1. Using the book's "Factors Affecting Strategy Use", provide a specific example from your teaching or learning experience for one of the factors. (Understanding)
2. Using convergent thinking, construct a lesson activity that fosters both creativity and critical thinking. (Synthesize)
1. I can remember several times where I thought I had studied the material well enough, and memorized the facts, but then I got to the test and realized I did not have a good understanding of what the material was about. I had just memorized the facts. I remember this in one of my musicology classes. In my intro class our test were all multiple choice and easily passed by quickly memorizing dates and facts. When I got to my next level of musicology I had a different teacher, who tested us differently by asking us to write about the period of music and tie in those terms and definitions with a true understanding of what the music was about. After I did not do so well on the first test, I realized it was time to change my study habits in order to have a better concept of the material.
ReplyDelete2. In my middle school general music class we are currently doing a unit on Spirituals. In this first lesson, I want my students to think about the significance of spirituals and their importance. To start out, I will first ask them what they know about African American history, then use that information to determine why they think spirituals became so important to the culture. Once we discuss the use of spirituals I would then pass out a spiritual that we are going to learn. The group would sing through the piece, then I would ask them, "What is this piece about? Who is the speaker? What is the overall message being conveyed? What will be important for us to communicate to our audience about this piece?" These questions allow the students to use their critical thinking skills to determine the overall structure and meaning of the piece of music.