 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 1999-03-09 05:24
Talented mathematician think out new things from nothing.Is it called Serendipity? Maybe they use the right part of brain cortex not the left.This is same with music playing or composing.If we start or continue to play music after 60s,70s,whatever,it will help our brains stay active.
Here is an interesting site to take a look:
http://www.maa.org/reviews/emblems.html
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Author: mommaq
Date: 1999-03-10 03:23
Now I pose this question to you...
Will continuing to be in band and taking lessons help the student who is saddled with 'block scheduling' in high school. Block scheduling here means classes of 80 minutes in length blocks...roughly 4 per semester. It is akin to taking college scheduling in high school...less classes to focus on in a semester, but when a year is done, more total.
With this option in our school, however, one may be scheduled to take math the Fall 1 semester, not take it Spring 1, F2, but finally take the next math course in S2, leaving a whole year between math courses. Doesn't the brain rust up, not taking math for a whole year? And what effects does the music from band or orchestra have on the student stuck with such a schedule? I would wager some benefits, wouldn't you? And why does a district do such terrible things to the students? Does it really happen this way in college, or is this a line they are trying to sell us?
mommaq
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 1999-03-10 05:58
I had graduated from a high school and entered a Japanese "National" university and graduated from its engineering department(faculty of engineering department).
Since the university entrance exam is called in Japan 'Hell Exam', every candidate have to study at least 3 - 5 hours after school!This was really a tragedy!I had to find a small practice time besides these hours.
(Taking vacation was literally impossible.)
Like music,mathematics(although it is quite elementary level at high schools) needs very much practice and to acuire some kind of tricks to solve problems.It would be out of the question for me to concentrate for some time on it ,forget it,and after a long period to take exams.Besides this my National university required far difficult(not higher) level mathematics than the levels given in ordinary high school exams,it did not matter what the mathematics teacher taught me.I had to choose more difficult sourses.And the university conducted a primary exam(7 subjects) and a secondary exam(3 subjects)!!!
Unlike U.S.,Japanese universities are known to foreign people very comfortable after passing entrance exams.But unfortunately my university had another entrance exam during 2 years' general education period to select a course,such as mechanical engineering,civil and architectual engineering,mathematics,physics,astronomy,...
Each one can forward to the department he needs only when he has required average marks.It was a second Hell!
In summary,my misery level was Grade one!
Yes,grown-ups sometimes impose unreasonable things on younger people not only in your country but also in my country.
In my case,reading favorite books,listening and practicing music, and to solve hobby mathematics problems(!) saved my sanity during these hell periods.
FYI
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Author: Tim2
Date: 1999-03-11 02:41
I was always able to take math and music in high school back in the early 70's. It was not a problem.
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Author: mommaq
Date: 1999-03-11 04:17
Tim:
That's when you had time to breathe, too. Kids these days have something called block scheduling which is akin to college semesters. They get the bonus of having 4 courses a day for a semester and 4 different ones in the Spring. Altogether, they get really one more course completed per year...so need more credits to graduate as study halls are not an option. The problem arises when one takes math in the fall of a year and is not assigned the next math course until the spring a full year later. The guidance dept. says that this is common policy in colleges...that kids do well if they have no math for a year and then pick it up again.
Schools want this and push it believeing that kids will take music and such, but it isn't always the case. In fact, our band program meets during half of lunch, a real non-class time. Go figure.
BUT......that's why I want my kids to continue with the music since it's so much math, only in a different kind of way...!
mommaq
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Author: Rick2
Date: 1999-03-11 04:37
Mommaq: where are you that has block scheduling schools? I don't think they do that here in Silicon Valley.
Still, last year I spent an hour a day on my clarinet while working full time as an engineer, writing a masters thesis that involved solving the 3-dimensional wave equation in prolate spherical coordinates, with two loud toddlers and an infant not yet sleeping through the night in the same house, and a wife that insists on some activities that automatically kills half of saturday, so I personally think doing math and band in high school should be a piece of cake.
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-03-11 11:57
mommaq wrote:
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The guidance dept. says that this is common policy in colleges...that kids do well if they have no math for a year and then pick it up again.
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That's definately <b>not</b> the policy at U of Michigan Ann Arbor, one of the finest engineering schools in the US. If you go into engineering you'll be taking math every semester - in fact, there's no way you can get <i>enough</i> math as an undergrad. If, however, you're going for a liberal arts degree, the math isn't going to be as intensive.
I took EE courses in my university days - and they were primarily math courses.
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Author: mommaq
Date: 1999-03-11 18:30
Go to the Nat. Assn of Music Education (MENC) main page
http://www.menc.org/index2.html
and press the Teachers & Administrators button. This will take you to a page that has information on 'Block Scheduling'. This section refers particularly to getting the most you can teaching music under the block scheduling banner.
This particular form of teaching is currently sweeping the nation. Many are for it, many against it. You can probably also find more pros and cons if you do a search.
I am suprised you haven't encountered it yet...but I wager it's on the way somewhere near you. Better dicipline of students (no study halls and less class changing/hall walking) and less absenteeism are two of the selling points.
Be very careful of what you wish for....
Yes...you did math while taking music. I am afraid for those who are 'put on vacation' for a year from math..and they DON'T take music what effect that long vacation will have on their performance when they resume their studies.
mommaq
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