My personal teaching philosophy for music education is that all students can learn to sing, perform, create, and appreciate music. Music education is just as important to a child’s education as math or reading. In teaching a child about music, the child is able to build up their personality and creative abilities. A child must develop all aspects of their being and without learning music; a child is starved of building character.
The first aspect of my philosophy, the ability to sing is a crucial branch of a child’s music education. I believe that all students have the ability to learn to sing basic melodies and folk songs. Singing melodies and folk songs will help develop a student’s aural skills, as well as their ability to perform on an instrument. Students must be able to first sing before they are given an instrument. The instrument should be an extension of their own personal voice.
The second part of my philosophy, the ability to perform is equally important for a student’s education. Students learn to share their musical creations or compositions with an audience. They learn how to express emotions and to affect other people’s emotions with their music. By performing music, students learn to be part of a team and to work with others. Performance demands perfect execution and the students will learn accuracy and gain an appreciation for a higher level of detail. They will learn to multitask, using both sides of their brain to perform for an audience.
The third part of my philosophy of music education is that students will become creative human beings. Students will be able to create new pieces of music and share them with an audience. Not only will they be able to compose new pieces over time, but they will also learn to improvise music on the spot. Students will learn how to make music their own and how to express themselves through their compositions and improvisation.
The fourth part of my philosophy of music education is that students will be stewards of their cultural heritage. By singing and performing genuine folk songs, students will become experts in folk songs of their own culture as well as be exposed to songs from other cultures. Students will become open to songs from other cultures and become understanding of how some cultures differ from their own.
The final part of my teaching philosophy is that students will gain an appreciation for all genres of music. By being exposed to all different types of quality music, students will learn how to be good audience members and create their own musical tastes.
By utilizing the Kodaly method of Solfege and Harmony, I will help students gain the educational goals stated above. The Kodaly system places an emphasis on having students learn musical theory through singing and training their aural senses. By having students develop their singing skills, a musical world will be opened for them.
Students will be excited to learn music every day because the musical examples they will be instructed with are quality folk songs that have been used for generations. Along with these quality examples, we will explore popular music and sing and play appropriate music that the students can relate to.