An Introduction

Welcome!

My name is Katie Dickerson. I’m a first time blogger, long time nerd/flute player, and fourth year student at the University of North Texas, finishing up my degree in instrumental music education.  This blog is here to talk about my first forays into the music classroom, the larger world of education around it, and my personal development into the teacher I’d like to be.

The first question that must be answered is, why teach at all in the first place? My personal reasons stem from the experiences I had with a few excellent band directors in my school years, both in middle school and high school. The environment they created for their students was welcoming, encouraging, and a veritable safe haven from the hectic atmosphere of the rest of the school. During my time under these teachers’ instruction, I gained so much; discipline, humility, work ethic, and being open to criticism, in order to grow as a player and a person. Not to mention the friends made during that time, which eased the transitions between schools, and formed the positive core of my school experience. I was extremely lucky to have that, and not many from my home state of Idaho can say the same. As I got older, I realized my passion and aptitude for music, and more specifically, music teaching. I gradually came to the realization that I should do my best to give back, and give the next generation of students an experience of music learning as good, or even better to what I received. In addition, I should push as hard as I can to give every student possible that opportunity, especially those in the rural districts that wouldn’t have been able to before. So now, I hope to learn as much as I can from the strong music programs in Texas, and see what I might eventually be able to bring back to help out in the schools back home.

The second question is a matter of details. My goals have fluctuated over time, but as I’ve gotten more experienced with working with kids, I’ve found myself more and more drawn to eventually teaching middle school band. I know, insert gasp of disbelief here. However, I personally think the vast majority of middle school students have gotten an unnecessarily bad rap. Yes, they are certainly not as mature as adults yet.  Yes, of course they can be a difficult group to work with sometimes, but they need adults that care in their lives. With all the difficulties this age group faces, especially now in the age of social media, having a class such as band where they are taught discipline and work ethic while also being encouraged to express themselves creatively can only be a good thing. The students I’ve had the pleasure of working with so far can be energetic and tricky to keep on task, but the boundless enthusiasm they bring to learning their instruments and playing with others more than makes up for it. As far as the other details go, I’m not too fussy. Whatever the district size or wherever it’s located, I’m sure there’ll be plenty of opportunities to make a positive impact.