Past President’s Message Continued from page 14
and Apollo missions in the 1960’s. He was the lead flight director for Apollo 11 (July 20th was the 49th anniversary of the moon landing) and the almost ill-fated Apollo 13.
In the chapter about Apollo 11, Kantz talked about how the decision to land on the moon ultimately resided with Neil Armstrong, the pilot of the Lunar Module. The ground controllers would give the astronaut crew all of the best, most updated available information (with a three second delay for the transmission to reach them in lunar orbit) and Armstrong would have to decide if the conditions were correct to complete the landing, or abort the mission.
We all know the story that after a few alarms, landing site challenges, and a brief loss of orientation due to the dust coming up from the surface caused by the engines, he finally landed the “Eagle” with about 20 seconds of fuel
remaining...close! His assessment of the original landing site forced him to make correct time-critical decisions to go to another spot or abort. He made the right call with the best, most updated information at his fingertips.
As you are working with your ensembles this year, step back a moment and reflect on how you handle these time- critical decisions with a focus on looking at the efficiency of the process you go through as well as the result. As you collect experience, the process increases in speed and you will increase your success rate. Your decision might not be as life-or-death as the moon landing, however it can have a profound impact on the musical direction of your ensemble. Don’t be afraid to make a call… go with it and decide to land! Face The Music!
Steve Schofield is currently the Director of Bands at Thunder Basin High School in Gillette. His 23 years of teaching experience include six years at Twin Spruce Junior High as director of bands and Campbell County High School for nine years, where he lead the Marching Band, Concert Band, two Jazz Bands and Percussion Ensemble to many regional and state awards. Steve also spent five years “away” from music as the Technology Facilitator. Steve plays trumpet in the Big Horn Big Band and the Coaltrane Jazztet, directs the Gillette Community Band, and plays the trumpet in the Powder River Brass Quintet.
Schools that have music programs have significantly higher graduation rates than those without music programs (90.2 percent compared to 72.9 percent).
On average, students in music performance scored 57 points higher on the verbal and 41 points higher on the math section of the SAT than did students with no music participation.
Here are some simple, time-effective ways parents can assist their child’s school music educators:
Access the Status Quo:
Tips to Share with Parents
Parents wield extraordinary influence over local principals, school boards, and other decision makers. Encourage them to become involved in the advocacy process and make a significant difference in the quality of their child’s music education program.
Fall 2018 |
www.wyomea.org
• Study the ways that music education develops creativ- ity, enhances cooperative learning, instills disciplined work habits, and statistically correlates with gains in standardized test scores.
• Speak with your local school board about your desire to have a strong music education for your child.
Communicate Effectively
• Be in touch with local music teachers on a regular basis. Offer to help out. • Ask yourself why your children need high quality music education. Be able to articulate the answers to teachers, administrators, and other parents.
• Take part in your school’s music booster organization.
Visit
www.nafme.org for more Parent Resources.
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