As I read through the section on "Instructional
Software" I reflected on what I already use in my teaching and I thought
about which category some of the programs I have learned about would be
categorized. The four types were tutorial, practice, creativity, and games.
Smartmusic and Chromatic appear to be examples of practice instructional
software since prerequisite knowledge is required and these allow students to
practice their instrument and learn about areas where they need to improve.
Soundation is an example of creativity instructional software. I use tutorials
more than any of the others, mostly because my students are beginners. However
I see a lot of potential and value in some of the others, especially creativity
software. Games can be fun and have potential to reinforce previous knowledge
in a fun way, but I think they should be used sparingly, maybe at the end of
the school year, when it is particularly difficult to maintain student
interest.
I was a bit
overwhelmed by the reading on pages 76-78, where a day in the work life of a
band teacher named Michael is described. It would to me years to learn how to
work all of the technology that he is using, and who has time to spend hours
after work learning new technology? Although I think some of the technologies
described in this section, like recording students with audacity, can enhance
instruction, I think we need to guard against how too much technology in the
classroom. I think it also has the potential to
distance us from our students. One thing that was particularly appealing
to me (mainly for personal reasons) was when Michael discusses “the purchase of
an electronic mute system that will allow her to practice in the apartment
where she lives without disturbing the neighbors” (p. 78). I live in an
apartment and my skills are definitely suffering because I can’t practice there
without disturbing others.
Another excerpt
from our reading that stood out to me was where Bauer discusses accompaniment. “Researchers
have found that students generally prefer to practice with accompaniment” (p.
82). This is consistent with my own experience. However, when I am teaching, my
attention is divided between playing the accompaniment and listening to my
ensembles so that I can give them feedback. It’s really difficult to do both
things well. I think the best solution is to hire an accompanist, but this is
not very practical financially for many schools. Technology offers wonderful
solutions for this.
After reading
the section on SmartMusic, I was impressed with its potential for aiding band
students but left wondering if it was relevant to the choral practice room. The
most appealing thing was that it “can be used to sing one’s part along with the
other accompanying instruments, including a full ensemble or piano
accompaniment” (p. 83). I am also
curious about how it works with regard to sight reading. Is this software
expensive, and are there free alternatives that can do what I want since I
probably won’t use the full range of features on the program with my general
music and choral classes?
Great points, Maria. I have also wondered about implementation of the SmartMusic software in my class. My predecessor had purchased it, but from what I heard from the students, they rarely used it and so I didn't renew it because I didn't have the time (due to starting a new job) to figure it out. It looks wonderful, but also quite expensive when you are needing to equip 100+ students each year, and requiring the purchase is not always something we can do. I have used Chromatik, but when it was beta, so now that it's full, the kids don't have as much free time on it and aren't using it as much. Their educators facet has also disappeared.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the faux teacher described was a little beyond reality--and using too much tech in the class can get kids focused on tech, not on actually using their ears and being immersed in the music. It's an interesting balance.