Lets learn some music.

Think about the way we learn a song at Westminster.  

Now think about the way you learn a song from your favorite artist.

One of these ways I'm assuming you have no idea what the song is until after a couple times of learning notes, rhythm, lyrics, and such.  The other way you don't even contemplate learning the song, you just want to sing along.  I hear from a lot of people that it's bad practice to learn a song by ear, that it's not really learning the song, but I learn a song faster, and more accurately that way.  It's also easier to memorize.  In my case its a much more efficient way to learn a song than by plucking out notes on a piano and pretending I can sight read worth a penny.  Would it be blasphemous to teach by ear in a classroom?  Forget the sheet music and just play the song over and over, downloading it to the student's ipods or computers and let them take it home to learn it?  For one song we had to learn in high school the choir teacher did just that.  He had 4 different CDs for each voice part that included the orchestra and other parts and had the part that was listening be the most prominent so not only could we learn the notes by ear, but also put it in context with the whole piece.  It worked really well and I'm pretty sure an audience wouldn't be able to tell how we learned the song.  Also if it is faster then it also can give teachers time to teach more about what we're singing than teaching how to sing it.  

Oh Britney.

After watching “Womanizer” by Britney Spears, it got me thinking a lot about how I could implement this video and music in the classroom. The first thing that I noticed about the video was that while Spears is calling her boyfriend/fiancé/significant other a womanizer, she is using sex appeal throughout in order to prove her point. While I understand that sex sells in the media, I do not think that its promotion helps to better the predicament that Spears is feeling in her music. We, as a society, allow sex to be a huge aspect of media appeal. I always find it funny when female stars who are taking off their clothes say that their sexuality is empowering and that they are not ashamed of that fact. At the same time, they want respect and to be seen as professionals in the field of entertainment. It’s not to say that these women do not deserve respect nor should they necessarily be ashamed of any image they portray, whether that be sexual or not. The only thing that I wonder is, if you’re okay with taking off your clothes then you should also be aware of the potential scrutiny that will follow. And if that results in some judgmental or disapproving comments, then that’s the risk those individuals take. I, personally, do not know how effective overt sexual promotion can be when in search of respect, but it is definitely food for thought.

 I agree with Billy and how he thinks that this topic might be a little inappropriate for middle schoolers. This might be something that is more appropriate within a high school setting.  I do not know, however, if I would use “Womanizer” so freely in the classroom without being prepared to talk about its implications. Music and its usage in the media is something that affects our students’ tastes and thoughts regarding music and musical artists. Knowing how to tackle the topics that music can provoke, especially in today’s society, is another tool that music educators should carry with them in the quest to teach and connect to each students’ world. Because, let’s face it, Britney Spears is in everyone’s world whether they like it or not. You might not like her music or image, but she might help to open up great, thought-provoking discussions within your classroom. 

Is Authenticity necessarily relevant

After reading Dani's post on abandoning authenticity for synthesizers, I think it brings up a valid point about a generality of students in the 21st century. If a teacher teaches a lesson with clarity, precision, efficiency and grace, a student is much more likely to stay interested and engaged in what's going on. I feel like students can smell, if you will, the fact that a teacher is uncomfortable teaching a lesson or is faking it.

I've talked to countless church musicians who have elegantly planned and executed services. Likewise, I've dealt with the ones who can't hold a candle to music, but perform the music with such integrity that the honesty is what melts your heart. I guess my biggest problem with authenticity is that is challenges a teacher's ability to stay honest. One may ask: how is this a problem?

Shouldn't we as teachers go in to our classrooms knowing the truth about certain topics? I'm not suggesting that teachers are God with an all knowing mind. But I am suggesting that even if teachers don't know how to achieve an authentic experience of music, they know where to get it. Resources are everything in teaching. Agree?

Happy December!

follow up from class on tuesday

We spent a majority of time contemplating the fact of ESL schools in our nation. The fact is (and this is really sad to say) that most school districts who implement ESL in their schools set up administration who know very little about the positions they're inheriting. For example... my former principal was caught committing an immoral act of cheating on his wife. Personally, I couldn't care less. But in a gossiping town like Scranton where everyone is related to everyone else, the word got around quickly...the local newspapers got a hold of it and wouldn't let the subject die. The superintendent was forced to make a decision. (p.s neither the super nor the principal have taught in a classroom). After the incident went down, a position was created for this person where he would actually be getting a raise to be the coordinator of the ESL program for the entire school district. ((as a side note:: what kind of message does THAT send to kids??)) While a majority of the population in the school district speaks english, there has been an influx of Spanish speakers of those families who are looking for someplace cheaper to live than Philadelphia or New York. Only a handful of the teachers that have been hired to be in the ESL system actually speak a different language. It's used more as a stepping stone for promotions to a standard classroom as well as tenure.

What's worse is that most of the students who appear in the classroom in October will be gone by December because of their migrating parents who can't find work to keep food on the table. So back and forth they go from Scranton, to Wilkes Barre and the Poconos to Allentown...the list goes on and on.

Yet another sad story is that some of these kids who grow up in dysfunctional housing units with parents that teachers can never get a hold of grow up with disabilities that can't be diagnosed because A.) the student never stays in more than one place to get diagnosed by a counselor and B.) the pure selfishness of the parents to ignore the fact that the child needs help!

It seems to me that white suburbia is just testing the waters to see what will work in the years to come with ESL. What do some of your home districts do with these problems? Or are these problems eliminated/worse back home?

follow up on britney and beyonce

Ryan, you've hit on a good point...I guess we need another 3 weeks of classes just to digest some of the material that's out there on mtv and vh1...the material that our students pay attention too, sing on their own time and absorb.

From an outsider on pop culture, I looked at the Britney Spears video first, mainly because she was a big part of my pop music life when I was growing up. I can remember back to the days of "Hit Me Baby One More Time" where "bringing down the machine" as cited in the movie half nelson, was nothing more than dancing in your catholic school girl uniform and just singing your groove. I looked back on the video to compare what has been done in the last ten years of britney's music career. the singing has gotten worse, the dance moves have gone from talented to highly suggestive in a sexual manner and overall the content of the song is just trashy. When the Backstreet Boys first came out, with Britney, Nsync and Christina Aguilera close behind, the music was really good, the dancing showed much talent, hell even the way the film makers shot the video was less suggestive. The focus was on their faces, the talents they had and the stories they were telling, not on how attractive they are (or aren't, depending on how you look at it).

Personally, I feel this is a bit too much for middle schoolers to handle. how many times have we heard of kids getting caught in the bathroom with someone else doing things they weren't supposed to in school? While we can't avoid the subject, I feel the content can be a little more censored and geared toward stimulating our minds in ways that don't involve sex.

On the contrary, I liked the Beyoncé video. After watching the Britney video first, I was hesitant to continue on and dig into this subject matter anymore. However, one of the biggest concepts I thought it showed was empathy. Recently in our Secondary class, Andrew and I have had the privilege to hear the students talk about their views on character education through the school district. One of the topics that is broadly covered throughout the curriculum during their middle school years is empathy. How do you think it feels when person does a harmful act/kind act towards another person/thing? Would you be able to do it differently? Beyoncé really takes care to put that sense of empathy at the highlight of her video, (as opposed to the unnecessary shots of naked Britney..) and I feel it leaves a good message...take care of each other! In a relationship, don't go through the motions for the sake of going through the motions. Realize that everything you do on a daily basis can and will be used against you (if that thing is a malicious, harmful, spiteful or selfish act), whether you're sleeping with that guilt or not.

Beyoncé & Britney PLEASE WATCH!!!!!

Ok, so instead of posting a lengthy blog this week, i figured YouTube would be better. These are two songs that are popular right now by Britney Spears and Beyoncé... If you could watch the videos linked below and tell me your thoughts on how we might use these in a classroom to raise awareness of sexism in the US. We always seem to have these lengthy conversations about "guys" and hegemony, and have been talking about how multiculturalism means more than just race and ethnicity. maybe these videos could serve as a catalyst for a conversation with our students. Maybe they couldn't. I would LOVE to know your thoughts!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Womanizer -- Britney Spears
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZSLIq6YiRY

If I were a Boy -- Beyoncé
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVTyLqkez6A

"I Love Lucy" Inspired

I was watching “I Love Lucy” at the gym this morning, and it was the episode where Lucy and Ethel want to learn to speak French so they can order at a French restaurant. As they begin their lessons with their French teacher, one of the first questions Lucy asks is why some words have “la” and “le” before them. The teacher says that it is because everything is either masculine or feminine unlike in America. Lucy responds by saying, “apparently you don’t know this country.” It made me think about how much the time has changed since then. Lucy was in reference to the different roles of men and a women at the time.

This episode reminded me of an article by Nel Noddings I used in my last paper. It is titled “Care Tradition: Beyond 'Add Women and Stir.” I don’t want to go into how we all need to be equal despite gender or anything at this point, but I want to share a couple of thoughts on the changing roles of women in society. Nel Noddings brings out an idea that now that the women are not taking on the “caring” carriers such as a being a stay at home mom etc... there are many caring roles that are not being carried out. It now falls into all hands to take on these roles. I will add that I think that teaching, is one of these very roles. Any thoughts?