How can a teacher get students to become motivated and excited to learn? How can teachers provide interesting and unique lessons that not only entertain, but educate at the same time? We are ultimately responsible to raise student achievement - hour to hour, day to day, year to year. Today's teachers are not only faced with the responsibilty to produce well-behaved, socially enlightened young adults, they also need to keep standarized test scores high enough to keep their job, keep the school in the above average column, and leave "no child behind."
At the beginning of each school year, most teachers work in an “operant conditioning” mode, where the teacher is focused on achieving desired behaviors from students. As the year progresses, it is important to teach students how to become responsible for their own behavior and actions. Students who keep track of their own effort and achievement will begin to make the connection between effort and success. By positively reinforcing effort, students will learn how to compare the amount of work put into a project and learn what is required to do a task well. Also, students who focus on behavioral success will also experience education and social success as well.
Mastering a skill requires a fair amount of focused homework and practice. It takes 24 practice sessions with a skill to achieve an above average competency level. (Pitler et all 2007) This is especially true in music. My Concert Band is participating in a judged music festival this week. We have easily surpassed the 24 mark. The most important saying in my room is that “Practice Makes Permanent.” How you practice is how you will perform. This is true of music, athletics, and education. Beginning Band students are required to pass a number of playing tests throughout the year. Each test is progressively harder and if a student passes them all, they are rewarded with a medal and certificate of achievement. The student is ultimately focused on the end goal – get the medal. I am focused on how best to help that student learn the next set of skills required for the next test. In the end, I have a group of students who have raised their achievement level tremendously. The students however, want the reward for their effort.
Laureate Education Inc., (2009). “Behaviorist Learning Theory.” Baltimore, MD: Laureate Education Inc.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
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Do you use technology in your classroom? I am just wondering what programs you might be able to use for band?
ReplyDeleteI teach at a technology magnet school where every student has their own laptop. Using technology for their daily assignments definitely excites students and motivates them to learn.
Todd, I think teachers can get students motivated and excited to learn by making the content interesting. Yes, I know it's easier said than done in some cases. But,in speaking with students, their major concern is having fun. With the use of instructional technology, SmartBoards, iPods, podcasts, etc., there are so many ways to keep students engaged in learning.
ReplyDeleteTodd, Have you heard of the Smart music program? The students play their music with the computer and when they get a note right it turns geren. Our band director uses it sometimes for sectionals and sometimes for individual practice. The students love to try to make all notes turn green.
ReplyDeleteThe medal given at the end of the year is a great way to use the behaviorist concept to encourage practice. All of your students must work very hard to achieve success on their instrument. Motivated band students definitely lead to good bands.
Band would seem to be a subject that lends itself to repetition more than others. So using technology to help track practice time vs. results looks like a pretty interesting way to integrate it. I don't know if you've ever heard of an author named Malcolm Gladwell, but he wrote a very interesting book called Outliers where he talks about the idea of having 10,000 hours of practice time to achieve professional level mastery of some skill. Your 24 practice session rule reminded me of it.
ReplyDeleteCarla,
ReplyDeleteI tried to use Smart music one year, but the students didn't like it and got so frustrated with the program that they actually practiced less. I understand the concept of the student using the computer to master pitch and tempo, but I personally think that the program "individualizes" the music too much. I know of some teachers who use it well, but I just can't bring myself to dedicate class time for it. My time is already so limited with my music students. I do however, like the other aspects of Smart Music - especially the numerous band recordings available.
Todd
Terri,
ReplyDeleteI often use Music Ace 1 and 2 for my music classes. These are CD-Rom based music games that teach music theory and harmony. I use the program on my Promethean Board and the whole class participates. But the program can also run off a network and students can work indivually and progress at their own pace. I still find that my music theory flashcards work wonders - especially when I let the 7th graders challenge the 8th graders. Another great program to use with students is Finale OneNote. It is a very cheap (sometimes free) dowload that lets studnets compose and arrange their own music. It can be placed on a network or individual computers.
Todd
Wow! Sounds like a fun music class! I'm sure your students love it!
ReplyDeleteTerri