Stewart Rose, Leslie, and June Countryman. 2013. Repositioning ‘the elements’: How students talk about music. Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education 12(3): 45–64.
The article Repositioning ‘The Elements’: How Students Talk about Music by Leslie Stewart Rose and June Countryman is well a composed article. The content of this article is concise and easy to follow. However I was frustrated with some of the matters discussed. First off I do not believe that we as students must experience music in a certain way. I find that I have never felt obligated to experience something just because it is “meta”. I do agree with the thought that music is indeed omnipresent in our lives. Music is one of my biggest influences to this day. Music most definitely changes my emotions based on what I'm listening to. I can also testify to the fact that most schools do not discuss the importance of music in our everyday life and how it has the opportunity to change us and our decisions. One thing I would say that was of interest to me was the fact that students have a deeper understanding than expected. In regards to the way they described their understanding as only the tip of the iceberg, meaning that there is so much more for them to understand. As for myself I find this very intriguing as I only have 4 years of musical experience under my belt. I find I am constantly learning more and more each day. I wonder now how much of this iceberg have I covered? That simple sentence has broadened my perspective of music quite a bit. I now think about how much more is left for me to learn. There is one thing I have to say to the authors. I found that the article is very opinionated. I think that the elements in which we learn are absolutely essential as without a majority of these teachings music wouldn’t make much sense to me. I think that this article is more orchestrated towards people who are not in music studies. I find that the elements we use in music are an essential part of our education. It would make sense that people who do not study do not understand these term and the pedagogy that we learn. It it similar to the fact that since I am not a science student I would not understand science terms. A question I have for the authors is why use the term oppressive? I don’t think that I have ever felt oppressed to learn something a certain way. I don’t believe in the fact that there is an oppressive pedagogy. I also don’t believe that there is a way that everybody is taught. I look back and see that I was taught differently from other people. I don’t believe we were all taught the same way. I was not taught the same material as some people and they were not taught the same way as me. I came out of high school understanding theory up to the basic rudiments and some people came out of highschool learning no theory whatsoever. All and all in conclusion I would like to say thank you to the authors of this article I have learned quite a bit from it and this article has definitely broadened my perspective of the possibilities of teaching and the elements of music.
Reading #2
Serres, D. (2014). Think Everything's "Normal?" Then it's Time to Reconsider a New Narrative of Disability. Retrieved September 21, 2017 from https://organizingchange.org/think-everythings-normal-then-its-time-to-reconsider-and-promote-a-new-narrative-of-disability/
I will start off this article review by stating that I thoroughly enjoyed the introduction to the article. I believe in the fact that there is no such thing as “normal” in our world. A term such as normalcy has no place in this day and age. I found that quite interesting, mostly because people do not talk about the idea that there is a norm that we must achieve. I find that people tend to follow what is desireable and I see that we as humans are acting more like sheep than actual people. After that point I was surprised in the twist that the article took. What caught me off guard the most was the fact that race and colour came into play. I can say that I felt a little disheartened when the race card was drawn. It went from mental illness being a general problem as a whole, to mental illness as a problem in certain cultures. I found that this was more of an opinionated act of discrimination in the research done to support a fact such as this. Race should play no part in the research of mental illnesses. If we plan to help people with mental illnesses we must first start by making the world a even playing field for all. One point in the article mentions the education system and the strides it takes to help mitigate the effects of mental illnesses on students. They talk about the solutions and how they don’t help the students in any way, shape or form. I came from a school that supported kids with mental illnesses. They taught the students how to be independant and how to live. I even had an IEP during high school. Clearly something was wrong with me in order to obtain an IEP. But in my defence I gained a sense of determination through the belief that I was no different from those around me. In the article they say that there are no benefits in the way the school system handles mental disabilities. In my opinion I think everybody finds their own form of inspiration. My inspiration was derived from the fact that I believed I was nothing more and nothing less than those who surrounded me. Lastly I would highly advise the author to watch their choice of words. I found it absolutely unacceptable to mention derogatory terms like retarded and lame to describe people with disabilities. Even if it wasn’t their own words it is still unacceptable to mention terms such as this.
Reading #3
Hourigan, R. M. (2009). The invisible student: Understanding social identity construction within performing ensembles. Music Educators Journal, 34-38.
I find this article a very interesting article to say the least. I remember I used to be the invisible student first starting out in high school. I always found that there was a social barrier between me and others. I never really knew why and the more I tried to fit in the more secluded I felt. It wasn’t until I finally decided I was going to be myself and awkwardly socialize with people around me that I started to feel welcome. I agree with the fact that invisible students do exist. I feel it is our responsibility as a group of musicians that we should work together to make all feel welcome. I am surprised by the fact that Jason did not feel that he was a good player just because he lacks the connection with his peers. I think if his fellow peers were to simply give him a compliment on his playing every once and awhile, he would feel more confident in his playing. Overtime he may also converse among his peers complimenting them and potentially forming a closer connection with his peers. One part of the article I don’t necessarily agree with is the fact that Jason feels the inability to bond with his peers due to his special needs. I think most of the inability resides within his peers. We should be taught how to be inclusive. We shouldn’t just learn about what disabilities are. We should learn how to be inclusive and how to make those people feel better about themselves. I have a close friend named Shawn, and Shawn has down syndrome. I treat him like my little brother and he’s always so loving and caring. I don’t feel any sense of inability to socialize within him. But when I look at the way others socialize with him I see the inability to socialize within them. I think Jason’s special needs is the smallest problem of them all. I believe the biggest problem begins with the way students treat others with disabilities. We need to emphasize the fact that we are all different. We should teach kids how to be an ally and a friend to those with disabilities and special needs. If I had the opportunity to ask the author any question. I would ask, why not teach kids how to be inclusive? Why not teach them that there are people in this world how are different? Why not teach them that sometimes we need to be the crutch when they struggle to walk on their own. Because a majority of kids with disabilities and special needs walk alone.
Reading #4
Dawe, L. (2016). Fumbling Towards Vulnerability: Moving Out of the Familiar for Music Education’s Sake, Canadian Music Educator, (57)2, pp.22-24
The article Fumbling Towards Vulnerability: Moving Out of the Familiar for Music Education’s Sake is a great read. I enjoyed this article quite a bit. I found myself relating to a lot of what Lesley wrote. I was pleasantly surprised when I read that Lesley was a trumpet player. I found I followed a path similar to her’s. In high school I decided I was going to be a part of the jazz band. In my school the jazz band was always a challenge to get into. I never got into the jazz band until my last year where I ended up being the lead trumpet player. My first few times auditioning for the jazz band were truly terrifying. However, I find that the experience I gained from my auditions has helped me in ways that I can’t understand. I feel that through these seemingly traumatic experiences I have been prepared to understand these notions of vulnerability inside the music classroom. I can say that I am glad I had these experiences, without them I feel I would have completely failed my audition for music at Western. One thing I found interesting was a quotation on the second page of the article, it reads “Risk taking within music making is something that most of us have experienced at some point, and we struggle with it. I am struggling with it.”. I found this quote interesting as we all take risks in music. Whether that be performing a piece, teaching a lesson or even auditioning for a university like Western. I understand that some people struggle from things like performance anxiety and it can be hard for them to take the risk to perform. I find I don’t struggle in performing on trumpet, guitar or piano. I find I do struggle in singing in front of others. It is interesting to me because I can perform on my instruments just fine but I can’t sing because I struggle to take the risk.
Being completely honest I can’t find something that frustrates me about this article. I enjoy this article quite a bit because I find everything written so relatable. In regards to what I would ask the author. I would ask, what can we do to encourage students to take risks in the music classroom? I would like to create an environment where students can feel comfortable taking risks so that they could feel comfortable taking risks in the future.
Reading #5
Bradley, D. (2006) “Music education, multiculturalism, and anti-racism: ‘Can we talk?” Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education, 5/2: http://act.maydaygroup.org/articles/Bradley5_2.pdf
This article was very interesting to me. I can say that I was moved by Deborah Bradley’s perspective. Taking on such a controversial topic head on is a hard thing to do, yet Deborah Bradley does it very well. I found myself agreeing to a lot of what was stated in this article. I can say I was surprised by Cathy’s own take on the issue. I agree with a lot of what Cathy said, Cathy stated “Racism is not defined only as overt statements or actions of prejudice”. A lot of the time we only associate racism with prejudice. I find this statement helps enlighten other people to think more openly about racism in other forms.
One thing that interested me in this article was the interaction between Debbie and Kate. They talk about the misidentification of people and this frustrates me on a personal level. I am aboriginal, and growing up this way was interesting to say the least. I know how it feels to be misidentified on a day to day basis. Most people think I’m colombian or some other form of Latin descent. I don’t mind it in some cases but sometimes it can get a little annoying to be identified as something you are not. Debbie gives another example for this “like calling Canadians Americans.”
I think if there is one thing that frustrated me about this article is just the overall broadness of the topic. I think that if the article was more focused I would be able to take away more from it. I think some more time could have been spent on some of the topics. That's not to say that the article is bad, I simply think more could have been done if some parts were more focused.
Lastly I have two questions for the author. First off, what was your major inspiration for writing on such a controversial topic? Second, after being educated and informed on this problem what can we do as future educators to help mitigate this problem?
Reading #6
Williams, D. A. (2014). Another Perspective The iPad Is a REAL Musical Instrument. Music Educators Journal, 101(1), 93-98 This article provides an interesting perspective on the ipad’s role as a musical instrument. I was interested at first when I found out that the ipad players had an actual term to call themselves. They call themselves “ipadists”. I must admit I found that term hilarious when I first read it. I couldn’t believe it, people were considering themselves ipadists because they played the ipad. I was intrigued because I thought “I play the trumpet and that makes me a trumpeter. So if I simply own an ipad and garageband, that makes me an ipader?”. I originally had a hard time with this because I thought about how we create music. I think about a piano and how similar it can be to an ipad. Both have keys, but that's all I can really see. When we think about our instruments we think about how to make the best sound we possibly can and my question is, how do we make and develop this sense of the best sounding ipad? Now that is what frustrated me most. How can we consider the ipad as a performable instrument. I like to think that an instrument's purpose is to play music. However I don’t believe the ipads purpose is to make music. I think that using the ipad of performance reasons is not ideal. I would like to believe that the ipad would make a great tool in the classroom for helping educate students. The ipad could help create some interesting scenarios in the classroom. Let's say there is no bassoon player an ensemble or class. Teachers and or students could set the sound on the ipad to a bassoon and the students could understand what the bassoon is and how it sounds. I think the ipad has tons of potential in the classroom but not in a performance aspect. I do have one question for the author and that is, how can we incorporate the ipad into the classroom. I think that introducing the ipad into the classroom would be a great idea and it would help students expand their creativity. Overall I think the ipad is a great addition to the classroom however I still need a bit more convincing on the performance aspect of it all. I think if corporations would capitalize on this opportunity and expand on the technology already available. The idea of the ipad or similar devices becoming instruments might be a reality and for the most part I would be all for it. I simply need more convincing on the aspects of performance and then I would be sold. With all being said I think that with a few expansions the ipad and similar technology has potential in the music world.
Music Ed Reading #7
Tobias, E. S. (2013). Toward Convergence Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture. Music Educators Journal, 99(4), 29-36
The article Toward Convergence Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture was a great read. I agree with a lot of what this article states. I believe that knowing how students engage in music outside of the education system can greatly help music educators adapt the curriculum to encourage students to become more engaged in class. For starters I wasn’t overly annoyed or upset by anything in this article. I think the article is very well written and it is clear that the author has done extensive research on this topic. One thing I think that the author could have worked on is focusing a little more on one topic rather than writing on such a broad topic. I think if the author were to focus more on a few points rather than many, it would get a lot more across than it does as is. One thing that surprised me was the contemplation on the copyright laws and whether or not musical engagement in a project is considered fair use. This really got me thinking because I began to question and ponder, what is fair use? If the use of the music for a project is not considered “fair use” how could we work around this and how would we adapt the program to adjust for this inconsistency. One solution could be to utilize royalty free music. It is very accessible and free in a lot of cases. I do have one question for the author and that is, what are these little boxes of restrictive thought and practice? In the conclusion of the article it is brought up and I wonder what these little boxes are. I would argue that these boxes might just be an essential part of music education. I wish I knew more about the "little boxes" and what they are. I do think that the use of modern technology and online programs could definitely benefit educators and students. I think that if we were to incorporate the technologies mentioned along with what we already have, it would make for a great change of pace. All and all I think this article was very well written. I don’t have much to say other than the fact that it was a good read and I really think that some of these programs mentioned could greatly benefit educators and students. If you take for instance our class, we have incorporated youtube into our classroom seamlessly. I think the same could be done for these other sites and programs.
Workshop #1
The first of our music education workshops was great. I found I was really enjoying the time that I spent in the workshop. I initially thought that waking up early on a Saturday morning was going to be the worst thing ever. However once I got to the workshop I found I was actually enjoying my time. I found that Dr. Stauffer was a great speaker and she was constantly keeping people engaged by asking questions.
One thing I was surprised by was the way we all began to play the instruments as soon as we got our hands on them.One thing I learnt after that is, even as adults we still have tendencies to act like kids. As kids get their hands on these instruments their first instinct was to play them. Even as adults our first reaction was to start to play the instruments. Dr. Stauffer would jokingly say from that point on “you’re not old enough for that yet”.
I can say that I was surprised by some of the songs and activities that we did as a group. I’m surprised in the way that they are so easy to teach the different aspects of music. For instance the song On The Trail. On The Trail was able to effectively help teach a complicated time like 6/8 to young children very quickly and effectively.
In my eyes nothing really frustrated me I was having a great time. If I could suggest room for improvement. I would suggest that the child’s games we play have a more defined rule set. I find that there is a lot of room for cheating. I was actually chosen for ye toop doram because my friend really quickly threw the ball to me at the last second.
One question I have for Dr. Stauffer is, how can we get kids to feel this sense of “I can” the sense that they can do these musical things. Furthermore, once we teach them that they can. How can we get them to expand on their musical creativity?
Lesley Dawe Reflection
Lesley Dawe was an amazing guest speaker. I really enjoyed having her speak to us. She seems very young and I find that I can easily relate to her. I can say I was surprised when brought up her old jazz band audition again. When she brought it up again in the interview it was further confirmation for me that we as musicians do have these traumatic experiences and they stick with us. I still remember my first few auditions crystal clear. The things that were said to me stuck with me. I found it was easy for me to follow with what we were talking about for the most part. I agree with a lot of what she was talking about and I enjoyed the fact that she talked about what it was like first getting started in music education. I don’t think there was anything that frustrated me except for the technical difficulties that occurred at the start of the interview. There is one question I wish I had asked being; how hard was it finding a job as a music teacher when first getting started? When you did find your first official job as a teacher, how did you go about teaching the curriculum in a fun and interesting way for your students?
Dr. Bradley Reflection From the limited time I had with Dr. Bradley I can say I think she is a well educated individual and a very good person. Dr. Bradley seems very passionate about anti racism. I really enjoyed the video about Anti Racism vs. Non Racism. I was really invested in it because I began to ask myself whether I was anti racist or non racist. That video had me asking all the right questions about how I need to act in certain situations. Dr. Bradley was great at informing us about what it is we were supposed to be learning about. I found that for the short time that I was there that I was able to tune into and understand the message the Dr. Bradley was trying to convey. I was really surprised with how clear she was able to present her message whether that was through song or video. When we sang the song “Woke Up This Morning” I began to think about what it could be about. I found Dr. Bradley did a very good job at describing the origins of the song and I began to really enjoy being with Dr. Bradley. Overall with the short amount of time I had with Dr. Bradley I think that she in an excellent presenter and that she is very passionate about her work.