Curriculum & Instruction

By Lewis H. Strouse, D.A., Former District #1 C/I Chair

C/I Representatives
District 1 Professional Development Seminar
College and University Connection
Call for Workshop Presenters
MENC & PMEA Resources

Is your professional practice "state of the art", "world class"? Are your students on the receiving end of best practices in music education? Your District #1 Curriculum & Instruction Group (C/I Group) exists as a resource that enables you to offer a first class music education to all of your students. We are here to make certain that you are not isolated in your professional practice. We are here to enable you to offer the best music education possible, in content and instruction, to your students.

Your C/I Group is actively involved with assisting music educators to resolve issues concerning their professional practice. And, if we cannot help you personally, we will put you in touch with people and resources that can, and we will follow-up. Don't go it alone! Whether you have one concern or a list of concerns, contact your respective C/I representative, see below, for assistance in resolving the issues.

top

Elementary	High School
Ron DePascale David E. Williams MS Porters Hollow Road Coraopolis, PA 15108 (S) 412-771-8802 depascaler@mail.montourschools.com	Mairi Thompson Fox Chapel Area HS 611 Field Club Road Pittsburgh, PA 15238 (S) 412-967-2400, ext. 1936 Mairi_Thompson@fcasd.edu
Junior High/Middle & C/I Chair	Higher Ed
Ben Cook Elizabeth Forward MS 401 Rock Run Road Elizabeth, PA 15037 (S)412-896-2300, ext. 7740 bcook@efsd.net	Lewis Strouse Carnegie Mellon University School of Music 5000 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh PA 15213 (S) 412-268-1432 (H) 412-563-2079 strouse@andrew.cmu.edu

top

Fall Workshop Information

PMEA District 1 Curriculum and Instruction
presents the
Fall Professional Development Workshops

Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Carnegie Mellon University � University Center Building

(Reserve parking at the East Campus Garage. See registration form.)

Registration: 8:30 am � 9:00 am
Sessions: 9:00 am � 3:00 pm

Cost: Free to PMEA and PCMEA Members
Non-members: $10.00, Collegiate: $5.00
On-campus parking: $8.00

top

College & University Connection

The C/I Group is always looking for ways to strengthen K-12 connections with the colleges and universities inside the district. In an effort to share best practices and socialize pre-service music education students into the profession, the district invites music ed students to attend all PMEA workshops and conferences. Many students do attend, and their workshop evaluations always include comments about how motivating and informing it is to share in professional experiences with in-service faculty.

College/university faculty and students are eager to establish relationships with K-12 schools for the benefit of all involved. In some cases, school districts offer professional development credit to faculty involved with college/university projects.

Some connections between district schools and college/university students and faculty have included the following:

Music ed majors give demonstration lessons in elementary & middle schools to fulfill college methods course requirements
Music ed majors 'apprentice' to K-12 faculty a couple hours each month in order to learn about the routine matters of managing a school music program and working with students
K-12 faculty work with college/university faculty on action research projects to solve instructional problems
Music ed majors assist secondary schools with ensemble auditions
K-12 schools host student teachers
Middle and high school faculty serve as mentors for pre-student teaching "guided teaching" field experiences
College/university faculty rehearse groups in preparation for upcoming adjudication
Music ed majors assist with sectionals or full rehearsals

It is important for us to broaden music ed students' preparation by offering them as many opportunities as possible for working with K-12 faculty and students. To offer opportunities for music ed students to work with you, and/or to collaborate with college/university faculty on special projects, contact the college or university of your choice, or any of the C/I reps listed above.

top

Call for Workshop Presenters

As a supervisor of student teachers, I observe the many excellent educational practices of our K-12 in-service faculty. I also consider these experiences to be a part of my professional development as a teacher educator. Please consider sharing your experience, expertise, insight, and ideas as a District #1 workshop presenter. Presenters can share their work in various ways: individual presentations, as part of a small group presentation, or being a member of a panel. Contact your respective C/I rep and become involved as a presenter!

top

MENC & PMEA Resources

Check out the information on the MENC (http://www.menc.org) and PMEA (http://www.pmea.net) homepages. These pages contain many topics and links; too many to list here, but here is a sampling of what is available:

MENC: Journal archives, information on careers in music, teacher resources on various topics, discussion boards in various areas, Job Lists.

PMEA: Selective Music Lists (Graded), PMEA's model curriculum, "So You Want To Be A Music Major", links to all district web sites, popular links to various music topics, link to PCMEA activity, Job Lists.

There is a wealth of people and material resources available to us as members of MENC/PMEA/PCMEA. The resources are there to enable all of our programs to be "world class" and "state of the art". Take full advantage of these resources and allow your professional organization to work for you.

top