#musedchat Archive
Each Monday evening at 8PM EST, music teachers get together and share ideas about important topics within music education. It’s a great chance to interact directly with educators from all over the world and to get new tips and tricks to help you succeed in the classroom. The entire #musedchat discussion is organized and moderated by Joe Guarr.
Monday October 10, 2016
Yeah! Looking forward to this. Eastern Shore of MD general music and chorus
Hi ! Adam from NJ. Excited to be back on twitter for a chat for once. How've you been?
Welcome to the chat! Hope you're doing well tonight
Good to see you again Adam. Fighting allergies but good otherwise. You?
I am a general music teacher, 5th and 6th grade. I don't have an ensemble in the sense that band/orch/chorus do.
Good evening! Tim from Eastern Brown in Ohio. I'm finally home from school early enough to participate!
Joe, MS/HS band and music tech, from Ann Arbor-ish, MI.
Glad to have you chatting with us tonight, welcome
Hi All! Amy from MI. Middle school band.
Great to see you again Tim, how have you been?
getting over something myself, not to mention still recovering from a long marching band day Saturday.
First time Twitter chat! I teach 4-8 band in the northern suburbs of Chicago.
Good evening to you Amy, how are you tonight?
Welcome to the chat, glad to have you with us!
Congested but good. Year has started well.
A huge thanks to for suggesting tonight's topic
Emily from NJ. MS band director and HS/MS choir director. Haven't been on in a long time
First time twitter chat as well. West suburbs of Chicago!
Looking forward to getting back to school and hopefully starting some new music. Was home w/ a sick kiddo Fri and today.
Been awhile Kathy, good to see you again!
Any marching band events left for you?
:( Hope she's feeling better soon
MS band night this week, senior night next week. No playoffs this year.
Hi all - MS choir director, elem music teacher, elem orch director, & marching band asst. director from NJ
Welcome to the chat, hope you're doing well tonight
Q1: Who is responsible for setting individual goals in your program? You + students, private tchr, other?
I need to do better at establishing this.
Me + students. Lots of guidance at the beginning of the year. Would love creative ideas for building this skill in MS!
A1: Combo me and Ss. They sometimes need help in figuring out how to set their own goals. Too used to being told what to do.
A1: mostly myself. Would like to give that responsibility to Ss but at grade 4-6 not sure how.
I am entirely responsible for setting individual goals in my general music program.
Goals set by both T/St w shared idea wall
A1.1: We use our practice reflections to help Ss figure out how to set and work toward their own goals. https://t.co/OzCitk5NOT
Idea wall? Can you share more? This sounds cool!
A1: For the most part, I set our goals. I would like to increase student input, especially in older grades.
A1: Combo of me and Ss. Younger ones especially need some guidance/feedback when first starting out.
A1: I am responsible. Teach K-5 general music, so it's not too surprising.
Hi all. Sorry I'm late. MS/HS band teacher. Alberta, Canada
Good to see you again, hope you've been well
A1: for general music, myself. But for instrumental students I mix my goals (concerts) with theirs (why they signed up to play)
A1 I set the goals in my program
Padlet or sticky notes used on brainstorm days 1 & 2
Do they share goals for pieces? How often?
How much time/week do you spend watching the video reflections?
More at the beginning of the yr than later so I can help guide Ss practice & goals. Once they get rolling, much shorter.
shared 1x per week or more depending on concert/festival timelines
Takes about an hour and a half to two hours. But won't take that long in a month or two.
even electronically if possible. To reflect later
I like it! Do Ss interact with each other's ideas directly? Might give this a try later on.
Q2: What sort of guidance do your students need when it comes to setting goals? How much do you intervene?
About 90 in 6th Grade and another 90 in 7th.
A2: my students need a lot of guidance for specific, accurate goals. Esp with musical terminology!
time wise, that is pretty good.
A2: Many seem to struggle w/ freedom of choice. Don't realize they can set goal that works for them, not just the class.
Typically we make the goals then have to redo them later to be more specific to one area of improvement.
agreed, esp for elem students.
This is a big struggle esp. if other Ts are reluctant to offer freedom.
this is interesting, how do you combat this?
Yes if appropriate much like proof work in ELA
A2.1: Also hung up on "how many min" to be practicing. Ss/parents want exact number. Practice as much as you need to reach goal
A2: I'm having MS Ss track practice / progress on simple journal sheets. We can work together to develop goals w / that data.
A2: When I introduce practice reflections to them at beg. of year, we set some example goals together
Late joiner here, just home from conferences. Ben Meisel, 6-8 band & music, Cleveland area. Thanks for picking my topic!
Offer examples. Help them understand that what one S needs isn't always same for them.
Always must use caution w grouping ST choice w T intervention
Hi guys my name is Jacob and I am in my last year as a music education major. I'm Hoping to start my credential next fall.
A2: every rehearsal ends in some culminating performance of what we worked on, and we discuss if we met our goals together
Thanks for letting me pick your brain!
Thanks for submitting it! Good to see you
Welcome to the chat, Jacob!
A2.1: this works well with any level, even younger grades
A1 I think both students and I should work together to come up with goals that challenge the student but still are attainable
I like that. Always good to end on "high note."
Industrial Revolution spawned this idea of exact min = obtainable goal
Hey , sorry I'm late! Aubrey, 5th-8th orchestra teacher from Colorado!
Do you evaluate practice/ reflection / goal sheets? If so, how?
A1: Trying ind. goal setting based on perf videos this year. Included concise but observable goals for each student, will track
Practice reflections get dumped into a Google Sheet, check it 1x/wk.
Yes to give feedback and guidance, not much for a grade. Only when they clearly didn't put thought in.
Q3: How do you monitor and track progress on individual student goals?
last yr i was checking to see how much they practiced, this yr my logs are set up to make it easier to practice
Yeah, that's me ;-)! PD all day, then private lessons, then preparing for a music teacher meeting on Wed :-)!
b/c it didn't really work last yr. now they have a list of what to do each week.
very late JoEllyn. Gen/Vocal K-6
Hi JoEllyn, welcome to the chat
No worries, I JUST got here!
A3: Google Classroom, they submit weekly, I give feedback. They self-reflect and I direct when they get stuck.
A3: Students show progress through practice videos or playing assessments. Also using dig. portfolios for longer term tracking.
Progress isn't tracked on goals yet :-/ I do track playing progress on indiv components (tone, notes, etc)
A3: I don't use practice logs but I do hold them to whatever practice goal they set for themselves (or I help set with them)
Cont...if they are on the right track, it helps to affirm their thinking! https://t.co/aQUvns0MeQ
A3: Google Classroom, they submit weekly, I give feedback. They self-reflect and I direct when they get stuck.
I did the same last year w/HS. Created a digital portfolio w/videos & feedback on Google Drive. Will expand this year
how do you do it through Google classroom? Trying to start using it this year.
A3: Semester playing tests to assess, check against reflection spreadsheet to see progress on specific goal
Reflections graded by completeness, coherent thought, time, modification
I can't figure out a way to do this in general music without going crazy. Too many students!
A3: Digital portfolios on Google Drive. Ss upload videos and I provide feedback. MS Ss also use a practice journal sheet.
trying to use Google Classroom as a portfolio too
A3: We also do weekly playing tests in class. Mini "performances" for each S.
They submit weekly reflection or video (some don't have internet @ home). We can track/compare week-to-week.
A3: Made a basic spreadsheet with each student goal(s). We do multiple vid assessments each year, will reinforce goal there
A3: Beyond evaluating students' progress in ensembles SmartMusic could potentially be a great tool to monitor individual progress
I don't do as many long-term goals, more weekly or monthly for 6th-8th. Easier to track/see progress/stay motivated for them.
how are you having them record the videos? With an iPad or a specific app?
How did students do with feedback and reception? We use Schoology, allows for submission comments
where do u teach ? how many students?sections of grades?
A3.1: for MS choir I do singing tests to make sure they are progressing in sight singing/repertoire learning
A3 with finale you can input any passage and make it a SmartMusic assignment that students can record and see instant feedback
shorter attainable goals. Then the S are able to see progress!
That's my theory! Some have longer term goals like learning vibrato, but shorter goals as well.
Illinois suburbs. 9 sections of 5th and 6th grade. 20-27 students per class.
That's my next step. Not sure there are enough hours in the day for me to do this well yet!
I uploaded a rubric with score and feedback - received well. Would like a way to converse w/S on Google. Maybe a doc?
Same...I haven't tried this w/GM yet.
Time is always the issue, isn't it? It does take a lot of time, but I've seen huge growth in my Ss.
Questions are only available if you click on "all tweets" not too tweets. Face palm
I use private comments on GC. Safer than just email, my admin is a T on GC so there is some oversight.
Is it an annual requirement or an elective? Do you see kids all year?
Could try Goobric/Doctopus or . Both provide way to give verbal feedback w/ Google Classroom.
Q4: Has anybody used student-led conferences as a tool for setting/assessing goals?
(for those thinking about safety/legal ramifications - a big topic in my area lately)
My son's band director uses G. Drive and gives feedback on all pieces taped. As a parent, I love it!
Individual assignments, so however they want to. I have a school iPad if needed. Videos go straight to Drive
There's an awesome Goobric/Doctopus vid on BDG on Facebook.
LOVE this idea, but not sure how to logistically put into practice w/ 40+ kids per class.
A4: I take this into account for all group projects. People are very honest. https://t.co/a5ExpaABXx
Q4: Has anybody used student-led conferences as a tool for setting/assessing goals?
Me too! Tech tools/convos are currently my best workaround for large classes...
Part of all kidss schedules for 5th and 6th. See them all year on an ABC rotation. It's wonderful!
Q4: my school does for gen classes in spring. Some kids do better than others. Never thought to do for all band kids! Google?
That's how I learned how to use it . Game changer this year for me!
Can it be used w/regular Google Drive? I don't use GC yet. Just folders shared w/S and me.
A4: I'm considering doing this with MS choir and coming up with a rubric together as a class for singing tests.
thanks. I've been having issues with the S uploading the videos. But I think it's a wifi issue.
Q4: my school does for gen classes in spring. Some kids do better than others. Never thought to do for all band kids! Google?
Our bldg, for some reason, encourages parents to NOT bring students to conferences. Some do anyway, but low percentage.
A4.1: Sometimes my elementary small group lessons will decide together what they should practice for HW
Hi ! Happy to help anyone get started :)
Wow, are the spambots becoming sentient?
The Google Drive app is great - open and record the video in the app. School wifi works if home isn't available.
Nice to have that longer term rapport. Are your students also in perf ensembles or just GM?
is looking for ways to give verbal feedback through Drive. Can you guys do that?
Many of them are also in performing ensembles (band, orch, chorus) but I don't teach those.
Conferences are poorly attended here. I see maybe 2-3 parents in a 3 hour block, if that.
Awesome! Will absolutely check this out!
We do S-led conferences for all subjects. Teachers stop by and slide in. Good way to talk w/lots of my Ss.
Had that in my first district. Opposite tonight. Students encouraged to come, awesome turnout, good mtgs
Is this after school / evening? What's the format?
Found in 1st dist if I had more info to offer, pushed conferences in bulletins, got more families involved
Yep, evening. Families invited to come, we have a sheet w/instructs for Ss to lead. Just hard to make it 2 everyone!
May have to try that. It's wasted time right now.
Interesting...I've never heard of student-led conferences. I'm intrigued! May mention this to district.
We get mixed feedback. Some Ps say that can talk w/Ss anytime, want to see Ts. But less "down" time for all.
Had parent paperwork on EASY ways to help, all dates on paper, and feasible ways for student to improve
ST led Conf begin 4th Find ST work the prior week to assemble folder for night
