Posted by Doug Butchy on November 28, 2009
A while back, I posted a tweet on my Twitter after reading some posts by other educators who use Second Life. I immediately heard back from @msgregson…
…I was convinced right away. I really didn’t need that much convincing anyway, but it was just the push that I needed to give it a try. I had been seeing lots of folks in my PLN talking about SL and their educational experiences with it, and it sounded really interesting to me. So, I downloaded the software, created my avatar and started exploring.
So far, every person that I have met in SL has been incredibly helpful, encouraging, and kind. I am grateful to @msgregson for encouraging me to do it, and especially grateful to @ejulez for basically being my SL mentor!
I have only been on SL for a few weeks now, and every day I am pleasantly surprised with all of the opportunities that exist there. I know there is probably even more that I do
Me in Second Life as Cosmo Lanley
n’t even know about. I am excited about the possibilities for learning!
I think the most exciting part for me is that I get to meet new people almost every day. And, most of those people are other educators from around the world. It is so wonderful to sit in the comfort of my pj’s and slippers and have great conversations about education, attend a virtual conference or presentation, or just hang out and have fun playing games, or even dancing (something I rarely do in real life)!
A while back I wrote a post about how I thought Twitter was helping me to become a more social person. Second Life has fostered that growth even more. I have to admit that I was even a little shy about interacting with folks in Second Life at first, but now I say hello to everyone I meet without hesitation. And, part of the reason that I am so comfortable with that is because of the genuine kindness of everyone that I’ve met.
My SL mentor, Julie Sugarplum has written a great post about her experiences with Second Life, and I couldn’t agree more with her. Julie sums up one of the best things about SL to me, “The networking alone is something no one should want to pass up and in my opinion is a more effective method of networking than the real world (inexpensive, less time consuming and you can do it in your jammies and fuzzy slippers).” If you are an educator using Second Life in any way, or if you are interested in getting into it, please share your thoughts and comments! And, if you are already a SLer, please look me up!
Posted in Second Life, Social Networking, Technology | Tagged: education, PLN, Second Life, Technology | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Doug Butchy on February 22, 2009
So when I realized that my last post was OVER a month ago, I decided I had better write something. To tell the truth, a lot has been going on, I just haven’t had the time/motivation to write about it. So, I’ll see if I can go over what’s new:
1. Taking masters level lessons with my undergrad saxophone instuctor. I have been slowly working on getting my Master’s in Music Ed., but after taking a number of classes, I have been extremely unmotivated to even finish it. I think this is due mainly to the fact that I am doing my Masters at the same school I did my Undergrad at – Therefore, I feel like the classes that I’m taking are exactly the same stuff I did in Undergrad, just with more reading and writing of papers, which I can’t stand! So when I found out that I could take a lesson as an elective and it would still count towards the MusEd Masters, I decided to go for it. My teacher is Jim Umble, easily one of the 10 best in the world. Anyway, I have been loving studying with him again, and now am even considering changing my Masters to a Performance degree. Stay tuned for an update on that! I had been longing to really study music “seriously” again. What I mean is that I have longed to work on the saxophone again at a level that really challenged me. I have been playing consistently even since I finished my undergrad 7 years ago, but have not really “practiced” much since then. It has been great to get “back on the horse.”
2. Renewed energy for teaching in my current position. I’ll be the first to admit that I have been less than enthusiastic about my job, or at least where I am, for most of this school year. However, after a few happenings lately, I have been more energetic and encouraged. I have had the opportunity to work with some of the other teachers in the building who are really dedicated and who a really great teachers, and they have really invigorated me! I have also found that since beginning the work on my instrument again, my mindset about teaching has changed slightly for the better. I don’t know if I can put my finger on it, but I feel like I am expecting more from my students, and I am getting better results.
3. Considering major changes to our music programs’ curriculum and scheduling. I am hoping to drop our 4th grade band program in an effort to give more time and attention to the 5th & 6th grade students. I feel this will lead to greater interest and better retention in the program. I teach in three elementary buildings in addition to the middle-high school, and right now, I only see the elementary students once a week for 30 minutes. It is just not enough time to have a solid program…it has not worked in the 5 years I have been here. I also hope to get my senior high concert band scheduled at a different time than our choir, so that I can have the whole band in one period and 5 days a week. (I don’t have either right now. – This makes it difficult to work on more advanced concepts like blend and balance.)
So, that is the quick update…I hope to be more productive on the blog in the near future. In the meantime, you can always follow me on Twitter. That is where I have been doing the majority of my “blogging” lately.
Posted in Blogging, Concert Band, Elementary Band, Senior High, Social Networking, Technology, practicing, retention, teaching techniques | 2 Comments »
Posted by Doug Butchy on January 2, 2009
Dr. Joe Pisano over at MusTech.net has officially posted the 100 ME Blogger list. I have reprinted it below, but be sure to visit MusTech.net for further explanation and info. Congratulations to all of the bloggers on the list! Check them out today!
THE OFFICIAL LIST OF THE 100 MUSIC EDUCATION BLOGGER CAMPAIGN 2008-2009:
- http://www.mustech.net
Dr. Joseph M. Pisano- MusTech.net
- http://digitalmusiceducator.wordpress.com
Owen Bradley -The Digital Music Educator
- http://etobiasblog.musiced.net
Evan Tobias- Catalysts & Connections
- http://musiced.about.com/
Espie Estrella -About Music Education
- http://jamesfrankel.musiced.net/
Dr. James Frankel- Music Technology in Education
- http://weblog.siba.fi/msalavuo
Dr. Miikka Salavuo- Music Education, Technology & Social Media
- http://pwhitfield.edublogs.org
Pete Whitfield- e-Learning for Music
- http://www.musicedmagic.com
Chad Criswell- Music Ed. Magic
- http://jsavage.org.uk/
Dr. Jonathan Savage- Jonathan Savage
- http://musictechforme.com/
V. Keith Mason- Music Tech. for Me.
- http://tjweller.wordpress.com
Travis J. Weller- Composing Like Mad
- http://mystro2b.edublogs.org/
Ken Pendergrass- Music is Not for Insects
- http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/
Joel- So You Want to Teach
- http://stengel99.wordpress.com/
Steve Engel- Music Ed. Lounge
- http://fsharpbflat.wordpress.com/
Linda Granite- Bb, F#
- http://doublebassblog.org
Jason Heath- Double Bass Blog
- http://musicisfree.ning.com/
Robert Brannan- The Music is Free
- http://dvzmix.wordpress.com/
Deborah Valdivia-Zwolinski- DVZ’s Mix
- http://choirteachers.blogspot.com/
Kyle Gardner- Choir Teachers
- http://www.pauldraper.org
Paul Draper- Draper’s Blogspot
- http://johnwilborn.wordpress.com
John Wilborn- John Wilborn’s Weblog
- http://iknowithink.blogspot.com
Leo Park- I Know…I Think
- http://gluedtothestring.blogspot.com
Stan Haskins- Glued to the String
- http://musicedtech.wordpress.com
Barbara Freedman- Music Ed. Tech.
- http://tomrudolph.berkleemusicblogs.com
Dr. Tom Rudolph- Make the Most of Notation Software
- http://teachingthewirechoir.com/
Dale Lewis- Teaching the “Wire Choir”
- http://docandry.edublogs.org
Dr. Kevin Andry-Dr. Andry’s Band Blog
- http://sperham.wordpress.com
Steffany Perham- Perham’s Prattlings
- http://alexruthmann.com
Alex Ruthmann- Alex Ruthmann’s Blog
- http://www.beatechie.com/
Carol Broos- Be A Techie:)
- http://musicanthology.org
Geejay Arrioloa and Jeffrey Langlois -Music Anthology
- http://southiowamusiced.blogspot.com/
Michael Compton -Southern Iowa Music Education Network
- http://qachsband.edublogs.org/
Eric Wright- QACHS’s Band Blog
- http://alleyjazz13.wordpress.com/
Alison Hulihan- Marching Music
- http://rogerwhaley.blogspot.com
Roger Whaley -The BandEd ToolShed
- http://mgrondin.edublogs.org
Martha Grondin-Artful, Tuneful, Beatful
- http://percussioneducationonline.com
Kevin Tuck -Percussion Education Online
- http://www.musicteachersblog.com
Janice Tuck -The Music Teacher’s Blog
- http://bnceducation.blogspot.com
Steve Raybould, Kriston Feldpausch -Band and Chorus PMS/PJHS
- http://musicedshare.wordpress.com
Kyle Krstolic -Music Education Share
- http://musicedforall.blogspot.com
Dan Leeman -Music Education for All
- http://amymburns.musiced.net
Amy Burns -Elementary Music/Music Technology
- http://www.music.erinnwrobel.com
Erinn Wrobel – Notes From The Mitten
- http://dougbutchy.wordpress.com
Doug Butchy – Confessions of a Band Director
- http://studiobeemusic.com/mutech
Rich Blenkinsopp – Studiobee Music
- http://musicmiddleschoolandweb20.blogspot.com/
Susan Hurst – Music, Middle School and Web 2.0
- http://www.kirki.co.uk
Dr. Phil Kirkman -Music Education and Technology Blog
- http://tufsdblogs.org/winze
Ann Winze- WI Orchestra
- http://thirddivision.org
David DeVoto – Third Division
- http://collaborativepiano.blogspot.com
Dr. Chris Foley – The Collaborative Piano Blog
- http://bandguys.wordpress.com
Matthew Pelandina and Mike Lewis – The BandGuys’ blog
- http://tanbur.wordpress.com
David French -The Music Education Blogspot
- http://musicteachers911.blogspot.com
Larry Marra -Music Teachers 911
- http://www.pianoteacherblog.com
Rebecca Brown -Piano Teacher’s Retreat
- http://wordtogo.wordpress.com
Steve Mugglin -Creativity and Songwriting in Music Education
- http://totalmusiceducation.blogspot.com
Greg Albing -Total Music Education
- http://teachingmusicbs.com
Ben Baker -Teaching Music
- http://susanadavis.blogspot.com/
Susan Davis -Music Technology Musings
- http://www.howtopractise.com (yes it’s a “s”, it’s an English spelling)
Mike Saville – How To Practise
- http://www.free2create.com/blog
Valerie Kampmeier – Free 2 Create
- http://musicmattersblog.com
Natalie Wickham – Music Matters Blog
- http://theresawhite.edublogs.org
Theresa White – Education In Music
- http://africlassical.blogspot.com
William Zick – Africlassical
- http://discoverlearnplay.blogspot.com
Eugene Cantera – Discover, Learn, Play (MusickED.com’s Blog)
- http://mstrismusic.com
Ms. Tris – MsTrisMusic.com
- http://www.learn-theory-music.com/learn-theory-music-blog.html
Julian Partridge – Learn Theory Music Blog
- http://www.guitarticles.net
Tennyson Williams – Guitar Articles.Net
- http://creativekidmusic.wordpress.com
Dan Thompson -Creative Kid Music
- http://educacionmusical.blogspot.com
Oscar – Educacion Musical – Music Education (Our first, in Spanish, ME Blog!)
- http://rizzrazz.vox.com/
Dr. Eric Rasmussen – Rizz’s Blog
- http://reband.wordpress.com
Mr. ReBand
- http://www.techtempo.com
Brenda Muench – Tech. Tempo
- http://www.thomasjwestmusic.com/blog.htm
Thomas J. West
- http://musictech4ed.edublogs.org
Andrew Spang -MusicTech4Ed
- Click this link. (A very log blog URL…)
Jon Ensminger -Pedaplus
- http://techtoysandtunes.blogspot.com
Richard McCready – Tech Toys and Tunes
- http://downpressup.wordpress.com
Derek -Downpressup
- http://listenlearnmusic.com
Rachel Rambach – Listen and Learn
- http://jazzworks.wordpress.com
Allan Perkins – Jazz Works
- http://msgallant.edublogs.org
Alexandra Gallant – The Misadventures of a First Year Music Teacher
- http://www.acousticpath.com/blog
Cameron Grant – Acoustic Path
- http://musicteachercafe.viviti.com/
Scott Ashby – Music Teacher’s Cafe
- http://www.frogstoryrecords.com/player_journal.html
Stever Carter – Frog Story Records/Player’s Journal
- http://thirdstream.musiced.net
Cary Stewart – Third-Stream Music Education
- http://michiganstatepianopedagogy.blogspot.com
Derek Polischuk – Michigan State Piano Pedagogy
- http://fromthevoiceof.blogspot.com
Elizabeth McDonald -From the Voice of…
- http://urbanmusiceducation.org
Sarah Johnston -Urban Music Education
- http://musiced.jasoncrews.net/
Jason Crews – Music Education Resource Blog
- http://www.classicalguitarblog.net
Christopher – Classical Guitar Blog
- http://willie42.globalteacher.org.au/
Andrew- Split Three Ways
- http://mjsheetmusictips.blogspot.com/
Marilyn Johnson – MJ’s Music Teaching Tips
- http://www.musicteachershelper.com/blog/
Brandon Pearce – Music Teacher’s Helper Blog
- http://jeane-metroyo.blogspot.com
Jeane Goforth – Scrollworks and Metropolitian Youth Orchestras
- http://www.oparp.blogspot.com
Dr. Robert Phillips – The Opinionated Arpgeggist
- http://www.wikyblog.com/CynthiaWunsch
Cynthia Wunsch – The Unlikely Entrepreneur (Click the Blog Tab)
- http://mineoladrama.blogspot.com
Joe Owens – MHS Theater
- http://andyzweibel.com
Andy Zweibel – Music Musings and Other Randoms…
- http://musicschoolsbc.blogspot.com/
Stephen Robb – Music Schools BC
- http://paulbailey.us
Paul Bailey – Paul Bailey’s Blog
- http://edubuzz.org/blogs/alancoady/
Alan Coady – Alan Coady’s Musical Blog
Posted in Blogging, Social Networking | Tagged: Joe Pisano Music Ed Blogging | 2 Comments »
I am the quiet observer type. But, I have found that using social media outlets, especially Twitter, has made it much easier for me to communicate with my colleagues, and especially people that I am just meeting for the first time. I find it easier to have meaningful discussions with new acquaintances.