Learning in Music, both the individual and group are assessed on their progress and achievement, allowing the teacher to give an individual grade while still having the students work in groups (Kaplan & Stauffer 22). I think if this method is approached in a very unbiased, encouraging way it could be really effective. There will also be occasional assignments in music theory or history that go along with the pieces we are learning that will provide a very cut-and-dried grade. The goal is to make

student assessment as objective as possible while still preserving the often subjective nature of music performance. As I reflect on all the ways music has enhanced and even shaped my life, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of a music education for all students. I want students to see the value in creating beautiful sounds, both by themselves and by working with a larger group of people. A certain unity exists within a group of people who are sensitive to the nuances of each artist as individuals and to the objectives of the group as a whole. Music is an art and even a science that can be enjoyable for anybody, and is a field from which everyone can learn life skills. While it is important to have students do music that they will be able to grasp the techniques and meaning of, it is also important to challenge them in their intellectual, emotional, and kinesthetic faculties. Having been a musician nearly all my life, I can attest to both the aesthetic and the practical benefits of studying, listening to, practicing, performing, teaching, and learning music. Music is a field in which one never reaches the end in ways to improve in all of these benefits. People can always sound better. I think this draws a perfect metaphor with the fact that we can always live better as well. Therefore, the purpose of the music educator is to first show students that music is funvital, evenand that they can do it. Then they will begin to see all the ways that they can live better and be giving, compassionate members of society.

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Works Cited 1) Allison, Joseph; Choosing Repertoire: A Balanced Diet; School Band and Orchestra magazine; April 2010 2) Kaplan, Phyllis R. & Stauffer, Sandra L.; Cooperative Learning in Music; Music Educators National Conference; 1994 3) Kelly, Steven N.; Teaching Music in American Society, A Social and Cultural Understanding of Music Education; Routledge, 2009, New York 4) Lautzenheiser, Tim; Music Advocacy and Student Leadership; GIA Publications, Inc., 2005 Chicago 5) Reimer, Bennett; A Philosophy of Music Education, Advancing the Vision, third edition; Prentice Hall 2003, Upper Saddle River 6) Volk, Terese; Music, Education, and Multiculturalism; Oxford University Press, 1998, New York

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