First-years at Gettysburg College take a course titled, Social Foundations of Music Education. In this class they critically examine education systems and consider new ways of constructing learning. Our four main texts are Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire, Teaching as Subversive Activity by Neil Postman, To Teach by Bill Ayers, and Musician and Teacher by Patricia Shehan Campbell.
Notable guest presenters over the years have included: Bill Ayers (Chicago), Ellen Koskoff (Eastman), Mary Goetze (Indiana), Alison Reynolds (Temple), I Ketut Gede Asnawa (Illinois), Stephen Paparo (UMASS), Rollo Dilworth (Temple), Karin Hendricks (BU), Juliet Hess (MSU), Liz Shropshire (Shropshire Foundation), and Babatunde Lea (Educultural Foundation).
Teaching Video
During this five-part video, I lead a discussion and break-out activity that draws on our knowledge about inquiry-based learning to deconstruct our program’s archaic lesson plan format. We reconstruct our lesson plan format, making it more inclusive, relevant, and flexible to multiple ways of learning and musicking. After reconvening, our lesson plan format turns into a problem-solving, creativity-encouraging format that is non-linear and scaffolded.
Notable guest presenters over the years have included: Bill Ayers (Chicago), Ellen Koskoff (Eastman), Mary Goetze (Indiana), Alison Reynolds (Temple), I Ketut Gede Asnawa (Illinois), Stephen Paparo (UMASS), Rollo Dilworth (Temple), Karin Hendricks (BU), Juliet Hess (MSU), Liz Shropshire (Shropshire Foundation), and Babatunde Lea (Educultural Foundation).
Teaching Video
During this five-part video, I lead a discussion and break-out activity that draws on our knowledge about inquiry-based learning to deconstruct our program’s archaic lesson plan format. We reconstruct our lesson plan format, making it more inclusive, relevant, and flexible to multiple ways of learning and musicking. After reconvening, our lesson plan format turns into a problem-solving, creativity-encouraging format that is non-linear and scaffolded.
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Exemplary Student Work
The final project for Social Foundations asks students to synthesize the knowledge of various philosophies and approaches to teaching and learning music covered in the course. Over the semester, they had to explore one of the following questions:
The final project for Social Foundations asks students to synthesize the knowledge of various philosophies and approaches to teaching and learning music covered in the course. Over the semester, they had to explore one of the following questions:
- What are the major models of music education in the past? How were those models developed and for what purposes? What implications can the implementation of those models in the past give to music educators today?
- How are educational policies in the U.S. linked to the global economy and how does the translation of those policies in the local context shape the educational experience of teachers and students in classrooms?
- How can we conceptualize curriculum and school knowledge to better address important questions of social change, contingency of knowledge, life in mediated worlds, and inequalities?
- How should teachers as transformative intellectuals navigate through the current educational system in the age of accountability to pursue equity among in and through education?
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Miranda Bubenheim '18 wrote and illustrated a children's book about schooling titled, Mia's Music. She drew inspiration from Bill Ayers's To Teach, The Journey in Comics. I sent Bill a copy and this is what he said,
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Eddie Holmes '18 composed Biophily: Five Musical Episodes for the Revolutionary Educator
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Jeff Binner '14 wrote and starred in a one act play titled, The Same Person. During his time at Gettysburg, Jeff and I were regularly mentioned to be doppelgängers. His one act play draws upon our doppelgänger status to engage in an internal dialogue about preparing for his presentation. Jeff plays both himself and Dr. Talbot (the voice in his head). The socratic approach he takes is reminiscent of Freire's work and he does a brilliant job of drawing upon the course content to answer one of our course questions. Though Jeff did not major in music education, he took the course out of interest in teaching and now teaches at a private school outside of Philadelphia while continuing his work as a successful composer.
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Jane Best '15 created and presented using Prezi, exploring the question: "How should teachers as transformative intellectuals navigate through the current educational system in the age of accountability to pursue equity among in and through education?"