For this interactivity I had the opportunity to interview a high school music teacher from a district in North Jersey (he requested that the district not be disclosed). Although the district has not implemented the NETS, he is somewhat familiar with what they are. Early on in our interview, he began to explain that the NETS or any similar standards pose a major obstacle to his discipline. As an instrumental music teacher, he directs the school’s bands and smaller ensembles and finds that the instrumental music classroom or rehearsal space is a difficult environment to incorporate technology-centered standards. This seemed discouraging at first; but as I introduced the example Student Profiles for grades 9-12, we both began to discover some of the ways an ensemble already fulfills these standards. For example, he immediately remarked that performing in any ensemble requires every member to take part in problem solving in authentic (performance) situations. That said, this process generally occurs without the use of innovative technology. I then asked if he ever has students do listening assignments that required them to write about a performance or recording they listened to. He said that they certainly did and we simultaneously realized that those assignments also tie into the NETS (3.Select digital tools or resources to use for a real-world task and justify the selection based on their efficiency and effectiveness. (3,6)). Once again, however, this standards can only be achieved if students are conducting their research on the internet.
At this
point, the teacher explained that another of the obstacles that would hold back
the implementation of a system like this is money. His district, like many, constantly struggles
with financial issues and shrinking budgets that he believes would hold the
school back from purchasing the necessary equipment and software to effectively
use the NETS. At this point, the tools
at his student’s disposal include computers with internet access, cd players
and projectors. This lead me to my next
question, “Are there any other programs throughout the school that may already
be using NETS strategies although they have not officially been implemented?” After a moment of thought, he excitedly
realized that the school’s sign language classes actually use a system of
webcams to broadcast the class to another high school in a neighboring
district.
This lead
to a brief brainstorming session between the teacher and me about other means
of implementing the strategies involved in NETS. One of the ideas we collectively designed was
to broadcast a performance live to another band (similar to the sign language
class) for them to provide feedback and vice versa. Another idea was to take listening assignments
a step further to incorporate “2.Create and publish an online art gallery with
examples and commentary that demonstrate an understanding of different
historical periods, cultures, and countries. (1,2)”
As I
mentioned, I was rather surprised at first by how unfamiliar the teacher was
with the NETS and that the district had not implemented them or even a similar
program. I am unaware of the number of
districts in the area that have began to incorporate the NETS, but I had imagined
that most had some system in place. As a
future educator, I would introduce the ideas of the NETS to other in my school by
first pointing out the elements of it that are already being fulfilled; such as
those discovered during the interview. I
believe this would be a good way to ease the transition into a full
implementation of the strategies. These
standards (or a similar set) are essential for the times we live in. Luckily, the NETS are still a relatively “young”
program. As time goes on, I imagine they
will gain wide spread appeal.
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