Cochlear Implants

            As a musician, the ability to hear is… crucial.  If pressed to name a deaf musician, most people would say Ludwig van Beethoven or another noteworthy composer or performer much later in their respective careers.  Very few could name someone who lost their hearing at a very young age.  This is because listening to and especially making music rely incredibly on hearing.  This is not to say that deaf people do not listen to or appreciate music.  In fact, the opposite is quite true; most people who are profoundly deaf can still enjoy music and dance because they can feel the music vibrations.  People who are deaf can also enjoy music through signed song.  For some, deafness is not a permanent condition.

            A cochlear implant is a surgically implanted electronic device that grants a person who is profoundly deaf, or severely hard of hearing, with a sense of sound.  Although the quality of sound may be different from natural hearing, patients are able to hear and understand speech, environmental sounds and even enjoy music!  The effects of this technology can be life-changing.  I cannot imagine what it must be like to sense sound for the first time, let alone hear music.  Below is a video of such an experience as a two-year-old hears his mother’s voice for the first time thanks to a cochlear implant.

Smart Board: An Amazing Teaching Tool

             As I reflected on my post about assistive technology and as I completed my final project, I was continually drawn to the Smart Board.  My first encounter with the technology was as a student in high school.  At the time, I was amazed at the sheer cool-ness of an interactive projection screen.  That being said, my teachers who were fortunate enough to have a Smart Board in their classroom rarely used them as more than a projection screen and saved the interactive capabilities for rare gimmick-driven occurrences.  Reflecting on the Smart Board through a pedagogical scope has both shown that my teachers missed an opportunity to enhance their lessons and informed my conclusion that Smart Boards deserve a place in almost any classroom.  The Smart Board is less of an accessory and more a valuable resource to enrich the learning environment.  Because it projects images, produces sound, and is interactive it collectively caters to visual, auditory and tactile learners.  How often can one technology provide so much?  An immediately example of the Smart Board’s application to music education that comes to mind is an adaptation of one of the technologies I referenced in my post about assistive technology.  I explained that some sort of Velcro board for placing notes on a staff would be an excellent example assistive technology.  The smart board could take this idea a step further by making the notes and staff completely digital.  This way, one could ultimately save or print whatever the student composes through this system.   I imagine that with the appropriate program, one could even have the student compose using the “drag and drop” idea and have the computer “perform” what they wrote.  This is only one example of the seemingly endless uses for this technology.

Final Project

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0As_udrC-Q8endERISEVaTU9YRTRSbkdoclJuWEFwclE&usp=sharing

 

            For this matrix, I analyzed a lesson for beginning recorder that I worked with in CURR 310 (Inclusion Module).  It is important to note that the unmodified plan was intended for 9^th grade, but had unreasonably low expectations and objectives.  Therefore, I have treated the lesson as though it was intended for a 3^rd grade general music class.  In this lesson, the students will learn basic recorder technique as well as how to read very basic notation.  The lesson culminates with group performances of “Hot Cross Buns” with teacher accompaniment on piano.

 1.         I will begin the lesson by introducing the instrument to the class.  After demonstrating the basic technique of how to hold the record and produce a sound, I will use the Smart Board to display an interactive recorder fingering chart.  Using the chart, I will explain the fingerings for the notes G, A, and B and demonstrate the way they sound.  At this point, students will have the opportunity to experiment with their instruments.  Based on NJCCC Music Standard 1.1.5.B.2, the students will begin to explore the elements of music as they apply to their recorder playing.  They will specifically focus on pitch and timbre at this point in the lesson.  Also, the students will be utilizing the interactive fingering chart (simulation) to explore the complex system of how to produce the appropriate sound on their instruments as per NETS 1.c.

 2.         As students become comfortable holding and operating their recorders, I will introduce basic notation for the three notes we have covered and also introduce rhythmic values for those notes.  Again, this will all be shown on the Smart Board.  After playing a simple melody from the Smart Board, student volunteers will have the opportunity to build their own melody (drag and drop) for the class using the notes and rhythms we have covered.  Next, I will create a new melody for the students to practice in small groups.  In these groups, students will use Garage Band (or similar recording software) to record and evaluate their own playing as they practice.  This step is aligned with NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.1 as the students will be “play[ing] on pitch from basic notation in the treble clef, with consideration of pitch, rhythm, dynamics, and tempo.”  Because of the Garage Band element, this step incorporates NETS 2.a. “Interact, collaborate… with peers… employing a variety of digital environments and media.”

 3.         In this step, students will be given sheet music for the song “Hot Cross Buns.”  I will facilitate group and individual practice of the piece through a variety of strategies.  We will continue to enrich the practicing by recording and evaluating using Garage Band and also utilizing a metronome to maintain time.  This step aligns to NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.6 as the students will be learning a more complex melody and working in groups and individually.  Students will be given the opportunity to use Garage Band again during this step as per NETS 6.b.

 4.         At this point, the class will finally perform the piece.  Students will perform in groups as I accompany them on the piano.  By using a MIDI keyboard, I can employ a variety of different sounds as well as provide a rhythmic accompaniment.  This is important for the purpose of variety but will also open up a dialogue about texture based on the keyboard sounds.  Again, students will “Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.”  After successfully performing the song in groups, individuals will have the opportunity improvise (using the notes they are familiar with) over the basic harmonies of the song.  Improvisation is one of the more overlooked abilities in this sort of setting and is also featured in the national and state standards.  NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.5 indicates that students will “Improvise short tonal and rhythmic patterns over ostinatos, and modify melodic or rhythmic patterns using selected notes and/or scales to create expressive ideas.”

 5.         Finally, as a homework assignment, students will continue to practice the three notes covered in class by working with a parent or other adult.  Students will also need to continue to practice “Hot Cross Buns” at home as well.  Students can optionally record their performances using a portable recording device.  They will also be encouraged to play along with one of several prerecorded accompaniments that I will have uploaded to Youtube.  Students will continue to harness their skills at home utilizing the standards featured in previous steps.