Today
I completed my third out of four observation sessions at an elementary school
in New Jersey for my Music Classroom Methods I class. (I will keep this
school’s identity private, since this post will be public on the internet.)
Although I have visited several other public schools for observations and
fieldwork prior to this one, I just cannot get over the technological resources
that are available at this school. The first thing that struck me on the very
first day is the new (latest model) iMac computer in the music classroom.
According to the music teacher, the school’s technology lab is full of
identical computers. When I went to elementary school, most of the computers in
the computer lab were older models, some of which were slow and froze often.
The only computers that I recall having in classrooms were much older models
that were most likely stocked with a basic word processing program and a few
simple educational games, such as Coin Critters. (Does anyone else remember
playing that game, or am I the only one? It was always my favorite educational
game to play elementary school.)
In
addition, this elementary school’s music classroom, the only location that I
have seen in detail, is stocked with a full built-in sound system. When the
music teacher wants to play a musical example for the students, all he has to
do is plug in his own computer (which he seems to prefer to use over the
classroom one) into the sound system, and the students instantly have access to
the music. I also learned today that every teacher at the school is given an
iPad to use. The music teacher even admitted that he sometimes has trouble
finding an adequate use for so much technology in music. I agree with his
overall mentality that technology should be used as a tool to enhance education,
but it should not replace education itself. Music is a subject that allows a
high level of creativity and self expression, and he is worried that giving students
too much of a prominent access to technology will hinder their abilities to have
a truly authentic experience at creating material and really making it their
own. In addition to digital technology, the music room is also stocked with a
generous array of instruments for the young students to use. From recorders to
auto-harps to hand-drums of various sizes, the instruments available to
students at this elementary school really help create an active and hand-on
learning experience, something I wish could have been a bit better throughout
my music education in elementary school.
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