Maximizing the Interdependence of the Artistic Processes

Putting It All Together

 

By NAfME Member Dr. Johanna J. Siebert

Multiple workshops, in-services, and sessions have been held detailing and explaining the 2014 Music Standards, but if you are like many other educators you may still be thinking, “These are fine, but how do I put this all together in my lessons and curriculum?”

 

I have heard from many music teachers that there’s just no time to amply cover the multitude of performance standards at so many levels when concert deadlines and diminished student access often get in the way. And as a retired music supervisor, believe me—I get it; your time is at a premium.

 

Multiple Parts of the Whole

The purpose of this session is to provide strategies for melding varied components into cohesive and practical student learning experiences. The standards were never meant to be stand-alone, isolated understandings with a list of ingredients to “check off” on a linear progression through each process; rather, much like the simultaneous skills that occur in performance, the ideal is to include elements of creating, performing, and responding in a more unified and relatable manner.

 

Working Smarter, Not Harder 

Attendees of my session at the 2019 NAfME National Conference will be active participants in sharing their examination of familiar and not-so-familiar teaching scenarios by describing personal successes and challenges that incorporated the Artistic Processes; here, real teachers will provide the context to help each other discover the varied and potential alignments of the processes within all types of music classrooms.

 

To help in this, we will view additional strategies for more inclusive instruction, examples of re-worked lessons that do double (or triple) duty within the same class time, and accompanying on-the-spot assessments. We’ll explore how the NAfME Library of Congress Responding units for inquiry-based learning experiences “cross over” into Creating, Performing, and Connecting in both ensemble and general music classrooms.

 

Putting It All Together

While each of us is an individual, we share collegiality through the musical ideas, resources, and needs our classes represent. I hope you’ll join us in contributing, discovering, and employing creative ways to maximize and align current lessons to the “new” standards, and to plan for learning experiences that build true music literacy in our students.

 

“Maximizing the Interdependence of the Artistic Processes” will be presented as part of the “Amplify: Instruction” strand at the NAfME National Conference on November 9, 2019, at 10:30 AM ET.

 

About the author:

Johanna J. Siebert, Ph.D. is the Project Director for the NAfME Teaching with Primary Sources five-year grant from the Library of Congress. She is a member of NAfME Solutions Music Group, and was on the writing team for the 2014 Music Standards. Johanna is an adjunct professor and lecturer at the Eastman School of Music, Nazareth College, and the University of the Arts, and is a frequent presenter at state and national conferences on the topics of national standards, teacher evaluation, and teaching with primary sources. She is a candidate for NAfME National President-Elect for 2020-22.

 

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The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) provides a number of forums for the sharing of information and opinion, including blogs and postings on our website, articles and columns in our magazines and journals, and postings to our Amplify member portal. Unless specifically noted, the views expressed in these media do not necessarily represent the policy or views of the Association, its officers, or its employees.

Catherina Hurlburt, Marketing Communications Manager. October 14, 2019. © National Association for Music Education (NAfME.org)