I think that having a philosophy and being able to put it into practice are two different things. Because we aren't teaching in a classroom full-time in college, I think it is really easy to get an idealized view of the world. The first step to putting my philosophy into practice is to have a realistic philosophy. I want to have something that I stand for and believe in, but also that is able to be accomplished. My philosophy is all about the students. I want them to be involved in their education. I plan on accomplishing this by asking the students what music they think we should play, what trips and activities we should do, and how they want to learn.
Another part of my philosophy is that students should have a comprehensive music education. When I went to school, it was pretty much all about learning to play the music for the next concert. I want my students to be able to have a much more integrated experience than that. There are skills learned in music that students can use in other parts of their lives, but only if we as teachers help them learn how to do that.
The most important thing in my philosophy is that students feel safe to express themselves in my classroom. Music is an area that the students have to feel free to experiment, and to make themselves vulnerable. I will put this part of my philosophy into practice by making sure all students feel comfortable in my classroom.
Even though I started off by saying it's easy to have an idealized view, I feel like some of my ideas area bit lofty. I think my point is that we can have ideas about how we are going to do things, or how we will put our philosophies into practice, but once we get out in the "real world" we will still have to think on our feet.
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2 comments:
Jodi, I believe you are very sensible in your philosophical approach. It is important to have great ideas and wonderul expectations, but nothing that will be immediatly unattainable by either yourself or your students. However, I don't view your philosophy as being lofy. Students are more willing than we think and if we can give them the chance, they will show us everything they can! Great ideas Jodi!
Jodi,
I especially enjoyed the section on comprehensive education. I liked that you stated you were unhappy with your experience in music education as a student and that you've decided that your classes will be different. All of your ideas are great, and I enjoy that you recognize that forming a philosophy is only half the battle. You're very diligent, and I think you'll definitely integrate your philosophy into your classroom.
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