Seminar in Music Education - Personal Reflections - Processfolio
Seminar in Music Education - Personal Reflections - Processfolio
Seminar in Music Education - Personal Reflections - Processfolio
an ebb and flow of ideas, especially concerning the importance and primary function of music.
Ancient Greece considered music as an integral element to education, and valued music for
both aesthetic and utilitarian purposes. However, when Rome conquered Greece, the
these views can help educators realize the significance of creating and holding steadfast to a
philosophy of music education. There are many differing opinions in society today about the
purpose of music, and I believe that it is important for teachers (myself included) to have a clear
world. Acknowledging the power of music to bring out various emotions and attitudes can help
teachers make informed decisions about censoring music. One key difference is important to
note - although the idea of censorship remains, it is not only the power of music itself, but a
combination of music and the text that generally requires censorship. Even with this difference, I
believe that censorship is necessary. It is not only my responsibility to teach music, but more
importantly, to teach individuals. I want to help my students develop into good people.
Therefore, it is important for me to introduce them to a variety of quality repertoire so that they
can learn about the human condition, other cultures, and become more sensitive to others.
Finally, searching for answers internally in an idealist fashion, and the Socratic method
of learning through asking questions, are two important teaching tools that are beneficial today.
In todays technological society, information gathering, and life in general, are very fast paced.
The practice of taking time to focus on a subject, think about it in detail, and create ones own
conclusions is important. Additionally, students should learn how to ask meaningful questions,
and go beyond thinking on the surface (memorizing facts). This can be applied to the music
classroom through personal reflections, discussions about the meaning and significance of
music. Therefore, learning from the successes and failures of the history of education can allow
teachers in the present day to preserve what works, and avoid encouraging the development of
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interesting, and relevant to each student. I plan on putting these ideas into practice by asking
my students to reflect on their learning process and by pointing out connections to their personal
lives. I also try to plan lessons that involve learning games, and that are engaging so that my
students are actively making music. The ideas of learning through playing and active
experimentation also provide better opportunities for social learning. The shift towards humanist
Additionally, the shift from dogmatic views to the logical-thinking and experiential
learning processes of Francis Bacon, Descartes, and Comenius, apply to music teaching. I
believe that the learning process is not as effective or as meaningful when students fully rely on
teachers to give them information at all times. Instead, teachers should give students ways to
learn and solve problems through active experiences. For example, instead of merely talking
about the music of Beethoven, I want my students to experience his music. I could have them
imagine that they are living in Beethovens time and dance to the music in a guided-listening
activity. Another way for them to experience Beethovens music is to sing and/or play Ode to
Joy as a class ensemble. The important point in these activities is that my students would be
able to actively experience the music, instead of just read about it.
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3. European Music Education from the Age of Enlightenment through the Romantic Era
There are many wonderful ideas and educational philosophies that emerged throughout the
Enlightenment and the Romantic Eras. In my opinion, one of the most important of these ideas
is that of education for all. During this time period the rise of the common man emerged,
resulting in the American and French revolutions. The idea of equality for all influenced the
belief that education should be available to all children. This directly applies to my philosophy of
music education because I believe that music should be available and experienced by all
people, and that music is an essential part of the educational system. When dealing with
scheduling issues, I can reinforce the expectation that music education is every childs right, and
should therefore be a part of each students educational experiences. I can also discuss the
importance of education for all with my students, and provide them with opportunities to share
In addition to the idea of education for all, Rousseau and Pestalozzi created new
developmentally appropriate learning activities. This idea also ties to Piagets stages of
development and Bruners idea of spiral curriculum. I need to present information in simpler,
more concrete ways to my younger students. Then, as they get older, they can revisit those
Other influential ideas from this time period include the importance of learning through
play, experiential learning, and social learning. Basedow and Froebel, who focused a lot of their
attention on developing theories for elementary education, advocated for the importance of play
and social-learning. This is important for me because I am going to be teaching music at the
Elementary level next year. I will be sure to provide opportunities for my students to explore
musical ideas with their peers, and I will devise creative learning games that will help reinforce
musical concepts through play. Additionally, Locke, Basedow, Pestalozzi, Herbart, and
Montessori all believed in the importance of learning by doing and the practical application of
knowledge. I understand the importance of active participation in making music, and I will be
sure to provide opportunities for my students to directly apply musical concepts to their
Finally, Pestalozzis idea of developing the whole child resonates very strongly with me.
with the external world with the Greeks holistic views of developing sound reasoning, morality,
and physicality. I want to base my lesson plans and teaching methods on the concept of
focusing on the whole child. I will strive to direct my teaching towards social, physical,
actively move around the classroom and engage their bodies through dance, guide them in
developing an understanding of musical concepts and ideas through experiencing and actively
creating music, and helping them connect to the emotions and the meaning of music through
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It is important to study this time period because there were many educational reformations that
developed throughout this era. America was newly forming, creating a need for the development
of a brand new educational system. Education reflected the unorganized and divided nature of
society in the beginning of the settlement period. Funding and transportation created barriers for
many to access educational opportunities. However, as time moved on and communities grew,
education became more widespread. This relates to todays society because funding and
resources, and transportation still create difficulties for some. I need to be cognizant of the
financial struggles and transportation difficulties of some of my students. I want to begin
developing programs in which my band students can go into the community, but in order to do
that I will need to plan effectively and help provide transportation options whenever possible. I
dont want transportation or money struggles to be a barrier for my students to participate in the
gradually emerged. While I think that the widespread expectation in todays society is that all
children need to go to school, there is less of a focus placed on compulsory music education,
although many districts do very well in supporting their music programs. Lowell Masons
advocacy for music education for every student is important because it led to the establishment
of music programs within the school curriculum, and the belief that all children have musical
potential. It is helpful to look back at Masons struggles and his advocacy journey. I want to
follow his example by advocating strongly for my schools music program within the community.
It is helpful to investigate some of the reasons that Mason was able to be successful in his push
to include music in schools. First, he earned the support of the Superintendent of his school by
able to clearly state the purpose of music education, and better advocate for my program,
especially in discussions with the administration. Additionally, he was at the right place at the
right time. Boston was a very musically active city. It is likely that the community was accepting
and supportive of the music program that Mason proposed because the community valued
music. This idea of community acceptance inspires me to continue to reach out to parents and
participate in events within the community so that I can establish a connection and a support
Lastly, I enjoyed learning about the singing schools. Although they were not fully
established schools as we typically view schools today, they spread rapidly throughout America.
They also helped provide musical training to many more people who were not exposed to music
in other ways. One very important aspect of the singing schools that I relates to my own
teaching is the idea of active music-making. Singing schools were not based on elitist ideas and
extremely high standards of advanced level music making. Instead, these schools focused on
learning music by experiencing music. Instead of discussing notation and musical terms at
length before ever singing a note, these schools involved leaders who often taught melodies by
rote. They were practical and participatory in nature. Finally, because they were church schools,
there was a strong community focus in which they learned and created music together. This
(Dewey, Elliott). I want to provide as many practical and active music opportunities to my
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There was a lot of emphasis on teacher training during the post-Civil War era. Thomas
Jefferson and Horace Mann proposed ideas for enhanced teacher training. This is especially
relevant in todays world as well. Society is rapidly changing with new technological advances. I
believe that it is important for teachers to continue learning throughout their careers. Education
should not stop upon graduation. Instead, teachers should pursue continuing education
programs/courses to learn about new ideas (teachers need to have growth mindsets in order to
Various music education journals emerged during this time period. Education journals
are important for research and for staying abreast of current trends and topics in the educational
world. Personally, I dont think that I read enough educational journal articles throughout the
school year, and I would like to become better about using these resources wisely so that I can
stay informed.
Finally, the rote vs. note conflict is still noticeable in schools and teacher education
programs today. Personally, and largely because of my music education courses at IC, I would
align myself the best with the Natural Music Schools method. I believe that starting students
with rote-only instruction can be beneficial because it can help them develop their ears from the
very beginning, and trains them to listen critically to their sound. It also has the potential to be
more fun for students because they can learn to play a few songs right away, so that they dont
have to think about how to create a sound at the same time as how to read musical notation.
Then, once the student has become relatively comfortable with the basics of creating sounds
and playing some songs by rote, I think it is appropriate and important to introduce them to
music notation (or to an iconic version of it first). Then, they will be able to develop an
understanding that there are two main parts of music literacy: learning by ear, and learning by
notation.
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Band programs in schools became much more widespread during the time from 1900 to
WWII. They were quickly adopted by schools because of their potential to be used for utilitarian
purposes. School bands, especially marching bands, developed and were modeled from military
bands. When soldiers returned from war, they often taught music lessons and/or became band
teachers. It is interesting to realize the strong military influence on the development of public
school bands. School bands spread and grew rapidly because of their visibility and utilitarian
purposes. I believe that performing at public events such as graduations and sports games are
important opportunities for music students to learn and experience the wonderful function of
music as service to the community, and to encourage community awareness and involvement
with school music programs. However, I dont believe that utilitarian reasons should be the
primary purpose for including bands in schools. Bands should be a part of schools for their
aesthetic purposes and to give students meaningful musical experiences. The primary function
of bands in schools should be to provide opportunities for students to learn and experience
music.
The development of band contests also helped make bands even more visible and
contributed to their widespread growth and acceptance into school programs. This influenced
educators to place a greater emphasis on the product (performances and competitions) rather
than on the process (learning experiences). While I agree that it is fun and inspirational to
perform at a high level, too much focus on performance products can have negative effects on
school music students. Creativity is often stifled because a greater focus is placed on accuracy.
In my opinion, festivals are more appropriate because they are not as competitive. Festivals can
be excellent motivators for some students, but they should not be the primary focus of a school
band program, and definitely should not be reasons to exclude any students.
Additionally, there were many differences between male and female roles in school
music programs. Piano classes were considered more appropriate for female students than
bands. This translates to todays world because although both males and females are welcome
in band programs, there are still differing ideas of male and female roles in bands. Certain
instruments, such as flute, are often viewed as more feminine. Contrarily, most brass
instrumentalists are male. I think that these gender roles in bands have been deteriorating over
time, but they are still visible in band programs. It is important to encourage students to play an
instrument that they are interested in, without consideration of their gender. As a teacher, I want
to impress upon my students the importance of being encouraging and welcoming of all band-
members.
Finally, this time period included a broadening of educational programs and school
musical opportunities. The emergence of band programs and more well-rounded musical
opportunities in schools helped make music more accessible to all students. Karl Gehrkens
coined the phrase, music for every child, every child for music. This idea began to spread
throughout the country. It is of utmost importance in this day in age to continue spreading this
notion of the importance of music education to every child. Music should not be limited to the
talented few, but should be available to all. Additionally, the idea of student-centered
educational practices developed throughout this time period. This humanist view of teaching is
also applicable to my own teaching. It can be easy to focus so much on the what and how of
teaching, that we sometimes forget about the who. Keeping student needs and personalities at
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7. WWII to 1983
This era is relevant to my teaching, especially because of all of the learning theories and music
learning/teaching methods that were developed through this time. I am interested in learning
even more about Dalcroze, and Orff to help me be prepared to teach elementary general music
in different ways. Their emphasis on learning by doing and music with movement is an
important aspect of developing a solid foundational understanding of music, and can help young
musicians internalize music in a unique way. It is also fun and more engaging for young
students. Additionally, Gordons sound before sight concept is a great way to introduce musical
Another way that this era impacts my perception and approach to teaching and learning
is through the example of Fred Fennell. Fennell was bothered by a few comments that he
remembered about the limitations of the concert band. He was bothered that there were not
many quality recordings, and that people did not seem interested in listening to the few
recordings that were available. Additionally, he was bothered that someone had once told him
that it was not especially enjoyable and meaningful to play in a section where there are nine
other people who could play the same part. Therefore, Fennell thought about these issues.
Instead of becoming frustrated and giving up on finding a solution for these problems, he
creatively devised a plan for an ensemble comprised of a smaller number of performers. This
became the Eastman wind ensemble. This story resonates with me for a couple of reasons.
First, it is interesting to know some of the history of the band tradition, and to realize that
because of Fennells creative problem-solving, a new world opened up in wind band music.
Second, as Dr. Kaiser has pointed out to me, Fennells perseverance and forward-thinking
mentality provides an excellent example of the growth mindset. This story inspires me to
continue working towards making my teaching better and creating better opportunities for my
students.