Final Blog!!

Hi, everyone! I hope everyone is well? This was a hectic week, with tasks and tests. But luckily I can start seeing the end. Just two more weeks of hard work and this year will be done.

QUESTIONS:

Please share your story as an LSKM 221 student by comparing your knowledge, skills, experiences, abilities and attitude towards music education from the start of the semester to the end of the semester.

I always enjoyed doing music lessons with the little ones I work with, and with the Gr Rs, music is very much integrated during their lessons. Music is a big part of learning and teaching in my class. But I feel I did not have the confidence or knowledge of teaching music for higher grades. This module definitely equipped me to give music lesson for higher grades. I feel this module gave me the confidence to give a music lesson and taught me so more about benefits and integrating of music in your classroom.

What was your experience of the role of individual reflection as part of the teaching and learning process? Use the following prompts to reflect on your blogging experience and the role that individual reflection played (or not) in your teaching and learning experience this semester:

• What did you learn from your individual reflections?

I feel the individual reflections did help to reflect more on the outcomes of the study unit. I personally would rather do tests than reflections, because it is more time consuming. I am also already working with children for more than 20 years, so I think my experience do help me understand the work and certain concepts I already have been doing for years. I am a working mum and wife running a household so my time is spare. I understand the benefits of these reflections, but I would rather have done tests. The study units was well organized and written with wonderful examples and ideas. So it was easy to work through and get the learning outcomes of the study units.

• What did you find challenging?

I found time management a bit of a challenge as the reflections and forums did take some time to write if you really want to reflect on a study unit . But I feel I over come that challenge and learned how to manage my time by planning ahead, when I am going to do what in the time I have available. Unfortunately Eskom do not always work on my schedule.

• Did you find the individual reflections meaningful? Please motivate your answer.

Like I did mention previously I personally did not found it so meaningful, but I do understand for young students or contact students with no classroom experience the benefits from the reflections. The lector did put a lot of effort into the study units and gave plenty of resources for me to understand the work without needing to write a reflection.

• What would you change if you had the opportunity in future?

I not a person who looks back with regret and try to see everything in life as a reason to improve or better yourself. I think everything in this module did help me become a better teacher and was worth the effort.

Please share what you would change in the LSKM221 module if you had the opportunity. The following prompts can guide your reflection:

• What did you find interesting and meaningful?

The whole modules work was interesting and meaningful to give me the ways and means of teaching music in higher grades. The module also gave wonderful ideas and resources of integrating music in the classroom into other subjects.

• What challenged you, and what do you still struggle to understand?

I didn't find anything challenging as I feel that the content wasn't difficult and it was explained in great detail so it was easy to understand.

What didn’t you find valuable for your future teaching practice?

I didn't really find the group assignment valuable for my teaching. It is frustrating to delegate and plan an assignment with students who have different time schedules and lifes. I work every day with all different personalities colleges and we make it work ,by respecting what each and everyone bring to the table. But working on group assignments is just frustrating as you don’t really know each other or some students might have different work ethic than yourself.

All in all, I enjoyed LSKM 221 a lot more than I thought I would.  I further feel that I learnt a great deal more than I thought I would.  

So that is the end of this module.

Best wishes to everyone.

Esme.​​​​​​​