Technology and Music Education

Let's face it, technology is a huge part of our world. Things that were put on the screen by sci-fi writers are actually becoming a reality! Remember how crazy it was watching Star Trek and seeing someone on a video screen having a live conversation? That's everyday business in 2013, now we don't think twice, and the younger generations never will!  

The way I see it, there are three ways educators view technology. Some try to ignore it and go about the same techniques they always have, some implement it and keep up with it at a reasonable pace, and others try to change their teaching routines as fast as the technology grows. Personally, I agree with the middle ground - staying informed and up-to-date without ignoring these helpful technologies altogether or watering down a curriculum by changing every day. Balancing the use of technology is important in keeping teachers and students "modernized"without being overwhelmed.

First, although it's not new technology, let's examine how email and simple web creation has changed education. Though email is not the most personalized or effective type of communication, it is fast and easy! As a teacher in a boarding school, I will occasionally send a quick update about recent achievements. "Johnny was great in Jazz Band today! He learned his part before class and was able to help the younger students where they were having trouble." Something like that would take me 60-90 seconds to write and send, but the effect on the parent would last days, weeks, a lifetime! Every parent wants to hear about successes of their child, big or small. Without email, I and many other teachers would be much less likely to communicate those details to parents. Phone calls often require appropriate timing and schedule matching, parent teacher meetings are limited, and a letter may be too formal for this kind of update. Of course, those types of communication are also important and should always have a place in education. 

Most school classes have websites - Many post assignments, resources, and some programs even allow parents and students to log in to track their progress and see cumulative grades. This technology is extremely helpful in keeping parents involved and making sure the teacher, student, and parent are on the same page. My school uses a web-based technology called Whipple Hill. Though it may sound like an ice cream company, it is simply a great resource for education. 

Of course, with these technologies comes a downside - Many teachers (though I have yet to experience this personally) may feel overwhelmed with those parents who constantly seek updates via email or students who rely exclusively on your website updates for remembering assignments and so on. 

As a music teacher, I enjoy implementing iPad and other technology into my teaching. I am constantly learning about new resources, though I make sure not to worry about using every new tool I read about. Rather than writing about them, I made a screen cast (an amazing and ridiculously user-friendly technology you should all consider implementing) that walks you through some web-based technologies I use on a daily basis. Please view it and share your comments -  Web-Based Music Tech Resources

I feel strongly that technology will continue to play an important role in music education, and musicianship in general. Finding music, practicing, composing, and recording have never been easier. In fact, I just listened to Dave Grohl's Keynote Speech from SXSW where he speaks about his efforts multi-tracking in his bedroom in the 1970's and how practicing, recording, composing, starting a record label, and self-producing is now easier than ever. 

In addition to helping our young music students create and explore, I believe that the implementation of music technology will increase the overall number of students who participate in music (particularly in secondary schools). Although I don't feel accomplished enough to teach a strictly "music-technology" course, I hope to get there and I am excited to see what effect that will have on the number of students participating in classroom music. 

Links and shout-outs:

I consider myself lucky to work with an amazing librarian and technology specialist K-M Librarian who keeps the faculty and students informed about new resources via her libguides site. 

Technology in Music Education - Great Blog from Dr. Christopher Russell. Helped me to discover a new music writing app and loads of choral warm-ups (all in about 4 minutes)

Sites I cover in my Screenr Screen Cast:

MusicTheory

Grooveshark

Learnjazzstandards

Allmusic

Essential Traits of a Music Educator

While I strongly believe that there are a large number of characteristics a music educator should embody, I have tried my best to narrow them down to three key traits. It is important to understand that each trait is complex and overlaps with many important characteristics of teaching, musicianship, and leadership. After considering inspirational readings by Peter Boonshaft and Frank Battisti, my experience teaching, and most importantly my experience as a lifelong student, I have created this list.

I often recall my favorite teachers – those who I consider the best - and consider exactly what they did to provide such amazing inspiration. It was never the material they were presenting, but how they presented it that stuck with me. In fact, two of these inspirational educators taught American History – a subject that I never found as exciting as math or music. What made these teachers so inspirational is the first trait I consider absolutely essential for any music educator – passion and excitement for the subject.

This first trait may seem very straightforward. Many of us choose a career in music because it is what we are most passionate about. However, the best music educators are not disgruntled performers with a fallback plan, or those looking for steady pay and benefits. The best music educators are equally passionate about music and the education thereof. The passionate music educator is a motivator, is inspirational, considers individuals and should always be the most optimistic person in the room. In Peter Boonshaft’s Teaching Music With Purpose “he writes of the seemingly endless list of duties of the music educator, from lesson planning to hall duty, instrument repairs and fundraising. With such a workload, he writes that it is easy to get stressed and burnt-out and to appear that way. He concludes, “… Sometimes we just can’t muster the energy to show our enthusiasm. But we must. At any cost, it must shine through to all.”  I found this statement profound. Ultimately, we cannot expect our students to be inspired by any information if we do not present it with passion and excitement!

The second trait that music educators should possess is an understanding that teaching is learning. Music educators should be proficient on their focus instrument, and should have an ability to accompany, conduct, arrange, and sing. For many, these skills will be very developed upon completion of a college degree. However, for all, there is no end to our development of musicianship and skill sets as educators. Frank Battisti contributes a list of ideas for professional development and personal growth in On Being A Conductor. Performing and attending concerts top his list, and I couldn’t agree more that these activities will keep music educators fresh and inspired. Both he and Boonshaft speak in depth about reflection and self-observation, and how beneficial they can be in our teaching endeavors. Simply put, the minute we stop learning is the minute we stop teaching.

Finally, music educators should have a desire for excellence and a fine appreciation for progress. “Good Enough” is a term that should not exist in a music educator’s vocabulary. Demanding excellence from our students is the best way to show them respect. By doing so, we are displaying our belief in their abilities. What may frustrate or tire a student now, is what will keep us fondly in their memory as they journey through life. No adult will ever look back and thank a teacher who didn’t challenge them - ever! 

An appreciation for progress is what keeps music educators inspired. There are hardly any 5^th graders that will exhibit excellent intonation and tone production. That does not mean that they are not achieving excellence. Music educators must appreciate the progress as much as the accolades.

I am fascinated by music and education. I am inspired, but understand that I will have horrible days teaching – many of them! I hope to consider what I have learned on my journey and promise to maintain passion, strive for excellence, and continue learning - always. 

Choir Lesson

Last week I had the opportunity to teach a 5-minute choir warmup in my grad class at UB. Unlike the prior week, when I taught a beginning clarinet lesson, I actually have experience in this field. In fact, I think that experience actually worked against me in this mock lesson! I know a number of standard vocal warm-ups that I can comfortably accompany on piano, and demonstrate clearly. I chose a basic melodic exercise that focuses on 5 syllables (ee, eh, ah, oh, oo) and it went well, as I expected. The students met my objectives by 1. being able to memorize the exercise and 2. sing from one starting pitch (without exact melodic accompaniment).

After participating in lessons from the others in class, I realized that there are many more things I could be doing in my warm-up routine at school. Some of these were physical exercises, melodic exercises that were new to me, and harmonic exercises. I realized that I've been in a comfortable routine of warming-up my small choir at school with mostly the same exercises. Although those usual warm-ups are valuable, it's important that I explore more options that will help my students grow and prepare in rehearsal.

I am currently enjoying a long spring break from teaching, but look forward to getting back to my vocal ensemble with a number of fresh ideas. It should be interesting to see how this will effect their level of focus during rehearsal - I'm thinking it will benefit them greatly. I am inspired by the short lessons from my classmates and will do my best to pass that inspiration along to my students!

Beginning Band Lesson

Last Monday I had the opportunity to teach a mock beginning band lesson for clarinet. When I started planning, my first concern was, what do I know well enough about the clarinet to be able to teach? The answer was nothing, so the first challenge was finding the instrument and figuring out some basics. I got my hands on a clarinet, learned how to put the mouthpiece and rest of the horn together. Having a basic understanding of how the instrument functions, I was able to make a squawky sound and play a few notes quickly. I knew, however, that I would not have time to put together the horn and play a melody in the first short lesson so I needed to decide what would be covered.

Initially, I intended on showing the student how to put together the entire instrument without playing at all. After thinking about it, I realized that if I were that student, I would want to make sound in that first lesson. I then changed my lesson's direction to setting up a mouthpiece and making a sound. I had an objective to "assemble the mouthpiece... once assembled, make a basic sound." Which, really was two objectives. I made a supplemental worksheet about mouthpiece assembly that the student could use at home to practice.

I ran through the lesson and felt good about it. I thought putting the mouthpiece together was a good first goal, and something that any student of the clarinet would need to learn how to do. Unfortunately, I left my clarinet on the desk at school so I was unable to model for the student. I felt that I did a decent job talking them through the setup, but ultimately I was at a loss not having the instrument with me to demonstrate. Also, although my objective was to assemble the mouthpiece, I think the student would have thought it was 1. Assembly 2. Memorizing part names (reed, ligature, mouthpiece) 3. Make a basic sound. Maybe even 4. Understand what embouchure is.

If I were to do this again, I would provide the objective that the student should know how to put the mouthpiece together. They would complete this, and given the time available I would casually begin to make sounds with them, mostly so they can get a little closer to the fun part of this music-making process. At the end of the lesson, I would request simply that they come in for the next lesson being able to put the mouthpiece together. Over time, I would expect them to have the different parts memorized and be able to describe proper embouchure, but probably not after one lesson.

Assessment

... I wonder how many potential readers have turned away just by seeing that title.... I think many of my students get a bad taste in their mouth when they hear that word, and wonder why I don't "just say quiz, or test!" I just finished reading an article by author/lecturer Alfie Kohn on the topic, and agree with much of what he says concerning standardization and "rubricization".

One of Mr. Kohn's statements that I can appreciate reads, "Consistent and uniform standards are admirable, and maybe even workable, when we’re talking about, say, the manufacture of DVD players.  The process of trying to gauge children’s understanding of ideas is a very different matter, however." Part of the purpose of this article expresses his feelings that rubrics and very specific assessment criteria are not just a means for students to understand the expectations and how they will be graded (which of course, is important) but that those tactics can lead to standardization in how we assess our students, and also limit students who would have otherwise exceeded expectations. When I think about my students, 95% of them would be happy to meet given requirements if they are certain they will get an A... But, if I were to provide less specific criteria (i.e. meet A, B, and C) I would have a number of students exceeding the requirements (I save the A+ is for the students with A,B,C and perhaps D, and E). Part of me wants to discuss grade inflation, and my feeling that a student could meet a set of requirements and earn a B (and should be very happy with that grade) but let's save that for a rainy day. 

In the BOCJ setting, I often utilize SmartMusic as an assessment tool. If you're not familiar with it, definitely check it out. Essentially, students submit a recording of themselves playing along to a recorded track while seeing their part on the computer screen. The computer follows along and marks missed/incorrect notes and rhythms. In some ways, this is really concrete, however it is not fool-proof - the computer is not a music professional, and occasionally mishears the student. Also, at least from my experience with using smartmusic for Jazz Band, there is no great smartmusic adaptation for drum set or rhythm section players, and the repertoire is somewhat limited. In general though, the concept is fantastic and it is a very helpful assessment tool. 

Other than smartmusic, I often assess students on essential skills (like memorization of scales, for example). I do not hand students a rubric, though I may use one as a guide - but I give concrete details (Play 1 octave Bb Major scale from memory). I do not tell the students a tempo necessarily, and I do not necessarily ask each student for the same exact performance. My students are at very different levels even in the same small classroom. Since it is a small class, I can really get to know their strengths and weaknesses and cater the assessment to the benefit of each student making progress. I often take notes where necessary on each student's performance and consider these for grading. It is more time-consuming to individualize these assessments, but I feel it's what I need to do especially when my students are coming from a wide range of musical backgrounds, and each deserve to progress individually. 

American Classical Music

As a musician whose beginnings were in Rock music and whose formal education is in Jazz... Let me restate that... As a musician whose background is in American Classical Music, I find it troubling how we balance the repertoire and music styles we offer in most of our school music programs. From my experience, it seems that almost every high school with a decent sized music program has a choir, wind ensemble of sorts, and maybe an orchestra at the core of the program. When I say core, I mean these are the classes that meet most often, probably on a daily basis or at least every other day. In addition, there is probably a Jazz Big Band (We're getting there... that music is only 80 years old...) that meets only once a week. Rock and Blues music are no where in site... If we're lucky maybe there is a class that teaches Modern Jazz (Practically new music, at only 70 years old! Wow!) In a large program, I would like to think that these courses do exist, as well as music technology courses, but they probably meet for a marking period, or semester at best.

The Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, and Choir groups most often put together concerts that feature 1 to 2 pieces in the classical music tradition, and maybe one contemporary piece (that the students will probably enjoy the most of all, and maybe even learn the most from and go away inspired). Yes, I am making generalizations about these programs, but I have seen what I'm describing in many schools in my area.

I think it is important for music programs to offer more courses in American Classical music. Or, perhaps these styles should be implemented into the already existing ensembles in our schools. With that said, I think it is important for music educators to be aware of the significance of Jazz and Blues and have a reasonable amount of training in the history and authentic performance of those musics. However, I don't think all music educators should necessarily be "experts" in Jazz... First of all, that would make people like me less valuable! And also, it'd probably lead to overall mediocrity for those educators who'd be better off focusing 85-90% of their efforts on their speciality.

Regarding repertoire, which is a big can of worms, I don't even want to try to start naming specific pieces that students should be learning. However, no student should graduate from a high school music program without having played something by Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Charlie Parker, Herbie Hancock, etc. (I will lose sleep over all the people I am leaving out of this very short list). But in addition to having played that music, the students should have some basic understanding of the significance of those artists, as well as artists like Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and The Beatles. If we taught with these ideas in mind, we'd be producing music students who have an understanding of the impact of music on politics, civil rights, and our culture for example. It sounds like these students would therefore be more well-rounded, culturally-aware individuals... And isn't that the point?

Musicianship

I have spent many afternoons reflecting on my classroom teaching and considering how the day's activities give students not only immediate knowledge that applies to that lesson, but knowledge that they can apply to a lifetime of musicianship. Are the students learning concepts or parts? Although learning a new piece of music can challenge students and provide inspiration, there are more significant goals to reach than impressing friends and family at the spring concert. 

For me, becoming a good musician involves a number of key concepts:

Having Big Ears 

Musicians, regardless of the style of music they desire to pursue should be able to learn and play music by ear at some basic level. This doesn't mean being able to transcribe bebop solos sitting on a park bench, sit in with a new group for a whole set of music you've never heard, and so on. However, musicians should be able to transcribe simple, diatonic melodies and chord progressions with ease, almost on-the-spot. And, with some effort, be able to tackle those bebop solos and challenging harmonic progressions.

Music Literacy

Musicians should be able to read music! If for no other purpose than to present opportunities. What musician could ever sub on a theater gig without some reading chops? Also, my main argument for skeptics of reading is that music literacy shortens the timeframe for learning new music. Strong readers who sight read can learn hours of music virtually on the spot! How cool is that?! It's also worth mentioning the amount of music on paper that is so easy to obtain. What musician can afford not to read?

Technique

Good musicians have the appropriate technique and knowledge of their instruments to be able to act on the extent of their musical creativity. If a musical idea can be thought but not executed, there is a need to improve technique. It's also worth mentioning that great musicians use their technique for the benefit of the music, not for being technical.

History and Style

This is one area where the demands of a musician have changed from 150 years ago, and will continue to change in the future depending on the seriousness of the musician. Good musicians can perform and have a basic historical understanding of various musical styles, or genres. 

Listening/Reaction/Interaction

As someone who plays primarily Jazz, Rock, and Contemporary music, I find that this is uber important. Good musicians know how to make music with other good musicians! They know what adjustments to make and how to listen, accompany, follow and lead when in playing in a group. 

Theory and Composition

Good musicians should have a basic understand of music theory. Musicians should have a basic understanding of melody, harmony, and form. Understanding the theory is important, though applying it is much deeper. With that said, musicians should be able to apply theory to their performances and compositions. 

 

I just finished reading  Brandt Schneider's February 2012 article Creating Musicial Flexibility Though the Ensemble and found it extremely inspiring and refreshing. The article discusses his ensemble curriculum over the course that does not rely strictly on repertoire and music literacy. Instead, the students were practicing concepts that will help their overall musicianship - learning various styles, transposition, applying solfege, composing, and ear training. 

Although this entire article provided great inspiration, one line in particular struck me - "Finding ways to move them beyond a mere “button pushing” experience and towards a broader conception of “musician” proved to be my biggest challenge". It is unfortunate that so many school groups spend the majority of time in class preparing literature and learning parts. In many ways, that band experience becomes a muscle memory experience. The students may learn their parts and play them well, but do they know why that 16th note diatonic run is important, or why they must play the three repeated notes on their Tenor 2 part? Usually, the answer is no. Students do not understand the bigger picture of how their part fits in the composition, or how their part relates to other members in the ensemble. They often do not understand the structure of the music they perform, and that is a problem. 

Brandt offers a step-by-step list of recommendations on how to get away from this "button pushing" kind of music learning experience. His concept of learning simple melodies in all 12 keys and various styles is knowledge that his students can apply to every musical experience they will have in a lifetime! The solfege analysis and ability to play all four parts of "Watchet Auf" fosters a much deeper sense of musical understanding. 

Although generally I agree with Mr. Schneider's concept - a few questions come to mind. Would his students be as inspired, learning simple melodies and deep concepts (that they may not understand the value of, yet) as they would if they were learning a rousing march? Perhaps some of the students will lose interest. How would these students fair in CMEA style competitions? Would their ability to read and perform advanced literature put them behind students in the same age group? In general, it frustrates the hell out of me that we judge student ability primarily on reading in All-State and other similar competitions, but getting owned in that setting could be detrimental to a student's drive and motivation.

Overall, Creating Musicial Flexibility Though the Ensemble was inspiring and fun to read. It made me feel like their is hope for music education. I highly recommend this article and considering some of the concepts that Brandt lays out. Perhaps adding some of these concepts to our own ensemble programs would provide our students with a much more meaningful music education experience.