Joyful New Starts

One of my favorite things about my career is the joy of getting to work with a new piano student for the very first time. Whether they are transferring from another teacher or just beginning their journey of learning how to play the piano, there is nothing quite like the enthusiasm they bring into the room. Today, I got to experience that joy twice….and it made the day marvelous!

My first new student was a 16-year-old girl who is transferring into my studio this semester. She shared that she has played piano for 8 years, but her first teacher did not know how to teach, so she found herself having to start over and learn some basic concepts when her family moved into the area. (Side note: Just because you took piano lessons down the street for many years does not mean you are qualified to teach others to play. Get some training — whether with a mentor or through a school — before you declare yourself capable. You may do harm you don’t even know about.) This young woman is extremely intelligent and very musical. I enjoyed hearing her play today. As I began the lesson, I asked about her future plans because I wanted to make sure that we were both setting the same goals for her time in the studio. Musically, she wants to play for her family in the future and possibly be able to sub for a local congregation. I can get onboard with that plan! When I told her that I wanted to make sure that she had a voice in how we worked together, her eyes lit up! When I told her that we weren’t going to continue working through the Hanon technique, she was giddy! (No one actually enjoys those dastardly exercises, do they? Yuck!) Our plan for the moment is to continue working through her method book and begin exploring some music from her beloved hymnal. Since she is already working on that music independently, why not bring it into the lesson and see what we can learn together? I was really pleased with how much she soaked up today. I think we are going to have an incredibly good semester together that will hopefully extend for several more years.

At the end of the day, I met Nickolas. Nickolas is 9-years-old and has taught himself to play a few things by watching YouTube videos. He has had no formal training (although I did get the sense that he has had some exposure to some basic elements through elementary music classes). Today, we did some work on keyboard geography, basic rhythm, and finally got around to introducing some basic piano technique while playing his first little piece. Was this the same experience as I had with my teen? Certainly not, but there was still that sparkle that he was understanding things. Did I mention that both of these lessons were given with everyone in the room wearing a face mask? I’m so glad to know that the eyes communicate so much even when the mouth is not visible.

I really do love the excitement of a new start. I’m sure that every lesson will not be as pleasant in the future. There are challenging concepts ahead. There will be days where I simply do not feel as though I can adequately express what I am trying to explain in a way that my student can comprehend. Somethings are just easier to teach when I can demonstrate on the instrument or physically touch the student’s hand. That is not a possibility at the moment because of COVID. Still, I choose to focus on the joy and excitement of the new beginning and allow it to be a memory as we navigate the uncertain times ahead.

A Less-Than-Ordinary First Day

We survived! It wasn’t always pretty, but we survived the first day of classes in this Covid-19 world. It was a day of emotional ups and downs. There were lots of deep breaths taken in the halls and pauses to remember that what is most important at this moment is our students.

I awoke very early this morning — around 4:00 — with lots of anxiousness in my heart. We had planned for today all summer long. I really think we were as ready as we possibly could be. But there were so many unknowns and so much change to our teaching that anxiety and apprehension gripped my heart. I tried to keep my morning as close to my normal routine as possible. In the quietness of the morning, I sat in my chair and read a few passages from Psalms to start my day. There, my heart was greeted with these words of hope:  “For You make him most blessed forever; You make him glad with the joy of your presence. For the king trusts in the Lord, and through the steadfast love of the Most High he shall not be moved.” (Psalm 21:6-7) I immediately felt peace and began to move forward with my day.

Some things were typical. Freshmen were a little stressed by all that was happening during their first morning as a music major. My colleagues and I were greeted by a variety of questions during the freshman orientation class. First piano lessons included lots of planning for the semester, setting goals, and reminding fingers how to move after a few months of rest. I accepted the fact that my summer of piano rest was going to mean that I would have to work quickly to get my hands moving again.

Some things did not go smoothly. My small group meeting as part of chapel started late because the video was marked as private. I still haven’t learned any of the names of our new students. (That was a major fail for me today that I will begin correcting tomorrow.) I spent a lot of time behind a closed door in my office because I simply did not want to wear a face mask for another minute. I had to remind students that physical contact — whether a hug or a handshake — was really not acceptable in this time of physical distancing.

When 5:00 rolled around, I packed up my bag and headed for the door. I walked to the end of the hall and the fatigue hit. I knew I needed to just sit down for a minute with friends and decompress. I made my way home 30 minutes later as my stomach growled. After feeding myself, I tried to do a little more work. It quickly became clear that nothing else was getting accomplished today. My brain is mush and my body is tired. So I sat in my chair, picked up my novel and continued reading. Tears flowed more freely than normal while reading. I think it was a combination of the story’s impact and the fact that I needed an emotional release. After several hours of intermittent tears, I feel as though I have cleansed myself of the day.

Now it’s time to prepare my heart and mind for tomorrow. This may be a very long semester.

Ready or Not….

Students are roaming the halls. A cacophony of sound fills the air again. Introductory lessons are being presented and lesson times are being scheduled. Private practice sessions and ensemble rehearsals are in full swing. That’s right…..the fall semester of classes are finally underway in the School of Music at WBU.

Professors have been preparing for this moment for a few weeks. Faculty and student schedules alike are quickly becoming packed, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s a privilege to get to do what we love — make music! There’s so much excitement and expectation in the air that you can feel the electricity.

I will stand before my first classes of the semester tomorrow morning. That means I get to ease into the new semester — making last minute changes to my schedule, observing the new students, and reconnecting with those returning. The first day of school is always filled with so much potential. We don’t know exactly what this school year has in store, but we’re all excited to start riding this wave together. Now, let’s just see what’s going to happen…..

Reflecting on Year One

Today, I’m giving the last few final exams of my first year of teaching at WBU. It’s been an adventure. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve made my share of mistakes, but also had a lot of successes. What kind of reflective learner would I be if I didn’t pause at the end of this year and take a look back at what I’ve learned.

• I’m surrounded by awesome colleagues and students. I am reminded of this fact every day. Getting to spend time with these people and make music together is what makes going to work a pleasure most days. (Come on…..there are times we all do not want to crawl out of bed.)
• There’s less collaborative work than I anticipated (and not as much as I’m used to). I knew this would be part of the change from adjunct to full-time faculty, but I really miss getting the opportunity to have so many interactions with students in private rehearsals as well as their lessons. I’m afraid this interaction will continue to decline in the future….and I’m really not excited for that at all. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’m wrong……
• Year One has been all about developing relationships and finding my place in the department. Being part of the faculty is about more than merely teaching assigned classes and performing with excellence. It’s about connecting with other faculty members in meaningful ways and sharing ideas. It’s about making yourself available to students — in and out of the classroom — so you have opportunity to pour Godly counsel into their lives as often as possible. I knew from the start I didn’t just want to be a teacher that was out of touch. That’s why my door is often open and why Thursday nights normally include a donut run. Since I’m finally in a faculty position, I want to be just as involved in the lives of my students as my professors were during my formative college years. (Thank you, Dr. Ferguson and Dr. Baird!)
• My schedule is extremely cyclical. There hasn’t been much of a normal routine this year. Things tend to start with a bang of activity and then level off as classes get rolling. But watch out…..the craziness will return soon enough. Production week, other faculty travel schedules, and recruiting tours/events can make the schedule go from “nice and easy” to “insanely busy” in the blink of an eye. I’m just thankful that the insanity tends to be spaced out for the most part.
• At some point, colleagues forget that you’re the newbie. In most ways, it’s a wonderful event. There are those occasional moments when there is an event that you haven’t done before — and no one thought to give you the scoop. That’s when “wingin’ it” takes on a brand new meaning….and keeps the adventure fresh and exciting.
• All in all, Year One at WBU has just confirmed what I’ve already known. I’m now in the profession that I was designed for and I’m loving every minute of it!

Now…..it’s time to finish up this semester and get a little rest over summer break!

What Do You Do?

Since starting my job this fall, I’ve repeatedly heard two questions.

• How do you like living in Texas?
• What exactly do you do?

I feel pretty confident that I have answered the first question. So let me give you — especially my extended family and friends who know very little about musical training — some insight into my work.

 

My official title is Assistant Professor of Piano at Wayland Baptist University. As you might guess, I spend the majority of my day sitting on a piano bench, but I switch hats throughout the day.

 

My primary teaching responsibility is the class piano sequence. Every student who studies music — regardless of their principle instrument — needs to develop basic keyboard skills. That’s where my class comes in. Every non-pianist in the music program takes a 4-semester sequence that meets twice each week to build their piano skills. Much of our time is spent learning scales and chord progressions as we explore late elementary and early intermediate piano repertoire. After students complete the 4th semester of class piano, they take a benchmark exam to demonstrate their level of proficiency. The exam addresses solo performance as well as skills such as sight reading, transposition, and score reading. For many of our students, the proficiency exam is a major hurdle before they begin the upper division coursework in the field.

 

In addition to class piano, I currently teach applied piano lessons to one freshman woman. She is a early intermediate student who is not afraid of a challenge. We’ve had a lot of fun this semester, made some significant progress, and have already begun to plan our repertoire choices for the spring. I’m hoping to have the opportunity to do more private teaching as the piano program at WBU grows.

 

The rest of my week is filled with a lot of playing in rehearsals and lessons of all types. I currently work with eleven vocalists as well as the students enrolled in class voice. As the semester begins to wind down, instrumentalists are beginning to seek me out for accompaniments for their jury exams. At this point, I have received music from five of them. Monday and Wednesday afternoons find me spending 90 minutes with the men and women of Wayland Singers — the department’s non-auditioned choir. This week brings the end of the university’s opera offering; we’re mounting a production of The Mikado. Those who have known me the longest will be surprised to hear that my time in opera workshop is some of my favorite times of the week.

 

Then there’s all the work that comes outside of the classroom and rehearsal studio. Thankfully, I was not assigned to any standing committees during my first semester of work. That has allowed me some time to do some recruiting (phone calls and emails take more time than you would ever expect). I’m working on a new course that will be offered in the spring. I could go on and on about student recitals, NATS competitions, LMTA meetings, master classes, and student rehearsals….but I think you get the picture. I’ve found myself very busy and very fulfilled.

 

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Making an Impact

As I continue to make preparations to move to Plainview, I’m also finding it necessary to close things here in Memphis. With each announcement of my new adventure, I repeatedly find myself surprised by some of the people with whom I have interacted and hopefully have impacted in a positive way. Last night featured one such encounter I didn’t expect to have such a powerful effect on me.

I have been teaching at Bartlett Music Academy for nearly eight months. I have maintained a small studio and enjoyed working with the kids. Last night was the final session of a theory camp including a young man who has struggled in his private lessons, but has made significant strides in his reading and rhythm skills in our brief time together. This boy came to know me because his younger sister is one of my piano students. After our class together, J. informed me that his family had a card for me.

I accompanied J. to his family’s van. From the back emerged a teary-eyed girl who stretched out a card and gave me a huge embrace. As her dad looked on, he explained that L. had just learned earlier in the day of my departure. The student could say nothing; I was fighting tears as well. In that moment, nothing else mattered more than the realization that I had significantly influenced this precious child.

Isn’t that what we all want — to know that our efforts have made a difference? I’m not looking forward to Saturday’s piano lessons. I expect some more difficult goodbyes. But I also have the confidence that even though the time I spent with these students was short, I am leaving them better than they were first introduced to me. My prayer is that my impact has extended beyond the music and that they are confident that their teacher cared for them deeply.

Plagiarism: An Issue of Laziness, Ignorance, or Immorality?

Plagiarism has become a national epidemic. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the term in the following way:

plagiarize – /transitive verb/ – to steal or pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own; use (another’s production) without crediting the source.

plagiarize – /intransitive verb/ – to commit literary theft; present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.

We most commonly expect to find cases of plagiarism in student academic papers, but the crisis reaches into other arenas as well. Many politicians have been accused of plagiarizing speeches, including Rand Paul and President Barack Obama. Musicians — from Mozart to George Harrison — have allegedly “borrowed” melodies from other sources without providing credit. The issue has even reached the pulpits of the nation’s churches; the case of Marc Driscoll in Seattle immediately comes to mind. To be clear, I am not stating that any of the above referenced accusations were valid; still, the problem seems to exist in our society today.

Why is plagiarism such a problem in our nation? I think that there are several issues here that we must realize and begin to take steps to correct. First, plagiarism is often associated with simple laziness. If a person is writing a document or presenting a speech and refuses to invest the time to develop their own thoughts into an original piece of work, there is nothing else I can attribute it to than laziness. It appears that they are simply looking for the easy way to fulfill the requirements of their class or job. Sadly, the use of the Internet has made plagiarism much easier to commit — and easier to catch.

Sometimes plagiarism might be a result of ignorance. A writer may lack the tools to produce an original work. Training in research and writing may be needed. Even if they try to create something new, the uninformed writer may begin to experience levels of frustration that leads them to look for an easier way of producing the document. While ignorance is an understandable excuse for plagiarism, it is not an acceptable excuse. The result is still unethical and criminal.

Sadly, many think that attribution alone is enough to avoid the theft of ideas and material. For example, I recently sat in an audience listening to a speaker and found myself quite bored. I noticed that the accompanying projection mentioned that the lecture was “inspired by” another author. I decided to google the topic and referenced author and found a document with the same title as the presentation which I was currently hearing. As I opened the file, I soon realized that the speaker was reading the material I was seeing online verbatim. Did this speaker really think that by simply including the author’s name that it was fine to exclusively use the words of another? I’m sorry…..adding a few personal comments that account for less than 5% of your presentation is not producing new material! (As a general rule, no paper, article, speech, or sermon should include more than 30% of other people’s material. People are listening to you because they want to know what you have to say on a given topic. In regards to the above referenced speaker, this is not the first incident of plagiarism that I have observed occurring.)

Let’s look at the immorality of plagiarism briefly. First of all, when one plagiarizes they are knowingly stealing the material of another. Plagiarism has been discussed in classes throughout our country and addressed by major news agencies. Ignorance is not a defense. When one is caught plagiarizing, the reputation of the guilty party (whether written or orally presented) is destroyed. It effects the level of trust that we place in what they have to say. We must also question their ethics in other areas.  If the speaker is willing to act immorally in this area, what other aspects of life are they living in grey areas? Finally, plagiarism implied that the speaker is not an authority on the subject or in their discipline. If you can’t come up with original material that might be supported by carefully researched supplementary material, why should I listen to you? I can seek out the same material online that you are currently presenting as your own material.

How do we stop the cycle of plagiarism? First we have to examine our own work. Unintentional plagiarism can happen to anyone. If it is a recurring problem — if everything I write is solely based on another’s thoughts — I have to admit that there is a problem. Once we admit there is a problem that is unethical, we seek help. Community colleges, seminars, and seminaries offer classes that will train speakers and writers to develop their own ideas, research the topics, and build their own written material. In the process, we also learn appropriate citation techniques for written documents as well as public speaking. (Attention should also be given to citation for slide presentations that accompany our public speeches.) Finally, we have to accept no compromise. The issue is not whether or not we have been caught plagiarizing; it’s a question of our personal morality.

What are your feelings about the nation’s plagiarism crisis? I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below.

Injustice

Few things get my dander up more than witnessing injustice. I’m not even talking about the horrible “big” things that we see on national news. I hate to see someone treated unfairly because they are low man on the totem pole or because they have no one to fight for them. I’ve been the victim before and know how awful it feels. I guess that’s why I’m willing to make some noise when I see it happening.

One of my students is facing some unfairness right now. Let’s call it what it is…injustice. In order to insure his privacy, I won’t disclose any of the details of the situation. I will say that things that were assured to him by the school have not been provided. These are not luxuries either; they are essential services necessary for his success. The student asked if I had any insight into the situation or could offer ideas that might get his phone calls returned by the negligent office. I was in a furor! The student was following the protocol he had been given, but was seeing no results. He didn’t know how to fight any further.

Despite some students’ opinions to the contrary, I am always an advocate for students who are legitimately attempting to succeed. I told my student that I didn’t have the answer, but that I could certainly raise the issue to appropriate parties until we got something done. I’ve been dealing with this situation for a week now. It’s not necessarily how I planned to spend my week, but it has been the right thing to do. I’m just hoping that the right will prevail in this situation soon so this tender student can have the materials he needs before the semester reaches its mid-point.

Here We Go!

I am still in denial. I don’t want to accept the fact that August is here again. That means it’s time to start prepping for another semester of teaching. This has gotten to be a normal routine and not too difficult. This year, however, I’m facing a couple of new challenges.  All I know is that both of these should be interesting and provide some entertainment in the months ahead.

The first new challenge comes at Mid-South Community College. This semester I’ll be returning to my teaching of College Survival Skills. If you’ve spoken with me very much about teaching, you know this is a class that I have DESPISED teaching in the past. The major problems were results of course content, technology issues, and lack of clear expectations for the faculty. Since the program has undergone a total transformation at the hands of a gifted faculty director, I have high hopes for the program at the moment. Faculty members will function as advisors and mentors to the students, a fact that I think will result in better dialogue between students and teachers. The only downside for me is that I have been assigned the Saturday morning section of the course. Ugh! I’m trying to keep a positive attitude about this by acknowledging that I’ll be done with my teaching at 10am and have the rest of the weekend to myself. We’ll just have to see if I can maintain the same positive outlook for the next 16 weeks! As this post is being published, I am sitting in the first of several training sessions for the faculty members teaching College Survival. (Just so there’s no misunderstanding, I schedule my posts to publish at 10am on MWF. I’ve not been blogging while in the seminar!)

The more exciting (and frightening) new challenge will take place at Union University. This fall I will teach the third semester of the class piano sequence. There are two sections of the course that I’m scheduled to cover. I’m excited because I’m finally getting to teach a major course in my discipline. I’m frightened nervous because I’ve done a limited amount of class piano teaching in graduate school. I know I’m capable of successfully teaching the course and look forward to the challenge. I just have to get my mind wrapped around what’s ahead and begin planning for a new course.

For those of you doing the math, that’s 2 new courses (3 sections total) added to 3 sections of music appreciation as well as continuing as one of Union’s staff pianists. That’s 6 classes! I’m thrilled! I’m also going to be a very busy man who is going to be burning up the roads between West Memphis and Jackson. For now, I wouldn’t have it any other way either.  I suppose the only thing to say is that it’s almost time for the craziness insanity fun to begin!

Another Semester is in the Books

It’s official! With the publication of this post, my last final of the semester has been administered and I only need to turn in grades in order to collect my last paycheck of the term at MSCC. I enjoy teaching, but this semester has been tough for many reasons. Needless to say, I’m ready to see the spring 2013 term of teaching in my rear view mirror!

The semester started with a blanket of snow. Here in Arkansas, when the sky spits any of the white stuff — regardless of the amount — people become stupid! They forget how to drive and dash for the market as if we are going to be trapped in our homes for 40 days and nights! Since we don’t know how to handle the cold stuff, school was cancelled before we even got started. That’s a tough situation to be in….behind schedule before you begin!

Around the same time, I was working very hard with the students at Union University to present the semester’s first opera as part of the Benjamin Britten centennial celebration. I knew this was going to be a tough time, so I built calendars carefully to allow for the rehearsals and performances. What I didn’t account for was the Union Plague that hit members of the cast during production week. I was blessed not to be hit with the nasty stomach virus, but I didn’t feel well at all.  Classes were cancelled University wide while everyone tried to get back to health and the campus was scrubbed from floor to ceiling.

By late February, everything seemed to be back on track. Maybe I should say ALMOST everything was back on track. The most important part of my classroom was waffling — the students. Each spring semester, I have concurrent students from area high schools enroll in my music appreciation course. Most classes have been very successful and a great experience. This year’s batch of students did not fit that model. I found myself questioning why they were there. Finally I diagnosed the problem: intense senior-itis. These kids didn’t understand why they had to come to my class on “senior skip days” or why my class was so hard! I listened to the whining, but quickly became immune.

The semester rolled on at Union as well and I was involved with two very successful student recitals as well as a trip to the regional NATS competition in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Once I played the last of these major events, I began to relax a little. I knew I only had to play a few scenes for opera workshop, a couple of departmental recitals, and student boards before the semester was over. Just when I thought everything was a-okay, I found myself fighting the stomach bug that had plagued the Union students earlier in the term. After a “rough” and restless night, I drove to Union (like the good collaborative pianist should) to play on the afternoon’s departmental recital. I had felt nauseous during the entire drive, but thought things would be okay. I WAS WRONG! I stepped into the hall when a wave of sickness hit me and I thought I was going to pass out…..after making a massive mess in the hall! After a visit to the restroom to calm my stomach, I went to the music office and was able to get colleagues to play for my students. I certainly didn’t want to be on stage at the moment. I feared the real show would not have been the beauty of the students’ singing!

As the semester continued to wind down, I repeatedly found myself approached by students asking for extra credit work or to turn in assignments they had neglected earlier in the term. I think I heard every excuse in the book, but my favorite was from a high school senior who told me her scholarship for the fall was dependent upon her grade point average this semester. While I felt sorry for her, I did not feel as though her reasons for missing the assignments afforded her any extension. I guess I’ve just turned into a mean professor in my old age. Syllabi are distributed at the beginning of the course with all assignments listed with their corresponding due dates. Follow the syllabus, do the work, and come to class….you’ll do just fine in my class! That’s all it takes!

This has been a semester for the history books….and that’s definitely where I’m planning to place it as soon as I can! Now I’m heading home to grade the final exams and post the scores so I can get on to a much needed vacation…..until summer term begins in a few weeks.  I’m just hoping for more focused students in that term!