Madison Horner

Student Teaching Project: Music Class Driver’s License

Fall 2023
Reflection on Teaching and Learning
In this lesson the students were able to learn about movement and form in music. While
the series didn’t rely heavily on musical vocabulary or student creation the students learned and
performed throughout the entirety of the activity. As an educator who believes in “practice makes
progress,” this activity provided many opportunities for students to rehearse and grow before the
final Music Class Driver’s License exam. I found that a lot of my objectives and expectations
were effective throughout all of my lessons by demonstrating them first.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to record video during the practice test because of
technological difficulties. After lesson two and before the practice test, I visually showed the
students the objectives on the board and reviewed each one relating them back to when I
introduced them. For example, one of the objectives was starting and stopping at the right time. I
asked the students, “How do we know when to move and when to stop?” They reflected and we
reviewed the rest of the objectives. I also explained how the final driving test would go, then
they practiced in small groups. I designed the practice test to be extremely similar to the test so
that the students would know what to expect. The practice test is also when I added the creating
process to the activity. In each of the small testing groups the students chose the order of their
group driving test. Ultimately, they were creating their form of movement and response to music.
Throughout these lessons, I utilized both informal and formal assessment. Since a lot of
this activity was movement and form based, I was consistently using informal assessments to
adjust sequencing and demonstrations in lesson. If students were not ready for the next step in
driving (whether they needed or more practice with the step before, or they were fooling around)
then I had them practice what they already learned. After the first lesson, I learned that I would
have to demonstrate each step for the students so that had a visual, as well as a behavioral
understanding of what I was looking for.
My own musicianship affected student learning as I was able to demonstrate the activity
in multiple forms. When I first introduced the activity, I sang the song for them and showed
when to start and stop. Then I was able to demonstrate movement within the song relating to
starting and stopping. I could then sing the song at different tempos, relating to driving scenarios
like getting on the highway (speed up/fast) and stuck in traffic (slow down/slow). Demonstrating
these examples allowed students to be successful in all forms. A clear model students showed the
students what I was looking for objectively, as well as correct behavior. I was able to relate a lot
of the activity to real car driving which made the students engaged and excited. Partaking in
multiple re-runs of this activity allowed for more practice at achieving the objectives. The
practice test was informal and allowed students to prepare for the formal exam which happened
during lesson three.
As young, small students, it can be challenging for them to find their way around a tight
space and be careful with surrounding objects. This musical activity was a great example of
exploring the music room while staying aware of space and boundaries. In fact, the classroom
environment helped me further one of my learning objectives. I was able to use the tubano drums
in the room to act as a boundary and guide. Students knew that they were not allowed to drive
behind the drums or drive into the drums.
Based on the analysis of my teaching and student learning, if I were to teach this lesson
again, I would incorporate music vocabulary to make the activity music based instead of just
movement. The disadvantage was that the timing of this lesson didn’t allow me to teach enough
music-based content. The students knew how to execute the activity, but not how it related to
music and movement. Therefore, I felt that I could’ve done a better job making that connection.
In the future, I hope to teach this lesson with more time since there were a lot of different things
to think about and only three lessons to teach the students. Also, if I were to teach this lesson
again, I would show and incorporate a visual of the rubric for the driving test. Enforcing the
expectations and objectives is always good for students when they know they’re being assessed.
I wrote the total score of the students’ performance (based on the rubric) on the back of their
licenses/permits, but the students didn’t know what the score meant. Based on student
performances, almost the entirety of the class met the expectations and objectives. I had a
wonderful time teaching this activity, as well as incorporating and building off each of the
objectives. I look forward to tweaking and teaching this lesson again in the future.