Green, Lucy. (2008). Chapter 1: Introduction and Chapter 2: The project’s pedagogy and curriculum content. In “Music, Informal Learning, and the School: A New Classroom Pedagogy” (pp.1-40). New York: Routledge.
After reading Chapters 1 and 2 of Green’s book, I’m amazed and excited to hear about meticulous research done that demonstrates the effectiveness of informal learning practices in formal music settings. I loved reading the transcriptions of the students because they were raw and realistic, and demonstrated how students can still grow with enough time, even though it may not be in the organized or timely manner that teachers desire. However, I am skeptical that informal learning works simply because I have never seen positive results in person; it appears counter-intuitive and different than the way in which I learned music. As I was reading, I mused upon the question “What is the point of a teacher then?” because they are facilitating in such a minute way. I feel the same way one of the teachers described in that they felt like they were not putting enough effort into their job by allowing the students to just work on their own. Maybe my concept of teaching is wrong or needs to be refined so that a teachers’ worth is not judged by how much work they put into the lesson plan, but by how much space they allow the student to grow in---or maybe it is something different than that. I also questioned whether the students’ motivation was purely intrinsic or if there was a final grade that pushed the students to create a finished product. In the transcription in Chapter 2, the students’ planning was disorganized, but they also seemed driven to produce a final product to fulfill the teachers’ expectations. They ended up producing a performance that the teacher was pleased with, but were they doing it for their own sake or for the teacher’s sake? |
Davina MiawOn this page, I will present examples of my scholarship in the form of reflective essays and philosophical assignments. Archives
November 2019
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