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| seriously people...abbie and i were having lunch in alpha yesterday when we were shocked by the dress of one of the young women also dining in the commons. cleavage like i'd never seen even on cable television. abbie said we were probably looking at about six violations right there. it's hard to get me offended at things, but such a blatant disregard for dress guidelines, and in turn, the thoughts of her male companions, irked me to no end. now, if i was a lesser man, i would have made an example of her, namely by giving her the audience she apparently so desparately wanted. abbie almost gave me a dollar to go do so. however humorous the situation may appear, WTF?? spring break is over. if you want to dress like a slut at home, go right ahead. but if you're eating in alpha, please, for my sake and the sake of your brothers, use some f*cking discretion when dressing. | | |
| in light of recent political events... | | |
| i hate huckabeesif you throw around enough psychobable bullshite, you'll find the meaning of your existence. | | |
| Classroom Management Problems and Solutions This article comes from the Music Educators Journal. It begins with the ways that music classrooms differ from "regular" classrooms. Music classrooms are usually larger in size; choirs having 50+ members and bands and orchestras having upwards of 100 members. The main assessment for such groups are public performances, which can put added pressure on a music teacher to maximize classroom instruction time. The author also makes a general statement about the importance of proper management, how a properly managed classroom can focus on content instruction while a poorly managed classroom has to focus on social instruction. The article also outlines several student needs that need to be met in order for learning to take place, as well as many other outside contributing factors to student misbehavior that need to be addressed. These can include trouble at home, the media's preoccupation with violence, and a wide range of temperaments among students, to seemingly innocuous things such as student boredom, feelings of powerlessness, and insufficient teacher modeling. The author gives many solutions to combating management problems from minor infractions to very serious offenses. They are even laid out in a table for easy reference.
One thing I learned, or rather that I knew but was brought to my attention, was the effect of mass media on the minds and behaviors of students. I've always heard that kids are getting less and less respectful and out of control because of what they see on t.v., yet I'd never fully drawn the line between that and classroom until I read it in his list of management issues. It's said that kids and adolescents will always listen to the judgement of their peers, and what they see all afternoon after school, on t.v. are shows full of actors portraying young people, teaching them a behavior model.
Another point the author made in several parts of the article is consistency. An inconsistent teacher can create more management problems for himself than a teacher with few to no rules. Students automatically search out inconsistencies or unfairness from a teacher and capitalize on it. An inconsistent teacher can also lose respect and control of his classroom very quickly.
One thing I would ask the author is, no one likes to see a student miss instruction time for disciplinary action, so how would you deal with a repeat offender who is constantly creating disruptions enough to elicit his or her ejection from the classroom? Is it a judgement call on the director's part as to whether the student can perform in a concert if they have missed "x" amount of rehearsal time? I would have liked to have seen more specifics on the rammifications of management problems on the music itself.
This article was full of good information about effectively managing a music classroom, with information that could be shared with regular classroom teachers as well.
Classroom Management Problems and Solutions
Debra G. Gordon
Music Educators Journal, Vol. 88, No. 2. (Sep., 2001), pp. 17-23.
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| it's the end of the year as we know itand i feel fine :) | | |
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