Teachers' Institute - Music

Instructor: Marjie Van Gunten

Pre-requisite: Curriculum Leadership in the Arts

Course Description: This course is intended for music teachers from across South Carolina who desire to learn, share, and create together using the music standards for improvisation and composition as a focus. Participants will participate in activities in both large and small groups as well as work individually. The course will include written and oral reflection on the learning process for both adults and children.

SETE Q680B will meet at the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts in combination with online classroom time from June 2 through June 30.

Course Objectives:

South Carolina Music Standards II and III (see attached)  specify specific requirements in composition and improvisation for students in all music areas (general, vocal, choral, and instrumental):

• Improvisation: Students will improvise melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
• Composition: Students will compose and arrange music within specified guidelines.

A survey of arts teachers conducted by the South Carolina State Department of Education indicated that improvisation and composition were areas in the standards where arts educators felt they had the weakest training and/or experience. As a result, this course was created and designed to address this need. The instruction will cover:

• Composition and improvisation at the adult level to foster the artistic growth of participants.
• Deconstruction of model lessons to facilitate understanding how the concepts relate to classroom experiences.
• Classroom applications of state music standards relating to composition and improvisation.
• Assessment models appropriate for composition and improvisation.
• Use of improvisation and composition as a strategy for differentiated instruction.
• Written reflection of personal experience with composition/improvisation as experienced during the course.