When I think about music education and technology, I get excited. I’ve seen how technology in the music room can be very effective for learning, composing, and being creative. According to the textbook, I am a digital immigrant, but the later half of this group. Basically, I went the first 10 years of my life without mainstream technology. Even when technology started becoming more prevalent, I was not with the trend. It wasn’t until my second year of teaching that I really started utilizing technology. The high school I taught at was among the first in the Chicago area to have 1:1 iPads. This innovation “forced” me to become compatible with teaching and technology.
As the book mentioned, there was and still is a technology gap in the classroom. I think this has much to do with teachers not understanding how to use technology, lack of patience in learning programs and apps, and general resistance to change. At my last school, we were very fortunate to have a cart of 30 iPads, along with teacher iPads, and Apple TVs. I took full advantage of these technologies, utilizing the AppleTV everyday and iPads when appropriate for learning. Unfortunately, other teachers in the building admittedly used iPads to get a “break” from the kids.
As Bauer breaks down TPACK, the Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge Model, I must admit my greatest struggle is integrating all the facets together into a streamlined, effortless lesson. For me, the weakest link is technology because it is constantly changing. Yet, it is also the most exciting for that exact reason. In my experience, I’ve found that simply taking a course on say MIDI uses, is just not enough. Having a hands on approach, learning as you go, seems to be the most effective way. Yet, we are the teachers so we should already know, right? Here lies the issue with teaching and technology. Can’t educators “practice” on each other? ( Bauer, 2014, pp. 12-16).
This is where my interests lie. How can I incorporate the latest technologies in my class to 1. relate to my students 2. use technology and programs/apps they are likely familiar with 3. give them creative outlets and stimulate their musical interests. I am hopeful this class will give me insight into these questions.
