Web Evaluation: Music Tech Teacher

1. Name of Website: Music Tech Teacher
   

2. Web Site Address: www.musictechteacher.com
   

3. Copyright date and/or last update: © 2002-2007 Music Tech Teacher
   

4. Author/organization Credentials: Created by Ms. K Garret, music technology teacher at Central Park School in Birmingham Alabama. This site was created as an extension of her teaching but is free to all who wish to use it. This site is used in teaching 2^nd -5^th graders in the areas of music theory, composition, history, and general music.
   

5. Web site design and ease of navigation: On a scale of 1 – 10 (1 being the lowest ease of use and 10 being the highest) I would give this site a 9. I would have two small critiques for ease of navigation. First is that it has so many resources you could spend all of your time looking for the “perfect” quiz or lesson! However, I would trade the effort that it takes for all of the incredible resources for an elementary teacher. Second, it is clear that much of the website is geared directly for the teacher and much of it for the student. I would like to see the designer design in such a way that students could easily go to this site and get to the quizzes and lessons that are appropriate for them. I could see how students could be confused as to where to go.
   
   My favorite page is the “Quizzes, Games, Music Help” page. This page has many well done quizzes and fun informational games that encourage learning and are helpful at checking learning progress. My favorite game, not that I took time to play them all, is “Half Step Time”. This game works on identifying half-steps in the chromatic scale with the goal of making your animated teacher walk the plank! This is a very funny game and helps kids work on this skill. A very helpful feature on this page is the “Software Icon Key” at the bottom of the page. This helps you weed through games and quizzes that you can’t use because you don’t have the proper software. Most software is readily available and easy to install, however, with all the locks that schools put on their computers (especially labs) you could run into problems with the various software.
   
   The only problem I ran into was running the “Sibelius” software. While there is a free Active X program available for download and installation, my computer froze up in attempting to install this particular software. In most cases, the web designer offered an alternative way of seeing the file needed through Adobe Acrobat but I would like to see if Sibelius offered more features that would be helpful for instruction.
   

6. My response and recommendation for use: I LOVE this website for elementary music use! I would recommend that elementary music teachers use this site as both a resource for instruction and a model for an innovative way to set up a music technology laboratory.
   
   In the area of instruction, I would use this site both as reward for students who are behaving well in class. Letting children “play” on the computer while learning is a great way to increase comprehension. I watched my 4^th grade daughter play last night for one hour on a website that was teaching her math facts. The games are innovative and help with memory. I would also use the quizzes to check learning at the end of teaching sections. For example, after teaching on the history of Mozart, I would test the students by having them take the corresponding quiz. There are also worksheets available for download that would save an elementary music teacher prep time.
   
   In the area of using this website as a model, I know that the setup that Ms. Garret has is not possible in all schools. However, I would hope all teachers would use her site as a model of “thinking outside the box” and being innovative and creative in classroom teaching.
   
   Finally, I love the section where students can post their own compositions. This encourages musical creativity in the students, get’s the parents involved and excited by letting them listen to their student’s creation, and builds up the students confidence by having their music “published” just like real artists. It serves as a sort of “virtual refrigerator” for musicians. When my sons or daughters bring home good papers in English and Math, we post them on our refrigerator. With this site, you have it posted on the internet to share with family and friends. This would be easy to do in any AISD classroom with the simple use of “Finale” software, MIDI technology, and use of the “Blackboard” website through amaisd.org.