OneNote Review

Organization is imperative in the day to day operations of teachers. If you wear as many hats as I do, having a system in place in one of the most important strategies to use. OneNote is a free- form program that could consolidation many of your task into one place. I was amazed at all of the capabilities that provides. At first glance, OneNote is designed much like an actually notebook. At the top of the page are tabs that you may add or delete to organize all of your notes or administrative tasks.  As the program gathers and organizes your information, you can add handwritten notes, drawings, screenshots and clipping, video and audio clips, as well as allow you to collaborate with other users.

OneNote is versatile. It mostly runs on CPUs and laptops but can be accessible on tablets. It can work as program on its own but it can also work in conjunctions with Microsoft Word and Excel, allowing you to share data between the programs. It allows you to create lesson plans or organize fundraising finances with the click of a button. OneNote also saves automatically, so there is no need to worry about losing information (what a relief!!).

The most fascinating feature of OneNote in my opinion is the ability to create interactive lessons. You can organize your lesson plans, assignment, worksheets, test, and class note in a single file. This program even allows you to email assignments to parent if the child is absent. You can create notebooks specifically for classes and grade assignments without printing and collecting worksheets or notebook paper assignments.

 OneNote allows you to meet all of your students learning needs with all of the features that can be utilized in your lessons. It is the one stop shop to several of your organizational needs.

Week 7 - Productivity and Professional Development

This week's reading/lecture focuses on utilizing technology to complete organizational and administrative task and how technology can aid in providing professional development to educators around the globe. There are several points mentioned in the text that made me stop, think, assess, and/or reevaluate some things. As I ponder on the school year that has just begun, the areas that I will address and reflect on are organization, personal learning networks (PLNs), and distance learning. I am choosing to address these topics because they hold a significant value within my educational realms. As I bring this technology class to a close, I've discovered several things about myself. You think you know all there is to know about yourself until a little pressure is added, and your back is against the wall.

If I could turn back the hands of time and restart my teaching career to implement some of the technology described by Bauer (2014) [pg.169] in the productivity section of the text, I would. As I think about overseeing marching band alone, there are a few things mentioned here that can benefit me now and in the future. The use of digital calendars and "to do list' are ideas I have just begun to dabble with. This change came about after I upgraded to an iPhone and purchased an iPad. Dates and times that I schedule, notes I create that are used as reminders, and music and other things that I may need on a daily basis can be sync across all of my Apple Devices. As long as I have access to the Internet, my iCloud storage space, my work is always just a click away should I need it.
Dropbox is another feature that I have been using inside and outside my classroom. I love this digital storage space because it eliminates the excuse of students forgetting materials I've handed out and losing/forgetting their flash drives. Files can be shared easily between multiple people and are available from any device connected to the Internet.

Distance Learning is definitely a new concept for me. I would have to say if was one of the most eye-opening, overwhelming experiences of my life. I decided after some soul-searching and research that online classes were more feasible as, I balanced a career as well as maintain my personal affairs. I knew for some time that I would continue my education, but I simply was not ready. And I am still not totally confident in supplying what is demanded of me. Despite all of my ill-temperament, my saving grace was and currently is the PLNs. My personal learning network for this particular helped to grow as an educator. We shared information pertinent to our areas of interest and expertise, offered advice, engaged in dialogue, shared strategies, give others a brand-new outlook on some of the challenges they have faced, and offered solutions. Because of technology usages such as blogging, discussion boards, and social media, I am able to blossom. My spirit has been rejuvenated. I am encouraged to use technology in the classrooms to improve student learning. In the future, I plan to consciously seek ways technology can assist my students and further meaningful student learning in music, and consider how technology can facilitate students creating, performing, and responding to music (pg. 185).

Bauer, W. I. (2014). Pedagogical Approaches to Composition. In Music learning today: Digital pedagogy for creating, performing, and responding to music. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Week 6: Students Responding to Music

The focus of this week's reading/viewing assignment covers how students respond to music. Chapter 5 is filled with several gems of knowledge that can be useful in improving how our students listen to and respond to music. One of the gems that resonated with me the most is realizing that students respond to school music in a variety of ways. The chapter opens with Elizabeth's experiences as a general education teacher. I instantly made several connections with the scenario as I reflected upon my teaching experiences. Considering I was hired to teach chorus and band, my first year, I was thrown a curveball. I was assigned to teach two courses of general music or music appreciation to high school students. Band was my primary focus. Enrollment and morale were down due to the leadership change. Therefore, I used those two classes to teaching students how to read music and was hopeful that I would get them to learn how to play an instrument. My play was to recruit as many students as I could to join the band. However, I quickly realized that was a mistake. The students were not enthusiastic about coming to class, often showed out, and lacked participation in the lesson, and eventually expressed their distaste for the course. I was devastated. I thought if students enrolled in a music class their interest lied in the performance of music through band or chorus.

After an entire nine weeks of failed attempt after attempt, I came to the realization that I was not successful. My plan to recruit was not working and I desperately needed to find another alternative to ensure all students were engaged. This raised an important question. What can do to turn this situation around?  After a few surveys and several discussions on the classes' music habits, I found some important things that inspired me to try one more option. I learned all the students enjoyed creating music, singing and rapping. However, they cared not to indulge in any of structured programs such as the band.  I downloaded Mixcraft, allowed them to form cooperative learning groups, set a few constraints, and let the creativity to take over. I was amused at how quickly the participation increased, and morale soared. After the project was completed, I asked each student to write a reaction to his or her group collaboration. I disappointed with the responses I received. I read journal entries with sentences as followed: "The song was good." "The song needs some bass in it."

I realized I did not teach those students how to actively listen to music. Woody (2004) [as cited by Bauer, 2014]  said that the most an important aspect of music education is "to develop student's ability to respond emotionally to the expressive properties of sound." I did not deliver. I took for granted the process of having to teach students how to critically respond to music. In the near future, I plan to give this project a facelift by adding a few things:

1. Discuss the elements of music and help students to develop a musical vocabulary. 
2. Instead of using Mixcraft, allow students to exploring different DAWs to create an original composition.
3. After the project is completed, all students will be asked to write a reaction to their assignment. The students will be asked to explore the emotional and technical realms of the composition.
4. Each group will present their composition to the class. All students will verbally describe how the music makes them feel. Students should use musical terminology. 
5. Use a rubric to evaluate student work.
6. All student work will be collected, added to your Spotify email, burned onto a CD,  or placed on YouTube.

In the grand scheme of it all, Effective response to music is an area of interest that is truly a weakness for me. I do not get the well-thought out responses to music inquiries. Simply because I do not set my students up to succeed. However, this conundrum is now a distant memory. With some slight adjustments to the instruction and the incorporation of music technology "to refine [their] music listening skills, deepen the understanding of musical concepts, and strengthen the awareness of the role of music in cultural and society" (Bauer, 2014) will encourage them to build upon their skills to describe music, listen to music, and gain knowledge about music.

Bauer, W. I. (2014). Pedagogical Approaches to Composition. In Music learning today: Digital pedagogy for creating, performing, and responding to music. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Week 5 - Differentiating Instruction and Creative planning

In comparison to the weeks prior, I expected to be engulfed in some sort of music web-based program or software this week. Yet, through the assigned video lecture and reading, we explored several areas of instructional design. This particular topic could not come at a better time as we prepare to return to our perspective classrooms. Everyday, it is our civic duty to make sure all students are engaged in our lessons, learn concepts, and can demonstrate mastery of the curriculum. Coincidentally, I designated this week to sit down and take the time to revised my syllabus. Through the matriculation of this assignments, revision is necessary. 

After listening to the lecture, I realized I needed to make some changes in regard to my teaching. Year after year, I teach the same subjects, the same way, with no deviation. Not truly realizing, these generations of students are forever changing. I did not offer much differentiation in instruction other than teaching to my auditory, visual and tactile learners. Frankly, differentiation of instructions scares me. The developmental level of the students I receive is so vast; I'm never should where to start.After some careful reflection, I noticed that each year I start from the very beginning. I teach to the lower level students and leave those who are slightly advanced to fend for themselves. It seemed as if I were planning differentiation instruction, I was planning individual lesson plans for all of my students. Therefore, I strayed away from it. I taught everyone at the same pace, keeping students from progressing, exploring, and tapping into their true potential as great musicians. I became the hindrance. This conundrum raised the question? What can I do differently to ensure this never happens again?

In future practice, I foresee the use of creative planning and integrate technology in the most effective capacity. The video lecture outlined several ways to creatively plan a lesson. There were two points that resonated with me the most. First, get out the box. Teaching verbatim from the textbook is a common approach, but it is definitely not the right approach. There are several online tools that students may use to individualized the instruction and offer differentiation instruction. Secondly, move beyond the traditional approach and experience alternative methods. My previous statement supports this statement as well. This information is relevant because there a change to be made, and that change must start with me. I have to move beyond my fears, and experience and utilize the alternative methods available to me. Musicianship is more than manipulating instruments and singing. It is about time I give my students the education they truly deserve. I can no longer fear differentiating instruction, but embrace it. Taking the integral approach of technology is the gateway to success with all students and alleviates the overwhelming pressures from me. I'm excited to see what the outcome will be. 

Bauer, W. I. (2014). Pedagogical Approaches to Composition. In Music learning today: Digital pedagogy for creating, performing, and responding to music. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.