Philosophy

Joseph Granzow’s Philosophy of Music Education

Music for my students, as it was for me, is a vehicle for raising self-esteem, discipline, socialization, teamwork, problem solving, and responsibility.  I believe each of these qualities play a paramount role in a successful, active learner, while improving cognitive skills.

Performances are a major component of any school program. With a solid music foundation to back up the talent, the quality of the ensembles improve.  In order to train our students to be musicians of tomorrow, they must be encouraged to do more than just performing on their main instrument or voice. Students need to listen, read, and write about music, whether they are active participants or in the audience.  The ultimate goal is to produce music lovers.

In addition to performing, students should be offered a variety of activities that support student learning.  Projects such as making music videos, which allow students to integrate technology through video and sound editing,  can highlight the talents of individuals while collaborating with others. Presentations that encourage students to investigate music from around the world, while finding links in the music of different cultures help to draw connections to music from previous experiences.  Technology should be used to gather evidence for student portfolios and aid in archiving student progress.  Students are expected to advance in music theory to strengthen their music foundation, which in return creates better musicians and stronger ensembles.

Imparting a spirit of altruism in young people should also be a goal of an educator. This can be accomplished by providing opportunities for service learning.  It has been my privilege to experience this with students in a variety of activities, including in hospitals and orphanages.  Students share not only their musical talents, but learn empathy and compassion for others.

A measure of a teacher is the success of their students.  My former students have gone on to become music educators, performers on Broadway, composers, artistic directors, and as members of various bands and choirs, whether community or professional.  Other student accomplishments are acceptances at AMIS Festivals, concert soloists, and winners of local talent competitions.

A personal goal I have is to continue improving my own teaching as well as bettering my musical talents, through participation in local choirs and the practicing of the piano, voice, and other instruments.  I regularly attend choral conventions, IBO sponsored workshops, and am working on becoming a Google Apps educator to strengthen my technological skills.  I pride myself as being a lifelong learner.

My primary goal as a music educator has been to excite and stimulate my students’ musical promise as a means to excite and stimulate their learning in all areas of their lives. Teaching internationally has allowed me to learn from students of many different cultures and to share my experiences with them.