WK3 Free Choice Blog Post - 3 Hot Topics in Education

Working in the music department with music education majors has given me the opportunity to also work closely with the education department at the college where I teach. As new information comes forward that relates to all education majors, they generously share that information with me. Last week I was trilled that they shared an article found online that talks about 3 hot topics in education. As we all have learned during our journey through the EMDTMS program, technology is clearly one of the hot topics being discussed at many schools. This article lists content standards, technology, and school safety as the 3 hot topics in education. When we consider everything we have learned over the past 11 months, it appears that each of these topics tie into our experience and what we will be challenged with as we move forward. We are clearly familiar with content standards and technology integration in the classroom, but we must not forget about safety issues. If you can recall, our first class in the program dealt with media literature and research, which enlightened us on how to comb through online media to determine validity, reliability, and dependability. I think that safety in media becomes an important issue for the 21st century student as well as safety in the way we are most familiar with. With the emergence of so many forms of social-networking websites, we must keep in mind that educating students on the dangers of internet use is of high importance as well.


Follow this link to read more regarding the 3 hot topics in education:


http://drpfconsults.com/hot-topics-changing-the-direction-of-education/

WK3 Comment #2 to Sandra Colby

We all have different components of our lives that sometimes make it difficult to take things lightly. However, in order to begin to find fulfillment within, I believe everyone must learn to find ways to not be so serious 100% of the time. There are times when we need to focus and take things seriously, but seriousness full speed ahead with no moments to relax does not allow for the brain to release those natural endorphins that help control feelings of stress and frustration. Truly learning to not take things or yourself so seriously can be of significant help to the mind and body.

I'm glad to see that you are finding the reading interesting. While we may never fully understand everything we read, we can open ourselves to see the big picture and work with that concept as the guiding principle.

Original Blog Post from Sandra:

This week the reading contained many different ideas on how to cope.  One is Rule #6.  It is a good thing that I reread this chapter as I really didn't understand it the first time.  Rule #6 is "Don't take your self so seriously".. 

I am told that I am too serious and in my present situation it is easy for me to be too serious.  There isn't much to be happy about, but if I think more about Rule #6, I have to not take myself too seriously.  I take everything too serious and get myself in trouble because I cannot relax and laugh at myself.

The one other point that I should make is about "leading from any chair".  As a Leo, I am considered to be a leader, but when I was in band, I was never in first chair, (at least in high school).  I became more of a leader when I was in Marching band in college.  There I became a section leader and was also a person who became a bus monitor during one of our bus trips.  (What is that quote about having greatness thrust upon oneself?) 

I do find this book to be interesting despite the fact that it is written from the point of view of a conductor of an orchestra.  Not everyone can relate to this.  Not everyone can even relate to being a musician in a large band or orchestra.  However, we are all cogs in different wheels.

WK3 Comment #1 to Michael George

I have also personally witnessed the irreverent behaviors of teachers just as you have stated. I see it as perhaps they are not happy in many walks of life and feel they have earned some sort of entitlement. As for me, I share your sentiment in the fact that I refer to everyone as fellow colleagues. The sum of the parts makes up the whole, and I honestly believe that we all need each other in some capacity.  This reminds me of an experience I had several years ago when I was looking for a few classical pieces to play on the piano for a wedding ceremony. I was speaking to a colleague of mine who was a custodian at the college where I teach, and I arbitrarily mentioned my dilemma regarding the music. I had known him for many years and always enjoyed the short conversations we would have from time to time. It was on this search for classical pieces that I discovered he had earned a Ph.D in classical music performance many years ago and he was able to provide me with the sheet music and audio of several appropriate pieces. It turns out that he had retired long ago and really didn’t need to work, but he found enjoyment in being able to stay active working with his hands and interacting with other employees during the day while he continued to perform occasionally on weekends. Sounded strange to me then as it probably does now, but who was I to judge? I wonder if I had treated him with any less respect than I did if the result of his actions in helping me would have been the same. Probably not!

And, thank you for your dedication to education. It is always inspiring to hear of other educators taking on the philosophy of helping students with their “hopes, dreams, and achievements.” I make every attempt to do the same. I try to always introduce something that makes my students go – Hmmm! One of my favorites is when I share with them the eye tricks of 3D stereograms. I share these fun elements as a way to encourage students to look far beyond what they initially see and think of, and learn to develop something I refer to as infinite vision.

 

Original Blog Post from Michael:


Chapter 5. Leading from Any Chair: We’re all leaders. How can we make a difference in the people will influence each day? How do we listen to those who help us make our dreams become reality?

I have only been an educator for a handful of years and when I started I didn’t clue into to the social pecking order.  Some teachers outright abused support staff and aides and didn’t treat them as valuable team players.  Just like chapter 5 illustrates, anyone can lead and have an influence.  

At my school, I refer to everyone as fellow educator, from the lunch lady to the principal. Each of us influences students each and every day and has an impact.  We all (hopefully) help students with their hopes, dreams, and achievements.

Chapter 6. Rule Number 6: Don’t take yourself so seriously. Life is a journey–enjoy and learn along the way. Live, laugh, and love!!

There is an old Yiddish proverb, מענטש טראַכט, גאָט לאַכט and since most of you don’t speak Yiddish, myself included, it translates into: “Man plans, God laughs.”

Control is an illusion.  

Each and every one of us has limited control over our life and we should treat it as a serendipitous journey then learn to “be present” and “be loving.”   So many try to will things in life, everything from relationships to having children to job promotions.  Seemingly unattainable goals make us unhappy in life and ruin the gifts that are present all around us.

Chapter 7. The Way Things Are: Sometimes settling for the way things are is a lowering of expectations, sometimes it’s finding a starting point so that one can make things better. Where are you in this continuum?

Often times when we are presented with overly complex stimuli, we shutdown and accept things as they are.   Acceptance can be a good thing since it reduces stress and anxiety in our lives.  However, there are some situations in life where complexities need to get sorted out.  The only way to change these situations is by taking baby steps.  
If you had to clean up 10 square miles of garbage, would you try to do it all in one day?  Certainly not, you would set smaller goals and maybe work on 100 square yards per day.  This is a baby step.  An attainable goal, and this is how I tend to work to make things better.  

Chapter 8. Giving Way to Passion: Control says that the only way to avoid disappointment and frustration is to not care at all. No hits, no runs, but most importantly, no errors. What are you doing in your daily life that expresses your passion or the things you are passionate about?

What does it mean to care?  Is caring an outward act?  Is it an emotion? Is it both? In my daily life I express my passion by showing that I care through outward acts.  Spending time with a person, or idea, or project and focusing on it to help change it for the better are how I show that I care.

WK3 Reading: Art of Possibilities Chp. 5-8

While reading chapters 5 through 8 of The Art of Possibility, I was most intrigued by chapter 8, which speaks of giving way to passion. My first thought was that I felt I must share this idea with my students as way to suggest to each of them how important it is to be completely committed to the activities they choose to take on. I often remind them that participating in any activity or organization for the sake of tile, position, and/or stature is neither beneficial to them nor the activity or organization they are involved in. Reading the suggested two steps in giving way to passion are notable concepts that I will include when discussing this overall theme of passion to my students.

How gratifying it was for me when chapter 8 later used Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata as an analogy to long lines discussed in that chapter. That particular sonata, which is one of my most favorite pieces to perform, is ironically the piece that I often use to demonstrate several concepts when working with select students. I think because of the familiarity of the piece, students become more engaged, which allows me to really articulate the expressive movements within the music. The Moonlight Sonata, when misinterpreted musically, bares a strong resemblance to life itself. Just as in the Moonlight Sonata, life can produce a “dull and numbing performance” when emphasis is placed in the wrong areas.

The heart of the matter, in my opinion, and as suggested in the reading, is that knowing your passion and allowing yourself to be consciously open to discovering that energy and life force, enables you to demonstrate a positive uniqueness. That uniqueness in expression is what brings meaning that extends beyond the “meaning viewed from the ground.”

  

WK2 Free Choice Blog Post: New Music Industry Concentration at DSU

(ProTools C24 automated mixer) 

Photo by Marty Denson

After three years of research and planning, our School Board and Faculty Senate committee has just approved the new Music Industry Concentration for the Music Department. This new concentration will add a new perspective to our department where we can now offer a degree program that directly relates to the technical and business aspects of the music industry. Thanks in part to Dr. Yvonne Johnson, department chair, and Dr. David Tolley, associate professor of Music Industry, we are able to add so much more to the music curriculum. 


When I joined the music department just over a year ago, I decided to start writing a proposal that would potentially support the new concentration once it was approved. My proposal consisted of several programs that included the possibilities of creating summer engineering programs, vocal recording workshops, music recording workshops, and music composition workshops. I also included ideas of developing new certificate programs as well. It was such perfect timing that the EMDT program required us to start the process of working on action research. A lot of the research conducted in the process of my AR Project was of significant help in putting together several sections of the proposal. I am looking forward to being able to implement the ideas within the proposal in the next school year.

WK2: Comment #2 to Zoe Marlowe

Zoe:

It is so refreshing to read books that demonstrate personal accounts of higher order thinking skills from educators. I also found the content quite interesting and was enthralled myself. It seems as though the interdisciplinary nature of ‘the arts’ allows for such creative approaches to education, while other subjects tend to follow a more guided structure as mentioned in the reading. I think being a musician and teaching music helped to draw a connection for me in this case. As I was reading, I found myself attempting to think of an avant garde technique for my students. Perhaps the concept of giving all students an “A” initially is the technique we should use as a model for allowing us to be more innovative and creative in our teaching methods.

I tried an unusual and spontaneous method with one of my students and I was completely surprised by the result. I noticed he was totally fascinated when he saw me working in Photoshop CS5, so I let him borrow one of my laptops to experiment with. My instructions for him were quite simple because I really wanted to see what extent he would take it. He returned two days later and voluntarily gave me a full 30-minute presentation on everything he had discovered and created. He actually taught me a few new features within Photoshop CS5. What was so interesting about the experience was that presentation skills were a huge part of our music education lesson plans this past semester. Throughout the school semester, the faculty put all of the focus on students presenting musical content and they became so concerned if the students had the information correct that they completely ignored the purpose of the activity – PRESENTATION! I felt so bad as I watched the students struggle to remember the material while their presentation techniques suffered. It just goes to show that if presentation skills are what the students need to improve, it does not have to necessarily be musical content even if it is music education. If Photoshop can improve a students presentation skills, then Photoshop it is!

Original Blog Post from Zoe:

    

Ben and Roz Zander’s book “The Art of Possibility” is one of the best books of its kind I have ever read. It is a complete ‘page turner’ for me anyway. I absolutely love it and could not close my e-book reader until nearly 2:00 a.m. I should mention here that I am not a very engaged, excited or avid reader of non-fiction, textbook-types of reading materials, with one exception of course, I do love Adobe Creative Suite instructional books. This ‘textbook’ is so different. I really did not feel like I was reading a textbook or a ‘how-to’ book for our course. Roz and Ben’s stories are all true, from their own life experiences, so I feel very ‘connected’ to them right away. While each chapter is a sort of ‘technique’ description, such as “Giving an A” and “Be a Contribution,” they are also a testament as to why these individuals are so successful in their lives. I can’t personally see how anyone reading this book could not improve something about their own life, no matter how small. 

Zander’s concept of giving an A is really interesting to me. Because he is a teacher of a group of musical students, who play orchestral instruments, it seemed to me that they would be a really receptive ‘audience’ for that type of grading. I can also see it working in other artistic courses such as drawing, painting, graphic design, etc. However, I think it would be difficult to teach say a high school English course and start the semester giving all the students an A to begin with, and somehow expect them to ‘earn’ that A as the time goes on. I suppose every case of this is different, and I really did like the idea, it sounded like his class really took it to heart from some of the wonderful letters the students wrote to him which he published in the book. I really enjoyed the heartfelt letters very much.

On being a ‘contribution’ in your life to others around you, that makes perfect sense. No matter how busy I am, I try to be there for people who need me or need something. I am up to my ears in my AR project as well as these courses at the moment, plus I have other obligations to take care of. However, I am making time this week to help a long time friend of mine who is out of work. I have offered to create a new resume for him and to shoot some photos of him ready for his job search efforts. He is not as computer savvy as I am, and he needs the help. I am glad to do this because he is going to make the effort to look for work in an economically crippled town in this poor economic time our country is going through. I think it’s the least I can do to contribute to someone else’s luck. 

I love the book, I think everyone should read it regardless of what their profession or schooling is.

WK2: Comment #1 to Sue Calland

I echo the idea that instructors alike should understand that grades are not everything. The fact that I work in the area of music education, I am fortunate to be involved in a curriculum that focuses tremendously on performance. I guess it is just the overall nature of music education, especially when it comes to instrumentalists. I see that you view a world without measurement would be nice, however, you believe that to be unrealistic. My first question to you would be; on what premise did you draw the conclusion that the idea of a world without measurement is unrealistic? Did the very thought of measurement guide your thinking? Did you ask yourself the question of “How are my thoughts and actions, in this moment, reflections of the measurement world? I pose these questions based on the reading of “The Art of Possibilities”, which discusses getting to the heart of the matter with regards to what the practice is that orients us to a universe of possibilities. The framework talked about in that chapter, with respect to the example of the box around the nine dots, suggested that we should position ourselves in the realm of possibilities that go beyond the traditional boundaries. 


Original Blog Post from Sue:

First of all, Benjamin Zander is a wonderful speaker and extremely easy to listen to.  I was a bit confused in the beginning of the video with what exactly a “One Buttock Player” was, but then I caught his point.  You need to look at the whole, not at the individual parts.

Being a science teacher, I am constantly telling my kids to think outside the box. 

One quote from the book that stuck with me was, “…even science relies on our capacity to adapt to new facts by radically shifting the theoretical constructions we previously accepted as truth.”  Although I do completely agree that a world without measurement would be really nice and relaxing, I do not feel it is actually realistic.  The author states, “You are more likely to be successful, overall, if you participate joyfully with projects and goals and do not think your life depends on achieving the mark because then you will be better able to connect to people all around you.”  One point Zander makes is that if grades were not given, people would be more willing to take a risk.  However, I feel that also needs to be understood by the instructor.  My sophomore daughter decided to challenge herself on her Spanish assignment.  She refused to take the easy way by using given phrases and really worked hard on her assignment, but made some mistakes with it and was docked points for doing so.  If she had stuck with the easier phrases, she would have achieved all of the points for her grade.  That instructor was teaching her to just do it the easy way and don’t challenge yourself because then you will get a better grade.  In my classroom, when I ask a student a question that they do not know the answer or to think they don’t know, I tell them to just give it a try, the worst thing that can happen is they are wrong and if they haven’t been wrong yet today they should try being in my life!  This usually relaxes them and they give it a try.  They frequently surprise themselves with being right or having a new way to look at something. 

As I continued to read through chapter 3 I realized that the authors were not strictly referring to a grade, but to a teacher’s encouragement of his/her students and the manner in which the classroom is run and allowing students to be contributors. 

I just hope that I can rescue one starfish!