MUED 376

16 December 2023
Morgan Brown
Philosophy of Music Education Statement

Music’s presence permeates the passage of time, ribboning milestones and daily life with
memorable music fragments. Mark Van Doren's statement “The art of teaching is the art of
assisting discovery,” serves as an inspiration to me in my pursuit of my Music Education career.
My role as a Music Educator is to assist my students in a small window of their educational
journey to empower them to appreciate the beauty of knowledge and growth as well-rounded and
successful lifelong learners. In my classroom, I plan to provide students with opportunities to
integrate intellectual understanding with empathy, respect, and kindness within the classroom to
catalyze positive change, promoting peace and harmony in a conflict-stricken world.
In the Music classroom, it is my job to incorporate co-curricularization within my
teaching to ensure that students have a well-rounded and culturally responsive Music Education
that fulfills their learning needs. Music Education can open up a treasure trove of knowledge for
aspiring learners that exposes them to depths of understanding beyond their imagination. As a
Choral Educator, I plan to teach the historical context of the repertoire that is being learned in
addition to encouraging the students to identify their personal interpretations of the pieces to
stimulate a deeper level of cognition in the learning process. I intend to challenge students in my
classroom to be curious and ask questions to expand their knowledge and understanding of the
world around them, for the sake of both learning and personal discovery.
As a Choral Educator, I am blessed to have the opportunity to forge a musical bond with
students in my classroom that transcends the boundary of judgment, crafting a welcoming and
supportive environment for all students. In my classroom, I am responsible for empowering the
students to cultivate, honor, and respect the community that is generated through music-making
to uplift and inspire others. As a Musician and Educator, I am entrusted with introducing
students to transformative emotional music-making experiences that demonstrate the density of
emotional connection (more specifically, flow) that thrives in the Music classroom. The
combination of efforts from everyone in the Choral classroom promotes the importance of
teamwork, inclusivity, communication, and acceptance within daily interactions, providing
students with the necessary social tools to help them thrive as professional and successful
individuals in the real world.
Musical involvement can unlock a world of potential for students and as the teacher, I am
the light that guides them to recognize that the key to that potential is their dedication to being a
lifelong learner. The interpersonal and social skills that are learned through the art of music-
making prepare students for success in their lives while also challenging them to learn to combat
the ignorance that pervades their thoughts. I hope that the students in my classroom will strive to
improve the lives of those around them by sharing the beauty of music, knowledge, and kindness
in a world so desperately in need of hope.