Student Teaching Portfolio

Ryan Malburg
 Portfolio Class Profile

Grade levels in your portfolio group or class:

Pre-K K 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Portfolio school configuration:

Elementary
Middle
High
Other

Music Teaching Assignment:

Elementary
General Music
Band
Strings
Choral
Other

Portfolio Teaching Topic/Title: Arranging 101

Number of Minutes per Class/Class Meetings per Week: 30 minutes per lesson
during class time

Number of Students in Class: 5

Other Adults in Room? (para-professionals, teacher aids, parent volunteers): N/A

Preparing: Introduction to Series of Lessons

Describe the nature of the selected class or group of students (e.g., instrumental
ensemble; chorus; general music class; selective or auditioned)

Participation in the project was on a volunteer basis. This will be offered to the
Symphonic Wind Ensemble, the audition ensemble at Okemos High School. This
ensemble was selected due to the student’s ability level and the likelihood of
those students to participate.

Describe students’ music learning that occurred prior to and served as a

foundation for the Series of Lessons.

The students have done a few composition assignments this school year, and
are familiar with the process of music writing. However, they do not have much
experience notating by ear.

Describe the main learning goals across the Series of Lessons.

The primary goal of the lessons is to give students the tools needed to arrange
music on their own in the future. I want students to become familiar with the
process of arranging music, so they can continue to arrange and write music on
their own.

Describe how you plan for students to be engaged in creating, performing,

and assessing music

Each student will be responsible for creating their own arrangements, and will
receive two rounds of feedback. The first will be focused on giving them
information that will help them towards their final product, and the second will
be focused on giving them feedback that they can apply to their future work.
Preparing: Lesson Information

Lesson 1/3 Date of lesson: 3/31/2021

Objectives

The primary goal of the lesson was to introduce the lesson, cover basic concepts, and
help students get started on their own arrangements. Students will learn the following
concepts: Transcription, Ear Training, and Arranging. Students will learn basic principles
of these concepts, which will be further explored in future lessons.

Activities/Strategies

Creating: create a simple arrangement of a pop tune. Add harmony to finish

arrangement
Assessing: match a given pitch and get feedback on accuracy

Assessments

1. Written feedback of arrangement

2. Verbal feedback from peers and teacher

Materials

Personal Instrument Noteflight or Musescore

Laptop or other device Zoom
Headphones Microphone

Class Grouping: Individual(s)

Resources used: Harry Styles, Watermelon Sugar: https://youtu.be/E07s5ZYygMg

Teaching Plan:
- Begin with introduction of project, purposes, and the plan for each lesson
- Discuss how to pick a song, things to consider, and the process of arranging
- Cover the roles of melody, bass line, and harmony and how to arrange each part using a
pop tune
- Ask students their prior knowledge of basic harmony
- Review the process of note detection
- Have students unmute on zoom and match pitch
Preparing: Lesson Information

Lesson 2/3 Date of lesson: 4/12/2021

Objectives

The primary goal of this lesson is to give students feedback on their arrangement and
explain advanced concepts to further develop their arrangements. Students will also be
asked to make creative decisions with the teacher being an aid rather than the supplier
of ideas, and will build on the concepts learned in lesson 1.

Activities/Strategies

Creating: create a simple arrangement of a pop tune. Add harmony to finish

arrangement
Assessing: receive feedback on arrangements

Assessments

1. Written feedback of arrangement

2. Verbal feedback from teacher

Materials:

Personal Instrument Noteflight or Musescore

Laptop or other device Zoom
Headphones Microphone

Class Grouping: Individual(s)

Resources used: Harry Styles, Watermelon Sugar: https://youtu.be/E07s5ZYygMg

Teaching Plan:
- Begin with introducing the goals for the lesson
- Let students know they aren’t being graded or assessed on competency alone,
just their efforts so far
- Have each student screen share their arrangement
- I will give feedback on their arrangements; students can share comments if they’d like
- Ask each student what questions they may have and troubleshoot problems, if any
- Cover harmony more in-depth, give ideas that would work for their arrangements
Preparing: Lesson Information

Lesson 3/3 Date of lesson: 4/16/2021

Objectives

Students will learn to be polite and engaging audience members, and give constructive
feedback to other students. Students will also receive feedback from the teacher and
other students that can be applied to future arrangements.

Activities/Strategies

Creating: create a simple arrangement of a pop tune. Add harmony to finish

arrangement
Assessing: receive feedback on arrangements

Assessments

Written feedback of arrangement

Feedback from students

Materials:

Personal Instrument Noteflight or Musescore

Laptop or other device Zoom
Headphones Microphone

Class Grouping: Individual(s)

Resources used: Harry Styles, Watermelon Sugar: https://youtu.be/E07s5ZYygMg

Teaching Plan:
- Begin with introducing the goals for the lesson
- Let students know they aren’t being assessed on competency alone, but only
their efforts on their arrangement and completion of the project
- Have each student screen share their arrangement
- I will give feedback on their arrangements
- Students will be asked to share their thoughts, either out loud or by using the chat
- Share any final thoughts on arrangement
- Answer any final questions the students may have to help their future arrangements
Preparing: Lesson Analysis - Lesson 1/3

What did the students learn in this lesson, and what evidence do you have to
support your claims? Cite specific examples from collected student work, either
written or captured on the video (ex., violin student will be seen improvising a
melodic answer on video).

The students learned the basics of arranging, where to find resources, and note
detection. I was able to determine this based on gestures seen on camera, along
with verbal feedback received from students. I knew these students were
advanced musicians because they’re in the audition ensemble and I’ve been
working with these individuals for over 10 weeks. I also got great feedback on
the note detection exercise I did. I had the students unmute on Zoom so I could
hear how they did with this, and the feedback I got was very helpful. I could hear
the students working around to find the pitch, and some even got the right note
on their first try. I specifically heard the tenor sax student working chromatically
from an anchor note to find the correct pitch.

What adjustments, if any, did you make during the lessons that differed from your
original written plan, and why?

I initially didn’t plan to do a note detection exercise, but I decided to try it on the
spot. I made this change because we were discussing how to recognize pitches
when listening to pop songs, so I wanted to get feedback on their competency
in this skill set. The exercise went much better than expected, and all of the
students did exceptionally well.

Describe how you monitored student learning during the lesson

Since we were on Zoom, I didn’t have the ability to monitor student behavior,
mannerisms, and visual feedback, so monitoring student learning was
challenging. However, all the students had their cameras on, so I could watch
them on the camera to get some visual feedback. Because of this challenge, I
 frequently checked in to make sure students were following along, and I had
students utilize the chat function if there were any questions during the lesson.

Based on an analysis of the assessments and other evidence of student learning,

how will you address students’ learning needs during the next lesson(s)

In my next lesson, I will focus on monitoring student learning and involvement.

Since my first lesson was very content-heavy and instructional, there weren't a
lot of opportunities to involve students in the lesson. I anticipate this not being
an issue since my second lesson is focused on giving feedback and interacting
with students on an individual basis. Also, some students expressed interest in
arranging instruments beyond their primary. This is something I wasn’t
expecting, since I intended for students to stick to their primary instrument. I
chose to do this so I didn’t have to spend a bulk of the lesson on transposition
and reading different clef, and so the student’s work could be focused on the
arrangement itself. Knowing this, I’ll need to work closely with those students
who chose to work with multiple instruments, as I anticipate this being an issue,
especially since one of the students doesn’t play the instrument they want to
include.
Preparing: Lesson Analysis - Lesson 2/3

What did the students learn in this lesson, and what evidence do you have to
support your claims? Cite specific examples from collected student work, either
written or captured on the video (ex., violin student will be seen improvising a
melodic answer on video).

The students received feedback on their arrangements, information to further

develop their arrangements, and had time to ask questions related to their
arrangement. My focus for this lesson was engaging each individual student, so
I had the group split into two smaller groups so I could spend more time focused
on each individual arrangement. This went well, and I could tell based on the
feedback I received from students and by monitoring their nonverbal feedback.
One instance in particular was the tenor sax player who asked for help on
harmony between alto and tenor sax

What adjustments, if any, did you make during the lessons that differed from your
original written plan, and why?

I had planned to spend more time talking about harmony, but after seeing each
student’s progress, it was clear that they didn’t need to spend more time
learning about this. I didn’t anticipate the students doing so well with their
arrangements, so I didn’t need to further explain this concept.

Describe how you monitored student learning during the lesson

Since this lesson was mostly focused on feedback and critique, there wasn’t
much need to monitor student learning. However, I made sure to open a
dialogue with each student about their interpretation, decision-making, and
elements of their own arrangement to understand their thought process. With
the trumpet player specifically, I asked them about their choice to have the
trumpet playing down to a low G, and they clearly outlined an interpretative
decision they made. This showed me that careful consideration went into that
decision, and that they tested it on their instrument.
Based on an analysis of the assessments and other evidence of student learning,
how will you address students’ learning needs during the next lesson(s)

With the third lesson being focused on assessment and presentation, my plan
for addressing students’ learning needs will be based on their interest at
arranging in the future. One of the goals of this project for the students is to
spark an interest in arranging and give them the basic skill set needed to
arrange music in the future. With that, I want to help get them on the right track,
and provide them with any guidance I can.
Preparing: Lesson Analysis - Lesson 3/3

What did the students learn in this lesson, and what evidence do you have to
support your claims? Cite specific examples from collected student work, either
written or captured on the video (ex., violin student will be seen improvising a
melodic answer on video).

The students received feedback on their arrangements from the teacher and their
peers, learned to make adjustments and corrections to their arrangements, and how to
give constructive and informative feedback on their arrangements. This was observed
through competency demonstrated in their work, along with verbal feedback during
the lesson. After the flute player shared their arrangement, the trumpet player, tenor
sax player, and clarinet player all shared specific aspects of the arrangement they
enjoyed, and highlighted specific decisions made in the music.

What adjustments, if any, did you make during the lessons that differed from your
original written plan, and why?

There weren’t instructional changes made since the lesson was specifically focused on
sharing and feedback, but I did create more opportunities for students to share their
thoughts on the other arrangements.

Describe how you monitored student learning during the lesson

I tried to engage with each student using specifics in their arrangement. I asked
questions about decisions they made, highlighted specifics for them to elaborate on,
and created an environment in which students could openly share their experience.
Following the lesson, I also sent a Google Form to ask for their thoughts on the project
and my teaching specifically. I chose to ask for written feedback to better inform my
future teaching, and so I could have specific instances of what went well and what
could be improved on. While I was able to monitor student learning to some capacity,
doing this project completely virtually was very limiting. Below is the feedback I
received from the students:

● “Everything you said was clear and could be understood at least by me.”
● “I liked how you had multiple examples of what we could do, and that all of your
feedback was said in a positive light instead of negative.”
 ● “I really enjoyed listening to the music and trying to transpose the notes to a
different key, and hearing the finished product!”
● “I wish you spent more time explaining what we can, and can't do in terms of
instrumentation, range, and how far off the original song we can get”
● “I really enjoyed doing this, and I might look more into music as something I can
do in the future.”
● “If you're planning to teach musicians who are at a higher level of skill, I think
the compliments were unnecessary because it's not your fault if a musician with
skill can't take criticism; the best musicians probably accomplished what they
did because of their ability to take criticism and improve it, so using the majority
of feedback to compliment others is not too practical(in my opinion).”

Based on an analysis of the assessments and other evidence of student learning,

how will you address students’ learning needs during the next lesson(s)

If I were to do this project in the future, I’d find a more engaging way to ask for
feedback from other students. I think some were hesitant to share because it’s over
Zoom, so maybe asking leading questions would have helped the conversation flow
better. I also would have spent more time going through the arranging process. I was
working on very little prior knowledge of the students, so I wasn’t sure how well they
would comprehend the basic concepts of arranging. While they did better than
expected, I think there were a few things that I glossed over, specifically some
technological issues with the program used and transposing instruments. When I
designed the project, I intended the students to only use their primary instruments so
this wouldn’t become an issue. However, I had a few students show interest in doing
this, so I let them explore this option. Had I known students were interested in doing
this, I would have included instruction on transposing instruments in my first lesson.

In addition to my own observations and reflection, I also received input from the
students on what could be improved if we did this project again. That feedback is
below:

● “I wish you spent more time explaining what we can, and can't do in terms of
instrumentation, range, and how far off the original song we can get”
● “Try to get more feedback from students. I tried to say something every time,
and most did not say much. Having peers comment really makes everyone feel
included and that their work had been given adequate acknowledgment.”
Implementing: Video Forms

Video Segment 1
Lesson Plan #1
Date: March 31, 2021
Description of video:
- Introduction of project
- Explaining basic concepts
- Note detection activity

Video Segment 2
Lesson Plan #2
Date: April 12, 2021
Description of video:
- Give feedback to students on their arrangements
- Further explain harmony and other arrangement concepts

Video Segment 3
Lesson Plan #3
Date: April 16, 2021
Description of video:
- Have students share their final arrangements
- Give feedback and impressions to students

Explanation of edits:
- Each video came out to 20-30 minutes, so I edited the videos to highlight
moments I was teaching specific concepts, moments of student interaction and
engagement, and to show some of the students work (with names redacted) to
show what level of material I was working with. Anything not included was
either secondary instructional material, explaining the project in further detail,
and answering student questions.
- With teaching in a virtual setting over Zoom, there are a few instances of lag,
glitches, and other tech-related issues outside of my control, and necessarily
edits were made to ensure continuity and stability throughout the video.
- Lesson 1: cuts were made to highlight the more prominent moments of
instruction, as the instruction for this lesson nearly 25 minutes. Other cuts were
made for pacing purposes or to put a larger focus on clips that were included.
- Lesson 2: since I worked individually with five students, I focused on one specific
student and chose not to include the other four students. I had about 3-5
minutes of feedback and engagement with each student, and for sake of time I
chose one specific student as my model.
- Lesson 3: this lesson was primarily focused on the students sharing their work,
so I had to cut most of this lesson for this reason. The clips I chose to include
highlighted some of the feedback and instruction that did take place during this
lesson, and all cuts were made solely for time
 LESSON 2

Something to consider: the pedal synth in the opening might work

well in the 3rd part. That helps establish the root a bit more and
provides a foundation for the upper moving parts. What you have
also works, so just something to consider (or maybe add a 5th
part with the bass line - basically a tuba/bass trombone part)

I’d put a slur here (in all three parts, as

marked), it’ll make things smoother and
match the song

Overall, you’re off to a great start so

far! Everything you have works well,
and you already have an idea for
what you want to add for Friday.
The on thing I’d consider doing is
adding some sort of articulations,
just to emphasize certain notes and/
or add some style to it. Well done!
 LESSON 3

Great
change in
the 3rd
trumpet

part!
I think it
excites
things a bit
more and
add more
layers to it

I like this counter here, it works very effectively

I can’t get enough of this!!! The contrary

motion of dropping to mp with the melody
going up to f is a great decision
 LESSON 3

Great voice leading here

You did such a great job with this! You made great adjustments to what I
suggested, and you really took this to the next level. I hope you continue
writing music in the future, you have a great talent in it. Thank you for
participating in this project, and I hope you enjoyed it!
 Assessing: Rubrics and Quizzes

Attach all rubrics and quizzes

4 3 2 1

Completion and The student writes The student writes a The student wrote The student did
Accuracy a multi-part multi-part arrange- an arrangement, not submit an
arrangement ment, but has less but not with arrangement
with at least 8 than 8 measures multiple parts
measures

Notation The arrangement The arrangement The arrangement The arrangement

was accurately was mostly was somewhat was inaccurate
notated and easy accurate and accurate and not and illegible
to read somewhat easy easy to read
to read

Harmony The student The student The student The student did
demonstrated demonstrated good demonstrated a not use harmony
great knowledge knowledge and poor knowledge and/or lots of
and understanding understanding of and understanding errors throughout
of harmony harmony; some of harmony;
small errors multiple errors
made

Creativity and The student made The student made The student made The student made
Interpretation multiple decisions some decisions in very little no creative
in the arrangement the arrangement to decisions in the decisions in the
to make theirs make theirs unique arrangement to arrangement
unique make theirs unique

Participation The student always The student mostly The student The student did
participated in dis- participated in sometimes not participate in
cussion, came to discussion, mostly participated in discussion, did not
class prepared, and came to class discussion, came come to class
completed all prepared, and to some classes prepared, and did
assignments completed most prepared, and not complete any
assignments sometimes assignments
completed
assignments
Assessing: Commentary

What assessment strategies were used and why?

Much of my assessment strategy revolved around informally assessing students and

adjusting my lesson to their needs in real time. Because my second and third lessons
were focused on giving feedback to students, my assessment of their arrangements
had to be done on the spot based on my first impressions. Furthermore, I gave
students written feedback following the second and third lessons to highlight specific
spots in their arrangements. In this feedback, I gave them suggestions for things to try,
highlighted their stronger sections and their successes, and took note of any mistakes
in harmony, transposition, or other musical errors.

During the lesson, I used multiple informal assessment strategies to keep students
engaged and gauge their understanding. Wanting to embrace the virtual environment,
I used the chat function frequently to ask questions to the group and to individuals.
This allowed for students to share their thoughts without feeling like they needed to
verbally share to the group. Sharing verbally was also strongly encouraged, and most
students did share multiple times.

Lastly, I made sure to ask every student if they had any questions or needed further
explanation on my comments. I did this so I could make sure every student understood
the feedback I gave them and they knew what they needed to work on between the
second and third lessons. Most students ended up thinking of a question they didn’t
initially ask or think of until that moment, so that showed me that they had a
well-planned thought process behind the musical decisions they made for their
arrangement.

What were your expectations for student learning and how did you communicate
these expectations to students?

My primary expectation was effort. I told the students before we started that the
project wouldn’t be graded, and wouldn’t be assessed on ability level. I wanted the
project to be focused on their effort to improve their skills and their willingness to try
something out of their comfort zone. I also tried to make it clear that any level of
competency would be acceptable. I showed them a very basic two-part arrangement
as a base level, and a more developed four-part arrangement to show them how far
they could take the project. The goal was to make a student-centered project, so I
made sure to clearly communicate that they could take the project in any direction they
wanted. The students took this to heart, and I was incredibly pleased with the final
results. Each student brought a unique voice to their arrangements, each student
implemented creative and interpretive decisions into their music, and I was incredibly
pleased with the work all five students presented.

How did students accomplish the objectives for the Series of Lessons? Cite specific
evidence from student work to support your claims

In lesson 1, my objective was for students to learn basic principles of transcription, ear
training, and arranging. I believe we were able to cover all of these concepts, and this
was demonstrated through the feedback received from students along with the skills
they demonstrated during the lesson. First, we worked on the basic principles of
arranging through a presentation on the basic concepts of arranging. While going
through this presentation, I tried to check in often with the students to make sure they
understood every concept I covered, and there weren’t any concepts the students
needed me to re-explain or cover in more detail. The students also demonstrated a
good understanding of transcription and ear training through the note detection
exercise we did. I played a note for the students, and they needed to match that note
on their own instruments. I had the students unmute so I could hear their process of
finding the note, and how quickly the students grasped that concept. This went
incredibly well and they accomplished all objectives for lesson 1.

For lesson 2, my objectives were mostly a continuation of lesson 1, along with being
expected to make creative decisions with the teacher being an aid in that process. This
lesson was largely focused on giving feedback to individual students, though some of
that lesson covered solutions and ideas for how to add harmony to their arrangements.
This was the area students had the most trouble, which I anticipated, so I made sure to
incorporate instruction on this into part of the lesson. Following this lesson, I was
confident in their abilities to develop a harmony into their arrangements.

For lesson 3, my objective was for students to be polite and engaging audience
members, and receive feedback on their arrangements that they could apply to future
arrangements. Every student had incredibly constructive things to add, while remaining
encouraging and positive. I believe all five students improved their interaction skills
with their peers as well as their arranging and ear training skills.
Reflecting: Commentary

Describe what the students learned in relation to the 3 Artistic Processes of

Creating, Performing, and Assessing as a result of this Series of Lessons.

Creation
Students learned how to arrange pop tunes in an arrangement on their primary
instrument. They applied their prior knowledge of note detection, arranging, and
harmony to their arrangements.

Performance
Students had the opportunity to share their arrangements by screen sharing for the
group. Each student spoke about their piece, the process of putting it together, and
what troubles they had along the way. After each person shared, the other students
had the option to share their thoughts and any praise they wanted to share.

Assessment
Students were informally assessed throughout the project to inform what needed to be
adapted for the next lesson. This allowed me to understand what concepts needed to
be covered in further detail, and what adjustments needed to be made to ensure all
concepts were properly covered. While the students did not receive a grade for this
project, they were given written feedback for the arrangements

Analyze your musicianship and its effect on student learning. Refer to the video
and other sources of evidence in the portfolio.

My musicianship and prior knowledge of arranging allowed me to demonstrate the

expectations of the students. I was able to show the students the expectations of the
project, along with the process of arranging music. As indicated in the video, I was able
to spot a concert pitch issue with the trumpet and tenor sax players, knowing that this
was simply a program error.

Describe how your classroom environment promoted student learning.

Being in an online setting presented a number of challenges, but there were some
benefits. This project allowed us to have lessons in a smaller group during class time,
something that would be difficult to do in an in-person setting. Had these students
been in-person, they would have been taken away from the rehearsal, and their
instrument/voice in the ensemble would be missing. Doing this project in a virtual
setting also allowed me to use multiple technological platforms. I could screen share
to show videos or my own arrangement, and we could all share our work with one
another much easier.

Based on this analysis of your teaching and student learning, describe how you
can improve the instructional design and implementation of this Series of Lessons
for a similar group of students in the future. Be specific, and support your ideas
with student assessment data from your portfolio.

Overall, this project proved to be very rewarding. I improved my abilities in error

detection, giving feedback on the spot, giving written feedback on a composition, and
prepared me for working with small groups of students in the future. There was a lot to
juggle with this project, specifically coordinating five schedules around Spring Break,
switching between hybrid and virtual learning due to local and state mandates, and
state testing, all while assisting my mentor teacher. These obstacles presented
challenges along the way, but I believe that both myself and the students learned a lot
through this process, and I enjoyed my time working with the students. If I were to do a
project similar to this again in the future, I’m confident in my ability to execute this
project at a high level, and I’ve learned a great deal about myself and my own teaching
in the process.