Choral Methods: Charlotte High School Observation #2

Second Day. Round Two. I'm in the ring. And I have my gloves on tightly. I know now how to park. I know now how to find the room...I think. Getting back to the class was no problem this time and I've started to build myself a routine. I sit down once more in the auditorium. The students are now getting prepared for the choral festival that will take place for them the next day.

Bethany was prepared, a seasoned veteran at the processes that accompany taking an entire ensemble to festival. She began the rehearsal not with talking about the festival but rather with the warm-ups. I think that this was a notable choice because she was reinforcing the idea the music class should begin with music rather than talking technicalities over the "fieldtrip" they were about to take. That can wait. But she was also making the conscious decision to allow for an "interruption" in the music-making when she begins to pass out the details of the trip before they run through their repertoire. One thing that did happen was the students exploded into conversation as soon as she began to pass out the itineraries. She did not give them the option to read it on their own time which I thought was interesting because that may be for her protection. If a student were to say that they missed something that would end up affect the possibility of their attendance, reading it in class does not give allowance for that excuse. She may do this differently with the more advanced groups since this is not an auditioned ensemble.

But once she finished with the sheets they began to work on their sight-reading. A notable factor is when she asked a question she called for a band person to answer. Another trick she did was to ask a section to answer questions she had. This was a technique, I believe, to not single anyone out but would grab the attention of a large amount of students. It also would solidify and reinforce section pride. If a section were to be held accountable for answering questions rather than a single students, this would make it easier for students to identify with the person who answers instead of having one smartypants always answer the questions.

At the very end, she gave them compliments and an overall ego boost over how well they would be performing in the festival. She went on to say that she was impressed by their work and the progress made over the past years to make the group who they were that day.

I think it is important for teachers to remember that students are not just their to learn and participate but also to seek reassurance. So much of what classes have turned into is the value of the grade the may receive. And some students have a hard time getting the results they want for one reason or another. In the end, what they may see too often is red marks on the page. Their  value and intelligence being measured by a letter grade evaluated by another person. We offer one of the few things that can allow for group participation that can reward unbiasedly creating a collective of students that exist on equal playing fields and may be rewarded equally as well.