Roles Reversed

“I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element.”

Haim Ginott

Embarking on the career of music education is something I’ve been determined to do since my first year of music 5 years ago in South Eastern Regional College. I had the privilege of being mentored by a teacher who inspired me with his passion for not just music, but that of getting through to a student and seeing them grow. It is therefore fairly cyclical that I know find myself on the other side of the desk in South Eastern Regional College today. Whilst I have previously taught privately in a tutoring role, teaching to a class is an entirely new experience for me. I look forward to taking my academic knowledge from Queen’s, pairing it with my tutoring experience and learning a new art.

Description

In having been given the intimidating task of finding an institution that would give you a placement I knew immediately I wanted it to be SERC, to give back, so to speak, for the life changing tutelage I had experienced there. I emailed Gary Haddock, HND Coordinator for SERC, with whom I had built a positive relationship during my time studying HND in Bangor. To my great surprise he came back to me asking when I could start! Upon discussing the finer details in meetings with Gary, I found myself assisting in the teaching of Composition, Music Business and Creative Software Techniques for the first year HND class.

After a couple of weeks with the class I found myself in a unique opportunity in which I could lead a theory class for the students. This is something I asked Gary if I could do as music theory is something I am extremely passionate about, and I saw an opportunity to hopefully emulate the inspiring figure of my first tutor.

Feeling

Before my first day at Bangor I was filled with mixed emotions that I didn’t fully know how to interpret. I was excited at the prospect of experiencing what I have long thought of as my future career, however I was also feeling slightly insecure at the idea of standing shoulder to shoulder with my former teachers. The task of being that person for a class was, however, far more exciting that it was daunting.

After teaching itself I was excited for my future in this role, and at peace knowing this is what I want to do. However, I also experienced frustration in struggling to get through to students, confusion as students seemingly not wanting to learn and also joy at students understanding what I’m saying. Having these feelings, I believe, is good as it shows I care about being a good teacher for the students.

Evaluation

So far the experience has been great. I have built up a great rapport with the students and have received positive feedback from the two tutors I am assisting. The students have expressed to me that they find the theory classes engaging, if somewhat overwhelming which is extremely reminiscent of my own experiences with theory class. Not everything was smooth sailing, however, as I found simply having all the answers for the students is a disservice to them, contrary to what I previously thought. The art of teaching them to find the answers themselves in something my first tutor had mastered, and a concept I feel I am only just understanding. These are all surface level observations, however, and to really progress in the field I feel I must delve deeper into the experience.

Analysis

I have found the dilution of language a new and vital skill which I hadn’t previously thought of. I was in a class teaching about Sonata form and found my default language to be unsuitable for an encouraging learning environment. This was a key moment in my learning which I later discussed with Gary and he gave me an invaluable piece of advice, “Teach to the least capable in the class.”

Another difficulty I had was experiencing students who had found themselves under the way of thinking that they shouldn’t try as they had given up on learning and settled on coasting. This is something I hadn’t experienced in private tutoring, as those who employ a tutor are at the other side of this spectrum. This was therefore a new obstacle to overcome, and one I feel I need a lot of work on.

Conclusion

To summarise my initial block of teaching, I feel I have discovered what I want to do for the rest of my life. I have fallen in love with the art of teaching, however I feel that while University has prepared me for the academic side of the teaching, I have the exciting of a whole new skillset I must learn.

If I could have changed anything about my teaching style from the first class it would be simplifying my language, taken onboard Gary’s advice, so as not to intimidate the class with vernacular, acting as a barrier to entry for their minds. I would also have come in to the experience with the philosophy of leading them to the answers without being handed them. This would have instead instilled confidence in themselves to be able to find the answers, rather than served my own need for affirmation that I belonged to be on the other side of the desk.

These are lessons I feel I needed to learn, however, and I am extremely grateful I was given the platform to do so.

Action

• Simplify Language
• Guide them to the answers
• Teach to the least capable
• Find a way to inspire those who have seemingly given up
• Continue to learn

Bibliography

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Marshall, B., Buoncristiani, P. and Wiliam, D., 2014. English. Cheltenham, Vic.: Hawker Brownlow Education.

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Find-an-architect.architecture.com. 2021. South Eastern Regional College (SERC) Bangor by Hamilton Architects. [online] Available at: <https://find-an-architect.architecture.com/hamilton-architects/belfast/south-eastern-regional-college-serc-bangor> [Accessed 26 November 2021].

2021. A look inside SPACE Bangor. Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0YZ1vG-bEQ&t=74s> [Accessed 26 November 2021].