Week 3 reflection

Music teachers seem to either embrace or fear music composition and those that hold to composition differ on how to teach it. Instructors tend to war between two approaches to music composition; either standard music notation or non-notational composition strategies (Bauer, 2014).  Both composition strategies have value and are a needed for all students. However, some would say one strategy has more value than the other. The best way for an educator to not undervalue an approach is to analyze and highlight the positives of each approach and consider the overall benefits for the students they teach.

    The music notation composition approach is a tried and true approach to teaching music composition. The argument for notation based composition is the belief that students should learn to read and notate music because it is a fundamental part of music literacy (Bauer, 2014).  Notation based strategies are valuable because those that can read and write music can also perform the music they have created. When considering how to begin to teach composition to student an educator must consider the skill level of the students. For novice students, an educator can start teaching composition with simple rhythm patterns of quarter note, quarter rest, and eight notes with a time signature of 4/4. After students show mastery of rhythmic composition and educator can move on to pitch starting with so mi in C major. After students compositions skills have developed more, the educator can add so mi la, do mi so la, do re mi, C major pentatonic scale, and C major scale.
   
    The non-notation composition approach involves the use of promoting music creativity in technology without tradition composition.  The advocates of non-notation strategy argue that a large majority of their students have an interest in music that are not involved in tradition music settings like band, choir, or small ensemble.  Students use digital audio workstations (DAW) to record, manipulate, and arrange sound. Music teachers that use DAW tend to use technologies that are cost effective and easy to use for students. Bazan states that some students have DAW technology on their home computer. GarageBand is a popular software for Apple products some students already have. Those students that have an iPad or Apple Computer at home can explore the software on their own time. Soundation and Audacity are DAWs that are free and students can download the technology on a PC (Audacity) or use online (Soundation).
   
    Music teachers are going to discover that not all of their students are going to want to sing in a choir or play an instrument in a band, but they will want to be creative with music. Digital audio workstations allow students to become creative with music in their way. On the other hand, music educators will always have students that want to sing concert chorus or play in a jazz band. Students that want to go on to play instruments and sing in choirs need traditional music literacy methods that include composition. The good news is there is composition software like Noteflight and MuseScore that can aide in teaching traditional music composition.

Noteflight Review

Noteflight is a web-based notation software that one user can create a free single account. The features of this website are s most music composition software. A user can create a composition to feature one or several parts. Musical pieces created with the software are band, choir, orchestra, or other musical ensembles. A user can add dynamics, articulation, lyrics, or ornaments to embellish on their compositions.

One of the major pros of Noteflight is that it is web-based. A user can access the program on any computer or digital device. Teachers that cannot use a computer lab because a time conflict but are fortunate enough to have access to the classroom tablets (e.g. iPad) would still be able to access Noteflight. I use the iPad to complete most of the featured embedded song for a class assignment. Noticed that there is a miniature keyboard at the bottom of the screenshot. A user can enter each note on the keyboard. Also, if you scroll left and right on the keyboard you will see both treble clef and bass clef on their corresponding G4 and F3.

The only con Noteflight has is that it's web-based. The fact that Noteflight is web-based is it's crowning jewel, and its curse. I am reviewing this as a teacher that may use this software in a class setting. Because the software is web-based, the user is dependent on a consistent Internet connection. If I'm used teacher had a lesson on music composition, and there was an outage and could not access the web that day the lesson plan for that day are ruined.

Overall, I would highly recommend  for all music teachers that want to teach music composition to their student. The positives of this web-based software outweigh the one negative. There is a Noteflight for teacher section that allows one teacher to create a site for 250 students. The price is $195 a year, which is cheaper than paying $600 for a current music composition software.

Week 2 Reflection Notation Software

The most tedious thing that a music teacher may attempt to teach is composition. Music composition requires prior knowledge of basic's theory such as notation, duration, understanding of time signature, and being able to hear what you are writing on the staff. As Dr. Bazan stated, "Writing music by hand is time-consuming." However, his composition cannot be avoided because it is a national standard and a state standard in most states. So how do we solve the problem of making music composition easier for students to comprehend and take less time teaching the subject? The answer seems to lie in music composition software.

            When someone mentions music composition software someone who is already familiar with the technology will immediately think of what Bazan refers to as the Grand-Daddies of the particular software.  The software’s that were mention are Finale and Sibelius. Both software is exceptional but, they are expensive. Most teachers are on a fixed budget if they are getting any money at all. There is free music notation software like Noteflight and Musescore that are available. However, there can be other drawbacks like finding enough computers for a class to use. Most schools have computer labs for teachers and students to use. Unfortunately, those labs are assigned to a computer teacher who teaches other students with an identical schedule as another special area (art, P.E., music) teacher. So even if a music teacher obtains enough grant money to buy Finale or get permission from the district to download Musescore there would always be a class scheduled during that time. Most of the schools in my district are using iPads. I recently started testing Noteflight on the iPad. I spent some time struggling with it a little, but it has been going pretty well.

            So let say that a music teacher is fortunate enough to teach in a district that are using iPads and the instructor can use iPads in the classroom for teaching composition. The question Bazan asked in the lecture should apply now. What can a child compose? What can a child their own? Most music teachers would believe that students are capable of composing well thought out compositions with direction from their instructor. Those compositions can be as simple as 2 bar rhythm ostinatos or melody compositions using So Mi or So Mi La in C Major. These ideas are simple and a great starting point for novices. The use of notation software will help students hear each note and become aware of what they are composing. Music educators have a great tool in notation software to teach composition to student and those that are fortunate to have the software need to utilize it for musical development of their students.

Reflection WK 1 Music Education Technology: Don't Panic, Be Resourceful,, Don't Give up

I would call myself a digital immigrant. I was around when the home computers were getting starting. When I was in grade school teachers had students use computers often for either to learn how to type or educational games. However, the technology of the 80s and 90s pale in comparison to today’s technological advancements. There had been times when I had found myself frustrated with new technology. For example, the first time I tried to make a presentation using prezi.com was overwhelming. The problem wasn't because the website was awful, it was because the website was new to me. I had to learn how to create a presentation, upload images and organize each slide at a website that was foreign to myself.  The only options I had were to either to solve the problem or to give up on Prezi. Thankfully I worked out my problems and Prezi has been an excellent way to introduce lessons to my students.

There's always going to be some new website or new software that is going to frustrate the best digital native or immigrant. The best thing to do when being overwhelmed by new technology is to try to work it out yourself. The general rule when confronting new technology was to attempt to solve the problem for 30 minutes before asking for help. When I have a tech problem, I usually use a search engine like Google to look up people who have the same problem. I use a keyword like Prezi help or Prezi FAQ (frequently asked questions) to see if anyone else is having the same problems as I am. This method it usually takes me to the websites help page, or I can find someone that made a YouTube tutorial video on the subject. We all start with a "First.” In a few years when technology advances again we will all have a new “first.” Everyone finds themselves in unfamiliar territory with technology. The best to do when struggling with a new software or website are three things, don't panic, be resourceful, and don't give up.