Classroom observations: what I liked and did not like

One of the issues that often arises in music programs is large class sizes. Often a large class size is considered a good thing for music teachers as it is a sign of a strong program and allows for several different instruments to cover all parts of a given musical score. However along with large class sizes come a number of different problems including classroom management, noise control, lack of individual attention, and more marking to name a few. While some teachers I observed definitely had a more difficult time than others I felt that most teachers did a very respectable job of managing their classrooms which would often include 30-60+ students. Considering that each student is armed with a powerful noise-making device that can easily overpower the teacher’s voice it is very important to be able to control the noise level of the room at all times to keep it from getting out of hand. I think the most effective strategy that was used was to keep the students busy throughout the entire class, this usually meant lots of group rehearsing and shifting through a number of different pieces during each rehearsal. This was effective as it kept students engaged throughout the class and gave the students plenty of practice time on their individual instruments during class.
One of the issues that I had with several music programs was that the focus was often completely based on performance while other aspects of music such as ear training, music theory and composition were rarely incorporated. I would like to see more music programs leading students towards a deeper understanding of music rather than just teaching students to read standard notation and how to play as part of a large ensemble. I think that by giving students opportunities to compose, improvise, and perform in smaller groups with music of interest to them would be very enriching to their music education. During the private lessons that I teach I try to include different facets of music and try to help students to better understand music as they play it and I hope to apply this to my classroom teaching when I have the opportunity.