MUED 273 Reflection Andrew Foote

Coming into freshman year, I had believed that the only options for music majors was performance or
High-school band. I knew I did not want to perform for a living, so I had settled on the latter option. I still
remember the moment when I had my realization that there was more to the degree than that. I was talking to a
senior in the music building, and she said she wanted to teach elementary music. I had an epiphany, that there
were careers beyond high school band, and I have been fortunate enough to have other such realizations. At
several points this year I felt myself going through a shift in perspective. As many of my classmates can attest,
it is easy to feel as though we know a lot about teaching, considering we have spent much of our lives being
taught. As observant and thoughtful students, we pick up on good and bad practices, and therefore feel like we
have a clear understanding of the bulk of information. Every music education class I have taken has reminded
me just how much more there is to learn, while also affirming many semi-formed ideas with empirical
research. However, an increased knowledge of pedagogy has been accompanied by the slow awakening to the
bulk of frustrating and dissatisfying components of teaching. I find much of the public-school politics and
bureaucracy to be immensely frustrating, and I have yet to student teach. It is from this that I am in the process
of determining a new course for my musical career. I believe that I could find a very fulfilling balance of
challenge and reward if I pursue it beyond the conventional school. At this point, I am considering teaching for
a time, and then opening a business that offers after-school programs for music education, much like
taekwondo. Students would be bussed from school to the facility where they could take formalized lessons,
experimental play sessions, and common musical academic subjects as well. This could be partnered with an
instrument repair shop, to provide an additional revenue stream. A community benefit would be to hire local
musicians to provide lessons, so they can establish themselves and gain name recognition. This plan would
never have been thought up had it not been for the thought-provoking and challenging perspectives we studied
in this class. The class work has given me many new ideas and viewpoints I never would have considered
previously.

Though the fall course did contribute to my educational growth, this spring has been rife with
intellectually stimulating, and often challenging, readings and assignments. thought-provoking experience was
the study of Randall Allsups book Remixing the Classroom, in which he challenges many of the longstanding
practices in our field. Reading and discussing this book brought to light ideas and systemic patterns that I had
never noticed, and it encouraged me to continue questioning and searching for answers. I think the most
profound of points was on the museum vs laboratory learning environment. By discussing the differences
between the two, Allsup avoided vilifying practices that are longstanding, while championing progressive ideas
and practices. I never gained the impression that he was opposed to common practices in schools (ex. standard
large ensembles) which many of my peers seemed to have thought. Rather, I felt as though he was encouraging
his readers simply to be open to these other methods, and not to blindly follow in the footsteps of our own
teachers. I dont believe there is anything wrong with taking inspiration from personal experiences and
education, however the operative word in the sentence was blindly. Far too often we fall into the patterns to
which we are most accustomed, and that may not always be the best course of action. Aside from Allsup, the
teaching experience we planned in collaboration with the MUED 372 class, specifically for the JMUke events
stands out strongly. We formed into groups of four, and were asked to prepare a half hour of teaching material
to introduce our age bracket (21 and over for my group) to the basics of ukulele playing, so they could have an
idea of what they were doing in a jam session. I worked with my group to create what we felt was an adequate
amount of material. When we began our segment of the experience, we quickly realized how much more we
should have prepared. It is akin to the old saying about firewood: when you feel like you have enough, youre
only a third of the way there. I tend to best operate verbally, and I tend to have an aversion to highly-scripted
planning. It took my experience scrambling to fill an extra 15 minutes of air-time to have the importance of
extra planning finally stick in my head. I have since found that there is nothing wrong with operating in a fluid
and adaptable way, however that is rarely, if ever, successful if proper planning does not provide a foundation
for that method. I have since taken the opportunity to dig in to the specific act of lesson planning and
experience design, so that I do not find myself in that type of situation again. I have since noticed a great
improvement in the quality and level of detail in my work, which is very satisfying. The combination of new
educational perspectives and concrete experience has provided me with much growth in my philosophy this
semester.

From all of the work done this semester, I have distilled ten principles of which I have become acutely
aware. These realizations did not come from one specific event, but rather appeared in part at different points,
and solidified as the year continued.

1. Children first: This should be a no brainer, but can easily be overlooked. As teachers focus on
their own goals, it is possible for them to lose sight of their purpose: they exist to serve their
students, and actions that do not support that goal are unnecessary, and frequently detrimental.

2. Choice is King: This is a perspective I have held in life in general for a long time. As students are
learning material, we as teachers owe it to them to provide as many options as possible. By
providing multiple avenues, we increase the chances for student success.

3. Inclusion is a Priority: Research done by theorists such as Piaget and Kolb serve as reminders
that accommodating different types of learners is a necessity. The work done in class with Dr.
Hammel reminded me that this is not only a goal, but a duty. All students deserve to learn.

4. Scaffolding: The work of the teacher in preparing the lesson extends beyond that specific lesson.
By providing the students with structure but not all the answers, we enable them to learn and
discover on their own. We are not here to give away the answer, but to lead students to it.

5. Extra Preparedness: As talked about above, there is never harm in having more material than
you have time. Everything moves faster than you think, and coming prepared to the classroom is
paramount to success. Without proper preparation, the students will have a hard time internalizing
and processing the material

6. Learning through Discovery: As Benjamin Franklin said, tell me and I forget. Teach me and I
may remember, involve me and I learn. The strongest lessons are experienced firsthand, so
creating exercises and activities that foster these lessons should be at the forefront of our minds.

7. Teaching is a Social Responsibility: There are many, many individuals who are marginalized in
education today. Our various guest speakers this semester emphasized to me the importance of
mindfulness in relation to social issues and people. We have implicit bias, and we need to
challenge it to the point of habit.

8. Balance: Success is a hollow victory if it comes at the expense of personal well-being. Finding
the correct relationship between work and life, structure and freedom, formal and informal is
crucial to a productive learning environment. Though we work very hard, we need to know when
to take a break.
9. Assessment is not Evil: The correlation between the word assessment and the negative
experiences with SOLs and IB exams jaded my perspective. I have since realized that assessment
is another opportunity for teacher creativity, and can be noninvasive and highly informative. It is
necessary, and does not have to be a necessary evil.

10. Transfer Goals: Working through the Understanding by Design book drove this lesson home to
me. There is little point in an activity if it exists in a vacuum, and our class should reflect this. As
teachers, we should strive to create good people who are skilled musicians, with a breadth of
knowledge.