Closing Personal Philosophy of Music Education

My personal open philosophy surrounding music education centered around the value of
connection and inclusion. I spoke about how music is a lively and diverse entity, ever changing
and developing with the changing world. I believe not only the inclusion of music but the
advocacy and support for music in public schools can have a significant impact on students'
mental and physical wellbeing as well as increase their capacity for academic success. Music is a
powerful tool in understanding the world and ourselves, from the social and political climate of
the greater society to the most intimate aspects of our own feelings and perspectives. As I close
out my PSII practicum, I feel that my philosophy is stronger than ever.
My significant experience with music began in the seventh grade when I joined my
school’s concert band. I felt seen and loved within that program in ways that I find difficult to
articulate even now, years later. I went on to pursue a bachelor degree in music performance
following graduation. For four years, music became a game of technicality; endlessly drilling
excerpts, perfecting articulations and tuning, hours and hours of work and training myself to
analyze and criticize every sound that hit my ear. All of that, to be condensed down and judged
by a single performance with an audience. Rinse and repeat. In those four years, I experienced
musical burnout like I never could have imagined. The thing that had gotten me out of bed for
six years had become laborious and defeating. My identity as a musician had become so closely
entwined with my identity as an individual during my formative years that losing my love for
music left me feeling profoundly lost.
Stepping into my PSII semester, I was excited to be placed with a teacher mentor that
was so highly regarded as a skillful and knowledgeable musician in Southern Alberta. After so
many years preparing for the opportunity to teach music, I felt that this would be the experience
that reignited my passion for music. Even so, I felt underprepared for my practicum in terms of
tangible skills–what’s the right way to scaffold learning in music? What do I do when I
encounter a musical issue I don’t know how to fix? How do I help an entire ensemble’s worth of
players when I’ve only ever played a saxophone? I thought that gaining the answers to these very
practical questions was the key to a successful music classroom, and I had hit the jackpot being
paired with a band teacher that undoubtedly had the answers I was after. In a matter of days, the
excitement I had began to falter. I was collecting rehearsal strategies and troubleshooting
methods and sequencing ideas, but there was a void in the room that I couldn't quite place. My
students seemed unengaged, quiet, and nervous despite my efforts. I was quick to assume my
deficit was in my technical abilities and methods, and I was disheartened. Perhaps, after all this
time, I wasn’t the great teacher I thought I could be.
My ideas about what music education should look like heavily relied on the values and
methods that were instilled in me during my time as a student, and my PSII practicum revealed
just how much I took my experience in my middle school and high school music program for
granted. I assumed every music program was as progressive and welcoming as the one I
originated from, and I was struck to find that this wasn’t the case. I witnessed many
conversations where my teacher-associate turned down student’s desires to play various
instruments because it was “too difficult” or “would throw off the instrumentation in the
ensemble”. I do not believe it is ever my place to deny a child the opportunity to try something
new. Exploration is such a powerful tool in building a student's worldview, their self-confidence,
and their ability to find passion in life. My job as a music educator is to facilitate music, not
dictate it. Now, I have always envisioned myself teaching music through a traditional Western
concert band program, and this practicum has led me to truly consider what that would look like.
There is a naturally implied power structure in a director-led ensemble, and my great challenge
over the course of my career will be finding ways to break down this structure wherever I can.
I believe another facet to my journey will be my responsibility to expand my teaching
beyond the long-standing structures of instrumental and choral music and the musical concepts
and opinions of the Western classical tradition. Music is inexplicably diverse and innovative and
continues to develop rapidly. In order for music education to stay relevant and worthwhile in
public schools, educators must recognize and adapt to this notion. I believe in exposure to
electronics in music, world musics, popular music, and music’s significance in various historical
and social movements alongside the theory and practice of Western classical music.
I believe the final piece to the puzzle–and the single quality that defines a good music
educator–is an educator’s passion for what they teach. It was the passion I saw in my music
teacher that inspired me to join band and ultimately put me on this path, and it will be my
passion that inspires my students. Contrary to what I may have thought prior to completing this
practicum, no amount of theory or practical knowledge will make me a great teacher. It is my
dedication to lifelong learning, exploration, and continued love for music that will allow me to
form deep connections with my students and lead to fulfillment in both me and my students.
The goal is not to teach students everything there is to know about music–that is simply
impossible. However, music educators have the opportunity to help students connect with
themselves and the world around them on a deep and significant level, and that is a worthwhile
cause. Since completing my PSII placement, I can confirm that I have the same beliefs as I did
prior to this practicum, if not stronger than I did before. I feel that I have witnessed a program
that prioritizes the traditional ways of teaching Western art music and nothing beyond, and I
have observed a massive deficit in the passion of students as a result of this. I believe very
strongly that music education programs need to exist in schools, but they cannot exist in schools
the way that they do now. The only way to ensure that music education remains relevant and
worthwhile in school is to be aware of the ever-changing nature of music education, and be
willing to adapt.