Pre-Internship: Week 1

The first official day at school was one of the most interesting because Greg Bush, a clinician, was brought in from the University of Victoria to work with the kids (and others throughout the city). This was an amazing thing to see. First he worked with the senior jazz band. These students are by far the most dedicated musicians in the school. They are all involved in at least two groups and some are involved in as many as four (plus musical). They were very well disciplined and prepared for the clinic. They tuned before hand and were ready to take Greg’s advice and work with him.

The second group was a combination of the two concert bands. This resulted in a group that was too large for the band room, on a hot day with the furnaces still running, in a room with two very small windows at lunch time. In spite of this the students were excited for the change and the clinic and as a result many of them could not focus. However this was still very interesting to watch. The group settled down and Greg worked well with them. Because the two groups were combined the co-op and Greg found music that neither the students or the teachers had worked with before. The clinic was essentially a sight reading clinic with emphasis on general musical skills, and less attention to the particulars of the music itself.

The last group was the junior jazz band. This group was not well behaved. They did seem to like Greg, but there wasn’t a very high level of respect. They all spoke when he would tell stories and it wasn’t very polite. They were not prepared to work with Greg like the first group. They didn’t tune ahead of time and Greg needed to talk time out of the clinic to tune them (which took way too long because the kids were not paying attention). Although there was a lot of material to cover with this group and Greg gave them a lot to consider, I don’t think that they were really paying attention. Our co-op lectured them afterward and told them how embarrassed she was. This was unfortunate, but necessary.

The rest of the week was the only normal time. The three of us shared the time in front of the band. It was a little aggravating that we didn’t have more time with the bands, but as this was the week before the Optimist Band Festival it was understandable. My partner and I only really got to warm up the groups, but this was a nice (although not realistic) way to start things. We were given a lot of time to work with the drama class. I introduced them to narrative and their assignment for the next week: narrating and acting children’s stories. I also met my English co-op. I would be working with one of her grade 9 classes and I would be starting a new unit with them. She’s only been teaching for 3 years which worried me a little. But she seems to have things under control.

In this first week we also had the time to watch the elementary area junior bands rehearse. There are two groups (grade 6 and grades 7/8) and both have well over 60 students. They barely fit into the band room. They were crowded and had to share stands. I didn’t really know what to expect. When they were getting ready it seemed like it might be a bit of a gong show. But the teacher had great control over them. Most of the students seemed to be having a lot of fun and they were excited to be there. Both groups were rather well behaved. The only time either teacher had to speak sternly to them was about Optimist. She told them she had high expectations of them and reminded them of protocol. I was genuinely surprised at how well the kids worked for the teachers. The teachers were able to speak at a high level for students of that age about musical concepts. I’ve never worked with young kids in a music classroom, so I supposed I didn’t know what to expect, but I definitely didn’t expect for them to be talking about key signatures and transposing in grade 6. She had a great relationship with the kids.

For the same reasons as concert band we didn’t really get to work with the jazz bands this week. We did however sit in with them and play along. I played in the saxophone section and I think I did a good job of helping them out with jazz style and articulation. The teacher said the band sounded way better on and after those days, so I hope I did well in influencing them positively. There are several kids in the junior jazz band saxophone section who are new to band. Teaching them was an interesting experience because they are at the intellectual level of grade 9 students but at the musical level of grade 6 or 7 students. It was odd, but very easy to teach them because I didn’t have to talk down to them. They easily understood analogies.

The band classes run Monday through Thursday. On Friday the Choir had a combined rehearsal to prepare for Choral Festival. We had time to go watch the choir teacher work with the kids. She asked us to sit in, so I sang Alto. The students, some of whom we hadn't work with, were very accepting and helpful. They shared music and made room for us. I felt like I belonged. The music was very interesting to work with and it was great to watch another music teacher in action.

The first week I took notes about how the classrooms functioned, notes from Greg and how the teachers taught. One of the students asked me why and I told her I couldn’t possibly remember everything I saw. One day I would want or need to look back on the experience and I will be thankful for the notes I took. 

Pre-Internship - Orientation

Our orientation was only one day, which began at 7 am. We arrived at the school and, after getting slightly lost, met our co-op. Jazz started at 7:30. Many students were late (many by only a few minutes). It seemed as though the co-op had been struggling with many of these students to get them there early and ready to start at 7:30. She explained to them that this is a credit course and that they are required to be on time. Yet, she didn’t really stress over it. The kids seemed like good kids that just had trouble getting up in the morning. They are the good kids that enjoying being in band.

The jazz band was at a fairly good level, but it seemed as though the early morning rehearsal was affecting their playing and attention. The reason for morning classes is because there is so much to do in the afternoon with other extra-curricular activities that the class has to be in the morning (also because it is a credit class).

The next class was Psychology 20. This was our first (and only) class in a typical setting with our main co-op. We just watched her teach. This was a fairly typical experience.

Then we went to drama class. This class was interesting and reminded me of the drama class I was in during high school. Half of the class was composed of students who genuinely enjoy drama, acting and being outgoing and spontaneous. The other half were people who needed a credit and thought drama would be easy (and they got really aggravated when it was difficult). Many kids walked in late and didn’t participate right away, or without being asked several times. After they were all settled the students seemed to get better. Many students in this class seemed to have behaviour issues. They didn’t seem to like us. It was almost as though they made an assumption that because we are teachers we are mean. This makes me think that teachers have openly and obviously made judgements about them in the past.

After this class we had homeroom. Our co-op told us that homeroom was introduced about 5 years ago by Regina Public Schools, and that almost all of the high schools do it. The students go to home room with approximately 15 other students and one teacher. The teacher reads announcements, collects fees/notes and deals with small disciplinary measures including late books and nag (similar to detention?). The group of students stay with the same teacher for four years. When they graduate the teacher gets a new set of grade 9 students. This process seems like it would be useful to the grade nines, who are new to the school, and the grade 12s who have a lot of administrative things to take care of with graduation and post-secondary application. As for the grade 10s and 11s (who we had), the period seemed to be a waste of time. There were always students missing and very rarely were they all paying attention. It is basically a time to catch up on missed events both regarding school and peer relationships. To some students it was a time to wake up and eat a snack.

After a prep period it was time for band. The students were very interested in us. It was very interesting to watch the class from the other perspective. You see things completely differently. You see how annoying certain things are and you feel bad for the dumb stuff you did in high school. But I also saw the enjoyment the teachers got from working with the students and this was amazing. 

Introduction: How I Started on This Path

When I was in high school I was in a jazz combo with a small group of friends. My band teacher took us out to Pense to introduce the program to the students there. They didn't currently have a band program and neither did Milestone and a few other small towns in the area. We were going to do a recruiting session. We packed up the vehicles with one of each of the main instruments in a concert band and all the equipment needed for a jazz band. We arrived and set up in the library, which was a decent size. Soon the room was full. Kids were squeezing past each other to find a chair.

When the teachers were explaining what was going to happen, the kids didn't really seem to be paying attention. Their eyes were on the table ladened with shinny instruments. I picked up my flute and the room went silent. I played the theme from Pirates of The Caribbean and when I was done the room erupted with excitement. This continued as we played through the band instruments and escalated when we started to play jazz music. When we played rock music with the drums and guitars some of the kids jumped out of their seats with excitement. They were hooked.

After this it was their turn to play the instruments so they could get an idea of what instrument they would  choose to play in the fall. The kids were supposed to line up at the instruments they wanted to try first. With all the excitement they didn't form neat lines. Instead they were pushing and shoving to get to the front of the line, and then to get a good view of the lucky kid who managed to get in line first. It was what happened next that made me realize I wanted to be a teacher.

I explained the basics behind the embouchure (formation of the mouth muscles) needed to play the flute and I handed the head joint to the first student. Unfortunately for her, and the next four students, barely a sound came out. The flute is a very difficult instrument to learn to play. Very seldom do students get a sound on the first try, and I explained this to the students. Several of them lost interest in the flute and wandered away to try the trumpet. But when the fifth student brought the head joint to her mouth and blew, the tinniest of sounds was produced. The student's eyes shot open and she instantly stopped to cry out in excitement. Suddenly attention was brought back on the flute and on this little girl. The look on her face, and the faces of the other students who were able to make a sound was what made me realize I wanted to be a teacher. The look that this tiny, seemingly insignificant sound was the only important thing at that moment, that look was what made me want to teach. The sense of pride could be seen in the students eyes, and just behind it, that feeling of gratitude.

By the time I had graduated I had been a member of no less than 20 concert bands, jazz bands, combos, and choirs. It is because of this and the above story that I chose to become a teacher. I love music and being a part of an ensemble. The experiences I had as a student in the band program can be rivaled by nothing else in my high school career. After I felt the joy of teaching those students I knew I wanted to be a teacher, to be able to spread that joy and give students the same experiences that I had.