As we continue our conversation on the advantages of music education for children, I want to make sure you understand that music schools and private teachers do not have it in their agendas to make a great musician out of every student!
Have you ever talked to people who have completed only half of their music education? If not, then I recommend you do. Certainly, they had some difficulties in training, because studying is hard work! But I bet you’ll hear them say that they regret quitting. Later in life, people understand that the kind of push they received in their emotional and intellectual development was due to musical training in their childhood.
I talked to many adults who had taken music lessons as children. Some told me amazing stories about how the music helped them improve their memory (and not only musical). Others noticed that their spoken language became richer, and their voice more expressive. I’ve also met people who use their once-musically trained hands and fingers to do dainty, nimble work in skillful projects. For example, among these are many who work as secretaries or at jobs that are closely connected with a computer.
Children who study music can better and more expressively recite poems than other children. Many “musical” children grow up to be fine actors.
Also, very few people know that the most successful among those who are multilingual used to play musical instruments in childhood! And, the longer their training was as a child, the better their grip on foreign language speaking and comprehension as an adult! Ninety-five percent of polyglots used to or still play musical instruments.
Also, it is obvious that playing music makes the hands – and especially the fingers – of painters or artists quite skillful and capable. Having listed the advantages of music education, I’d like to add that former “musical” children, even if they did not become professional musicians, having grown up, regard their work with more responsibility and professionalism. They are pleasant to talk with because they love people. Due to their specially developed ear for music, “musical” people understand their relatives and children better. The majority of them are happily married, and they choose jobs that have to do with communicating and working with people. There are many teachers, doctors, personnel managers, lawyers, bank clerks, counselors, as well as translators, journalists, etc., among them.
Now, dear parents, hopefully I have dispelled all your doubts about choosing music lessons for your child and answered the question as to “Why I want my child to get music education.”
Yet having made such a serious and responsible decision, I am sure that many of you still have some doubts and questions. And those of you whose children have already begun training will come across certain issues and require assistance and guidance in resolving them from time to time.
Drawing from my own experience, I have noticed that while preparing children for music lessons, parents do not always use the recommended literature, which, unfortunately, is really hard to come by. Sometimes such books are written in “dry” and complex language not intended for easy reading and understanding.
When your private studio has innovative and interactive music teachers resources, you can certainly focus on developing your students’ interests in music. Through these, you can also motivate them to craft music as both their profession and passion. Teaching music can be a difficult task. It requires much time and effort; thus, makes music education more challenging, dynamic and versatile.
Ideally, a music teacher must have these objectives in mind:
• to offer a custom-made and challenging program for his musically-inclined pupils to maximize their music potential;
• to provide a holistic music education through listening, performing (solo and group) and composing skills; and,
• To realize that everyone has such potentials to understand, express and create music.
Effective music teachers have such resources that can really encourage students to attend classes regularly, motivate them to participate and cooperate, and most of all, inspire them to love music. Many music teachers resources are readily available via the Internet. In just a matter of a few clicks, you can learn how to enhance your teaching strategies pertaining to music education.
There are various music teachers resources that can definitely be used as your motivating factors in teaching music to a vast number of students with different personalities, demands, needs and desires. Here is my comprehensive list:
• Cooperative learning. It is an instructional paradigm in which teams of students work on structured tasks such as homework assignments, laboratory experiments, or design projects. It is being administered under conditions that meet five criteria: positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction, appropriate use of collaborative skills, and regular self-assessment of team functioning.
Many studies have shown that when correctly implemented, cooperative learning improves many aspects like information acquisition and retention, higher-level thinking skills, interpersonal and communication skills, and self-confidence. In here, it seeks to foster some benefits from the freedom of individual and collaborative learning.
• Opportunities. It can be an advantage if an enhanced curriculum is made to unleash students’ musical skills and talents. They must be given such chance to perform and compete – be it solo or as a group, representing their school in music-related activities as well as various competitions.
• Exposure. Also, just like opportunities, exposure can be of great help to become more interested. Familiarity and awareness to several music scenes can actually make them look forward to the next musical sessions. They can attend concerts, recitals or band rehearsals. Visiting some professional or conventional recording studios can be fun and exciting ways of learning music while exposing them to the real world.
With all these innovative and effective music teachers resources and strategies, I am so certain that you could meet your academic goals and visions. Good luck and happy teaching!
For those most passionate about their music, a job in music education is a natural fit. Far from being a case of “those who can’t do, teach”, those who take music education jobs are talented not only as artists but as teachers who want to pass their love of music on to another generation, to ensure that there is always music in the world.
Once upon a time, a degree in music education was seen as a ‘fallback option’- the job that would always be there if a performing or production career didn’t work out. That time is long gone now as states have cut funding for enrichment education across the country. While the job outlook for music teachers is still good, the Occupational Outlook Handbook says that jobs for musicians and teachers will grow at about average or a little faster than average rates through 2014 – school departments, private institutions and universities have the luxury of being able to be choosy about whom they hire to fill music education jobs.
One of the best ways to hear about music education jobs and openings is to establish a network of contact within the music education community. While basic networking is good, there are ways to network more effectively to concentrate your focus on finding and improving your chances of being hired for music education jobs.
Network locally.
Lucky you, you actually have three different sources of local networking that can help you narrow your job search focus. As an educator, get involved in local organizations for teachers and get your name out there. If you’ve made contacts while interning and practice-teaching, keep up with them, and ask their advice and guidance in your career path. By all means, let them and others know that you’re looking for a job in music education. Other teachers are often the first to know that one of their own is leaving.
School department contacts are invaluable.
In most cities, the school department must post vacancies internally before advertising them to the general public. Those vacancies are often posted on a bulletin board in each school within the district. Let teacher friends and contacts know that you’re looking and ask them to keep an eye out for you. Knowing that a vacancy is posted internally can give you a leg up on the competition and cue you to submit your resume and cover letter for music education jobs before they’re advertised.
Network Online
Keep in mind that in networking, you get out what you put in. Don’t just join a group and start soliciting for music education jobs. Look for what you can offer – the more you become involved the more visible you’ll become and the more willing others will be to recommend jobs to you. Saving shop with payday advance
