Music Education for Teachers

About this course

In the Music Education for Teachers specialization, you will explore ways of integrating popular music into your teaching. You'll begin by learning from two highly experienced teachers, Krystal Banfield, the Vice President of Educational Outreach for Berklee College of Music, and David Alexis a Berklee Professor and long-time instructor for the Berklee City Music Program. They will take you through their process of incorporating popular music, improvisation, arranging, and music technology into the classroom while still fulfilling the common core learning standards. You'll continue with a deeper dive into these topics that will help you build your popular music curriculum. In Jazz Improvisation taught by Grammy-winning Gary Burton, you'll learn how to use improvisation as language and story-telling. You'll also learn how to use a variety of chord scales, modes, and improv techniques. Next, in Arranging for Songwriters taught by renown Berklee faculty Bonnie Hayes and Sarah Brindell, you'll learn how to create arrangements of songs. Finally, in The Art of Music Production, taught by producer Stephen Webber, you'll learn how to begin to record music in a meaningful, yet approachable way. This specialization will give you the tools you'll need to develop effective, relevant, and compelling lessons for your classroom, online learning space, or private lesson instruction.

Course objectives

• develop a popular music curriculum
• fulfill common core learning standards through music
• enhance student engagement with music education