Photo courtesy Lebanon Valley College
During my career, I have worked with student teachers as a Cooperating Educator (the teacher in the school who works with the student teacher everyday) and as a Cooperating Mentor (the university faculty member who observes and works with the student teacher). In both roles, I have noticed similarities among future teachers. This is an open letter of encouragement and insight for those about to begin their student teaching experience.
You are not going to be good at this – at first!
Do you remember your early days of playing an instrument? It was likely an exciting but frustrating time. What did you do? You practiced, listened to your teacher, and practiced some more. Your teacher was patient and provided good advice. In a short time, you were making progress. The same determination is needed when learning how to teach. You will need to practice, listen to directors with hard-earned experience, and learn from mistakes. Just as you are patient with beginning players, you need to save some grace and understanding for yourself on this journey.
You have to know the territory.
You have spent years performing in college ensembles that operate at a high level on stage and in rehearsals. You have worked with adults who pay close attention to the conductor and make adjustments on the first try. You have grown accustomed to this rehearsal scenario:
Director: “Band, at measure 46, I need more feeling. We really need to explore man’s inhumanity to man here.” The band members quickly mark the part and play as instructed.
With younger students you may encounter this instead:
Director: “Trumpets, in measure 15 please remember to carry the accidental from count 1 to count 4.” Students might circle the correct measure if they have a pencil, and some may play the accidental correctly on the next attempt. More than likely, you will have to repeat the instructions. There is a direct correlation between the age of students and the number of repetitions required to make a correction.
Younger students will need more times to learn a skill. Do not give up just because players don’t get it right away. Be sure to give instructions in a clear, understandable fashion while the room is quiet and be patient.
You are saying the right things, but the kids came to play.
During years of watching student teachers in rehearsals, I have given one piece of advice more than any other: “Your diagnosis and corrections are good, but you’re talking more than they’re playing.” Rehearsal pacing takes time to develop, but remember that students will only remember one or two instructions at a time. You may hear a dozen things to fix, but talking at length will lose the attention of the ensemble.
Franklin Roosevelt is credited this humorous line about public speaking: be sincere, be brief, and be seated. To lead an engaging rehearsal, edit that to “be specific, be brief, and be playing.” Stick to a basic routine when stopping the ensemble – wait for the room to be quiet, make sure you have their attention, be precise and specific with corrections, and get them back to playing so they can apply your advice. A good rehearsal pace keeps students engaged. Often, problems you don’t discuss will improve just by letting students play through them. Finally, don’t forget to point out to what they are doing well. Everything you say should not be a correction!
Respect and rapport are earned.
You have worked really hard during your college years to get to this point. You have spent countless hours in practice rooms, rehearsal rooms, and recital halls. The fifth graders in your ensemble do not know any of that. Even if they did know, it wouldn’t mean much to them. At the end of my first year of teaching, I congratulated a colleague who was retiring. I asked her if she had any advice for a first-year teacher. She looked at me and replied, “Don’t expect too much too soon.”
At the time, I was put off by the comment, but she was right. You cannot expect people who don’t know you to give you the respect and deference of someone who has been in the profession for 15, 20, or 25 years. The beginning of your teaching career is a reputation reset. Other teachers will want to see what kind of a colleague you are. Students want to know how much you care about them as people. It takes time to build connections and establish rapport and respect.
When starting out, focus on teaching well, but don’t forget the personal elements of the job. Build good relationships with colleagues, administrators, secretaries, custodians, and lunchroom staff. Develop a good working relationship with students. Be patient yet insistent, be consistent with classroom policy, and show genuine concern for them as human beings. When you have built this connection and trust, they will run through a brick wall for you!
Beyond establishing solid relationships with students, maintain a strong rapport with your cooperating educator. If you didn’t know them previously, make time to meet before your residency. Get to know their philosophy and personality. As you work with them, they may approach certain tasks a manner that is unfamiliar to you. You might not agree with them, but you can still learn from it. At a minimum, it could spark some meaningful discussions with your peers and cooperating mentor.
Speaking of your cooperating mentor – hopefully they are someone you worked with during your years in college. If not, much like your cooperating teacher – find time to talk. See them as an experienced educator and resource, not just someone who observes you in class.
Experience everything.
Expectations for a student teacher’s presence at student-teacher conferences and IEP/504 meetings vary from school to school, but I strongly encourage student teachers to be at everything their cooperating teacher attends. Being a teacher incorporates much more than teaching. The behind-the-scenes tasks are the most unfamiliar for future teachers. It’s critical to understand the full picture of a teacher’s role. So, come early for the staff meeting, stay late for the pep band and run the concession stand. Be a fly on the wall as much as possible.
Ask your cooperating educator to identify a classroom teacher at the school that they consider to be of the highest quality. Ask permission to spend time observing them. Good teaching is good teaching. Even though they don’t teach music, you can learn so much about content delivery, classroom management, and communication.
Prepare to be great.
Before you start your student teaching journey, go back and review course material you have not looked at in a while. Perhaps you took a woodwind pedagogy class your sophomore year. When is the last time you picked up a clarinet and reviewed note fingerings, proper embouchure, or pitch tendencies? Think about the last time you conducted. Teaching requires consistent review and refinement.
Find ways to work with young people before your student teaching begins. It does not need to be music – church groups, after school programs, and youth sports coaching are great ways to gain experience. High school marching bands everywhere are always seeking help during the season. One of the best things I did prior to teaching was to work with the Little League baseball program in my hometown for several summers. It gave me insight into what made kids tick, how they learned, and how to interact with them. As a bonus, it strengthened my resume. The principal who hired me for my first job mentioned that my experience coordinating the baseball program gave me the edge over other applicants who were also first-year teachers.
Ask, write, collect, and reflect.
Student teaching experience can be a blur; the long days, new experiences, and preparation for life beyond college can cause weeks and events to run together. Make time to journal about your day. It can be just a few sentences or several paragraphs. Think and write about what you did well, how to replicate it consistently, and what skills need more work. Write about new techniques that you observed, a unique situation that you faced, and anything that you want to remember and revisit. Make copies of any forms or teaching materials your cooperating educator used that you found valuable. Have an organized file – in hard copy or on computer – of valuable resources
Trust yourself.
You began studying music because it was fun. You pursued a career in music because you became passionate about it. You are about to work with young people looking for that same inspiration and spark. Pair knowledge with enthusiasm, patience with insistence, and trust the same message that you will share with your students: the more you practice, the better you get.
