After finishing the reading I find myself going back and reflecting on my own educational experience. I found that, especially in Elementary school, my teachers used some form of informal teaching. I realize that some of the more informal lessons i've had were the experiences i remember the most. Instead of just spoon feeding me all the information I need, they allowed me to come to my own conclusions and figure it out myself. To me, this is more helpful for the type of learner that I am. While I know this doesn't work for everyone, I think teachers should find some way to incorporate informal learning in their classrooms, alongside the curriculum.
While I know it would be difficult to incorporate this in a band classroom, I think it would be affective to let students work and figure music out on their own instead of always giving us the answers. This would be different from just practicing on their own because they would work with groups and figure out the music, (rhythms, styles, etc.) within their groups. To clarify, this wouldn't completely replace a traditional music classroom, this would just offer students new and different ways to learn. I really enjoyed this reading because it allowed me to reflect on my own teaching experience, and think of ways I can incorporate this into my classroom.
I will share reflective essays, and philosophical documents on this page.