What is the topic of your article?
When it comes to music in school, I categorize students as either one of two identities. Those that want to be there and those that have to be there. Those that want to be there are you students who have an appreciation for music and end up joining band, choir, or orchestra. Those that have to be there find themselves in some sort of music appreciation class usually for a type of elective credit. Using technology can make music more enjoyable for general students leading them to appreciate music more, and can also play a role in keeping music students involved in music.
What is the connection to your innovation plan or initiative?
My innovation plan involves incorporating technology into my choir program, electronic portfolios to be specific. Amongst numerous reasons why e-portfolios are beneficial to any music program, the main connection here is the influence e-portfolios have to keep students in music! As music educators, we are ecstatic when students decide to join the world of musicianship. But from the moment students decide they want lessons, music educators (and paying parents) are faced with the inevitable fate of the day that individual quits music. This eventually happens at different times for every music student, but then there’s that certain percentage of students who major in music in college, become musicians and educators, and continue the cycle and legacy of music education. Incorporating technology in the music class will increase interest in music by creating a more engaging and updated environment for general music students (have to be) and by fostering a long-term purpose for music students (want to be).
How can this information help others?
This information will help all music educators be more aware of how to musically handle whatever students cross their path. For elementary school, every single student passes through the music teacher from kindergarten until they graduate. The general music class in elementary introduces students to the foundation of music appreciation. Elementary music teachers have the most important job because they teach those things that stick with you for your entire life, even if you do not remember learning it! They also take a big amount of responsibility of how a child views music moving forward! Simply put, if a child doesn’t enjoy music in elementary school, what are the chances that they will join band in middle school? Music directors at every level already pretty much understand that students could stop pursuing music at any given time for various reasons. But we devote our career to the passion of our craft and development of our students. The information that I provide in this article will show music educators how to turn to technology for additional tools to increase the interest level in music overall (in addition to current recruitment/retaining tools).
Lessons learned or hoped to learn?
Something that I have learned is you cannot force your passion on anybody. When you have an immense joy for something, you tend to want to spread that joy to others. From experience, I know that music people are really like this! There is nothing that you can do to make someone else feel how you feel about music. When you have such a passion for something, you might believe that teaching an hour class on music theory should be just as interesting to your audience as it is to you. This often translates into a boring music class. We must exude complete passion for music, hold our students to expectations, and make music as fun and engaging as possible.
What digital resources will be included in your article?
I will include examples on how to utilize e-portfolios, spotify, garage band, powerpoints, and even in class 1:1 device support to better connect with general music students and create a deeper engagement for experienced music students.
Journal submission guidelines
Below is a link to the full details of the guidelines for submission to my publication of choice. Topics include:
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An advocacy idea that worked for you—how you implemented it and what the results were
Diversity, Inclusion, Equity, and Access
Practical teaching based on the National Standards
Students with special needs
Technology for music instruction
Cross-curricular integration
Assessment
They require that the article be written in an easy-to-read, direct and conversational style. 500 words.
https://nafme.org/my-classroom/journals-magazines/teaching-music-magazine-guidelines-for-contributors/
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