Final Project Link

Here is the link to my final project!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtBRyJmudRM&feature=youtu.be

Final Presentation

I am planning on doing my final presentation over Reading.  I will emphasize the alphabet to K-1st grade students focusing on each letter alone and their sounds.  After this they will recognize the letters and their sounds well enough to sound out and read words. 

Should Teachers be paid based on Student Performance

In my opinion, I do not think it is right to base teachers' pay on the student performance alone.  Some kids have a hard time taking tests and it isn't fair to take pay away from a teacher who did all they could to help the student.  If a student is struggling on a subject it is the teachers job to try and do all they can to get the student to understand.  I think that if teachers were paid based only on student performance that it would become unfair very quick.  A teacher could be doing her very best and could be putting 100% into the child and their education and the child could still not understand.  Tests do not reflect how good of a teacher you are.  I feel tests reflect more of how much the students pay attention in class.  On the other hand though, I think that this could be beneficial in a way too.  If a teacher continuously doesn't meet the standards in her classroom, then it is obviously not just the students to blame.  If this is the case, that teacher should be evaluated and their pay should fit the quality of work they are doing.  Maybe the lower pay will be an incentive for the teachers who aren't meeting standards to strive to get all their children to meet those standards. 

Teacher Unions and Tenure

I think that teacher unions and tenure have good things about them, but they also have bad things too.  Teacher unions will help protect the pay that teachers are paid and make sure that it is fair for them.  The tenure also protects the teachers and allows them to have a guaranteed job.  The school is not allowed to fire them or let them go.  The tenure gives teachers security that they need.  Just as the teachers union and the tenure protect the teachers in good ways, they also protect the teachers in bad ways.  If a teacher is under tenure and they are not very good at their job, they are still protected and there is no way for the school to fire them.  Once they get that they are in and there isn't much the school can do about it even if they are not the best teacher for the school. 

Carl Orff's Philosophy

Carl Orff developed process over product.  I believe that this is extremely important when teaching children anything.  You can be teacher music, a sport, or even a simple math lesson but they are not going to get the correct product without the correct process.  Children in today's society want to know every detail of how to do something when it comes to any assignment given.  If that is the case then his philosophy and today's kids go hand in hand.  The process over product theory puts emphasis on each step that needs to be taken to get the outcome needed.  Children will know exactly what to do and will really succeed if this is used and taught correctly. 

Balance extra-curricular with expectations in the classroom

I don't think that in the classroom the teacher should find a balance.  I think that in the classroom it should be the teacher's duty to keep the room on task.  Even though it may be hard, the kids deserve the time spent in the classroom to be devoted to their education, not to you discussing sports with them.  If the students were in a sport or extra-curricular activity, they would find that the time spent there is devoted to that activity only.  Players do not discuss algebra at a baseball game and therefore baseball and other sports do not need to be discussed in great detail in the classroom.  There are things that are necessary and unnecessary in the classroom.  If sports are brought up in a lesson or a student asks a specific question then answer it and move on.  If you dwell on it then it is opening the door for them to continue talking about it.  As a teacher, it is your responsibility to give the kids what they came to school for and leave the sports to the coaches. 

Appropriate time to introduce instruments

It is developmentally appropriate to introduce instruments early in school years but they have to be the right ones.  Rhythm sticks, finger cymbals, and kazoos are appropriate for younger children becasue they do not require the use of fine motor skills.  A young child is very capable of using any of these three instruments in the correct manner with a little bit of guidance.  The recorder and xylophone are instruments that require a bit more hand eye coordination and fine motor skills that children do not develop until later in their lives.  Third grade is a good time to introduce these instruments to them because they are developed enough to play them correctly and also understand them.  It is important though that you integrate all these instruments into a child's life before they are 9 years old because after 9 years of age a child's brain stops taking in as much information as it did before and it is proven that children with musical involvement before the age of 9 will be more musical in thier adult lives also. 

Sequence in Learning and Rote

It is important for kids to understand sequence.  Sequence is every where.  It is in directions, recipies, stories, and  the course of events.  Children need to know that first comes before second and second comes before third.  If they are given directions telling them first do this and second do that, they should be able to hear and understand what is being asked of them.  Sometimes it may be hard for children to listen, remember the directions, and process which is first, second, and third, so it is important to be patient with them and just work with them to help them get better.  Remember, the more you put the opportunity out there for them to use sequence in their daily lives, the better they will become at it. 


Steps for teaching by "Rote"
1.  Provide an example
2.  Use non-verbal gestures
3.  Chunk it  (lump the activity into first half and then second half)

Philosophy with State Standards and Expectations

My philosophy of education is about making children feel safe and comfortable so that they are able to learn well and get the most out of their education.  I believe my philosophy goes hand in hand with the state expectations because the comfortable children in my classroom will feel confident in themselves and will be able to meet the standards given by the state.  I plan to someday give my students every opportunity to be good at what they need to learn and eventually know.  I will give them multiple trys to get things right and constructively correct them to help them get better.  Using the knowledge I have learned in this class will help me to get the students through all the standards.  Now that I know how to properly add music into a classroom and how to get the children to know and understand the standards I believe my classroom of kids will be very successful.  By creating a welcoming classroom and by giving them the knowledge they need to succeed, these children will meet the standards and also be happy doing it. 

Music Therapy and Education

I think that music therapy can provide many opportunities for children.  Many students learn in different ways, as we all know, and we as teachers need to be prepared to deal with these differences.  Music is a great way to bring a new way of learning into the classroom.  Some students may remember information better if it is put to a song rather than just reading it off a paper.  Also music can be used to bring students and a classroom together.  Children will become better at working in a group if they are asked to sing with one another and also their speech and social skills will improve too.  Just as it helps a student to read aloud it also helps a student to sing aloud, alone and in a group to give them diversity in learning. 

My Experience/Perception of Special Education today in America

I do not personally have alot of experience with special education.  There was only one young girl in our school system that had a special need.  She was autistic and spent alot of her time with a teacher that was placed in our school system to work with her.  I only ran into her in the hallways a few times.  Over the years though, you could tell that the teacher was making an impact because this girl gained people skills and social skills.  She used to never talk when I would pass her, but after the teacher worked with her, she was talking all the time and wouldn't stop!  I think sometimes special education is put on the back burner.  Some people say they don't have the time or the patience for it so they just ignore it.  Ignoring it is not going to help anyone and it for sure isn't going to help these children learn.  As a teacher you have to be ready for different students and you have to be willing to accept a challenge. 

As an educator, you have to truly understand the different ways that people learn in order to teach.  You can't be set in one way of teaching and expect every student to understand and excel.  You have to have a plan, but be flexible and ready for change.  If a student isn't catching on or understanding right away, you have to be a quick thinker and develop another way of explaining something even if it isn't your favorite way of doing it.  Being a teacher is all about the student and the way the student learns not about the way you want to teach. 

Bloom's Taxonomy and 9 Nebraska Music Standards

            Just as Bloom’s Taxonomy grows in thinking and understanding as you get further into it, the National Standards for Music Education do too.  The Standards for Music Education start with singing, performing, composing, reading, and listening and end with evaluating and understanding.  Just as in Bloom’s Taxonomy, the standards expect more understanding and critical thinking out of you as you get further along.  Bloom’s Taxonomy, though similar to the National Music Standards, does require more critical thinking earlier in.  Right from the beginning you are expected to have knowledge of the subject.  As you proceed you are held to a high standard and are to be able to apply your knowledge to the subject matter.  After this, your next step of critical thinking is to analyze and evaluate.  As you can see, Bloom’s Taxonomy and the National Standards for Music Education are similar, but Bloom’s Taxonomy takes it to the next level of thinking and pushes you to think more critically. 

9 Standards

1.  Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
2.  Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
3.  Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
4.  Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.
5.  Reading and notating music.
6.  Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
7.  Evaluating music and music performances.
8.  Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
9.  Understanding music in relation to history and culture. 

Terms

Cognitive Learning--learning that is concerned with acquisition of problem-solving abilities and with intelligence and conscious thought

Cooperative Learning--a student centered way of learning in whick groups of students work together to achieve a common academic goal

Eurhythmics--a way of learning through physical movement to music

Multiple Intelligence Theory--proposed by Howard Gardner saying that just becasue a child does not learn something in the same way or as quickly as another student doesnt mean that the child is any less intelligent

Rote Learning--memorization by repetition

Think-Pair-Share--a cooperative discussion in which the teacher gives the students a question or topic to think about on their own first and then form pairs or groups to discuss their thoughts.  Last each group shares their thoughts with the whole class. 

Checking for Understanding--a tool used by teachers to build student knowledge and comprehension

Respond to Assertion

Assertion #3--Results in any classroom are generated in the interactions, around specific content, among students, the subject matter, and the teacher.

In any classroom, it is essential that the teacher and the students work together.  If the teacher has a tough time communicating the subject matter to a student then there will not be any positive results that come from it.  Also, if a student can't communicate a question about the subject matter to the teacher, then the same problem occurs again and no positive results come from it.  The teacher and the students have to communicate well and be on the same page of understanding for results to occur. 

Music in Education.....Things to think about

1.  How do you use music in YOUR life?  I don’t use music to help me study or remember certain things so I just use it to listen to and to sing along with when I get bored. 

2. What musical activities and interests did you have as a child?  When I was younger I had a lot of fun playing with anything percussion related.  I like the maracas and drums, anything that I could make noise and keep a beat with. 

3.  Have you observed children at musical play?  Yes, in high school I was a student aid and I would take the kids to music class.  Sometimes I would sit in a class with them.  Also I got to join a few classes during my field experience time with a fourth grade classroom. 

4.  Are there some musical skills you are able to teach to children more easily than others?  I could show children how to keep a steady beat and rhythm, but I am not able to read music so I would not be able to teach them what the actual notes look like.   

5.  What do you think that all children should be able to do, musically, as a result of a MUSICAL education?  Students should be able to keep a steady beat and possibly make up a song on their own to a tune of an already well known song. 

6.  Have you ever observed a teacher integrating music into the classroom?  Cite examples.  Yes, the first graders at Osmond sing the national anthem every morning.  The children also sing songs during subjects such as math.  I have not seen it in the classroom yet but I recently came across a poem to help with long division that could be sung to the students. 

7.  How do you think music can be integrated into the elementary classroom?  I think music could be integrated while students play games, while reading, and even during every day classroom homework. 

8.  How do you think music can be used as an interdisciplinary tool in the elementary classroom?  I think when children are being loud you should give them certain noises to make quietly.  Once everyone is copying you, then you know they are all paying attention and listening.