The candidate uses understanding of differences in individuals, cultures, and

communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each learner to

meet rigorous standards.

The students in my classroom differed a lot in their personalities, the ways they
learned best, and their musical abilities. They all come from very similar backgrounds, and
most of them have grown up with each other, being from a very small, tight-knit
community. While each student shares similar culture and background, they each need
different tools that can help them unlock their full potential in the music room. In order to
get these tools, the teacher must find out which students need what. I did this in multiple
ways throughout my student teaching; having students sing individually, asking them to
self-reflect, and with elementary I would create games that show me who is struggling with
what concepts without them knowing. For example, I had students play a game where they
had to write in note names as quick as they can one person after another in order for me to
see who was struggling with that concept. A clip of this video is used as an artifact on my
webpage. A teacher has to be very observant of each students work in the classroom, and
be careful not to lump the entire class together and make assumptions about their abilities.
I chose to use one of my evaluations as an artifact because the evaluator goes into detail
about how my observancy helps each student to be successful. An observant teacher knows
and understands their students needs, and can give them accessible and challenging
material that enables the student to learn and meet standards in the classroom. I also chose
to incorporate a latin backbeat I used in a lesson as an artifact because it introduced
students to different cultures outside of their own. While it is pertinent to include each
student's background and culture into the design of your teaching, it is equally important
that you incorporate music from other cultures and communities into their learning, so
they can connect with and develop an understanding for different ways of making music.
By keeping the student in mind when planning instruction, you can enable every student to
achieve at their highest potential.