8/8/2023
Topic:
Students with Disabilities
Kenneth Carter
|
Think of a music student with a disability you have now, or have had in the past. Identify their disability. Describe the way in which their disability affected their music learning. Describe at least one or more ways you successfully accommodated or modified instruction for this student. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
I had a wonderful student when I taught at the middle school level who had a disability. She was as sweet as could be but she also called things as she saw it. She was so incredibly passionate about percussion and would get frustrated when she played exercises or even musical passages incorrectly. In her beginning years it was also my first year of teaching so this was all new to me and I had experienced very few students with disabilities in my experiences through music. The first thing I did to accommodate this student was to pair her with someone who was also playing percussion. This tremendously helped her get acclimated to the instrument, technique, and even music literacy. There were times where I would intervene because she was either becoming frustrated or needed a break from the stimulation of multiple instruments playing. Other accommodations I made for her was to have one-on-one lessons. There were just things during class that sometimes didn't make sense right away for her. So having time to work with her one-on-one allowed me to get into greater depth on topics and assess what I could do better to help her. I would also make accommodations for the music she was reading until I could get more time with her. Adding or subtracting parts like snare rolls to better understand when and where they started and stopped. This student I think about a lot because she made me a better teacher and she made me better understand students with disabilities and how I could help them have a better musical experience. |
11/15/2023
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Kenneth Carter
|
Describe how two of the strategies discussed could potentially be implemented in your music classroom. Be sure to identify the two strategies by name, and describe how they could be used to address the student's disability. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
I have had varied experiences with students where I have implemented several strategies that have been mentioned. The first one is Mnemonic instruction I have implemented several time and at various different levels. When teaching music this strategy is essential in teaching students the names of the lines and spaces on various staffs. I have even utilized mnemonics to teach about the order of the circle of fifths. It offers students a pseudo cheat code for remembering orders, letter names, or other pertinent information. Another strategy that I have implemented is the use of venn diagrams within my classroom. At the high school level you can use this for listening activities where you are comparing pieces of music to one another. I have also utilized it for students to compare a recorded performance (during rehearsal/concert) to a reference recording to see what we can work on and what makes the performance better. |
11/15/2023
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Kenneth Carter
|
Provide/Describe one or more examples of adapted or alternative assessments you have successfully used in the music classroom for students with disabilities. Be sure to identify the student's disability. Share your response in the threaded discussion.
I have had several students who have joined band and worked to accommodate them while being fair and inclusive. I would give playing tests on music they were working on or things out of their method book. All students would have the opportunity to play the test and if they were unhappy with their results they were more than welcome to practice and try again. Giving students multiple opportunities to work through it and ask for help is invaluable to their education. I also find it important for all students to bond with each other and support each other. So if I have a student with special needs in a section I will ask a leader within the section to look out for them and mentor them on anything they might be confused about. If they are still unclear they will come to me and I will clarify. If the section or playing test isn't coming together I will work with everyone as a group and ask them to work on their own where I can walk around the room and work with everyone for a short period of time. |