Imagine a conversation like this in your classroom:
Director: Today I propose to do something for you that none of your other teachers will ever do. I’m prepared to let you decide what we will work on in this class.
Students: [Most showing interest, except for some percussionists who appear to be digging a tunnel.]
Director: Specifically, I will let you choose what we will perform on the next concert.
Many music educators can point to a specific mentor (or mentors) who made the idea of becoming a music educator seem like a real possibility to them. Encouraging students interested in music education, and providing them with related experiences, can be extremely rewarding. Not only can this encouragement produce very real long-term benefits to your program, it can play a significant role in shaping the future of a young person’s life.
This time of year many of us are faced with the challenge of programming a winter or holiday concert with music that is appropriate for both our students and our community standards. At the same time we look for new and interesting works that present traditional materials at a skill level that fit our students.
“Summertime and the living is easy…” While this has always been one of my favorite Gershwin songs, I don’t think the lyrics are particularly applicable to music educators. Don’t you love hearing, “But you have summers off”? One of the things we all do during the summer is to re-tool, re-train, and re-fuel to meet the needs of our students.
The good news: today nearly everyone has access to a portable device capable of shooting high-quality video and audio. The bad news? Today nearly everyone has access to a portable device capable of shooting high-quality video and audio.
It’s hard to not be disturbed by all the people trying to document their child’s performance at school events.
After 36 years in the classroom teaching band, marching band, wind ensemble, jazz ensemble, composition, and multimedia I have come to the conclusion that college preparation for our field is in need of change. I currently teach a class at Hofstra University on the utilization of technology in the classroom for future music educators.