How I turned a closing course around & expanded it into more classes & courses
Firstly I should say that I believe there’s usually a way, I just have to find it. I start there on most things and that’s where I began here. After that, here’s where I went:
Why: I asked both myself & my colleagues why this course was failing. Did I think the ultimate problem was too much structure, or too much flow? Structure holds flow & I needed to design a course that had the right amount of both.
Engagement: I focused less on why students weren’t engaged/engaging, & more on what they found engaging.
Inclusion: I wanted to design a class where different learners could be accommodated - less to improve attendance (although that was a forefront concern) but more to show the students that all experiences are valid & all have some sort of way forward. This mainly took the shape of designing ‘hacks’ and shortcuts (see my other post here) For example, a student and I designed a specialised & elaborate graphic notation system that we both understood & could work from; they composed & performed to top professional level, but couldn’t read/write music, so we agreed on this way of communicating between their idea & my understanding so we could perform/record together, & then transcribe the music. We had lots of fun.
A bigger end goal: e.g’ Yes, you need to submit this to be examined, but you can also release it with your other compositions/songs as an EP, I can show you how to do that; you’ll need a portfolio when you leave here anyway if you want to go into the professional sphere, & if you don’t it’s just nice to have a lovely piece of art in the world (…you can always take it down!).’ I’ve found sometimes a bigger more personalised goal can be really effective.
Housekeeping: I set housekeeping up early & was consistent. Some bits, I think, were fun: e.g. I banned ‘I like it/it’s nice etc., & insisted they used musical terms - it became fun spotting when someone slipped. Some bits of housekeeping were not so fun: e.g. constant reminder of deadlines to focus us, which I had to keep on top of.
Create a ‘container’: What I mean by this is a safe contained ‘space’ so each student could speak & share their work. In all honesty, I spent, and still do spend, the bulk of my time building & policing this sort of ‘emotional environment’, showing students how & why to handle difficult conversations when they arise, & how to offer constructive feedback - it takes around half a term for me to get the sense we’re there. Just like with the submissions, I explained the bigger ‘end goals’ of behaviour patterns, e.g. ‘In the professional sphere you’d need to phrase it like ‘x’ because of’ y’. My part in this is to show up consistently, & if I can’t to state why.
Listening: Most people want to be listened to & just heard, & I find students are no exception, so I aimed to create an environment where that happened. I asked/(ask) each person how they are at the beginning of the session (which took about 5 minutes as I did the register). I was staggered to discover that apparently there aren’y many of us that do this (?)
Laugh: Once I can sensed there was a basic level of mutual respect between us, a little humour about ‘a thing’ (not ever the student… or yourself!) got peppered in, e.g. ‘Now we’ve covered serialism, shall we write some serialist funk?’
Seating : depending on the class type, subject, & how the room’s laid out, at times I sat amongst the students in discussion to make the point that it’s our ideas that are the most important things in the room.
The long game: I didn’t think it was going to be a quick fix, if I could fix it at all, & committed to it demanding extra time & thought.
Do it to teach it: This is another one of Diana Burrell’s words of wisdom to me: you have to be doing it to teach it. I’ve found it makes me more relatable, humanises me, & is a ‘safe share’ i.e. not about your personal life.
De-personalise: I acknowledged that whatever course I built & I just wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, & neither would I.