Music Education Philosophy

What others say: The teaching philosophy at the Florida State University College of Music is very focused on technique and quality education. The first statement you see on the Music education page on the university website is, “Selection and preparation in music education at Florida State University is based upon an important yet extremely simple premise--it is, that every person involved as a learner ought to have the best instruction possible”. The premise of music education here is that every student should have access to a productive learning environment that is conducive to properly furthering their music education. The instructors are responsible for teaching their students healthy technique that will aid them in their journey to becoming
Elliott from his article, Music Education as/for Artistic Citizenship, incorporates the idea that, “Anything in the world, including worthy endeavors like music education, can be seen and interpreted in many ways” (2012). Using a picture, he emphasized his point by saying that one person may believe that the image shown was a duck while another may believe that it is actually an aerial view of a golf course. He believes that we must be aware of all different potential viewpoints when teaching a particular subject. The main idea within his philosophy is that concept of figuring out why we are choosing to teach. He questions three ideas that are commonly accepted as integral components of music education; “1. Music-making for intrinsic musical experiences is a key aim of music education, but it is not enough. We should also prepare students to “put their music to work” for the betterment of other people’s lives and social well-being. 2. Music educators should help students conceive and practice “music-making as ethical action” for social justice. 3. We should aim to infuse school music with an “ethic of care”—care for oneself and for the health of our social communities” (2012). He keeps asking why we accept these, and where these ideas originated from. He believes that teachers should, and are expected to go above the minimum requirements they must meet. “There is absolutely no doubt that individual and group music-making and listening comfort,
According to sunshine state standard number MU.912.H.1, “Through study in the arts, we learn about and honor others and the worlds in which they live”. Being aware and respectful of cultures different from ones’ own is hugely important to me having grown up in a society where I am part of a minority. People are so ignorant of my culture and religious values, that they unknowingly will say something extremely offensive, and have no idea they did so. Through music, I will be able to encourage my students to want to learn about new cultures, and immerse themselves in their traditions and musical techniques. Another integral part of my future choral programs will be the emphasis on learning proper technique. While it will appear tedious and sometimes even boring to my students, it will help them avoid injuries and mental stress in the long run. Due to the fact that no one ever fixed my technique, I developed a hand injury that no constricts my ability to play piano for long periods of time. Not only is it physically beneficial to have proper technique, it helps to retain information longer, which can transfer to other areas of study. It has been proven in scientific studies that students involved in music generally have higher testing scores. According to sunshine state standard number