TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
As a music teacher, not only am I teaching music, but one’s humanity too. When I stand in the front of the class, there are always two lessons being taught; The observable lesson about music, which is expected through the standards, but the second lesson is less obvious: a lesson on how to be human. It may seem like I am only fixing the sound of the choir, but I am also teaching how to communicate with others through my actions. It may seem like I am only teaching how to achieve a good blend, but I am also teaching how work towards achieving a goal. As an adult figure, I believe that pieces of me will also spill over into the students, as long as I connect with them. Creating and listening to music puts students in unique situations where they are placed in vulnerable, emotionally open spots. So since music is one of the few subjects where students can give and receive emotional responses and connections, it is imperative that they are taught how to love music, each other, and themselves.
To teach students how to love themselves, I give them constant reassurance of how talented and capable they are and how proud I am of them. Even when pointing out mistakes, I would also point out what the student did well so that I can encourage them to work harder by letting them know that even though they made a mistake, they are still skillful and can therefore fix the inaccuracy. The importance of having a student push aside their self-doubts and believe in their abilities is an essential goal for each student to reach.
Teaching the students how to love and respect each other is also one of my main goals. Since music is a worldwide phenomenon, I teach music which includes having foreign origins. Listening to and performing foreign music would expose students to different cultures by letting them connect with the music so that they are more accepting of other cultures and ideas that do not match their own. Music carries the history of the time when it was created, and when teaching the music, I could use it as a gateway to explain the history and the cultures of others that are unbeknownst to the students. Because of my upbringing in a Mexican household in America, I am very aware of the importance of acknowledging children with different cultural backgrounds. I can relate with the children who were raised in different cultures and my students would be aware of the different cultures that people share around the globe.
By showing my students that I care for them, not just as students, but as people, I can gain their respect. My high school music teacher gave me, and his other students, love and respect, and as a result, we strove to do the best we could do to make him proud. He managed to gain and maintain our attention by giving us the respect we deserved, and I strive to do the same because I believe that if you have a student’s heart, you will have their attention too. If behavioral issues were to arise, I would address them in a calm, but assertive manner to avoid appearing threatening. My tone and diction will be determined by how serious the content of the offense is, but I will not display emotions in the voice or facial expressions. This would persist until the students respond with appropriate behavior or until I must address the issue to administration.
The knowledge they possess through the class can be introspective in the sense that they learn something about themselves or extrospective where they learn about the world, either its music or cultures. I do not wish to just teach information, but to also teach emotions so that they can further their ability to understand the subject and do more with music. My students will have a great understanding of music and will be able to express music and its power to everyone, everywhere they go.