How to assess and evaluate choir students

This web page is dedicated to different ways to assess and evaluate students in choir. I really found the idea of creating a profile for each student and checking in with them and their parents to be very valuable. It also would be a way for an educator to back up their work, along with saving all of their printed out lesson plans with a comment section about how the lesson plan worked out. It is difficult to find a solid grading system for choir, because people will come into the class with differing ability levels. This is why assessing their progress is more important than the student's actual ability.

http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/artsed/choral10/stueva.html

The 10 worst things a teacher can do.

"Avoid smiling and being friendly with your students."

As much as it important to keep a distance from your students, one must also consider the students' safety and trust. By default an educator is essentially a parent, mentor, and counselor all at the same time. I wouldn't want to come off as cold, or uncaring. It is important to me that a students would feel safe enough to approach me if they wanted to.

Thinking about things that a teacher should not do, I have developed my own set of ideas. As I have observed and been involved in a number of situations over the years, I have noted some teaching strategies that should never be used. One is never telling a student what they cannot do. As a teacher it is not your job to put a cap on a student's potential. It will damage the student's self esteem, and could possibly detour them from pursuing a dream. Another is to never ignore signs of abuse or neglect. You as an educator may be a child's life line.

The emotional basis of learning.

It has been a well known fact that children that are neglected in some way through childhood will more than likely experience some sort of difficulty later in life. This fact is one of the reasons I have wanted to go into teaching, and have had an interest in psychology. I feel that a teacher has the potential to have a tremendous effect on a child's life. Sometimes, just having one person show care and appreciation towards you can affect your self esteem, and your level of learning ability. If a child feels safe and cared for, they are going to be in a better position to learn and grow.

Top reasons to become a teacher

Often when a person thinks about the perks of teaching, they often picture the luxurious summer vacations and a solid Monday to Friday job. For those that see teaching as rewarding, time consuming, challenging, enjoyable...they are in the same mentality that I am. Realistically, I am aware that most of summers are going to be dedicated to preparing for the next school year, attending conferences to learn new skills to better serve the students. They are after all, the reason many choose to go into this profession. I know it is the reason I am going into teaching. I have seen the effects that teaching can have on a person. I have seen people become light-hearted, more passionate, and more child-like through teaching. On the other end of the spectrum, I have witnessed teachers that were in the profession solely because their dream career didn't work out. It is often obvious to the students when this is the case. There is a lack of effort put into their lesson plans, a bitter, angry attitude, and occasionally a slacked attitude in grading. Let's all hope that teaching will be recognized as a profession rather than a "semi-rofession."After all, some one had to teach all of the "professionals" out there.

What these blogs are all about. :)

I am studying to become a secondary music teacher at Southern Oregon University. I am currently in the 2 year part-time MAT program. I have been working at grocery stores for the last 6 years to help pay for my education. The reward for spending THAT much tine in grocery stores will be the opportunity I will have to educate students in music and all the facets that includes. The following blogs are mostly about the different resources that are available for educators. Some are reviews about search engines, others about incorporating theories about education in the classroom.

Concept to classroom (Gardner's 7 intelligences).

Applying your lesson plans to incorporate Gardner's seven intelligences goes along with being able to teach the same concept in many different ways. Since people do learn in different ways, it is very realistic to create a classroom atmosphere that can use every one's strengths, and explore the other domains of learning. In can be challenging for the educator to find unique and interesting ways to access each learning style in their lesson planning. For example, I am planning on teaching music in secondary schools. Many of the students will probably have a fairly increased aptitude for music; however, for those that are strong in other areas I will have to be very creative...one example I have thought of involved a nerf basketball hoop posted onto some type of board with solfedge across the sides. The goal would be to be able to follow the solfedge where my hand was pointing at, be able to hear and sing those pitches correlated with the solfedge. If they are correct, they shoot a basket. This would be using spatial, musical (which can be considered mathematical as well), interpersonal, and self. Language could be incorporated by taking a piece being worked on in class and singing it in English, followed by singing it in solfedge.

Adobe's portable document format

I am really excited about the Adobe's PDF musical contribution. Through this program, one is able to view manuscripts, hear examples of them, including lyrics. This has the potential to be very useful in selecting scores to be used during a school year. The site is relatively easy to navigate through.

http://www.myriad-online.com/en/products/pdftomusic.htm

http://www.myriad-online.com/en/products/pdftomusicpro.htm