TAI - 2020

 Coming through 2020 has indeed been a challenge. One of the things I learnt in lockdown was the need for individualised feedback through technology. Last year I worked on Feedback as a TAI and I had some success and also some not so successful outcomes. Feedback and Feedforward is still something I am constantly working on in Performing Arts. Because Performing Arts is very individualised, each student is working on a completely different piece of music and each student responds differently to how feedback is given. I am going to re-visit this, this term. I firstly need to decide on how I want to move forward with this and I will document that here.

Effective feedback

PLG Progress

After taking some time to figure out what exactly I was going to get from this I settled on a few ideas. After doing the survey to get some student voice on how they like to receive feedback I got some good ideas!!
It was interesting to find out that students like their feedback on a shared doc so that they can access it all of the time. Great! This is what I usually do but this term we also added peer feedback. This was a really great opportunity to get some direct feedback from their peers. Also, it was a good exercise for students to listen and focus in on different aspects of different instruments. We also talked about what skills are required for each instrument. So for example if you are not a guitar player you learn about the skills that the guitar player should be reflecting at this level.

Teacher/Peer feedback

The only thing I have not tried yet is the feedback notebook. I did intend to start this during this term but decided to start this a s new focus for 2020. I did talk with students about having a book that they carry around with them. They all really liked this idea, even the students that prefer the digital feedback. These notebooks ( Rehearsal diaries, will be kept in the classroom) Students can also take them to their itinerant teachers and that gives me a good idea of what they have done in their instrumental lesson each week.

PLG - Feedback

A constant challenge in performance Music is the process of giving feedback and feedforward. As a music teacher you have lots of one on one conversations giving direct feedback. The challenge is how to give productive feedback so that the students remember and can look back on it.
My PLG group this year is on feedback and Joanne and I are working with our seniors on productive ways to do this! Things I have tried are having a running doc that can be a running diary of feedback, target setting like meetings with individuals ( I like this one as you get to have face to face conversations but it takes a lot of time, particularly with big classes! ) I have also done good old post it notes for quick feedback but of course these get lost easily! We now comment on blogs and this works ( if students have their devices) but I would like to look at other more efficient types of giving feedback. I am going to get some student voice as to how they like to receive feedback.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1XLsPiAVgJwURvWwQBV-WFCkKaiyoJZhJLAL4jD7K5HA/edit#slide=id.g5484a8bcc3_3_5

We Will Rock You.... Hopefully!!

So fresh after my amazing 2018 of being back into Musical Theatre, I auditioned for the first show of the Showbiz season We Will Rock You! I luckily scored a role in the vocal backing again which is ace! Finishing Les Mis was actually really hard, I had major after show sadness! The crazy thing about being in shows ( which I had Forgotten) is that you spend this intensive amount of time with the group of people you are working with and then the show finishes and you don't see them every day! It's a really strange feeling!! Whilst I was excited to get back into home life with my awesome Beer's it was really sad to leave the wonder of Les Mis behind.
So, just before Christmas, we went into music calls and initially I felt like I maybe should have sat this one out ( am I emotionally ready for another show). As soon as I heard the amazing score and the electric cast I new I had made the right decision. Doing Vocal backing is quite different than being on stage, you are really an off stage performer who is a back up singer. The work load for this is much easier so schedule wise it is a good way to start the year! We are now a month away from opening night so things are about to get crazy busy!
I know that not only do I get to be a performer again it really is the best Personal Development as a music teacher that I can get.

Term 1 is KICKING OFFFFFFF!!!!!!

I don't think I have ever had a crazier start to a Term 1. All good crazy of course but never the less crazy!!! One of my favourite parts of the school year is the start! I love catching up with all the teenagers after the big summer holiday and seeing all of my new classes. This year I have three awesome senior music classes. They are all super keen, eager musos and are full of enthusiasm! Long may it last!! I have three junior classes, one yr 9 and two yr 10 classes. This year Hornby changed the way we were offering junior courses. Instead of making everything a compulsory taster session in yr 9, students are now able to choose their passion subjects to do all year if they wish! Similarly in year 10, students can now change options mid year and not be committed to a full year of the same courses! Now..... this is a wonderful idea. Why make students take something they are never going to be into??? So, because we have a strong performing culture here I decided to be bold and make my junior courses a Performing Arts course where students would learn many aspects of the performing arts not just music. BUT you have to perform..... That is the part that often doesn't register in the wonderful minds of the mini humans! I have one of my year 10 classes that are going with it and have happily soaked up the wonderful world of Mime, Comedy, Salsa dancing and Musical Theatre. They have been pushed out of their comfort zones and have almost totally embraced it! The other two classes, not so much..... Initially I took it quite personally thinking "Why have I created this awesome performance course that covers all these wonderful art forms and they don't want to do it??????" Well, I realised after I got over myself that they are all awesome enthusiastic music students who are simply not ready to perform.... Yet! So, we have gone back a wee bit and are revisiting some essential Keyboard, Guitar and singing skills. Here they get to learn and play music without the pressure of the big performance. I have realised that with taking risks and trying new things, there are always going to be detours in the road and that's ok!