Perez, Kelly

Intro to Music Ed
Philosophy
My philosophy is that anyone can teach music on a whiteboard. But, to really get to the
student, one must teach with passion and love what they do. My mission in life is to inspire
others to become like myself who is passionate for music and be that concrete support system
if necessary for the student. Students nowadays are going through some difficult obstacles, one
of them including bullying. Bullying has increased so much in schools nationwide. But where are
we as educators to fix this? It is our job to prevent the snickering of the class because a young
boy decides he wants to play flute or a young girl is playing tuba. The teasing had to do with
homosexuality, and being a wuss, and you know, challenging your abilities as a man, you know? Looking back, it
changed my life completely because of the people that I dont talk to and the people I do talk to. The teasing
obviously came from the guys more than the girls, so my relationship with guys is completely different than what
it would have been if I hadnt played the flute. Im happy with my life the way it is. Im glad that I talk to
women more than men right now. But like I said, it changed everything about me. This is an excerpt from
Donald M. Taylors article on Bullying about a boy who chose to play flute in the band. As educators, we need to
be there for the students as a support system which they not have at home and primarily as an educator.
From the observations Ive made of different band directors Ive noticed that they all use a
simple or similar style of teaching. Its time music educators think outside the box and put to
work everything they learned in school. Students need to be engaged in the classroom. If they
get bored they wont appreciate the artistic value playing an instrument holds. Therefore,
students will opt out of taking a band class because its boring or lame. My music teacher
when I was young had a passion for his job. You could clearly see it in the way hed smile at the
children. Hed help us do things that were hands on and creative. This should be applied at all
grade levels. Sitting and playing an instrument is traditional but it should be both traditional
and creative. This is so the student becomes more engaged in the classroom and this could
even spill into other classrooms. The student may choose to become more interested in school
itself. As a music student, did you ever see yourself working through classes because you just
couldnt wait to get to your music class? I know I did. Band itself helped me in my other classes.
It helped me academically and emotionally as I was close to my teacher.
It goes far more than just thinking outside the box. What if there is a student with a
disability in the classroom? What does it mean to have a disability in the music
classroom? Is it possible that disability is not as clear -cut as it may seem? These are
easy questions for educators to overlook because we are busy with the time-consuming
tasks of devising curricula and instructing students with and without special needs.
They are, however, important questions if we want to provide a high-quality education that both
honors and meets the needs of students who require special education services.
This was taken from the article Disability in the Classroom by Joseph Abramo. We
need to be a stepping stone for them to their success.

Music educators have exceptional opportunities to teach students to think independently and
solve problems as they learn. This quote is taken from the article Student-Centered Teaching.
And, its true. This is something music educators should take advantage of and help the
students achieve everyday problems as well as teaching music. Throughout their emotional and
social growth I intend to help those who are and are not disabled to release that emotion into
their music in a way that they can express themselves. So why not include that in a lesson plan
and do something that will interest the students and keep them on the edge of their seats?
They will grow as musicians and as people as well. I hope to one day be a role model to my
students and that they too will become inspired to become an educator as well.

References:

Taylor, D. M. "Bullying: What Can Music Teachers Do?" Music Educators Journal: 41-44.
Abramo, Joseph. "Disability in the Classroom: Current Trends and Impacts on Music Education. Music
Educators Journal: 39-45
Blair, D. V. "Stepping Aside: Teaching In A Student-Centered Music Classroom." Music Educators Journal:
42-45