Field+Based+Activities+Reflection+II.F

According to Bruno Martelli, the character in the movie //Fame//, "Mozart wouldn't do this today...This bowing business. He'd plug his keyboard into an amp and he'd have string quartets coming out of his fingers…He'd overdub and mix, of course. He wouldn't make the same old noise…He'd sound electric. He'd have spacier strings and horns and computerized bassoons…Who needs orchestras? You can do it all with a keyboard, an amp and enough power" (DeSilva, 1980).

I tend to somewhat agree with Martelli. I've been working with the music department to bring technology into their curriculum I asked "what if.." questions. What if students had a computer with notation software. Instead of watching the teacher write chord progressions on the white board, they could create their own, listen to them and manipulate them. In the process of learning chord prgressions - both how they look and how they sound - they would be working with software that almost all music professionals are expected to use. What if students created composer podcasts - assuming the role of a famous composer to demonstrate their knowledge of that composer - rather than (or as an alternative to) making posters? In the process, they would not only become familiar with the composer, but learn about sound editing software.

Standard II.F is assisting teachers as they identify and apply instructional design principles associated with teh development of technology resources (Williamson & Redish, 2009). Answering those "what if" questions is what we are doing as we plan for a music theory lab, using computers passed on from another department, as well as a newly purchased interactive projector. I don't think music theory will look like the same next year.

References

DeSilva, D. (Producer), & Parker, A. (Director). (1980). // Fame //. USA: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Williamson, J. & Redish, T. (2009). // ISTE's technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do  //. Eugene, Or: International Society for Technology in Education.