The Catalyst
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A Musical Journey Towards Becoming An Educator By: Alejandro Sepulveda Department of Intergrated Studies in Education McGill University, Montreal Submission date: August/09 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Masters in Arts. 1 Library and Archives Bibliothèque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de l’édition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-66361-5 Our file Notre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-66361-5 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non- L’auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant à la Bibliothèque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par télécommunication ou par l’Internet, prêter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des thèses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, à des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non- support microforme, papier, électronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L’auteur conserve la propriété du droit d’auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protège cette thèse. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la thèse ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent être imprimés ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author’s permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformément à la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privée, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont été enlevés de thesis. cette thèse. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n’y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. Table of Contents Abstract: 3 Acknowledgments: 5 Introduction: 6 Section 1: Cultural Experience Chapter 1: Coming to Canada 9 Chapter 2: Fielding Drive Public School 13 Chapter 4: Guitar Lessons 17 Chapter 5: Love Lessons 20 Chapter 6: Criminality 26 Section 2: Musical Experience Chapter 7: Musical Refuge 30 Chapter 8: Brookfield High School 32 Chapter 9: Punk Rock in Penatanguishine 35 Chapter 10: Muddling through Modulation 37 Chapter 11: Taking the Stage 40 Section 3: Educational Experience Chapter 12: Coming to Montreal 42 Chapter 13: Return to the Andes 45 Chapter 14: Becoming a Teacher 51 Chapter 15: Academic Adversity 55 Chapter 16 Teaching in High School 60 Section 4: Alternative Education Chapter 17: Nomadic Massive 67 Chapter 18: Cultural Exchange 75 Chapter 19: Using Music in Education 80 Chapter 20: International Initiatives 85 Chapter 21: Conclusion 87 Appendix A: Quotes for Teaching 90 Appendix B: The CD Compilation 94 2 Abstract This dissertation is an autobiographical account of the author‟s experience as a musician and as an educator. The author takes us on a journey from his childhood through his adult life, starting with the arrival of his parents as immigrants to Canada. In the first section, he explores the difficulties that second generation children face in the Canadian public school system. Through self-analysis and concrete examples, he demonstrates the struggles that he faced when trying to assimilate to Canadian Culture. In section 2, he examines the way music guided his development and contributed to his changing identity. This section includes the discovery of different music genres and sub cultures. In section 3, the author explores his life as a young adult and his quest for truth through cultural exploration and formal education. In the last section, he concludes with the concrete projects that were made possible by the merger between his musical and educational career. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the two fields in order to inform the creation of alternative educational programs in Quebec. 3 Résumé Ce projet est un compte autobiographique provenant des expériences de l'auteur, entant que musicien et éducateur. L'auteur nous raconte sont vécu, commençant avec l'immigration de ses parents au Canada. Dans la première section, il explore les difficultés subis par des enfants d‟immigrants, dans le système scolaire canadien. Par l'analyse de soi il démontre les luttes auxquelles il a fait face en essayant de s'assimiler à la culture canadienne. Dans la deuxième section, il examine comment la musique a guidée son développement et a contribuée à une identité changeante. Cette section inclut la découverte de différents genres de musique et de cultures. Dans la troisième section, l'auteur fait le parcours de sa vie de jeune adulte où la quête de son identité s‟est fait entre l'exploration culturelle et l'éducation formelle. Dans la quatrième section, il finit avec les projets concrets; né de la fusion entre la musique et l'éducation. Le but de la thèse est d'explorer les deux champs professionels, pour informer la création de programmes d‟éducation alternative au Québec. 4 Acknowledgments I could not have completed this thesis without the help of many individuals inside and outside the field of education. My first teachers were my parents who struggled through adversity after arriving in North America. Their teachings came from their experiences in Latin America as well as lessons that they learned in their respective fields. I have learned a tremendous amount from their example and I truly believe that my sister and I were fortunate to be born into a family that practiced what they preached. Their example has been fundamental in my development as a teacher and their support has allowed me to pursue my passion with confidence. In the field of education, I would like to thank Shirley Steinberg for giving me a space to explore my identity in an educational context. She has given me the academic support that I needed to develop all aspects of my teaching potential. I would also like to thank Joe Kincheloe for his relentless pursuit of righteousness through education. He was a true example of what is possible when love and respect are integral parts of education. Finally, I would like to thank someone that I never had the pleasure to meet, but who has been instrumental in my professional development. I would like to thank Paulo Freire for his revolutionary approach to education. His books on education and his involvement with marginalized communities have been inspirational to me and have significantly contributed to my personal and academic growth. 5 Introduction: In this autobiographical thesis I seek to explore my life experiences as a teacher and as a musician in order to concretize a creative approach towards alternative education. Being self-taught in any discipline allows us to develop skills in an imaginative way. As an independent learner of music I watched and studied videos of great guitar players. I isolated myself, to listen to their songs repeatedly and then imitated the sounds without looking at the fret board. This period of independent study also included playing with other guitarists in my family as well as accompanying my sister in traditional Chilean songs. There was never a classroom, but I had set up learning goals and I was diligently pursuing music as an Art. I opened myself up to different styles of music, and different techniques until finally developing my own style. I have been very fortunate to travel extensively through music. I am a co-founder of the group Nomadic Massive that has initiated many cultural exchanges across the Americas. We have opened international dialogues with youth leaders and artists through Hip Hop music. Music has also allowed me to connect with other cultures and it has enabled an understanding about these cultures that goes far beyond the stereotypical. This international experience has enriched my teaching enormously, as it has made me aware of what it is to be a learner. I also teach ESL in an Arts High school and I have seen that the biggest obstacle to learning a second language is lack of self-confidence. Even the most learned individuals sound silly when they are speaking a foreign language. The fear of appearing ridiculous can paralyze people from taking risks that will enhance their educational experience. In music we can develop our ear for music and the same is possible in language learning. 6 We must familiarize ourselves with new sounds and experiment putting these sounds in a sequence, in order to create meaning. The starting point for this type of learning could be in a classroom context, but there are many other places where learning can occur. In my case, the acquisition of language and music occurred outside of the classroom and this does not make the experience any less valid. My challenge now is to try to bring what I have learned independently back into my classroom. I have been profoundly influenced by the teachings of Brazilian Pedagogue, Paulo Freire. After reading the Pedagogy of the Oppressed, I became inspired by his insistence on dialogue and cooperative learning. I started to see that formal education was inherently oppressive and that Paulo‟s pedagogy had only become more relevant in light of globalization. As teachers, we can no longer pretend to be all knowing because access to information has become limitless in the West. As a result, we must assume the role of facilitator and thus enable our own continuous learning experience.