What Makes a Great Teacher-Leader?

 What makes a great music teacher?   

There are so many qualities that I see in the awesome music teachers around me like commitment, knowledge, energy, and so much more.  I know that these qualities are actually in every good teacher because we don’t just teach music or math.  Instead, we all teach children, and they require the same skills to be reached no matter what the content area.  Recently in my Master’s coursework we saw two different videos of quality teachers.  The first was a video called “Having a Vision” from Tales from a Teacher’s Heart.  It is the true story about Barbara Blackburn trying to help her remedial students to prepare for the year-end “Big Test”.  The second video was a the first seven minutes of the movie, “The Marva Collins Story” where we are introduced to a very real teacher in Chicago’s urban center who showed many of the qualities of a great teacher and leader.  In each of these videos, you can see how these two ladies are not only good teachers, but servant leaders, teacher leaders, and are able to empower their students to learn and grow.

You may have heard of the term “servant leader”...

...a term coined by Robert Greenleaf in 1970.  In his words, servant leadership begins with "the natural feeling that one wants to serve" (Keith, 2015, p.1)  There are several characteristics that define such a leader.  Someone who is authentic, vulnerable, accepting, present, useful, and many other qualities is seen as a servant leader.  In each of our video examples, I found it difficult to find a characteristic that these women did NOT have.   

Barbara Blackburn was an authentic individual, caring for her students in her way.  She was almost overly honest with her boss regarding her feelings about the ‘big test’.  She was courageous in following through with what she knew was right.  She was accepting of her remedial students by giving them the goal and trusting them to follow through.  Blackburn was with her students all the way for support and resources.  At the same time, she did not do for her students what they were capable of doing themselves.  She probably surprised her students by what they actually could do, and then surprised her principal as well.  Some other characteristics she had were empathy, awareness, persuasion, commitment, and building community.

Marva Collins, although a different person with a different style, still had all the main servant leader characteristics as well.  Mrs. Collins was her own person.  She knew what she wanted and was determined to get it for her students.  She made herself vulnerable by not being afraid to be honest about her feelings and concerns for her students to her peers and administrators.  Marva did not give up on any child as other teachers in her building had.  She believed they were all capable of succeeding.  She even re-defined success in a way that had students focused on the world around them and their future, instead of just sitting in the seat and receiving information.  Even though Mrs. Collins would feel frustration and was ready to quit, she was there every day for her students from the way she dressed to the way she handled chaos in her school and classroom.  You could also tell that Marva was in touch with what her students were going through and listened and advised them when they needed it.  She always did her job well, even beyond expectations, and expected her students to do the same.  More of her characteristics of servant leadership included empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, commitment, fore sight, and building her classroom community.  Both of our teacher examples were remarkable teachers who were also servant leaders.

But were they teacher leaders? 

From our class readings, Charlotte Danielson defines teacher leadership as “skills demonstrated by teachers who continue to teach but who influence practices of other teachers and activities in other classrooms.”  There are seven skills that are listed in our course readings as characteristic of teacher leaders. These skills include:

• Using evidence and data in decision making 
• Recognize opportunities, taking initiative
• Mobilizing people around a common cause
• Marshalling resources and taking action
• Monitoring progress, making adjustments
• Sustaining commitment of others
• Habits of mind: optimism, enthusiasm

These skills were not as easy to see in our video clips, although it is easy to believe that Marva Collins and Barbara Blackburn would easily fit within the category of Teacher Leader.  Both women recognized the opportunities they had and took initiative to attain them.  I imagine that they each saw these as their responsibility and went in with a great commitment and self-driven purpose to achieve their goals.  Barbara Blackburn really seemed to marshal her own students into taking action as well.  She made them aware that they would need to do part of the work themselves, that she could not do everything for them.  To make her students continue with this effort throughout the term, shows her ability to sustain their commitment, most likely through her optimism and enthusiasm among other qualities.  

Empowering students 

Finally, both teachers were able to empower their students in their own learning.  Marva Collins showed that she valued her students every day in how she interacted with them, and continued to show them how they could be successful.  Both women were fighters for their students which I am sure the students themselves could see and feel.  Through this, their students would know that their teacher cared and knew they could succeed.   Neither teacher made it a secret how they wanted their students to achieve.  Collins and Blackburn both shared their own vision and goals for their students.  Blackburn was very direct about her goals and Collins simply stated things so clearly that students knew what she wanted for them.

Servant, Teacher, Leader    

      

As servants for their students, both women were willing to put their own jobs in jeopardy to help their students succeed.  They both had faith in their students and were able to be teacher leaders by initiating programs and planning for their students’ sake.  This in turn, would allow other teachers to see how they could achieve success for their students as well.  This drive to serve, fight, and continue despite the odds was the key for empowering not only their students, but eventually administrators and other teachers as well.

How do I measure up?   

Well, I haven’t had a movie made out of my experiences yet!  However, I feel I have that drive to serve my students, the willingness to honestly air my professional concerns, and no matter what the setbacks, I keep coming back for more.  I  don’t know if I have the stamina these women had!  I do know that I have the desire to do what is best for my students and try to help them grow up into responsible, thinking adults.  Luckily, as I teach music, I am able to work on many life skills to help encourage and empower my students.  From the article, “7 Leadership Skills Fostered in Arts Education,”  by Stacey Goodman, it is evident that music classes help students learn creativity, risk-taking, how to be themselves, how to observe and listen, and how to plan and collaborate.  I feel very fortunate to teach children, and that I can use music to do that!  I also know that as a teacher who continues to grow every year, I already am a servant leader, teacher leader, and a tool to empower my students to grow and learn.

References:

Goodman, S. (2015, January 30). 7 Leadership Skills Fostered in Arts Education. Retrieved April 02, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/7-leadership-skills-fostered-arts-education-stacey-goodman.

 

Keith, K. M. (2012). The case for servant leadership (2nd ed.). Honolulu, HI: Terrace Press. 

 

Nichols, J. D. (2011). Teachers as servant leaders. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. 

Other resources are from the course:  EDUC 7093 Serving Through Servant Leadership, MidAmerica Nazarene University, Professor Mike Ramirez, Spring 2017.

Photo credits:

1.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LZ6na9V1Wc

2.  http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/marva-collins-40

3.  http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/district/AcademicAffairs/CurriculumandInstruction/ProfessionalLearning/Pages/TeacherLeaderDevelopment.aspx

4.  https://globaldigitalcitizen.org/empower-students-create-change

 

 

Serious Gaming

Serious Gaming is...

The mechanics of gaming together with education to create some serious learning!  It can be a review game for a test or a whole scenario structure set-up in which to run the classroom.  So, are we babying our students by entertaining them or are these valid ways to teach and learn?

Why Gaming?

According to an EdSurge article by Stephanie Chen (Feb, 2016) entitled "Classroom Gaming:  What it Isn't, What it Is, and How to Do it Right," there are four great reasons to use gaming in the classroom.

1. When playing games, it's okay to lose. Gaming provides a safe way to explore, try, and fail repeatedly, without the stigma or anxiety

2. Game playing encourages collaboration, peer validation, and a different kind of teamwork than is often found in traditional group projects.

3. Digital classroom games are especially helpful for students who struggle in school.  ...gaming can significantly motivate low-performing students and improve their mastery of both academic content and skills such as critical thinking and communication. 

4. Classroom gaming has never been easier, as teacher-to-teacher sharing of lesson plans has made educational gaming resources easier to come by. 

How do I Start?

Now, with research studies and professional articles able to support classroom gaming, how do I actually get going?   The most logical way would be to start small by adding a technology-assisted game to your regular classroom lesson plan.  Something like Kahoot, or Quizlet can easily be done in any classroom with appropriate devices and internet available.

There are some questions you need to ask yourself before getting started though, or even choosing a new game or system.  Here are some things I consider:

• What devices are available and how many?
• If the app or site is online, then you need availability to the internet.  You also need quality internet.  If your internet runs slow, you may have trouble trying to get 25 students on the site at the same time.
• If the technology fails (for whatever reason), what kind of back-up plan would you need?
• Is the app or site intuitive and user-friendly?  This is a consideration especially with younger students.
• Is this an effective teaching tool or just a toy?   We can all integrate technology but it should be done because it helps you teach better and helps students learn better.
• Finally, or maybe this is your first consideration, what does it cost?  There are a lot of free or low-cost qualities teaching technologies out there.  Rarely is there a reason for an individual teacher to spend a lot of money.

Resources:

Your first stop for resources should be your fellow teachers.  Remember, teachers love to share!  And, isn't 'imitation the sincerest form of flattery'? 

I read a book last summer which showed an scenario type of gamification system where students were immersed in a historical world.  It was fascinating and still adaptable to any classroom or content area.  Check out "Explore Like a Pirate" by Michael Matera.

A great YouTube video to watch is Press Play: Gaming, Simulation, and Achievement in the Classroom with Jonathan Best.  He does a great job of explaining, from personal experience, why gaming works in the classroom.

Finally, find lots of resources and help from Karl Kapp, a professor, author, consultant, and speaker on gamification, both in education and business.
 

Collaborative Technologies

Cooperative Learning has long been thought to be a great educational tool.  According to Marjan Laal and  Seyed Mohammad Ghodsi (2011), 

CL compared with competitive and individualistic efforts, has numerous benefits and typically results in higher achievement and greater productivity, more caring, supportive, and committed relationships; and greater psychological health, social competence, and self esteem (Section 1.5).

As a teacher, I can't argue with that!  Of course, I want those benefits for my students.  Now, how can my goals for cooperative learning and technology come together?  In most music classrooms preparing for a performance, the whole class is involved in collaborative learning through the teamwork of presentation.  There are many other ways to provide cooperative learning in the music room through small group composition, improvisation, and performance of those student pieces.  We don't really need technology for that.

However, technology can take all of those things to the next level.  In creating a collaborative lesson for my class, I wanted my students to do something they haven't been able to do otherwise.  I thought it might be fun to create our own music videos and then get feedback from other people.   I wasn't quite ready to do a full-on music video with singing, dancing, lighting, camera, etc.  However, I could sure tell a lot about what a student thinks about a piece of music simply by letting them create a photo slideshow to go with it.  
In third grade, I had students build a slideshow to go with "Do-Re-Mi" from the "Sound of Music".  What if in fourth grade, I let them pick any (appropriate) piece of music to create a slideshow.  I've used SonicPics in 3rd grade, and while it's a little hard to change pages around if they aren't in order, it's still remarkably easy to use.  

The next question is what pictures can we use?   The internet is a dangerous place to just let small children roam.  I recently found a safe search engine for pictures called Safe Search Kids powered by Google.   If I decided to publish these music videos for public review, I would need to make sure that students could reference each photo's origin.  That becomes problematic, so I would probably be much better off making this an internal project.  

In order for others to view each student's video, we need a place to store the video, and then provide a link for others to follow.   Our district uses Office 365 which has it's own Video application.  It's definitely not YouTube, but it is private and still accessible through a link.  Students can save their projects directly to the Video app under my teacher channel, copy their share link, and then post the link to a shared location.  Currently I am working with fourth and fifth graders on using Canvas.  It has a great discussion feature where students could list their video's link and receive feedback from others.  

There is still a lot of classroom management that would need to be happening while the students are working on their project.  First, the songs would need to be approved by the teacher.  Second, the teacher would need to wander the room while students are looking for images.  Perhaps we could set-up a feedback partner to approve images as a first step?   Finally, the teacher will need to train students on how to use Sonic Pics or another app to create their slideshow and then record the music with it.  Don't forget a credits page for the music and videographer information!  

The next component of the project would be student feedback.  The teacher would once again, need to train the students on how to physically give feedback, and also how to give good quality feedback.   This project is getting bigger and bigger!  It's starting to sound like a series of smaller projects.  Perhaps a lesson about feedback on some other music videos.   Then a class project putting a slideshow together using Sonic Pics.  How about a class activity on using the discussion boards in Canvas?  Finally, they just might be able to do the video themselves!

There are a lot of things to think of when lesson planning, especially when technology is added.  There are great resources out there for teachers to consider reviewing before getting in too deep.  One resource I found was in the educator community website ShareMyLesson.com .   While resources for music education are few in many educator communities, there were a few on this site that deserve a mention such as a great unit on Music Copyright.  The unit, "Music Rules!" gave several lesson plans geared to 3rd to 8th grade students to provide them with a respect for intellectual property rights especially in music.  This might be something I could cover in my class, prior to creating our student videos.
So much to think about, so much to do, but isn't teaching with technology fun?! 

References:

 

About Safe Search. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2016, from http://www.safesearchkids.com/

 

Digital Storytelling has never been easier. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2016, from http://sonicpics.com/  

Laal, M., & Ghodsi, S. M. (2011). Benefits of collaborative learning. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2012(31), 486-490. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.12.091

 

Music Rules! (copyright education). (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2016, from https://sharemylesson.com/teaching-resource/music-rules-copyright-education-266932

 

Share My Lesson | Free Lesson Plans & Teacher Resources. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2016, from https://sharemylesson.com/

 

 

 

 

 

  

Learning Management Systems in Elementary Music - Part 2

Last post, I specifically wrote about how Google Apps might be used as an LMS in an elementary music class.  In my district however, we could use Google Apps, but Google Classroom is not the direction we are headed.  Instead, from 6th grade on up, the district is using Canvas as an LMS.  At the elementary level, Canvas has been opened up this year.  Unfortunately not many have taken it on as yet.  Being the silly overchiever that I am, I decided to try to incorporate it into my elementary music classes.  Since it's brand new to everyone (me and the students) I decided to start with a unit on Recorders for my 4th grade students.

I use Recorder Karate as our curriculum, so I set up each Recorder Belt as it's own module.  There are many settings available to manage how you want the students to proceed through the lessons.  My choices usually were made to keep the students from being overwhelmed with the technology.  For instance, I used the module settings that would require students to work sequentially through each assignment, activity, and quiz, before going on to the next module.  The navigation bar to the side had so many options at first, but I narrowed them down so that students would only see "Modules", "Announcements", and "Grades".  Later on, I could open up other options to them as they are ready.

So far, I feel like I'm teaching more technology than recorder technique.  However, after the first few days, the students became more accustomed to the system, I was finally able to truly spend time with individual students who needed the extra help.   The students make videos for their belt tests, which I can then watch later and leave real feedback for the student right within the system. 

I am not sure this is the best way to teach recorder.  I do know that I've had more time with individual students, and the ability to give written feedback is wonderful.  This type of a system will take some getting used to at this level.  I don't want to use this technology just because it exists, but I do want to give it the chance of being a part of my student's education.  My next task ahead of me is creating a Music Elements unit for 5th grade to enhance their music listening and critical thinking skills.  I can't wait to see how Canvas works in my music room in a new situation!

Learning Management Systems in Elementary Music - Part I

This last week in my Master's class we have been looking at Learning Management Systems.  Many LMS' exist and each has it's own strengths and weaknesses.  At the elementary level, I have seen some different applications used instead of an actual LMS, for instance Seesaw, and OneNote Classroom Notebook.  These seem to work very well at the elementary level to get students used to using one type of system in a myriad of ways.  Personally, I feel that both of those are great ways to prepare students for using a true Learning Management System.

Google now has it's own version of an LMS, but in many ways Google Apps have already been acting that way for many students and teachers.  With collaborative tools such as Gmail, and Google Docs, Spreadsheets, and Forms, the possibilities are endless for classroom use.  The whole system is actually very intuitive and easy to pick-up.  Now with Sites, Hangouts, and Talk, there are even more ways to work together as a classroom.  However, does this necessarily work in a music classroom?

In highschool and college music studies, there is definitely a place for an LMS.  Specifically within Google the Docs, Drive, and Forms create a great way to organize musical information.  Even in performing arts classes, there are many areas where responding to music in written form is required.  There is music theory that needs to be completed.  Using Google Forms to log practice hours, or create a survey regarding musical styles and preferences are possible.

At the elementary level, the need for an LMS is not there, but that does not mean it can't play an important part.  Those Google Forms (my favorite) would be great for exit tickets, music listening response forms, student surveys, and peer evaluations.  Writing a collaborative report on pop music in the 1960's could easily be done with Google Docs.  Having students take videos of their performances and uploading to Google Drive for review is another excellent way to use Google Apps.   At the elementary level, I'm not sure just using Google Apps as an LMS would be advantageous, but the apps themselves should absolutely be used!  Taking technology piece by piece may be the best tack for younger students.  However, I have not been able to see the new Google Classroom in action.  If it runs smoothly and intuitively, I would love to have a chance to try it out.

Part 2 LMS in Elementary Music

Digital Device Decisions

As teachers, we have an enormous responsibility.  

     To teach children and
     To use the best practices we know to do that. 

In the past decade alone, new information has come forward about how children learn, and what they will need to know to be successful in the future.  In a video "Understanding the Digital Generation" (2013), Ian Jukes references the book "A Whole New Mind" by Daniel Pink (2006).   Jukes lays out Pink's view of what our students need:

In our left-brain society...do you understand that almost anything that involves predominantly left-brain thinking is either going to be automated, its going to be turned into software or hardware, or its going to be outsourced.  And as a result of that, if our children are going to survive, let alone thrive in the culture of the 21st century...if they are going to be prepared for their future, not our past, then we as educators need to help them learn how to use both hemispheres [of the brain] effectively to be able to use a whole new mind (2013).

To me, this means that we can no longer teach the way we were taught.  Our instructors gave us information and we took it in.  We were expected to have a specific set of knowledge that could be regurgitated back out whenever it was needed.  There were those great teachers that really made us think, and that is what we need more of now.  But today we also have the added dimension of living in a digital world.  So, how do we get our children to use the information they have in new, creative ways that will help them achieve success? 

We need to promote the use of technology in our classrooms.

I have been learning more and more about technology and I pretty much want to incorporate all of it into my classroom!  Of course, that's not realistic, or even possible.  So, how do I get the most "bang for my buck" from technology within my normal lesson plans?  If you know about the SAMR model by Dr. Ruben Puentedura for technology integration, you know the S stands for substitution (2013). 

http://www.schrockguide.net/uploads/3/9/2/2/392267/5805548.jpg?579

 

This is where we all start as we get our feet wet in technology and in new ways to teach.  However, eventually you need to move on to Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition. In other words, you need to think like you want your students to think....creatively and outside-the-box.  How do you make those decisions on what and how to incorporate the technology?

Usually, financial considerations keep most of us using devices we already have access to.  There is nothing wrong with that because there are numerous ways to use the technology you may already have.  Ask yourself what content you want to teach your students.  How about asking your students what they would like to learn?  Putting the two ideas together could definitely inspire you.  Pinterest is another great resource.  As you gain new ideas on how to use the technology, you still need to ask some specific questions.  For instance,

 Will the technology...

• Help the student learn or will it distract or get in the way?
• Engage the student in the content?
• Allow the student to explore the content?
• Allow creative input to the student and output from him?
• make the student think, reflect, and connect?

Since I am an elementary music teacher, my answers to these questions may be different from a regular classroom, but I would like to give you a couple of examples of how I process whether a technological device would be worth a try in my classroom.

http://musicappblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Garageband-new-logo.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                    
When my district first starting obtaining iPads for student use, I was chomping at the bit to integrate them into my classroom.  I was sure the technology would help the students.  I knew how much technology engaged me, so I hoped it would engage my students as well.  Now would the iPads really allow my students to explore music in a creative way that would not only teach my content, but make the students really use their brains?  I ended up finding "Garage Band" to be a great tool, and I'm sure many of you have used it too.  Luckily, it was already loaded onto our iPads.  Unfortunately, it takes up a lot of room (because it's so great!) that our classroom teachers end up deleting it, especially during testing.  Despite the storage problem, iPads together with Garage Band end up being a great device and application to use in my classroom.  I can answer all of my decision-making questions in a positive way.

http://cmhslearntech.pbworks.com/f/SmartResponse.jpg

Another technology device that I have access to are "Clickers" or specifically,  a "Smart Response System" to use with our SmartBoard interactive whiteboards.  Clickers allow students to respond individually to questions without using pen and paper.  (More info here on clickers.)  Teachers can present students with a formative quiz, summative assessment, or a poll or survey.  This provides results that can be anonymous or not.  There are also great ways to use clickers in a game format.  See this Smart Exchange search result for more info. 

To answer my first question, I believe that clickers are better used as information gathering for the teacher.  In that way, teachers can adapt their lessons to help students learn better, but the clickers themselves do not help the students learn. The clickers are very engaging for students, but technology issues can be a distraction.  Do the clickers allow the students to explore content? No, not really.  Do they allow creative input or output?  Input is basically multiple choice or short answer, so not very creative.  However, they could get creative in interpreting class results which is a plus.  It could also create very interesting discussions.  In that way, it can make the students think, reflect, and connect.  Will this be a good choice for my classroom?  Probably not.  It would be a lot of fun, and engaging for the students, and a good formative assessment tool.  However, the setup alone for each of my 17 classes can be time-consuming.  If I was in a regular classroom, this might be a better tool, especially if I could have a set permanently located in my room.  However, since ours need to be signed up for, set-up, and then packed away, it just doesn't seem worth the time.  

As teachers, we need to use technology to help our students develop into adults that can handle the 21st century digital culture.  But, we can't just hop onto the next "shiny" thing that comes along.  Take the time to think about your choice of device, how you can use it, and what the benefits are for your students.  The time spent up front, will save time and frustration later.  At the same time, remember technology is meant to be fun too, so allow yourself some time to play!

Digital Citizenship in the Music Room

In my classroom, all my students in the third grade and up can regularly bring an iPad with them to music.  Be still my heart!  The possibilities of what technology can offer for music class are numerous.  Also, the kids that are not excited about general music class, are excited about technology.  Put a lesson on an iPad and students are immediately engaged.  It's a very exciting time.  However, as we use technology more and more, a whole new level is added to what we need to teach our students:  Digital Citizenship.

Mike Ribbel from www.digitalcitizenship.net (n.d.) explains.

Digital Citizenship is a concept which helps teachers, technology leaders and parents to understand what students/children/technology users should know to use technology appropriately. Digital Citizenship is more than just a teaching tool; it is a way to prepare students/technology users for a society full of technology. Digital citizenship is the norms of appropriate, responsible technology use.  Too often we are seeing students as well as adults misusing and abusing technology but not sure what to do. The issue is more than what the users do not know but what is considered appropriate technology usage.

Digital citizenship should be taught at the same time as the student is learning how to operate the technology.  When a child is small, we teach them to share their toys, be nice to others, and to stay away from a hot flame.  It is the same with digital citizenship.  We are still teaching kids how to share their devices, how to be nice when communicating with others on the internet, and how to stay away from fire (like strangers or computer viruses).   In music class, we have a unique opportunity to discuss specific digital citizenship issues that may not come up in a regular classroom.

Through discussions with my own students, I have found many of them are truly unaware of how often they or a family member are breaking copyright laws through music and video piracy.  What can a music teacher do to help?  

• Every teacher can, at the very least, be a good role model by using audio and video clips correctly.  
• By making a point to give credit to original artists and composers, etc, you can bring home the idea that these things belong to someone and that they have value.  
• As part of a composition project, make sure each student puts his or her name on their composition.  Let them know that they own the rights to their own composition.   
• Finally, incorporate an actual lesson on digital citizenship emphasizing why we have copyright laws, and what students can do to protect themselves and honor the rights of their favorite musicians.  

Copyright is a pretty complex field for a teacher, much less the student.  A great resource for all things related to digital citizenship is www.CommonSenseMedia.org.  Check out the link below for a search on their website of copyright resources from videos to lesson plans.  
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/search/copyright


Resources:

Common Sense Media. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2016, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/  

Ribble, M. (n.d.). Digital Citizenship. Retrieved October 29, 2016, from http://digitalcitizenship.net/