1-1 Learner Development

The candidate understands how learners grow and develop, recognizing that patterns of
learning and development vary individually within and across the cognitive linguistic,
social, emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements developmentally
appropriate, relevant, and rigorous learning experiences.

The candidate should complete a reflective essay illustrating the development of the
students under their supervision.

As a teacher, it is most important to understand those you teach, how they learn, how
they comprehend information, and the goal for your teaching with those students. It is critical for
the teacher to understand and recognize where learners are, so that they can continue in
supporting development.
In both elementary and secondary music classrooms, teachers are able to recognize where
students are in their cognitive development in both the musical aspect and as an individual. In
elementary classrooms, I have noticed that the most varied learning styles are present here and
need special attention while teaching any subject. In my own teaching experience, repetition and
consistency have been the most vital in the music classroom. In my reading and teaching
episodes, classes usually have a welcome song that focuses on a concept that the students are
learning that year or is a familiar tune that the students will know to get their voices warmed up.
The song may consist of concepts that they learned the year prior but can be added onto or may
have new concepts already in the song and can be explained as soon as the class gets to the
portion of their class where the concept is labeled. While supporting the students’ musical
development, it is important to present information in various ways, so that all learners may be
able to better understand the concepts.
The personal development, including social, linguistic physical and emotional
development, plays a major role in the music learning. By providing new experiences and
opportunities for learning, student can make connections to the real world outside the music
classroom. An example that can show emotional and social development might be if the song we
are learning has a game accompanied with it, this provides a multitude of opportunities for
student growth. One might say “I didn’t get a turn today” and we as teachers have to say before
the game starts that not everyone will have a turn today but will have a turn in the next game we
play later on. Some students may have a difficult time understanding that they may not have a
turn but with patience and consistency they will develop this understanding. Personal
development alongside musical development is what I hope to accomplish as a music teacher.