WINTER OKLAMUSIC 12 13 II small file.pdf - Oklahoma Music ...

OkMEA
president–elect michael raiber
Striking a Cord
As I spend time in public school classrooms, I hear a great
deal about the changing nature of what it really means to
be a music teacher in Oklahoma schools. It seems that
more and more responsibility is placed on the already
heavy burden that teachers are held responsible to carry.
Additions of things like Common Core Standards, teacher
evaluation, anti–bullying initiatives, student achievement
requirements and the myriad of school and district level
requirements begin to weigh heavily on teachers. While
many of these issues are valuable and necessary, it does
not change the fact that in addition to meeting all the past
demands of your position, you must now learn these new
programs, standards and evaluations to apply to your
teaching. Even when the music teacher is working to
manage these changes there are unforeseen issues.
I was recently contacted by a music teacher who was
asked by his administrator to help him learn how to apply
one of the new evaluation frameworks (i.e., Marzano) to
the music classroom. This music teacher was at a loss
exclaiming that it was just more than he could manage on
top of all the things that he was already doing. While it is
admirable that this administrator desires to learn how to
more effectively evaluate his music teachers, it is one more
element in the classroom taking the teacher’s time away
from his students and their needs.
Lee Shulman, former president of the American
Education Research Association once said:
. classroom teaching . . . is perhaps the most
complex, most challenging, and most demanding,
subtle, nuanced, and frightening activity that our
species has ever invented . . . The only time a
physician could possibly encounter a situation
of comparable complexity would be in the
emergency room of a hospital during a natural
disaster.
Those on the outside looking in have a difficult time
understanding the immense complexity of what great
teachers do every day in their classrooms. It is not likely
that this is going to change any time soon and for us to
continue to lament the issue would do little more than just
cause more problems for everyone.
So what might be our way forward? It seems to me that
the answer lies in the number three. Things built on the
number three appear to have the ability to withstand more
than those that only include partnerships of two. Take for
instance a stool. A two–legged stool is of little help, but
add the third leg, and you have a stable seat or step to
work with. A braided cord is another example. Winding a
two stranded cord does little to improve its strength over a
single strand. Add a third cord to this braid and the resulting
strength grows exponentially.
How can we apply this to the problems we face in the
classroom? It’s a matter of bringing three strands together
so that you can braid a strong cord that will help you move
forward. The first strand is you, the teacher in the room
with all the contextual knowledge to know what needs to
be done in the most effective manner possible. The second
strand is an administrator who can help manage the
issues you face. When administrators and teachers form
an educational team focused on the needs of the students
in the classroom, the potential for great things is present.
The third part of this braid should be your professional
organization. OMEA can bring great resources to this team
with contributions like professional development, legislative
leverage, and information on research-based practice. Most
importantly, OMEA can help connect you with an entire
body of music educators who can share their experiences,
saving you time and effort.
Teaching music in Oklahoma is growing increasingly
complex, and music teachers need to avail themselves of
the support to manage their classrooms, so that students
can have a life–changing experience with music. Braid a
strong cord, and use all the resources available to you.
I think the profession will only become stronger for our
efforts.
OMEA
OKLAHOMA MUSIC, Winter 2012-2013 7