Running Head: SELF-CLASSIFICATION 1

Self-Classification

Brianna N. Shepardson

Ithaca College
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A first grader once asked me, Miss Shepardson, why do we have to come to music? My

initial internal reaction was anger. I have to justify my subject to my colleagues, administration

and people I meet on the street and now I have to justify my subject to my students? I was

frustrated. But I quickly realized this childs question was sincere. My answer could significantly

impact not only how he viewed my class, but also what he and his classmates learned during the

limited amount of time I have with them. In order to give the most effective answer, I had to

understand what this child viewed as important and how I could give him an answer that meant

something to him.

Looking back on this scenario, I wish I would have known what I know now about the

psychology of learning. Because I did not understand the many different learning styles, I

answered the question based on what I would want to hear if I were in his position. I said

something to the effect of, we study music because it makes us better people. It helps us

become comfortable with our feelings and learn how to express them. I gave no concrete

examples, and I could tell he was not satisfied with my answer. For this particular student, a

constructivist approach would have been the most effective. This student is a very intelligent,

fact-driven boy who wants to understand how the things he is learning will be useful to him in

his everyday life. My lofty, big-picture answer went in one ear and out the other.

After studying the various learning theories, I have noticed that I use most of them in my

teaching from time to time. My classroom management is almost entirely based in the

behaviorist approach. During music composition units, I take on a cognitive, discovery-based

approach. When I first introduce music literacy, my teaching becomes more reception-based, but

during my after-school choir, I focus much more on the social aspects of learning than the

cognitive. And finally, constructivism plays a large role in how I structure my lessons for each
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grade level and the techniques I use when teaching them how to sing. It has been my experience

that the variety of content taught in the general music classroom requires me to use a variety of

learning theories in order to teach as effectively as possible.

Behaviorism

To begin, Ill examine the use of behaviorist techniques in my classroom management

plan. At the beginning of the school year, I present the students with four rules posted in the front

of the classroom. We discuss the rules, what they mean, and the consequences of following or

dismissing them. Individually, students receive pride paws, or tickets for an all-school drawing

at the end of the week, for outstanding behavior. For poor behavior, students receive warnings

and are then asked not to participate in class activities until they can make better decisions. I find

that when a student does something helpful and I immediately reward them with a pride paw, the

other students in the class mimic that behavior. If I am consistent, it only takes a few weeks for

them to become conditioned to consistently meet the expectations I set at the beginning of the

year.

Constructivism

Most of my students come from homes where music is not a priority, so many of the

concepts I teach are completely new. Without relevant prior knowledge, its difficult to teach

things like music literacy in a way my students can comprehend. When it comes to

understanding rhythm, I use constructivist techniques to give my students the tools they need to

understand the abstract concepts I am teaching them. I find the best way to do this is through

spiral curriculum. For example, in kindergarten I begin to build students musical schema by

listening to music and moving around the room. Pretty soon, they start to keep a steady beat and

talk about what the term steady beat means. In first grade, students learn he word, rhythm, and
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I am able to contrast rhythm with steady beat. In second grade, they start to learn how to write

the rhythm down and what certain sounds look like on paper. As they get older, I add more

complex rhythms and build on their schema. By activating this prior knowledge, I am giving

students the information they need to organize their schema around rhythm in a manner that will

hopefully transfer to other music classes and experiences they encounter later in life.

Cognitivism

Cognitivism comes into play during the fifth grade composition units. I begin the unit

with a receptionist approach. I give students a diagram that describes the typical layout of an

American pop song and then discuss how to construct each section. We practice writing a song

together, but only using the voice and ukulele. After a few classes using the receptionist

approach, students disperse and start to work on composing their own songs individually or with

a group. They may use any instruments in the classroom, but should follow the outline set for

them at the beginning of the unit. I find that students sometimes become very frustrated with this

process because it is something they have never done before. For some students, this challenge is

very motivating, but for some, it has the opposite effect. For this reason, I do my best to combine

constructivist learning with other techniques depending on my students needs.

Humanism

Finally, I use humanism to connect to my students and to keep them excited about music.

At the beginning of the year, I am better about checking in with my students to see how they are

feeling than I am at the end of the year. My goal this year is to make the personal connection

with my students a priority even when I am feeling stressed about time or behavior or other

factors outside of my control. I use humanism more often than I realized, and it is a great way to

foster the innate creativity of the children in my classroom. One of my favorite activities I call
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musical exploration. I give students guidelines and talk to them about how to respect the

instruments in the room, and then they explore. They choose instruments to play, they play for as

long as they want and then they move to a new instrument. From the outside, it looks and sounds

completely chaotic; but the learning that occurs in those ten minutes is longer lasting than any

lesson I could put on the whiteboard. Students often come to me with questions during this time,

and because they are in charge of their learning, the answers I give them are more meaningful.

Each of the learning theories we have discussed play a role in the music classroom, and I

am surprised at how easy it is to relate each theory to teaching music. I use these techniques

every day, but after learning more about them I understand how to use them more effectively. I

also have a better idea of which theories are best for various activities or concepts and am

looking forward to implementing my new knowledge throughout the upcoming year. If I take the

time to learn the different learning styles of my students, I hope to help them make connections

to music on a longer lasting, more influential level.