Sarah Mcconnell

Sarah McConnell

4/16/02

Intro Music Education

Interview

Mrs. Usher

Interview

When I interviewed a music educator, I received negative and positive feedback.

The questions ranged from how she started teaching to the struggles she faces now as a teacher. Furthermore, she gave me good advice near the end of the interview.

One of the questions I asked her was how old she was when she began taking piano lessons and voice lessons. She said she had been taking piano lessons since she was in the sixth grade, and she began taking organ lessons in he seventh grade. She even played the organ in church near the end of her seventh grade year, and she still plays the organ in our church, Dover Saint Joseph’s. Furthermore, she sang in the Church choir from the fifth grade. Therefore, her music involvement was rooted deeply in the church.

However, she did not continue her musical study in college.

When she went to college, she said she earned her degree in French education.

She wanted to teach High School French classes. However, after she graduated, she met her husband, and she did not look for a job; yet, she continued to be involved in the

Church choir. In 1989, Katie Bazzoli, the church organist, hired Mrs. Cecil to be her assistant.. Then, when Mrs. Bazzoli had surgery later that year, Mrs. Cecil filled in until

Mrs. Bazzoli was well again. However, when the principal of Saint Joseph Elementary

School noticed Mrs. Cecil’s talent, she asked her if she would be interested in a position at Saint Joseph’s Elementary school as a music teacher. Since the previous music teacher was ill, the school needed a new music teacher. Since Mrs. Cecil had a degree in education, the principal thought it would be a great position for her. Mrs. Cecil, furthermore, had previously worked with children interested in choir, for she instructed cantors who were singing during a church mass. Then, in 1996, she began teaching general music at Dover Saint Joseph's elementary school.

When I decided I wanted to become a music educator, I was worried about the job opportunities available. Therefore, when Mrs. Cecil told me she did not take any music classes in college, it shocked me. She is teaching general music to elementary and middle school children without any college level music education classes. I know now that the music classes are gaining more respect, hopefully, and that students need to be learning more about music than they wee expected to when Mrs. Cecil was hired.

However, I found it quite disturbing, for I worry about finding a job in music even though

I will have a college degree, and a teacher is teaching music while not obtaining a background knowledge about music in school. Yet, Mrs. Cecil is now taking college courses and workshops at school; therefore, she has good teaching skills, which I have observed earlier. Yet, I was hoping she had more of an education about music in college before teaching music to students. Music teachers should be well trained, for those teachers who are well trained usually leave a deep impact on the students they teach.

When I asked Mrs. Cecil who inspired her the most to become a music educator, she said the organist who hired her, Mrs. Bazzoli was the woman who inspired her.

Furthermore, I can understand exactly how Mrs. Bazzoli inspired Mrs. Cecil, because

Mrs. Bazzoli was the woman who inspired me the most. I took piano lessons from Mrs. Bazzoli in 1993, and she was one of the most giving people I knew. She attended college at Julliard, and she had a well knowledge of music. She affected everyone around her, including the woman I was interviewing, Mrs. Cecil. Again, this shows that well trained teachers and enthusiastic teacher leave an impact on everyone around them whether it be students or adults. After I asked Mrs. Cecil about how she had become a music educator,

I thought I needed to know more about how she teaches.

Since music would be difficult to grade, I asked Mrs. Cecil about her grading system. She said the students could receive certain marks on their report cards. They are a check, a check plus, and the letter N. A check is given to the student that reaches the standard of the assignment, the check plus is given to the student that surpasses the standard of the assignment, and the N means the students needs further work in that certain area. Next, I asked Mrs. Cecil if the students could fail this general music class.

She replied that the students would not fail, they would just need more work in that area.

However, I thought it is good she uses the National Standards when she is teaching her classes. She bases the grades on how students achieve the standards they are suppose to meet. However, since it is a parochial school, she said they have different standards that add to the National Standards. For example, the students sing more liturgical music, or

Catholic Church songs.

When I asked her if the parents were supportive of what she was doing, she said that all the parents were very supportive, which I found very surprising. She said one parent donated money for instruments they could use in class. Yet, she said the parents approve of her teaching because of the performances the children put on during plays and concerts. However, I do not know if that necessarily reflects individual students learning. She also handles the classes fairly well when I observed her earlier in this semester; yet, she considers classroom management to be her biggest struggle.

When I asked her what her biggest struggle with teaching was, she said that it would be, without a doubt, classroom management. She said that the seventh grade class would be the most difficult class to keep under control. She said it is also the biggest.

When she said that the seventh grade was the hardest class to keep under control, it did not surprise me since during my observations, the middle school students were almost always the students who misbehaved. Yet, Mrs. Cecil said this should probably be expected since the children reach pre-adolescence at this age.

Secondly, Mrs. Cecil accommodates her classrooms well for each age level she teaches. For example, she seats the students differently in the room depending on the age level. More specifically, the younger students stand more and sit on the floor rather than in chairs in order for them to move around more. Furthermore, she accommodates her seating chart according to the students’ abilities. For example, a child with ADD, she usually puts him near the back of the room in order for him to move around more without causing any distractions for the other students. She notices each student’s capabilities, and she seats them accordingly while pushing students to succeed on their own level. I also felt she did a good job of this because she allows students to perform in class with their particular instrument as long as she is given notice ahead of time. Therefore, she encourages students to perform in front of others.

When I asked Mrs. Cecil for advice, she responded that I was well on my way.

She told me to continue my college education with music, and I should be on the right track. However, when I said my biggest struggle would be classroom management and that I need to work on being firmer, she told me something rather unusual. She said that music teachers should not have to be firm, for music was about having fun with the students, and that by doing so I would enjoy my job everyday. Although I found some truth in her statement, I thought music is not all about fun. It is about student learning.

Even though she might not have meant music was all about fun, she portrayed it in that manner. However, I was pleased to hear her reply about what she enjoyed about her job the most.

Mrs. Cecil said that she has been teaching the children for about six or seven years now, and she notices how the students have progressed throughout elementary school. For instance, she noticed how a particular student’s ability to match pitch had drastically improved, and she said that seeing his improvement was a great reward. She loved to see the students achieve and improve. Therefore, she does focus on student learning, for this is what she enjoys most about her job. Furthermore, if I could only apply one thing from this interview to my teaching, I would want to be able to see the improvements with the students’ musical abilities in order to see that I was reaching the students. I want to focus on individual student learning.

Although I did not agree with all the comments Mrs. Cecil gave me, I felt the interview was a success. I learned different techniques I could use in my teaching such as arranging the classroom to fit the needs of the class. Furthermore, I realized how much having a degree in music education would help the students more, for I would have more knowledge of music to teach them. Therefore, I hope to continue learning more, and I hope to learn different ways to produce an environment in the classroom with a high standard for individual student learning.