Technology and Popular Music Methods in the K-12 Music Classroom
Making musical connections through popular and other contemporary styles of music can unlock students’ understanding of music fundamentals, provide avenues for deep listening and analysis, and provide direct connection to music creation, songwriting and performing. This course is exploratory, hands-on, and directly relevant to the challenges and opportunities faced by todays’ music educators, and provides an introduction to the tools and methods needed to effectively teach popular music in a k-12 setting. Students will gain proficiency on popular instruments such as ukulele, guitar, drums, bass, keyboards, vocals, and various technology tools, and examine key tenets of popular music pedagogy through the lens of student-centered learning. Through a combination of hands-on projects, collaborative work, and readings, students will learn to apply various teaching techniques for fostering active listening, songwriting, and performing.