Music teachers have a wealth of resources at their fingertips to help inform and design effective instruction. In addition to national and state standards, initiatives such as the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (Bauer, 2014, p. 153) and National Education Technology Standards for Students (p. 153-154) give teachers tools, terms, and benchmarks that can help aid in developing strong learning outcomes. I was particularly enlightened by the 21st Century Skills model and their central 4C components: "creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration" (p. 153). These four components have great ties to music instruction, since they are all at the core of "creating, performing, and responding to music" (p. 153). The chapter also discusses the concept of "backward design" (p. 152), which is an instructional design model that centers first on the learning outcomes and then extrapolates the learning process and assessment, not the other way around. In this instance and in the others already described, I felt this chapter is illuminated with scholarly writing that discusses what are commonly referred to as "best practices," and it served as an eye-opening read as well as a needed reminder of just how much thoughtfulness is required to create effective, lasting, and truly educational instruction.
In this same light, I was introduced to Driscoll's model of learning (p. 147). Driscoll describes learning as "contextual, active, social, and reflective" (p. 147), and I immediately made connections to music instruction. Contextual learning surrounds the concept of "prior knowledge" (p. 147), meaning learners compare new concepts to that which they already know. In this light, I am reminded of the big transition from middle school choir to high school choir, and how frequently my colleagues remark that they have to "reteach" musical concepts or "get everyone on a level playing field." It's important for music teachers to understand prior knowledge and have a good idea of how to adapt instruction to build upon or even at times rise above that which was taught before.
Continuing with Driscoll's model, active, social, and reflective learning play a large role in the music classroom. "People learn by doing" (Bauer, 2014, p. 148), and a lot of instruction in the music classroom is surrounded by guiding students to play or sing a particular passage correctly consistently--a very active process. Students also learn socially by comparing their performance by that of the teacher or by those around them, which is supported by the social constructivist approach to learning, which states that "learners evaluate their own understanding...by comparing it to that of others" (p. 148). This process also involves reflective learning, or one's ability to "set learning goals, plan learning strategies, monitor one's progress and adjust the approach to learning as necessary" (p. 149). In order to help guide students toward mastery of a musical instrument or concept, we must adopt a version of Driscoll's model in order to reach all levels of the learner. I liken this to the oft utilized learning approach that caters to the visual, aural, and kinesthetic learner. Driscoll's model is also one that I will strive to carefully incorporate into my future instruction.
With these learning processes in mind, I was excited to get started on our WebQuest project. I chose to center my project around performance practices, and as I designed the outline I tried to incorporate all aspects of Driscoll's learning model, as well as aspects that appeal to the visual, aural, and kinesthetic learner. Google Sites seems to be an excellent mode to piece this complex project together, and I am excited to spread my reach and incorporate many of the technologies that we have experienced in the class thus far.
One consideration I was pleased to see in the limelight was the issue of copyright. I have been sensitive to this issue as an educator for quite some time, and I am glad the text addressed it in such depth. It's important for educators to know the in's and out's of copyright law, since in today's age it is hard to tell what one is able to get away with. As a composer myself, I do appreciate with people purchase the music instead of photocopying, since the latter affects my livelihood. The Creative Commons organization (Bauer, 2014, p. 163) was an entirely new discovery for me. I think it's a brilliant concept that individuals can license their works freely as well as provide conditions that are clear and to-the-point (unlike copyright legislation). I am hoping to incorporate Creative Commons into my WebQuest project.
This week was in some ways a strong reminder and in other ways an eye-opening revelation which focuses on the importance of thoughtful, well-designed instruction. As educators, if we are to truly guide young musicians toward a deeper understand of music, then we owe them the best quality instruction that will set them up not only to succeed, but to have a lasting effect on their minds and lives.
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Bauer, W.I. (2014). Music learning today: digital pedagogy for creating, performing, and responding to music. New York: Oxford.
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