1: SOCIAL BOOKMARKING
I really enjoyed the topic of social bookmarking for so many reasons. So often, I have felt the need and desire to share and curate content for various topics. While I feel I have a lot to offer, there is so much I would like to learn from others. Curating various social bookmarking topics will be a phenomenal way for me to organize topics from various educators to create a shared location for all of us to contribute to.
For instance, let's say I want to create a document to show drummers how to play a variety of styles of Latin jazz. I could ask jazz educators, drummers especially, to help me find a number of recordings, written out beats, music samples and other resources for the various styles of Latin jazz including Samba, bossa nova, baiao, salsa, merengue, etc. By providing these resources, I can improve my teaching by having accurate info to share with my students, but also help educators around the world be able to give a more accurate education on this often confusing topic. I learned so much about this concept during the assignment in Module 2, Assignment 2. In the article "What Does It Mean to Curate" by Chelsea Emelie Kelly, the idea of curating as described by Mel Buchanan was really helpful for me. Buchanan explains "What we mean when we say “curating” on the internet is more like being a really top-notch editor. That is, someone who is good at picking things out of the endless internet ether and organizing them into something else. What we mean when we say “curating” in an art museum is a lot more than just being a top-notch editor. But both meanings can exist and live happily together."
There are so many opportunities to do things like this and I can't wait to jump in and start using this tool.
2: VIRTUAL OBSERVATIONS
Something I never really thought about was the possibility of being able to access archives of great presentations that have been put together over time and posted for our viewing at later times. Often, I feel disappointed that I have missed a presentation or an opportunity. I never really considered the idea that I have not even been made aware of 99.9% of the presentations that go on and how many of them may be available to check out well after the time the initial presentations were scheduled for. Finding the archive of presentations at nafme.org was eye-opening and I'm really excited to explore everything that they have to offer there and in many other places. Module 5, Assignment 1 turned out to be one of my favorite assignments because it forced me to seek out things like this and allowed me to stumble upon something I may have never known existed!
3: BLOGGING
Perhaps the most exciting thing that came from this class is my newfound excitement for music education blogging. Module 3, Assignment 3 asked us to create a tool for our learner reflection portfolio. In doing this, my creative juices started flowing and by the time the night was over, I had created a blog post that has been viewed so far by 142 people! I shared it to various music education websites as well as my own personal pages and I have received feedback about how helpful the information is. You can view this blog HERE. Tsisana Palmer says in her article: "9 Reasons Why Teachers Should Blog" that is is important to blog so that you can "Reflect on your own learning and teaching by engaging in the best thinking activity – writing!" This is my biggest motivation in blogging, as it really makes me thing hard about how I do things, why I do them and how I can make them better. The reflection on my own teaching is huge and I am looking forward to expanding my network so I can share more and also find more from others.
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