Module 4 Blog Reflection

I really appreciated the materials this week and found them extremely applicable to my teaching settings. I enjoyed the readings and discussions on using technology in a performance ensemble setting. While I would really like to have my students work with technology in creating music, my teaching position is very performance focused and has quite a few limitations on how I can use technology. I teach in five schools a week and see each group of students for 45 minutes. In some schools, I do not have a classroom. The only materials I can use are the ones that I carry with me. I really liked reading about all the ways that I can still use technology to benefit student learning, even with just a laptop or smartphone. 

The idea that stood out to me the most in the readings was the use of accompaniment and the benefits that it has for student practice. This is something I would like to incorporate more with students in their lessons. I also think that with the use of programs such as Garageband or Soundtrap, I could have each lesson group pick out different beats and instruments for their accompaniments. It is not the same as composing but it gives the students a say in what kind of sounds they like to hear. 

Finally, I really enjoyed working with the remix project this week. In my reflection, I talked about how I thought my remix would have been better if I had used a different program. It was interesting to see that many of my colleagues had similar thoughts. I would definitely like to try this project again using Garageband instead. I think this project would be very exciting for students in a general music or music technology class setting. Students of all ages are listening to remixes now and would have a lot of creativity to share in making a remix of their own.