I will be going to teach year 9/10 and 11/12 music classes during my 4 weeks practicum placement in Burgmann Anglican Secondary School. In this article, I will focus on year 9/10 lesson plans. During my observation days, I found that year 9/10 music class focused more on composing and preparation for their presentations which are to be presented on 13/4/11. On my last day of observation, I had a discussion with my mentor regarding the preparation of lesson plans for this particular music class and my mentor provided me a brief idea on how she worked things out and also a briefing of their assessment at the end of the year. She suggested me to focus on the theory and composition and guide the students in their instrumental performance in the beginning of next term. She stated that the theory levels of the music students vary largely and range between Grade 1 and Grade 4. Hence it is a good idea to divide them into smaller groups depending on their theory levels with attempts to guide them group by group. At the end of the lesson, I will give them a worksheet in order to evaluate their performance and understanding of content delivered. The reason for me to work with them in smaller groups instead of working with a whole class or individual is because this method will enable students from the same level to discuss and gain ideas from peers. As Michael Reynolds (1994, Pg. 24) stated, “The reasons for using groups can generally be summarized as motivational, educational, or ideological. There may be the belief that students will learn more easily because they are more involved, or that they can and should learn from each other and from the experience which can be generated in groupwork, or that learning in groups is preferable on social or political grounds – it is how people should work together.”
In order to get to know more about my students and to get them engaged in classroom activities, I will ask my students questions at the time I am taking the roll, mainly questions regarding their background and interests. By asking such questions, it not only allows me to get to know them better, but also to get through the natural restraint between me and the students. This will help in building a rapport between us and hopefully will engage the students more easily in the classroom. As Michael Reynolds (1994, Pg. 81) has stated, “people in the first few days will be restrained, shy or nervously outspoken, wondering who everyone else is and what it’s going to be like spending time with them, excited or wishing they were somewhere else.” On top of that, Margaret Martin (2007, Pg. 43) also stated, “Allowing children the opportunity to ‘check in’ by sharing their thoughts and feelings before they begin the day’s work is a good way of easing them from the outside world into the classroom atmosphere and to set them up for the learning ahead. It also helps to build a sense of belonging to the class and the group which adds to the positive climate in the classroom.” I believe “ice breaking” or warming up is essential in the beginning of the term and at occasions, should even extend to the beginning of every lesson. Apart from that, circle time is another activity I will use in the classroom. I will use circle time mainly in performance class and during the discussion session. There are lots of benefits in using circle time in class, as Andrew Mellor and Pamela Munn (2000, Pg. 3) pointed, “circle time can help young people develop skills such as listening and empathising; it can promote respect for others and self-esteem; it is a forum within which the nature and effects of bullying can be considered; and it can be used to develop an anti-bullying code to which all members of the school community have contributed.”
I utilised the ‘backward design method’ to plan my five lessons. Churchill’s (2011, Pg. 185) description of the backward design: “As the name of this approach to curriculum design and development implies, outcomes-focused curriculum discourse starts by articulating desired outcomes and then maps backwards to create a learning pathway to achieve those outcomes.” In designing the lesson plans for theory lessons, I emphasised on the desired outcomes of each lesson and prepared a worksheet for my students. I then tried to fit in all little sections within those lessons. On the other hand, it is difficult to predict the outcomes of performance and composition lessons because the outcomes solely depend on students’ preparation and their learning paces. Setting up goals for the students seem to be a more sensible approach, i.e. targeting a total of 4 periods to complete half of their composition and another 4 periods for performance. I have designed a well-organised lesson plan for this class according to my own experiences as a student. I completed a draft my lesson plan and showed it to my mentor. She was satisfied with my plan and has also helped me to improve it. She also encouraged me to focus on practicability and classroom interaction. This has led me to consider the length of the lessons and their time sessions (morning/afternoon). Students are likely to be exhausted and lose their concentration easily in the afternoon after a long day of class. Interactive activities with less dedicated lecturing will hence be preferred for the afternoon lessons.
As for instrumental performance teaching, I focused more on reflection based techniques. Students will again receive feedbacks, comments and suggestions from their peers after finishing their performances. Through peer discussion, students will be able to appreciate suggestions from different perspectives and try to improve themselves. Apart from that, performing in front of audiences will help them to gain confidence and experiences, which will be helpful if they are going to be performers. For the theory part, I will focus my teachings more on performance based techniques. Students will complete an evaluation task to assess their understanding of the theories taught. Instead of working on the theories section by section, they will have a chance to know their weakness and will be able to improve that particular part identified. In my lesson plans, I emphasised on active learning instead of passive learning. As Margaret Martin (2007, Pg. 13) stated, “Learning Pyramid demonstrates what is almost self-evident: the more actively involved the learner becomes in the learning, the more likely it is that new learning will be retained. The opportunity to practise new skills and perform new understanding embeds learning in a more effective way than the learner is a passive recipient of new knowledge.”
sources from National Training Laboratories, Bethal, Maine.
I have identified and accounted for a possible scenario in performance class that may disrupt my whole planning. Students may not be well-prepared to perform in front of the class and cancellation of such activities is thus inevitable in certain cases. My backup plan for such scenario is to focus on theory practice, to have the students work on some rhythmic dictation, aural practice and their general knowledge in music, i.e. the genre of the music, composer, dynamic, tempo, key signature, and time signature. This reserved plan not only provides them a chance to do something other than composing, but will also be able to help them in gaining more musical knowledge.
I have considered the importance of building a rapport and have also been passionate regarding the content delivery in my meticulous planning for these 5 lessons. It is my ultimate goal to provide the students a positive and enjoyable learning experience.
References:
1) Reynolds M. (1994), Groupwork in Education and Training: Ideas in Practice, Kogan Page, UK, Pg. 15 – 28
2) Reynolds M. (1994), Groupwork in Education and Training: Ideas in Practice, Kogan Page, UK, Pg. 80 – 98
3) Martin M. (2007), Building a learning community in the primary classroom, Dunedin Academic Press, Edinburgh, Pg. 40 – 58
4) Mellor A. and Munn P. (2000), Circle Time, Anti-bullying network.
5) Churchil R., Ferguson P., Godinho S., Johnson N.F., Keddie A., Letts W., Mackay J., McGill M., Moss J., Nagel M.C., Nicholson P. and Vick M. (2011), Teaching Making A Difference, John Wiley & Sons, Australia. Pg. 173 – 186
6) Martin M. (2007), Building a learning community in the primary classroom, Dunedin Academic Press, Edinburgh, Pg. 12 – 26
7) Lighthouse S.(2010), Learning Pyramid
