My philosophy as a choral teacher is to teach each individual students how to be their absolute best, and that being their best is always a process, rather than something that is attained. What sort of message does this send to young people when you tell them to be their “best”? This sort of concept could come across as shallow if not specifically defined or communicated. My definition of “best” cannot be narrowed down into one sentence, but instead, can be illustrated through my everyday style of teaching and actions. Of course, every teacher wants their choir to sound better than most, and there will always be that spirit of competition with them, or least there should be. I can honestly say that I hope my choirs will be ranked in the top categories, and will be considered one of the best in the city. What choir teacher wouldn't want that? In any school, there is pride and spirit, and I believe there is nothing wrong with that. However, I strive to engrain in each of my students `what the true meaning of “best” is, which is much deeper than any trophy sitting on a shelf. While teaching young people to be their best is one of my main goals, other objectives that are strongly connected to that would be teaching the importance of integrity, commitment, trust, honesty and sincerity and teamwork. In order to get students to be their best on stage, they need to realize the importance of each one of these attributes. “Faking it until making it” will only get you so far with people. Being genuine with the use of all of these things is wuite necessary in order to succeed in rehearsal time as well as during performances on stage.
In high school, I was very involved in different choirs and musical productions. I really loved my choir teacher but I didn't realize until now that he never really taught us much about ourselves as individuals, and how to incorporate that into our music. Music brings out our emotions and it can change our mood. There is something about music that goes down into the depths of us, almost like a sixth sense. Music is also very personal. As a teacher, I hope that I can get the point across to not only my students, but to faculty and audience as well that music is about anything and everything and it is the common language for any person. It is an art. And it is a way that people can express themselves when nothing else allows you to.
So why should music be in the school curriculum? One of the biggest things that stood out to me in the text was the the fact that singing music requires whole brain learning. If this doesnt end the debate for why music is edcuational, I don't know what will. Music covers the entire learning process and demands us to operate all our ways of thinking. I also appreciated the point of music imploring cooperative learning. Besides athletics or other classes where group projects may occur; it is the only subject that requires the help and cooperation of every student in order to work in the right way. Without everyone's contribution of their best effort, a musical piece can become a disaster. There are so many different aspects of music. For example, sight singing, learning to play an instrument, transposing, composition, singing, conducting, and music theory as a whole is its own type of science. I know for a fact that most people think music is just sounds coming out of an instrument, and its just as far as a click of the radio. But music is not just noise being made or something for mere entertainment. It is a subject that most people would find shocking if they knew the depth of it. I would bet that if you described just the basics of music theory to a high school principal in a job interview, he would respect you all the more for the amount of knowledge it asks of you. When I become a teacher, I will want to incorporate all these diferent types of musical knowledge into my choirs, and be intentional in putting that into my curriculum. The more expanded a student is, the easier it is for them to work with all types of musicians that come into the classroom whether it be a guest performer or a new member with no vocal experience, having something new to bring to the table.
All in all, I what I strive for as a choral teacher is for my curriculum to be much more than a calendar filled with things to do, but for the one chance I get to pour into my students lives, and motivate them to take what they already have and develop into their fullest potential.
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