Study Unit 5-Lesson Planning

 

This week I'm feeling slightly more optimistic. It seems as if things are starting to settle more. As the semester is nearing its end it feels a little less stressful. Although there are many other things such as assignments, examinations, and tests to finalize. The only problem at the moment -and this is a personal feeling- is that mathematics this year seems nonstop, there is no end and no help or guidance what so ever, this causes me to become negative and slightly angry and what seems to be that of incompetence and lack of effort to help students understand.

Enough of my negative relationship with mathematics. I am really enjoying this subject LSKM more than I anticipated, and that makes me happy and excited to do these blogs. This is my final blog regarding the study units. It was great to do some research and work through this unit. I've learned so much and really feel strongly about incorporating music more into the foundation phase, it is too often overlooked and not seen as important. It needs and deserves much more credit than it is getting currently in the education sector.

What could the possible reasons be that assessment is neglected in Performing Arts and Music in the Foundation Phase?

There are many challenges that we as educators are still unaware of. I feel that there is a lack of investigation as to what the exact reasons are that assessment is neglected in performing arts and music, especially in the Foundation Phase. This could be as it is not seen as important, and not enough evidence or research to support the reasons why it is important. It could be the lack of teacher confidence, poor spaces and/or resources, or even teaching strategies over-weighted to verbal and written analysis.

Students' personal musical interests, talents, and goals are still not fully taken into account in the design and execution of classroom-based learning, which is a big wasted opportunity considering the degree of non-school interaction pupils are likely to have with music. Music technology isn't yet fully incorporated into school-based music, and many teachers aren't taking advantage of their students' comfort level with technology.

Please explain how you would advocate for and heighten awareness about the importance of assessment when speaking with your HOD about your concerns in this regard.

How I would advocate and spread awareness about the importance of assessment to my HOD, and to raise my concerns to him/her, would be with facts. Facts and evidence to support my reasons and to help others to see the importance that music has on children in the foundation phase. The assessment of music activities is important because it leads to better learning and teaching, as well as providing information that may be used for accountability purposes like a teacher and student evaluations.

Seeing that music is mostly integrated into all other subjects in the foundation phase, surely it can be seen as important and as something to consider.

Having some easy strategies that are easy to implement and to understand to both teacher and students can be beneficial to strengthen my reasons and facts, and to lessen those of the HOD and other parties involved.

There are many different and familiar ways such as using rubrics. There are a variety of alternative assessment techniques that can be used to evaluate music students in addition to rubrics. Portfolios, multiple-choice questions, true/false questions, matching, short answers, reflective writing, exit slips, reports and projects, and other forms of assessment could be used. Using one of these item kinds, many musical concepts can be judged more readily. Historical context, form, notation, and terminology, theory, ear training, critical analysis, and pedagogy are all included. The possibilities are nearly endless.