Seniors Take The Lead! Tammy Yi


Teachers College Columbia University tammysyi@gmail.com


being in your ensemble? We strive to make our classrooms safe spaces for students to discover themselves and learn from their experiences, all while feeling the joy of making mu- sic. As a high school orchestra teach- er, I have always wondered, though, how participation in ensembles con- tributes to student success overall. Would the experience of making music and collaborating with their peers lead to greater success in the future? Would they develop a wid- er range of problem-solving skills? Would these experiences make them more able, more intuitive leaders in the future? If these are the outcomes – as I believe they are - then our re- sponsibility as high school orchestra teachers is to provide the most re- warding challenges as our students move forward in life.


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This year, I have enjoyed hav- ing a large number of seniors in the string orchestra ensemble. Due to its size, this multi-grade class is di- vided into two sections. My seniors have been taking orchestra for the past three years in high school, so I wanted to provide them with some- thing beyond technical skills, to teach them valuable life lessons that


TEMPO


hat valuable lessons do you want your seniors to learn from


they could carry with them forever. I have developed an approach which I feel encourages my seniors to take on leadership roles, to problem solve and to be more compassionate. I want to share some of the positive re- sults I have had with this approach.


Connected, Live Time Students may become aggressive,


or conversely, may withdraw when they are experiencing anxiety-pro- voking situations. As technology can sometimes diminish live social inter- actions, students may struggle ex- pressing their concerns in real time. Because much of their communica- tion is done indirectly, their meth- ods of conflict resolution may not address the core conflict because the assumption is that the conversation can be continued digitally. It is im- portant for students to practice face- to-face communication and ways of handling conflicts in different set- tings. I have stressed that live time communication is an important part of learning and that without proper communication, bigger conflicts will arise. I provide my seniors with ample guidance in this area because they struggle in understanding how to communicate about the prob- lems that arise between them. It is particularly challenging for them to


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take others’ opinions into consider- ation and to not take offense to well- meaning commentary or criticism. This is particularly true during peer group settings such as sectionals, chamber ensembles and student led performances that requires collabo- ration. When students evaluate each other’s performances, I have also provided them with some language of de-escalation and have discussed the body language that communi- cates a desire to resolve conflicts.


Taking Risks What do you learn when you


work past your comfort zone? Most people are averse to risk taking, but the ensemble provides an excellent space to confront and manage risk. Conducting, a high stakes activity, is the first major skill I taught my se- nior class. This met resistance in the beginning; many of the seniors in my ensemble did not feel comfortable doing something that they were not used to. This may be compounded by insecurity or fear of being judged by their peers. In order to ease the tension through practice and famil- iarity, I had students at all levels and grades take the baton. This casual and frequent practice encouraged the seniors to be more open about conducting, to take to it like it was


JANUARY 2018


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