Diversity of Learners
The teacher understands and respects the differences between students based upon ethnicity, culture, language, disabilities, exceptionalities, health, gender, and sexual orientation. Further, s/he presents an attitude of acceptance, teaching and caring for all students with no discrimination.
This is the standard in which I feel I have progressed the most during my teacher education. I certainly welcome learners of all kinds into my classroom - indeed, I think that diversity of learners is what makes teaching continually fun and rewarding. However, I grew up in a fairly homogeneous culture. Almost all of my classmates were from white, middle-class families, so I was not exposed first-hand to very many cultural differences or situations that can arise because of socioeconomic differences with students. Through observations, school visits, and my own student-teaching experiences, I have been able to broaden my horizons and learn about student-learners from all walks of life.
I also feel like I have learned a great deal about special education programs in general, and how they work with music classes. I have benefited greatly from experiences my classmates who have been in the field have shared with me. I have also begun to learn about the field of music therapy and ways in which music educators and music therapists can work together to strengthen musical as well as behavioral and developmental skills in students. Through student teaching at an elementary school which groups many of the special needs students in the district, I have had the privilege of working with students having many different exceptionalities. I have learned how to review their IEP's and integrate that knowledge into their music-learning plans. Most importantly, I have observed first-hand that all students are capable of learning about and benefiting from music in their own ways. While some students may progress differently than others, all are capable of meaningful progress. Enabling them to make this progress is rewarding and fun.
I am looking forward to expanding my perspective further. I have been able to observe a wider variety of classroom settings than I had experienced before, from those in wealthy suburbs to urban school settings. Each school seems to have its own unique recipe for coming together as a unit for learning, and this makes sense - each has different ingredients with which to work.
I believe I am well-suited to address diverse learners. Specifically within the choral classroom, one must be prepared to deal with the phenomenon of the changing voice. This brings a great deal of diversity into a rehearsal, and teachers must be able to adapt learning experiences to keep these singers motivated and active in a healthful way. I feel that the choral methods classes I have taken have prepared me well for this eventuality.
Additionally, I believe that I have a fairly good grasp on dealing with multiple learning styles and intelligences within the classroom. Some of the artifacts below demonstrate varying techniques I have used in teaching situations in the past.
One way in which choral music education can attract and appeal to students of diverse backgrounds is by providing authentic musical experiences from varying traditions. In addition to classical choral repertoire, I have a decent background in performing popular music. Being in an
a cappella ensemble during my undergraduate years really helped sure up my skills as a musician and my passion for singing. I believe that providing experiences such as these for school-aged students can be equally as valuable. At the 2007
OMEA Conference, I attended a workshop about including
a cappella music as part of a choral curriculum as well as a workshop promoting the use of barbershop music in the classroom. At the 2008 Conference, I took a course on teaching Rock and Roll History as a general music course. Offering opportunities such as these may help reach many different kinds of students in addition to those typically attracted to school music programs. Additionally, I audited a World Music Education course, took a course in Ethnomusicology, and have attended workshops on Egyptian and Indian music in music education., These multicultural experiences can have a similar effect for students.
Diversity of Learners Artifacts
A Vocal Interview (PDF File)
In this vocal interview, I examined the voices of two middle-school singers - one, a very experienced girl, and the other, a relatively inexperienced boy who had just undergone his voice change. Beginning on the fifth page of this document, I examine the boy's vocal development and possible vocal placement for him within the choir. This artifact demonstrates my ability to work with and plan for diverse stages of vocal development in a choral setting.
Lesson Plan with Learner Modification (PDF File)
This lesson plan was created for an Elementary General Music class taken in the Fall of 2007. Within this 30-minute lesson, modifications are provided for a student who is in a wheelchair and has limited mobility in her hands and arms. All modifications are shown in blue type. All efforts were made to include this student in the least restrictive environment possible.
Museum Exercise (PDF File)
As a part of my Baroque Music History class taken at Oberlin, I was required to compare a piece of art at a local museum with a piece of music. This experience helped me to better understand the Baroque movement comprehensively, but it also is a great strategy that I hope to use in the future for addressing students with different learning styles and intelligence profiles. Such exercises would really aid students with high visual or artistic intelligences to transfer knowledge from those areas into musical contexts.
Addressing Different Musical Backgrounds within a Choral Setting (Quicktime Movie File)
Jack plays King's Land (Quicktime Movie File)
Movement Exercise (Quicktime Movie File)
Blog Post Regarding Special Learners (Web Link)
This link goes directly to a blog post written in the fall of 2006 in which I reflect upon the article "Instrumental Music for Special Learners." Several articles are reviewed in this post; the relevant one is third from the top. This post demonstrates some of my feelings toward the idea of having special learners in my classes, as well as presenting some questions which remain unanswered regarding the intricacies of incorporating special education students into music classes.
Obervation in an Urban School (Web Link)
During the spring of 2009, I had the opportunity to observe a teacher in an urban setting. Whereas my student teaching situation is in a suburban, upper-middle-class town, this teacher teaches in an inner-ring suburb with great diversity in terms of racial and socioeconomic makeup of the students. Apart from that, however, the situations were mostly the same - elementary general music taught according to the Kodály philosophy. In this observation report, I reflect upon the differences and similarities of our situations.