Philosophy

Caleb Simonds
Secondary Music Methods
April 11, 2015
Philosophy of Education Paper

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2
Educational Philosophy

There are many different philosophies when it comes to instrumental

music education. People often dispute whether or not music education is
even a necessary part of a childs education, how the teacher should
assess a students progress and the role of the teacher in the music
classroom, just to name a few. There are also numerous ways to teach
different types of students. Throughout this essay I will explore many of
these educational philosophies that I have, and how these are important
in order to maintain a functioning society.
Education is and always will be a very important part to an
individuals functioning in society; there are many purposes of getting an
education that benefit everyone. One of the key purposes of education is
to help equalize opportunity for success in todays society. Education
allows the possibility for everyone to have the same chances and same
base knowledge to pursue the career that they want. A good education
also allows each individual to secure a better future. I believe that music is
a necessary part of education that helping the students grow and build
even brighter futures for themselves.
Music allows students the ability to express themselves in a creative
way, it allows them to create something new, it allows them to connect
with the history behind each piece they perform. Studies have shown that
music is more than just a creative outlet as well; it helps to develop the left
side of the brain, and helps to wire it in new ways, imprinting information

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in your mind. This means that through music, people are able to remember
and retain more information. Music has also been proven to increase a
childs abilities in learning and other non-music tasks.
In addition to this, playing music allows a person to access more of
their brain than usual, and increases the spatial temporal intelligence in a
person. That intelligence helps students thrive more in numerous other
fields including; math, art, architecture, engineering and many others.
Studies have even shown that there is a positive correlation between
music education and improved test scores. I believe that it is clear that a
musical education is essential in order to bring out the best in a student
and making them a well-balanced and valuable part of society.
Not just music though, I feel that instrumental music plays an even
more instrumental role in the development of a child. In vocal music the
child does learn a great deal and it has a great positive effect on them.
However, I feel that instrumental music can accomplish even more.
Instrumentalists have to develop a stronger sense of eye-hand
coordination in order to have the right fingering for a note as soon as they
see the note, in addition they must have a dexterity to make rapid
fingering changes. In addition to these two, playing instruments also teach
hand independence. In percussion, a drummer must be able to play with
all four limbs independently acting from the others, a French horn uses one
hand for tuning, and the other hand for fingering, in most woodwinds, the
fingering of notes include rapid changes between both hands. These are

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skills that can prove to be valuable in the work force as these students
grow, that can be hard to learn elsewhere.
Most teachers will teach a unit and follow it up with some sort of
assessment, whether it is a test, quiz, or project. In an instrumental music
classroom this is not usually the case. The teacher is to be continually
informally assessing the students progress throughout rehearsals and try
to make whatever accommodations may be necessary to help the student
succeed. This could include anything from pointing out a note that they are
missing to enrolling them in private lessons. The goal in a typical
classroom is the score on a test, the goal in a music class, is teamwork, to
put on a great concert where everyone succeeds.
Because of the nature of this goal, music teachers shouldnt grade a
student based on a day-to-day individual performance, but rather whether
or not the student is trying hard and improving. There can be a playing
test every now and then, but that wouldnt be the sole tool for assessment.
It will be clear to the teacher whether or not the student is practicing
outside of the class, and that will affect their daily participation point.
Generally, their performance in class will be assessed through the amount
of effort they put in to helping the ensemble put a great performance
together.
The teacher plays many roles in the classroom, and it is the same in
a music classroom. One of the key roles of the teacher is to be a role
model and mentor for their students. Children have the habit of picking up

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on mannerisms and following the example of adults, especially when the

adults are unaware that they are watching. Students will inevitably start to
copy what the teacher does even when theyre not teaching. I feel this
may be even more of a problem in a music classroom, because, in my
experience, students tend to view band directors less of a teacher, and
more of a mentor. Teachers, especially music teachers need to be mindful
of what they say and do in the presence of their students.
Teachers are also supposed to be there for students when they are
struggling and to help the student succeed, as any good mentor would do.
Another role of the teacher is to be a friend to the students. Although
teachers must maintain order in the classroom and can seem to be mean
at times, a good teacher must still try to relate to the students and be an
understanding friend to the students. The teacher may be the students
friend but they also have the requirement of being a strict disciplinarian,
and enforce rules, as they should have been clearly laid out in the
beginning of the school year. Teachers must also be motivators,
encouraging their students to do their best and to overcome any obstacle
that arises. Only by fulfilling all of these roles can a teacher truly help the
students that come into their class.
There are many different types of students represented in the school
system, and each type has a different prominent learning style or
combination of best learning styles for them. There are many different
types of learning styles including visual, auditory, interpersonal,

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intrapersonal, and kinesthetic learners. It is important to make sure you try

to teach the students keeping this in mind. A good way to teach an
instrumentalist their part is to have them listen to it, have them sing their
part and have them play it slowly, and pick up the tempo over several
progressions of the phrase. This, touches on the auditory, and kinesthetic
aspects really well. You can also have the students work on their parts in
sectionals where they can see someone playing their part, this would
cover visual and interpersonal learners as well.
A good teacher should be able to formulate his or her own
philosophy and know that it may change over time, especially through
experience in the classroom. A teacher cannot expect to be successful
without having a full knowledge of their students. It is the teachers duty
as an educator to make sure that the needs of the students are well
accommodated and that their learning styles are well facilitated in the
classroom. It is also important for the teacher to understand the
importance of the material they teach and to make sure that the students
and their parents are also aware of its vitality. All of these factors have
formulated my educational philosophy and I recognize that my view on
these may change through the experiences that I will face when I start to
teach, but this is what I believe a good instrumental music teacher should
be.