Introduction
For my Fall 2025 practicum in EDUC 450/486, I have been working with Rocky Mountain High School’s “Summit Winds” band and their director, Mr. Logan Doddridge. Being placed at RMHS this fall has been especially beneficial because my secondary student teaching placement is at Rocky this spring. This has allowed me to begin developing relationships with the students and faculty before my student teaching starts. Throughout the semester, I have taught sectionals, warm-up activities, and full-ensemble rehearsals. Both the teaching experience and student rapport will be strengths that I carry forward into student teaching at RMHS.
During lecture time, we have had guest presentations from administration, counselors, and teachers on a variety of important topics including AI in education, IEP and 504 plans, and campus security. Additionally, I have discussed pertinent matters in education with peers in music and from other content areas, which have helped me gain a more holistic understanding of education at the high school level.
Standard 1: Demonstrates Mastery of and Pedagogical Expertise in Content.
Artifact 1: RMHS Summit Winds Lesson Plan
To write effective lesson plans in music, teachers must have strong individual musicianship and pedagogical knowledge. Individual musicianship helps teachers choose which musical concepts and skills students should learn, and pedagogical knowledge allows them to teach those concepts and skills.
Artifact 2: Teacher-Centered Outside Hours Reflection
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1I0D39oEec76atPMSY5yk4Hgh7t0_V70dcVGhcI0DhL4/edit?usp=sharing
This summer, I attended the Colorado Bandmasters’ Association convention in Lakewood, a tremendous professional development opportunity. Great teachers do not only have a strong background of pedagogical knowledge, but actively seek to grow further by attending professional development.
Standard 2: Establishes a safe, inclusive, and respectable learning environment for a diverse population of students.
Artifact 1: Setting and Context Narrative
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KKvdvuGKzEA_tE5DG3HJI3bsX_ysUVk2Y1wnJkALvck/edit?usp=share_link
Understanding a school setting as a whole, including teachers, student population, and surrounding community, is a prerequisite to creating a safe, inclusive, and respectable learning environment. In this assignment, I compiled pertinent information about RMHS as a context for the students that I teach during 450.
Artifact 2: Sample Course Syllabus
Once teachers understand the broader school setting and context, they can create the policies, procedures, and environment of their own classroom. Often, the course syllabus is the backbone of structuring a class. In music, this is often accompanied or supplanted by a program-wide policy handbook.
Standard 3: Plans and delivers effective instruction and creates an environment that facilitates learning for students.
Artifact 1: Student-Centered Outside Hours Reflection
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aw-v9VsnCOeq3ZPlx5al4pmOdYAh8ZTnKNnOVZVj4fU/edit?usp=share_link
A structured environment facilitates learning and begets effective instruction. The RMHS band program has robust structures both inside and outside class, as I saw both in practicum and at the football game on September 19. Similar to the clear in class, the process for choosing what and when the band should play at football games sets the students up for success.
Artifact 2: “Making Thinking Visible” Presentation
Effective instruction involves as little teacher talk as possible. Students do not learn from what they hear; rather, they learn from what they do. This presentation is a demonstration of a teaching technique called “Chalk Talk” from Making Thinking Visible, where students co-create ideas and responses to several prompts in groups.
Standard 4: Demonstrates professionalism through ethical conduct, reflection and leadership
Artifact 1: Fall 2025 Resume
Resumes demonstrate professionalism and the “stat line” of leadership and work for a professional in any field. In teaching, a resume can also reflect ethical conduct through the longevity and investment in each teaching job. In my career, I hope to show continued investment in one school – this is how the best music teachers build the finest music programs.
Artifact 2: Interdisciplinary Project Presentation
Leadership in education often takes the form of collaborations between teachers. In 450 Lecture, I collaborated with colleagues in art, history, and FCS to create a multidisciplinary unit about the Harlem Renaissance. In my teaching career, I look forward to cross-department collaborations. For example, a band class could collaborate with a graphic design class to create concert programs and posters!
Professional Teaching Dispositions
What two dispositional areas do you feel very comfortable with and why?
- Professional Behaviors: I am consistently on-time or early to all my classes, practicums, rehearsals, and other engagements. I also dress and communicate professionally with teachers, students, and colleagues.
- Ethical Behavior and Integrity: I constantly strive to uphold the highest standards of personal and professional integrity. This applies primarily to my positive, but professional, rapport with students, but also to honesty and confidentiality, and modeling professionalism for students and peers.
What is one dispositional area you want to focus on during your student teaching semester?
- Tact and Judgement: I sometimes struggle in social situations, including in the professional sphere. This can manifest as a lack of sensitivity to others’ feelings and opinions, which I have particularly noticed during EDUC 450 class discussions where I disagree with a colleague. I will continue to work on awareness of my body language and verbal tone when I encounter these situations.
Any other thoughts about professional dispositions related to you being a successful educator?
I feel confident with my dispositions. I have a strong awareness of my strengths and weaknesses, and have room to grow in all areas. Being in schools full-time during my student teaching will help me further develop these skills.