Final Reflection

My service-learning project focused on the students enrolled in a music course I teach at the University of Kentucky. The aim was to help these individuals develop their music skills, particularly the area of ukulele performance. The three activities included performance and creation using introductory ukulele chords. Within these goals, I worked to make learning more accessible for students with specific needs, such as left-handed players or students with processing needs. Initially, I was concerned about the implementation of this project in my classroom. It did not feel like a service project, as I was applying these materials to a group of individuals with whom I already worked. I feel like I may be more engaged with this project if I ventured away from the university and worked with a group within the community.

I learned a lot about myself through the service-learning project. The task analysis within the three activities reminded me of creating lesson plans for my K–12 music classroom. This is a task I had not engaged with recently since I am teaching at the collegiate level. Lesson plans are not required here. The three activities were thoughtfully designed and well-organized. I was surprised to see how easily this skill came back to me. When I created resources to go with specific activities, the lessons seemed to work better. For example, in activity 1, I created a left-handed ukulele chord chart. I should have focused on creating resources like that for all three lessons. More supplemental materials would make the lessons better quality and more engaging. Examples of this would include creating play-along videos that demonstrated left-hand chords or instructional videos students could practice with at home. Overall, I feel my activities were well-designed but could use refinement and more supporting materials.

        One of my biggest strengths in this process was being responsive to my community partner. I obtained a large amount of feedback during activity 1 and was able to develop activity 2 more thoughtfully and easily. Activity 3 in the series received less feedback and felt a bit rushed. I am curious of how I could improve the third activity if given more time with it. I also learned through this process that I can be a responsive listener. Active listening is something I struggle with at time. I feel my brain wander and I focus more on what I will say in response rather than deeply listening. Several of the students in the class, particularly the individuals with self-described disabilities, mentioned that they felt seen, heard, and supported in this process. These words made me feel that this service-learning project was ultimately a success—I was able to support a target population effectively.

        I discovered many things about my community partner through this process. First, I thought they would not want to provide deep or critical feedback. I was surprised at how open the students were when describing what worked and what did not in the lessons. Also, I was surprised at how freely and openly the students with disabilities shared about their background. This occurred in one-on-one settings with me and with their classmates in a large group. Through this I was able to see that I had, in fact, created a safe environment for those students to share and speak openly. I learned to not make assumptions about the community partner’s interests, preferences, or responses. The progress of this project came from trying out an activity and the student providing feedback. As the project moved forward I discovered it was not for me, but rather for them. Their feedback and thoughtfulness helped me truly understand the purpose of service-learning.

        The service-learning project helped me discover gaps in my knowledge and skills. I can now honestly say that I am not as strong of a ukulele player as I thought. To expect certain outcomes from your students, you need to be able to demonstrate the skills, as well. The teacher needs to be able to have several different ways of instructing, describing, and fixing performance problems. Strong teachers must be strong musicians. The was an important realization for me, as it helped me discover how much I put my musicianship in the background. My PhD focus has been on instructing courses while reading and writing research. I was not focused on music performance, at all. This has given me the inspiration to get into daily music making and development of my musicianship. I hope to improve my skills on the ukulele as well as other performance mediums.

        This project changed my perception about the word “community.” The name “community partner” struck me as odd at the beginning of the project. I had a hard time envisioning my class as a community partner. Since they were on campus, it simply felt like a group of individuals I worked with and not a community. However, when I saw the students speak about their needs and work collaboratively in the lessons, my perceptions changed. Communities exist all over. They can be big or small. Communities are created through a communal space and personal connection. As the students move through the COVID-19 pandemic, I now realize the importance of building community. This is especially important as classes are fully in-person and we have survived the era of hybrid and online learning.

        The service-learning project concluded but I will take it with me in the future. The concept of helping the community around you is an important one. We must be reflective to look at the needs our communities and how we can best support them. This project centered around an on-campus population and one I worked with prior to the project. In the future, I would like to expand the population I am working with beyond the University of Kentucky. This class put me in connection with colleagues who are interested in service-learning in their disciplines. While we have not concretely developed a plan, we did discuss the idea of bringing music education and music therapy services directly to those without access to them. We discussed possible collaborations to make this happen. This plan is not fully developed, but the discussions have happened, and the seeds are planted. I am excited to see where this might go in the future. Service-learning is an important way of helping the community around you, especially when focused on fighting inequities and promoting access.

Now that MUS 664 is concluding, I can say confidently that I achieved the course objectives. I had over a decade of teaching experience before I took this course. During my K–12 teaching career, I gained much insight into concepts discussed in this class. The history and terms associated with special education were not new to me. Participating in this class allowed me to develop and extend previous knowledge, though. I truly believe that I have a deeper understanding of Understanding by Design, Social-Emotional Learning, and inclusive practices. The interweaving of these concepts in assignments like the discussion boards or the collaborative adaptive resource checks illustrate my comprehension of them.

After reviewing the 7 Service-Learning Goals, I feel that designing and implementing the project helped me achieve these objectives. Goal 4, expose you to various beliefs, ideas, and worldviews regarding disability, diversity, and inclusion within the community to facilitate understanding and appreciation of the need for justice, equity, and fairness for all community members, was the goal that resonated the most with me. I learned more about the students in my course, especially those with disabilities, through this project. I had made assumptions about different students’ learning needs, backgrounds, and abilities. Enacting the service-learning project and listening to their feedback provided me the opportunity to check and correct my assumptions. I will no longer rely on what I think I see or know, but rather investigate further and most importantly, listen. Goal 6, enhance your understanding of the process to identify and develop community partnerships as well as the various roles of participants involved in service learning and civic engagement, also emerged as a key goal in this project. The scope of my project was quite limited; I utilized an on-campus population with whom I had a prior connection. I want to enact future service-learning activities beyond the scope of the university. Designing this project helped me realize the logistical and scheduling challenges that might make that difficult. However, I believe overcoming these challenges and going out into the community will make service-learning deeply meaningful and beneficial to the surrounding area.

I conclude this service-learning project and MUS 664 Inclusive Music Principles and Practices with an overarching theme I discovered throughout my PhD program. Learning is a process. While this is my terminal degree, there is no terminal point to learning. There is always new information to discover and explore. More importantly, it is essential to always take that new knowledge, reflect upon it, and grow.